Carrier Air Group detail for the Battle of Midway

[PMoz99]

A few years ago I bookmarked several appendices pages of a site at www.centuryinter.net, but sadly the site is now defunct.
The site's appendices detailed for each of the units, eg VB-3, VF-3, VF-6 and so on, each aircraft code for each mission and also listed the crewmembers for each aircraft for each mission. The relevant appenices on the old site were, from memory, either 4 or 7.
I have since found some info for VB-3, VS-5, VB-6 and VS-6 at various other sites, but really want VF-3, VF-5 and VF-6 in particular, and these still elude me.
The information is like this -
3-B-1 Lt-Cdr.M.F. Leslie GALLAGHER, W.E. ARM1c
3-B-2 Lt(jg) P.A. Holmberg LA PLANT G.A., AMM2c
3-B-3 Ensign P.W. Schlegel SHROPSHIRE, J.A., ARM2c
3-B-4 Ensign R.K. Campbell CRAIG, H.H., AMM1c
3-B-5 Ensign A.W. Hanson GODFREY, J.J., ARM3c
3-B-6 Ensign R.H. Benson BERGERON, F.P., ARM3c
As the battle continuedand aircraft were lost, the code order didn't look as neat as that above.
Did anyone here happen to save the info? Can anyone tell me if this info was saved on another site? If so, where?? Is it available anywhere else?
Thanks
Peter

[Laurent Rizzotti]

Have you tried the Web Archive website:
https://web.archive.org/web/*/www.centuryinter.net

Websites will usually be incomplete but you can still find what you search.

[peter.r]

Have you also tried the book "THE FIRST TEAM" by JOHN B.LUNDSTROM it may give you the info you are looking for. peter.r

[PMoz99]

Thanks Laurent - found most of it at the link you provided. The bits I had found already were at an archive site archive.li.
Thanks for the book reference Peter.
Cheers
Peter

[R Leonard]

You can find transcriptions of the VB-3 report and others are here
http://www.midway1942.com/docs/usn_doc_08.shtml

[James S.]

Another book is Pacific Payback: The Carrier Aviators Who Avenged Pearl Harbor at the Battle of Midway by Stephen L. Moore which details the dive bomber crews in the Battle of Midway. Another book of his is The Battle for Hell's Island: How a Small Band of Carrier Dive-Bombers Helped Save Guadalcanal by Stephen L. Moore which deals with dive bomber crews from December 7 through Coral Sea, then Guadalcanal.

James

[PMoz99]

Originally Posted by R Leonard

You can find transcriptions of the VB-3 report and others are here
http://www.midway1942.com/docs/usn_doc_08.shtml

Thanks for that. I had alrerady seen this site, but it doesn't list any of the fighter groups.
Peter

[R Leonard]

Originally Posted by PMoz99

Thanks for that. I had alrerady seen this site, but it doesn't list any of the fighter groups.
Peter

Ah, VF reports are a little hard to come by. I've some VF-6 stuff digitally and Thach's VF-3 ACA.

Shoot, my father was in VF-3/42 and while I do have some original documents, including a copy the tactical organization after Lovelace's death, and I've scanned a few of them, I am mostly loath to drag them out as they are a little fragile.

I suspect that after 10 fighters went in the water including the CO, VF-8 may have been a little reluctant to produce a report. That squadron was disestablished within days of the return to Pearl Harbor.

Anyway, here's the VF-3 organization from 31 May 1942 if it is of any use.

Rich

[PMoz99]

Originally Posted by R Leonard

Ah, VF reports are a little hard to come by. I've some VF-6 stuff digitally and Thach's VF-3 ACA.

Shoot, my father was in VF-3/42 and while I do have some original documents, including a copy the tactical organization after Lovelace's death, and I've scanned a few of them, I am mostly loath to drag them out as they are a little fragile.

I suspect that after 10 fighters went in the water including the CO, VF-8 may have been a little reluctant to produce a report. That squadron was disestablished within days of the return to Pearl Harbor.

Anyway, here's the VF-3 organization from 31 May 1942 if it is of any use.

Rich

Thanks. That doc matches the info on the website. The VF-8 data shows only 3 pilot losses - Kelly, Hill and Groves, so I assume the other a/c were either shot down or ditched and the pilots recovered. Ineterestingly, the USS Hornet report states 12 F4F-4's were lost on 4 June, with 6 pilots recovered.
Cheers
Peter

[R Leonard]

Originally Posted by PMoz99

Thanks. That doc matches the info on the website.

It should, it was the source. AFAIK it is the only copy in existence. My father found it stuffed in the pocket of his flight jacket after the battle . . . that's his signature on the bottom. And the final disposition of the VF-3 aircraft came from a report he drew up while aboard Hornet . . . I've the original of that around here somewhere, too.