One pilot. One slow, unarmed flying boat. And a harbor full of Japanese guns waiting for him to land.
On February 15, 1944, a Fifth Air Force bombing raid on Kavieng Harbor went wrong. American planes started falling from the sky. Crews were ditching into eighteen-foot swells, six hundred yards from enemy shore batteries. No fighter cover. No warships nearby. Just one PBY Catalina circling overhead — and a twenty-seven-year-old pilot who had to decide whether to go down there.
He went down. And then he went down again. And again.
What happened inside that harbor — how many times he landed, what his crew did to keep the aircraft from breaking apart, and how they made it home — is one of the most extraordinary rescue missions of the entire Pacific War. There's a reason the Navy gave him their highest honor.
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On February 15, 1944, a Fifth Air Force bombing raid on Kavieng Harbor went wrong. American planes started falling from the sky. Crews were ditching into eighteen-foot swells, six hundred yards from enemy shore batteries. No fighter cover. No warships nearby. Just one PBY Catalina circling overhead — and a twenty-seven-year-old pilot who had to decide whether to go down there.
He went down. And then he went down again. And again.
What happened inside that harbor — how many times he landed, what his crew did to keep the aircraft from breaking apart, and how they made it home — is one of the most extraordinary rescue missions of the entire Pacific War. There's a reason the Navy gave him their highest honor.
Subscribe for forgotten WW2 stories ▶️ https://www.youtube.com/@ww2dispatchh
Like if you think this story deserves to be remembered.
Comment below — where are you watching from?
#worldwar2 #ww2 #militaryhistory #ww2stories #ww2dispatch
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LearningTranscript
00:00Smoke was rising from Kaviang Harbor at 8.15 on February 15, 1944,
00:07and Lieutenant Junior Grade Nathan Gordon banked his PBY Catalina
00:11into a slow circle above V2 Islands,
00:1420 miles south of the heaviest anti-aircraft fire in the Bismarck Sea.
00:19He was 27.
00:20He had flown 32 rescue missions and never lost a single man he'd been sent to save.
00:25Below him, 18 Japanese gun batteries were already tracking his aircraft.
00:30Gordon's squadron, VP-34, had earned the nickname Black Cats
00:35for flying night missions in flat black paint.
00:37But today was different.
00:39The 5th Air Force had sent four squadrons of A-20 Havocs
00:42and seven squadrons of B-25 Mitchells to bomb Japanese installations at Kaviang.
00:48Gordon's PBY-5A Arkansas Traveler was flying Dumbo duty.
00:53Search and Rescue.
00:54Four P-47 Thunderbolts from the 348th Fighter Group circled above him as escorts.
01:01The radio crackled at 8.23.
01:03An A-20 Havoc had been hit by anti-aircraft fire.
01:07The crew had ditched in the harbor.
01:09Gordon's co-pilot marked the position, 12 miles inside enemy-controlled waters.
01:14Japanese shore batteries had clear lines of fire across the entire harbor.
01:18The PBY Catalina was built for patrol and rescue, not combat.
01:24Maximum speed, 195 miles per hour.
01:27Cruise speed, 125.
01:30Most Japanese fighters could hit 350.
01:33The aircraft was 63 feet long, with a wingspan of 104 feet.
01:38A massive, slow-moving target.
01:40Eight crew members.
01:42Two Pratt & Whitney engines producing 1,200 horsepower each.
01:46It could fly 2,500 miles without refueling, but it couldn't outrun anything.
01:51Gordon had read the statistics.
01:52In the past six months, three PBY Catalinas had been shot down attempting harbor rescues in the Bismarck Sea.
01:59Nineteen crew members killed.
02:01The problem was simple.
02:03To rescue downed airmen, you had to land.
02:06Landing meant shutting down engines, sitting still in the water, a stationary target for every Japanese gunner within range.
02:13The weather wasn't helping.
02:14The radio man reported swells running 16 to 18 feet high.
02:18Wind gusts at 20 knots.
02:20Almost no surface wind in the harbor itself.
02:23That created a problem.
02:25The PBY needed wind across the hull to generate lift for takeoff.
02:29Without wind, the aircraft would sit low in the water.
02:32Nose heavy.
02:34One wrong wave, and the bow would submarine.
02:37The whole crew would drown before Japanese gunners could finish the job.
02:41Gordon descended to 200 feet.
02:43The harbor came into view.
02:45Caviang sat on the northern tip of New Ireland Island.
