Topic: A Classic "Rest of the Story"

[Ravok]

 Ill be darned i had no idea!!  

[KOTH-Steel Claw]

SAme here. I had heard of [bleep] O'Hare some time ago while reading WW II history, but I didn't know about his father. I did check some listings on Butch to verify that his father was a lawyer killed by the mob.  

[Sirgod]

Wow indeed, That one gave me chills . Great post.

Stephen

[Javora]

Great story and a great find.  Thanks.
 

[Kmelew]

I remember reading some time ago that Butch O'Hare was the son of a Chicago mobster.  Thanks for the find and the rest of the story!  

[TB613]

While story number two is good it is incorrect on some points.

From the American Aces of WWII  Home Page and the page on O'Hare,  Butch O'Hare  

Quote:
 Saving the Lexington
On February 20, 1942, Butch O'Hare demonstrated in real life, and when it counted most, the fighting skills he had mastered. The carrier Lexington had been assigned the dangerous task of penetrating enemy-held waters north of New Ireland. From there her planes were to make a strike at Japanese shipping in the harbor at Rabaul. Unfortunately, while still 400 miles from Rabaul, the Lexington was discovered by a giant four-engine Kawanishi flying boat. Lieutenant Commander John Thach, skipper of the Lexington's Wildcat fighters, shot down the Japanese "Snooper," but not before it had radioed the carrier's position. That afternoon Commander Thach led six Wildcats into the air to intercept nine twin-engine enemy bombers. In a determined attack each of the Wildcats destroyed a bomber and damaged two more. The ship's anti-aircraft guns finished off the rest. In the meantime, nine more Japanese bombers were reported on the way. Six Wildcats, one of them piloted by Butch O'Hare, roared off the Lexington's deck to stop them. O'Hare and his wingman spotted the V formation of bombers first and dived to try to head them off. The other F4F pilots were too far away to reach most of the enemy planes before they released their bombs. As if this weren't bad enough, O'Hare's wingman discovered his guns were jammed. He was forced to turn away. Butch O'Hare stood alone between the Lexington and the bombers.

O'Hare didn't hesitate. Full throttle, he roared into the enemy formation. While tracers from the concentrated fire of the nine bombers streaked around him, he took careful aim at the starboard engine of the last plane in the V and squeezed his trigger. Slugs from the Wildcats six .50-caliber guns ripped into the Japanese bomber's wing and the engine literally jumped out of its mountings. The bomber spun crazily toward the sea as O'Hare's guns tore up another enemy plane. Then he ducked to the other side of the formation and smashed the port engine of the last Japanese plane there.

One by one he attacked the oncoming bombers until five had been downed. Commander Thach later reported that at one point he saw three of the bombers falling in flames at the same time. By now Thach and the other pilots had joined the fight. This was lucky because O'Hare was out of ammunition. The Wildcats took care of several more bombers and Lexington managed to evade the few bombs that were released. It was an amazing example of daring and shooting skill. Afterward Thach figured out that Butch O'Hare had used only sixty rounds of ammunition for each plane he destroyed. He had probably saved his ship. He was promoted to Lieutenant Commander and awarded the highest decoration of his country, the Congressional Medal of Honor.
 

From the Office of Naval intelligence  Action Off Rabaul  

Quote:
 Meanwhile, a second group of nine enemy planes was detected by radar approaching from eastward. All Lexington fighters in the air except two were pursuing the remnants of the first wave of enemy planes and were not in a position to intercept. As the enemy came up on the starboard quarter, the two available fighters, led by Lt. Edward H. O'Hare, attacked. The guns of one fighter immediately jammed. Lieutenant O'Hare continued to attack alone. He shot down two bombers almost at once and damaged three others, so that only four of the enemy reached the release point. The Lexington maneuvered radically, and the salvo fell astern, the nearest splash being 100 feet away.


--38--

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Lieutenant O'Hare, meanwhile, persisted in his attacks and shot down two more bombers in flames and caused a third to crash into the sea. He thus was directly responsible for the destruction of five enemy planes. In the opinion of Admiral Brown and of Capt. Frederick Sherman, commanding the Lexington, Lieutenant O'Hare's skill and daring may have saved the carrier from serious damage or even loss.
 

While the two sites differ in some details, his actions that day were truely amazing.  

[KOTH-Steel Claw]

 

Quote:
While the two sites differ in some details, his actions that day were truely amazing.  

Agreed on the actions of the day when O'Hare intercepted the Japanese planes.

As was practice, most planes did not return alone when they experienced some type of problem. I think the second listing you gave was probably more accurate.