Fightin' Navy #119

A fighter pilot with the escort carrier group "Taffy 3" finds himself caught in the thick of the Battle off Samar on October 25, 1944—a chaotic naval engagement where a small American force faces down a major Japanese fleet led by the mighty *Yamato*. Outnumbered and outgunned, the pilots and destroyers must somehow hold the line through strafing runs, torpedo attacks, and desperate maneuvers, all while Japanese command makes costly blunders that shift the tide of battle. It's a tale of courage under impossible odds, where a handful of determined men refuse to go down without a fight.

This is a one-page historical tribute to the submarine service in World War II, celebrating the achievements and sacrifice of the sailors who earned the dolphin insignia—a small fraction of the Navy that sank more than half of all enemy ships destroyed during the war. The piece honors the courage of these volunteers despite devastating casualty rates, revealing the human cost behind the submarines' legendary effectiveness in the Pacific theater.

The crew of U.S.S. Duncaid volunteers for a perilous mission to land Norwegian underground agents and American Rangers behind enemy lines in a Nazi-controlled fiord, knowing the Germans are aware of their approach. As the ship races for open water after the Rangers complete their sabotage, the Nazis spring their trap—flooding the narrow waterway with gasoline, sowing it with magnetic mines, and blocking the exit with destroyers. Ensign Ruggles and the battered destroyer must fight their way through impossible odds to bring their men home.

When a Japanese cruiser attacks Captain A.L. Searles' aging American cruiser carrying vital dispatches and an admiral, Searles deliberately grounds his sinking ship on a remote coral island to protect his cargo and crew. Stranded on the island while enemy forces close in from all sides, Searles and his men must hold their position long enough for naval air support and submarine rescue to arrive under cover of darkness.

In "Yoshi's Victory," a stranded commander, left behind on a remote island after his cruiser is destroyed by the elusive enemy captain Yoshi, clings to hope as he waits for rescue. Once rescued, he and his crew are given a new ship and a chance to turn the tide—leading them on a mission to confront Yoshi and reclaim their honor.