02:48The Japanese had turned it into a fortress.
02:51Coastal defense guns.
02:52Anti-aircraft positions.
02:54Fighter strips.
02:55Supply depots.
02:5712,000 troops.
02:59The 5th Air Force raid was hitting them hard.
03:01Black smoke rose from fuel storage tanks.
03:05Explosions rippled along the waterfront.
03:07At 841, Gordon spotted the first raft.
03:10Three men.
03:11Waving.
03:12600 yards from the nearest Japanese gun position.
03:16The radio man called it in.
03:18Gordon's flight engineer checked the fuel.
03:20They had enough to make it back to Samurai Base.
03:23Barely.
03:24If they landed now, picked up three men, and left immediately.
03:28Gordon looked at the harbor.
03:3018 foot swells.
03:31No wind.
03:32Japanese gunners tracking their position.
03:35The math was brutal.
03:37Every second in the water increased the chance of getting hit.
03:40Every second delayed meant those men might die.
03:43Gordon is about to land in that harbor.
03:45If you want to see what happens next, please take a second and like this video.
03:49Every like pushes this story to more people who've never heard of Nathan Gordon.
03:54And if you're not subscribed yet, now's a good time.
03:57Back to Kaviang Harbor.
03:59The radio man's voice cut through at 843.
04:02Second aircraft down.
04:04B-25 Mitchell.
04:05Four crew members in the water.
04:07Different location.
04:09Then a third call.
04:10Another B-25.
04:12Six men.
04:13Gordon's navigator plotted the positions.
04:16Three separate rescue sites.
04:17All inside the harbor.
04:19All under Japanese fire.
04:21Gordon made the decision at 844.
04:23He pushed the control yoke forward.
04:26The PBY dropped toward the water.
04:28His co-pilot called out altitude.
04:30500 feet.
04:31300.
04:32100.
04:33The P-47 escorts peeled off.
04:36They couldn't follow him down.
04:38Their fuel was running low.
04:39Gordon was on his own.
04:41Eight crew members.
04:42A flying boat designed for long-range patrol.
04:45Not for combat landings in enemy harbors during active bombings.
04:49The Japanese batteries opened fire as he descended through 50 feet.
04:53Tracer rounds arced across the sky.
04:56His waste gunners couldn't return fire effectively.
04:59The PBY's defensive armament was designed for air-to-air combat, not suppressing shore batteries.
05:05At 846, Gordon leveled off at wave height.
05:08The first raft was dead ahead.
05:10Three men.
05:11Barely visible in the massive swells.
05:14He had one chance to get this right.
05:16If the bow caught a wave wrong during landing, the aircraft would flip.
05:20If he stalled too high, they'd hit the water too hard and break apart.
05:23If Japanese gunners found their range, everyone would die.
05:28Gordon cut power to both engines at 847.
05:31The PBY dropped toward the churning sea.
05:3318 foot swells.
05:35No wind.
05:36Enemy guns tracking his position.
05:38And three men waiting to see if this crazy pilot was brave enough or stupid enough to land.
05:44The PBY hit the water at 847.
05:47Hard.
05:47The impact sent shockwaves through the hull.
05:50Gordon felt rivets pop in the fuselage.
05:53Seawater sprayed through gaps in the seams.
05:56The bow plunged into a swell and came up streaming.
05:59The aircraft shuddered, but held together.
06:02Gordon's flight engineer scrambled toward the bow.
06:04His job was critical now.
06:06Control the trim.
06:07Keep the nose from submarining.
06:09The PBY wallowed in the swells like a wounded whale.
06:1318 feet of vertical movement.
06:15Up.
06:16Down.
06:16Up again.
06:18The airframe groaned under the stress.
06:20Japanese gunners had the range.
06:22Shells exploded in the water 200 yards to starboard.
06:26Then 100 yards.
06:27The gunners were walking their fire toward the stationary aircraft.
06:31Gordon's waist gunners returned fire, but their .50 caliber machine guns couldn't reach the shore positions.
06:37They were shooting to make the Japanese keep their heads down.
06:40Nothing more.
06:41The flight engineer reached the bow hatch.
06:44He pushed it open.
06:44Wind and spray hit him.
06:47He looked for the raft.
06:48The swells made visibility nearly impossible.
06:51One second he could see half a mile.
06:53The next second, a wall of water blocked everything.
06:56He spotted movement.
06:58A raft riding up a swell 300 yards away.
07:01Gordon couldn't maneuver under power.
