Fightin' Navy #117

In January 1942, Ensign Joe Schroeder and his MTB Squadron 7 are stationed in the Philippine Islands following the attack on Pearl Harbor, navigating dangerous waters while evading Japanese fighters and forging alliances with local villagers in the village of Pagalu. When word comes of a chance to obtain vital gasoline supplies from enemy territory, Schroeder must decide whether to trust his crew and their Filipino allies with this critical mission. "The Revengers" captures the camaraderie and desperation of PT boat crews fighting to stay in the war, one risky operation at a time.

Lieutenant Commander Jake Rudin has spent nine years in the Navy feeling sidelined—until his decrepit cargo ship, the Rusty Kate, gets caught in a typhoon and wrecks on a Japanese-held island in enemy waters. When Rudin and his skeleton crew discover a massive concentration of enemy bombers on the island's airfield, the skipper sees his chance to finally fight—and hatches a desperate plan to strike the installation while a radioman alerts the Air Force to the threat. As Rudin's men hit the airfield from two flanks with everything they've got, they'll discover whether a cargo ship's crew can hold their own against an entrenched enemy.

This single-page tribute honors the submarine force of World War II, whose modest two percent of the American Navy was responsible for sinking fifty-five percent of enemy merchant ships and twenty-nine percent of Japanese naval vessels. The story acknowledges the steep price paid by submariners—fifty-two boats lost and over three thousand men and officers—and celebrates their extraordinary courage in turning the tide when the Navy faced its darkest hour at Pearl Harbor.

A navy landing craft coxswain witnesses the brutal assault on Normandy Beach and watches helplessly as G.I.s are cut down by enemy fire from a fortified Nazi command post—until he and his crew decide they can't just abandon the troops to slaughter. Frankie and his makeshift band of sailors scramble up the beach under withering gunfire to help neutralize the bunker, turning an impossible situation into a desperate fight for survival that will test every bit of courage they can muster.