07:03The PBY would break apart if he tried to taxi in these conditions.
07:07The aircraft drifted.
07:09The current was pulling them away from the raft.
07:11His navigator did the math.
07:13At this drift rate, they'd miss the survivors by 200 yards.
07:17Gordon made a decision.
07:18He fired up the port engine.
07:20Just enough power to close the distance.
07:22The engine coughed.
07:24Caught.
07:24Black smoke poured from the exhaust.
07:27A shell exploded 50 yards to port.
07:30Shrapnel peppered the hull.
07:31More seams split.
07:33The radioman reported water coming in faster.
07:36The bilge pumps were running, but they couldn't keep up.
07:39Gordon cut the engine.
07:40The PBY coasted toward the raft.
07:43The flight engineer grabbed a rope.
07:44The raft came alongside at 8.51.
07:47He reached down.
07:49No hands reached back.
07:50The raft was empty.
07:52No bodies.
07:53No equipment.
07:54Just an empty life raft riding the swells.
07:57The A-20 crew was gone.
07:59Either killed in the crash or drowned in the heavy seas before Gordon could reach them.
08:03Four minutes in the water.
08:05The hull had taken damage.
08:07Seams were leaking.
08:07Japanese gunners were finding their range.
08:10And Gordon had just risked eight crew members for an empty raft.
08:14His co-pilot looked at him.
08:15They both knew the statistics.
08:17Most rescue attempts in enemy harbors ended this way.
08:20You arrived too late.
08:22Or the survivors were already gone.
08:24The radioman's voice came through the intercom.
08:27The two B-25 crews were still in the water.
08:30Six men in one location.
08:32Four in another.
08:33Both rafts visible.
08:35Both crews waving.
08:36Gordon had a choice.
08:37Head for home with a damaged aircraft and eight crew members.
08:41Or attempt two more landings in conditions that were already impossible.
08:45Gordon checked his fuel.
08:47They'd burned through reserves maneuvering.
08:49The P-47 escorts were gone.
08:51Out of fuel.
08:52Headed back to base.
08:53The PBY was alone in Caviang Harbor.
08:56Damaged.
08:57Leaking.
08:58Under fire.
08:59With two more crews waiting.
09:01He fired both engines.
09:02The PBY struggled to build speed.
09:05The hull sat lower in the water now.
09:07Heavier.
09:08The flooded compartments were dragging them down.
09:11His flight engineer reported three inches of water in the navigator's compartment.
09:15Six inches in the radio room.
09:17The pumps couldn't keep pace.
09:18Takeoff speed for a PBY-5A was 75 knots.
09:23Gordon needed wind across the hull to generate lift.
09:26The harbor was nearly calm.
09:28He'd have to drag the aircraft across the water through sheer engine power.
09:32The engines screamed.
09:341,200 horsepower each.
09:36Smoke poured from both exhausts.
09:3850 knots.
09:3960.
09:40The hull hammered against the swells.
09:42More rivets popped.
09:44The waste gunner reported a crack forming in the port blister.
09:4765 knots.
09:49The PBY was shaking apart.
09:5170 knots.
09:52The nose came up.
09:5473.
09:55Gordon pulled back on the yoke.
09:57The aircraft lifted at 8.54.
09:59Barely.
10:00The hull dragged through the top of one final swell, and then they were airborne.
10:05Climbing at 200 feet per minute.
10:07Painfully slow.
10:08Japanese gunners tracked them.
10:10Tracers followed the climbing aircraft.
10:13A shell burst behind them.
10:14Then another.
10:15Gordon banked left.
10:17Headed for the second raft.
10:18His navigator called out the position.
10:20Four men.
10:22B-25 crew.
10:23Three miles northeast.
10:25Different section of the harbor.
10:26Gordon descended.
10:27The radio man was listening to 5th Air Force frequencies.
10:30The bombing raid was ending.
10:32Aircraft were pulling out.
10:33Heading home.
10:34The Japanese gunners would have nothing else to shoot at soon.
10:38Just one slow PBY, making its second approach.
10:41Gordon leveled off at 100 feet.
10:43The raft came into view at 857.
10:46Four men.
10:47All waving.
10:48All alive.
10:49The water looked worse here.
10:51Swells running even higher.
10:5320 feet.
10:54Maybe more.
10:54Cross currents from the harbor mouth were creating chaotic wave patterns.
10:59His co-pilot ran the numbers.
11:01The aircraft was already damaged.
11:03They'd taken on water.
11:04The whole integrity was compromised.
11:06A second landing in these conditions might break the airframe completely.
11:10The PBY could split in half on impact.
11:13Gordon looked at the four men in the raft.
11:15Then at his eight crew members.
11:17Thirteen lives versus four.
11:19The mathematics of survival.
11:20He'd already lost one crew today.
11:22The empty raft haunted him.
11:24Those men had died waiting for rescue that came too late.
11:27He pushed the control yoke forward.
11:29The PBY dropped toward the violent sea.
11:32His flight engineer braced in the bow.
11:34His waste gunners gripped their stations.
11:36Everyone knew what was coming.
11:38This landing would either save four lives or kill 13.
11:42Gordon cut power at 900 feet.
11:44The damaged PBY fell toward Caviang Harbor for the second time in 12 minutes.
11:49The second impact was worse.
11:51The PBY slammed into a trough between swells.
11:54The hull flexed.
11:56Metal screamed.
11:57Gordon heard something crack deep in the fuselage.
12:00The aircraft pitched forward, nose down.
12:03The flight engineer threw his weight backward.
12:05The bow lifted.
12:06Barely.
12:07Seawater poured through the forward hatch.
12:10Gordon fought the controls.
12:11The PBY was wallowing, taking on water faster now.
12:15The crack in the port blister had widened to six inches.
12:18Every wave that hit sent spray through the gap.
12:21His waste gunner stuffed a life vest into the opening.
12:24It slowed the leak, but didn't stop it.
12:26The raft was 40 yards away.
12:28Gordon couldn't risk engine power this close.
12:31The propeller wash would flip the raft.
12:33His flight engineer threw the rescue line.
12:35It fell short.
12:37He coiled it.
12:38Threw again.
12:39This time, one of the B-25 crew members caught it.
12:42They pulled the raft alongside at 9.03.
12:45Four men climbed aboard.
12:47Two were injured.
12:48One had a gash across his forehead.
12:50Blood mixed with seawater.
12:52The other had a dislocated shoulder from the ditching.
12:55Gordon's radioman helped them into the main cabin.
12:58The PBY sat lower in the water.
13:00Four additional men meant roughly 700 pounds,
13:03plus their soaked flight gear.
13:05The aircraft was designed for a crew of eight.
13:08Now they had 12 aboard.
13:10Japanese shells continued to fall.
13:12Closer now.
13:14The gunners had adjusted their aim.
13:16One explosion sent a column of water 30 feet high just off the starboard wing.
13:21Shrapnel rattled against the hull.
13:23Another hit punched through the fabric covering on the tail.
13:26The rudder control cables were still intact,
13:29but Gordon could feel the sluggish response.
13:32He needed altitude.
13:33Fast.
13:34The engines roared at 9.05.
13:36The overloaded PBY accelerated.
13:39Slower this time.
13:41The extra weight was killing their performance.
13:4340 knots.
13:4450.
13:45The hull pounded through the swells.
13:48The navigator's compartment now had 8 inches of standing water.
13:51The bilge pumps were screaming.
13:5360 knots.
13:5565.
13:56The PBY wouldn't lift.
13:58Too heavy.
13:59Gordon held the yoke steady.
14:0170 knots.
14:02Still stuck to the water.
14:0473.
14:04He pulled back.
14:06Nothing.
14:07The aircraft was trapped.
14:09Hydroplaning but not flying.
14:11One more swell and the nose would catch.
14:13They'd cartwheel and disintegrate.
14:15Gordon made a decision.
14:17He pushed both throttles to maximum emergency power.
14:20The engines howled.
14:22RPM gauges climbed into the red.
14:25The manufacturer's limit was 2,600 RPM.
14:28Gordon was pulling 2,800.
14:30The engines could tear themselves apart at this setting.
14:3376 knots.
14:35The hull lifted.
14:36Inches.
14:37Gordon felt it.
14:39He eased back on the yoke.
14:40The PBY broke free at 9.07, climbing at 100 feet per minute.
14:45Half the normal rate.
14:46The overloaded aircraft clawed for altitude.
14:49Gordon leveled at 200 feet.
14:51Any higher and they'd be easy targets for Japanese fighters if any showed up.
14:55His navigator plotted a course for Samurai Base, 230 miles southeast.
15:01At current speed and fuel consumption, they'd make it.
15:03Barely.
15:04The rescued B-25 crew members were sitting in the main cabin.
15:08Wet.
15:09Exhausted.
15:10Alive.
15:11Four men who would have died if Gordon had turned for home after the first empty raft.
15:15The radio man was monitoring frequencies.
15:18He heard the call at 9.12.
15:21Another B-25 crew.
15:22Five men.
15:23Still in the water.
15:24Different location.
15:26North side of the harbor.
15:27The transmission was weak.
15:29Fading.
15:30The crew's radio was dying.
15:31Gordon's co-pilot did the math immediately.
15:34They were already overloaded.
15:35Fuel was critical.
15:37The aircraft was damaged.
15:39Hull integrity compromised.
15:40Every system stressed beyond limits.
15:42Adding five more men would put them at 17 total.
15:46The PBY's absolute maximum capacity was 15, and that was in perfect conditions with
15:51a pristine airframe.
15:53The navigator confirmed the position.
15:55The new raft was near the harbor entrance, close to the heaviest concentration of Japanese
16:00guns.
16:01The shore batteries there had direct line of sight.
16:03No cover.
16:04No approach angle that wouldn't expose them to sustained fire.
16:08Gordon checked his fuel gauges.
16:09They'd burned through another 8% during the second takeoff.
16:13The engines had been running at emergency power.
16:16That consumed fuel at triple the normal rate.
16:18If they attempted a third landing, they might not have enough to reach base.
16:22They could end up ditching an open ocean.
16:24All 17 men dead.
16:26His flight engineer reported the damage assessment.
16:28The crack in the port blister was growing.
16:31The forward compartment had 12 inches of water.
16:33The fabric on the tail was shredding in the slipstream.
16:36The rudder response was degraded by 30%.
16:39One engine was running hot.
16:41Oil pressure fluctuating.
16:43The voice on the radio called again.
16:45Weaker now.
16:46Five men.
16:47B-25 crew.
16:48They'd watched Gordon's two landings.
16:50They knew he was out here.
16:52They were counting on him.
16:53The transmission cut out.
16:55Silence.
16:56Gordon looked at his eight crew members.
16:58Then, at the four rescued airmen sitting in the cabin.
17:01Exhausted.
17:02Hypothermic.
17:03Alive.
17:04Because he'd made two impossible landings.
17:07The mathematics kept changing.
17:09Thirteen lives aboard.
17:10Five lives waiting.
17:12Japanese guns tracking.
17:13Fuel running low.
17:15Aircraft falling apart.
17:16His co-pilot spoke quietly.
17:19They could make it home.
17:20Right now.
17:21Samarai Base.
17:23Medical care for the injured.
17:24Hot food.
17:25Dry bunks.
17:26Mission accomplished.
17:28Four men saved.
17:29The Navy would call it a success.
17:31Metal commendations for the crew.
17:33No one would question the decision to head back.
17:35Gordon adjusted course at 9.15.
17:38Not toward Samarai.
17:39Toward the North Harbor entrance.
17:41Toward the heaviest guns.
17:43Toward five men, who had maybe ten minutes before hypothermia killed them.
17:47His navigator updated the fuel calculations.
17:50If they landed again, they'd be flying home on fumes.
17:53If they took on five more men, the aircraft might not lift at all.
17:57The co-pilot asked the question everyone was thinking.
18:00Could the PBY even survive a third landing?
18:03The hull was leaking.
18:04The structure was compromised.
18:06The tail was damaged.
18:07One hard impact and the airframe could split.
18:10Everyone dies.
18:11Gordon descended to 100 feet.
18:13The harbor entrance came into view.
18:15Japanese gun positions lined both sides.
18:18Dozens of them.
18:19All tracking the slow-moving PBY.
18:21The raft appeared at 9.17.
18:24Five men.
18:25Waving.
18:26300 yards from the nearest gun battery.
18:29This landing would either save five lives or N-13.
18:32Gordon pushed the control yoke forward.
18:34The third landing happened at 9.20.
18:37Gordon cut power over the raft.
18:39The PBY dropped.
18:40The damaged hull hit harder this time.
18:43The impact drove seawater up through the compromised seams.
18:46The navigator's compartment flooded instantly.
18:4918 inches of water.
18:50The radioman abandoned his station.
18:52Moved aft.
18:53The radio equipment was underwater.
18:56The aircraft settled deeper.
18:58Gordon felt the difference immediately.
19:00The PBY was riding low.
19:02Too low.
19:02Waves were breaking over the bow.
19:04His flight engineer was chest-deep in water, trying to reach the forward hatch.
19:09The raft was alongside.
19:10Five men.
19:11All climbing aboard at once.
19:13No time for careful weight distribution.
19:16Japanese gunners opened up with everything.
19:18The PBY was stationary.
19:20300 yards from shore.
19:22An easy target.
19:23Tracers crisscrossed the water.
19:25Shells exploded.
19:26One hit sent shrapnel through the starboard engine cowling.
19:30Oil sprayed from a severed line.
19:32The engine temperature gauge climbed.
19:34Gordon shut it down before it seized.
19:36One engine.
19:3717 men.
19:38Sinking hull.
19:39The rescued B-25 crew members were packed into the main cabin.
19:43Some sitting.
19:45Some lying down.
19:46No room to move.
19:47The flight engineer finally reached the bow hatch and sealed it.
19:51Water stopped pouring in.
19:52But the damage was done.
19:54The forward third of the aircraft was flooded.
19:56Gordon fired the remaining port engine at 923.
19:59Maximum power.
20:01The propeller bit into the air.
20:02The PBY lurched forward.
20:04Barely moving.
20:06The flooded bow was acting like an anchor.
20:08Dragging them down.
20:0930 knots.
20:1040.
20:11Not enough.
20:12The aircraft was wallowing.
20:14Taking on more water with every wave.
20:16His co-pilot worked the trim controls.
20:18Trying to get the nose up.
20:20The tail down.
20:21Shift the weight distribution.
20:2345 knots.
20:24The hull was shuddering.
20:26The single engine screaming.
20:2750 knots.
20:29Still not enough.
20:29Gordon needed both engines for this.
20:32But the starboard engine was dead.
20:34Oil pressure zero.
20:35He made a decision.
20:36He fired the damaged starboard engine.
20:38Oil sprayed from the severed line.
20:41The engine coughed.
20:42Caught.
20:43Ran rough.
20:44Temperature gauge immediately went into the red.
20:46The engine wouldn't last long.
20:48Maybe two minutes.
20:49Maybe less.
20:50But Gordon needed those two minutes.
20:52Both engines at emergency power.
20:54The PBY accelerated.
20:5660 knots.
20:5765.
20:58The bow lifted slightly.
21:00Water poured from the forward hatch.
21:0270 knots.
21:03The hull was hammering through the swells.
21:05Rivets popping like gunfire.
21:0875.
21:09Gordon pulled back on the yoke.
21:11The PBY lifted at 925.
21:13The starboard engine was smoking.
21:15Temperature gauge pegged at maximum.
21:17Gordon held emergency power for another 10 seconds.
21:20The aircraft climbed to 50 feet.
21:22100.
21:23He pulled both throttles back.
21:25The starboard engine died immediately.
21:27Seized solid.
21:28The propeller windmilled to a stop.
21:31One engine.
21:3217 men.
21:33Damaged hull.
21:34No radio.
21:35Gordon trimmed for single-engine flight.
21:37The PBY could maintain altitude on one engine.
21:40Barely.
21:41But they couldn't climb.
21:42They were stuck at 200 feet.
21:44Low enough for any Japanese fighter to find them.
21:46Too low to glide to safety if the remaining engine failed.
21:50His navigator plotted the course.
21:52Samarai Base.
21:53225 miles.
21:55At current speed, that was 90 minutes of flight time.
21:5890 minutes on one engine with fuel consumption twice the normal rate.
22:01The math was tight.
22:03They might make it.
22:04If nothing else went wrong.
22:05The rescued airmen were in bad shape.
22:08Two from the first B-25 crew had hypothermia.
22:11Shaking uncontrollably.
22:12The flight engineer broke out emergency blankets.
22:15Not enough for everyone.
22:16They shared.
22:17Four men huddled under two blankets.
22:20The cabin was cramped.
22:21Wet.
22:22Cold.
22:22But alive.
22:23Gordon turned southeast at 9.30.
22:26Away from Kvyang.
22:27Away from the Japanese guns.
22:29Home.
22:30The mission was over.
22:31Nine men rescued.
22:32Three landings under fire.
22:34One aircraft barely flying.
22:36It was enough.
22:37More than enough.
22:38The Navy would call it exceptional.
22:40Maybe unprecedented.
22:41The voice came through the auxiliary radio at 9.41.
22:45Weak.
22:46Distorted.
22:46But clear enough.
22:48Another crew.
22:49Six men.
22:50Rubber life raft.
22:51Different location.
22:52South of the harbor.
22:53The transmission gave coordinates.
22:56Gordon's navigator plotted the position.
22:58600 yards from shore.
23:00The closest to enemy guns yet.
23:02The Japanese had heavy coastal batteries on that side.
23:05100mm guns.
23:06They could put shells through the PBY from 1,000 yards.
23:10At 600 yards, they wouldn't miss.
23:12Gordon's co-pilot stated the facts.
23:15One working engine.
23:16No fuel reserves.
23:1817 men already aboard.
23:20Aircraft damaged beyond safe limits.
23:22Hull leaking.
23:23Tail shredded.
23:24The PBY wasn't designed to carry 23 people.
23:27The weight would make takeoff impossible.
23:30They'd land and never get airborne again.
23:32Everyone would die.
23:33All 23.
23:34The voice on the radio called again.
23:37Six men.
23:38They'd been in the water for 30 minutes.
23:40Hypothermia was setting in.
23:42Another 10 minutes and they'd start losing consciousness.
23:4520 minutes and they'd drown.
23:46They needed rescue now.
23:48Not later.
23:49Now.
23:50Gordon checked his fuel.
23:51If they diverted to this new position, they'd burn through their last reserves.
23:55Even if they somehow managed to take off with 23 people aboard, they wouldn't have enough
23:59fuel to reach Samurai.
24:01They'd ditch an open ocean.
24:03Miles from land.
24:04No rescue available.
24:06Everyone dies.
24:07His flight engineer reported the status.
24:10The port engine was running hot now.
24:12Oil pressure dropping.
24:13The temperature gauge was climbing into the warning zone.
24:16The engine had been running at emergency power for too long.
24:19It was failing.
24:20Slowly.
24:21But failing.
24:22Maybe 30 minutes left.
24:24Maybe less.
24:25The nine rescued airmen in the cabin were listening.
24:28They knew what was happening.
24:29They'd been in those rafts.
24:31They knew what it felt like to watch an aircraft fly away.
24:34To be left behind.
24:35To wait for death in cold water.
24:38Gordon looked at his instruments.
24:39One failing engine.
24:41No fuel margin.
24:42No room for more weight.
24:44The smart decision was obvious.
24:46Maintain course.
24:47Get these nine men home.
24:49Mission accomplished.
24:50Everyone lives.
24:51The six men in the raft would die.
24:53But 23 would survive.
24:55The mathematics of war.
24:57The radio transmission came through one more time.
25:00Weaker.
25:01Fading.
25:02Six men.
25:03600 yards from Japanese guns.
25:06Waiting.
25:07Gordon banked the PBY left at 944.
25:10Not towards Samurai.
25:11Back toward Kaviang Harbor.
25:13Back toward the guns.
25:15His co-pilot understood immediately.
25:17Fourth landing.
25:18Suicidal weight.
25:19Zero fuel margin.
25:21One dying engine.
25:22Gordon was going back.
25:24Gordon descended to 100 feet at 948.
25:27Kaviang Harbor dead ahead.
25:28The Japanese had watched him make three landings.
25:31Three rescues.
25:32Three escapes.
25:33They knew he was coming back.
25:35Every gun battery in the harbor was tracking the lone PBY,
25:38limping back on one engine.
25:40The auxiliary radio gave the coordinates again.
25:43South harbor.
25:44600 yards from shore.
25:46Gordon's navigator marked it.
25:47That position was in the kill zone.
25:49Japanese coastal batteries had overlapping fields of fire.
25:53100mm guns.
25:5575mm guns.
25:56Anti-aircraft positions.
25:58Machine gun nests.
25:59All aimed at 600 yards of open water.
26:02The flight path was the problem.
26:04To reach the raft, Gordon had to approach from the north.
26:07That meant flying directly over the Japanese gun positions.
26:10At 200 feet.
26:12Slow.
26:13Predictable.
26:13The gunners would have a perfect shot.
26:15The PBY would be flying straight toward them for 30 seconds.
26:19An eternity in combat.
26:20Gordon checked the remaining engine.
26:22Oil pressure was dropping.
26:24Temperature climbing.
26:25The gauge showed 220 degrees.
26:27Normal operating temperature was 180.
26:30The engine was cooking itself.
26:32His flight engineer estimated 15 minutes before it seized.
26:35Maybe 20 if they reduced power.
26:37But reducing power meant slower speed.
26:39More time over the guns.
26:41The raft came into view at 9.52.
26:44Six men.
26:45Waving frantically.
26:46They'd been in the water 45 minutes.
26:48Gordon could see they were struggling.
26:50Two men were barely moving.
26:52Hypothermia.
26:52Another 10 minutes and they'd lose consciousness.
26:55Gordon made his approach.
26:56North to south.
26:57Directly over the Japanese positions.
26:59The anti-aircraft batteries opened fire at 9.53.
27:03Tracers filled the air.
27:05The sky turned into a web of orange streaks.
27:08Shells exploded at 200 feet.
27:10Gordon flew straight through the barrage.
27:12No evasive maneuvers.
27:14He couldn't.
27:14One engine.
27:15Overloaded.
27:16Any sudden movement would stall the aircraft.
27:19The PBY shuddered as shrapnel hit the wings.
27:22Fabric tore.
27:23Metal pinged against the hull.
27:25A shell burst 50 feet to port.
27:27The blast wave rolled the aircraft.
27:29Gordon fought the controls.
27:31Leveled out.
27:32Kept flying.
27:33The Japanese gunners were finding their range.
27:36The next salvo would be closer.
27:38His waste gunners returned fire.
27:40Tracers arcing down toward the shore positions.
27:4350 caliber rounds couldn't penetrate the gun emplacements.
27:46But they forced the Japanese crews to take cover.
27:49Bought Gordon a few seconds.
27:50The PBY flew over the heaviest batteries at 9.54.
27:54Machine gun fire raked the hull.
27:57Hundreds of rounds.
27:58The noise was deafening.
28:00Gordon descended to wave height.
28:02The raft was 300 yards ahead.
28:04He cut power.
28:05The PBY dropped toward the water for the fourth time.
28:09The hull was already compromised.
28:11Leaking.
28:11Damaged.
28:12This impact would either hold or the aircraft would break apart.
28:16They hit at 9.55.
28:18Hard.
28:19The forward compartment exploded with seawater.
28:22The navigator station was completely flooded now.
28:25Two feet of water.
28:26The bilge pumps had failed 30 minutes ago.
28:28Water was accumulating faster than they could bail by hand.
28:32The raft came alongside immediately.
28:34Six men.
28:35All climbing aboard at once.
28:37No time for careful loading.
28:39Japanese shells were walking toward them.
28:41100 yards.
28:4375.
28:4450.
28:45The gunners had bracketed the position.
28:47The next salvo would hit.
28:49Gordon's flight engineer pulled the last man aboard at 9.57.
28:5223 people.
28:54The PBY settled deeper into the water.
28:57The hull was riding 6 inches lower than design limits.
29:00Waves were breaking over the bow.
29:02The aircraft was more submarine than airplane.
29:05A shell exploded 20 yards to starboard.
29:07The blast lifted the port wing.
29:09The PBY rolled 30 degrees.
29:12Water poured into the open waste blisters.
29:15Gordon's crew threw themselves to the starboard side.
29:17Their weight counterbalanced the roll.
29:19The wing came down.
29:21Level again.
29:22Gordon fired the port engine.
29:24It coughed.
29:25Hesitated.
29:26Caught.
29:26Black smoke poured from the exhaust.
29:29The engine was dying.
29:30Temperature gauge showed 240 degrees.
29:33Critical.
29:34The oil pressure was nearly zero.
29:36The engine had minutes left.
29:38Not hours.
29:39Minutes.
29:39The PBY lurched forward.
29:4223 people.
29:432,000 pounds over maximum gross weight.
29:45Flooded compartments.
29:47One engine running on borrowed time.
29:49Gordon needed 75 knots for takeoff.
29:52The aircraft could barely reach 50.
29:5430 knots.
29:5540.
29:56The hull was dragging through the water.
29:58Not planing.
29:59Just pushing through like a boat.
30:01Japanese gunners concentrated all fire on the stationary target.
30:05Shells fell like rain.
30:07Tracers crisscrossed the water.
30:09The PBY was surrounded by explosions.
30:1245 knots.
30:1350.
30:14Not enough.
30:14Gordon pushed the throttle to the stops.
30:17Beyond the stops.
30:18The engine screamed.
30:20RPM gauge climbed past redline.
30:222,900 RPM.
30:24The engine could explode at this setting.
30:26Turbine blades could shear off.
30:28The whole power plant could tear from its mounts.
30:3155 knots.
30:3260.
30:33Still not flying.
30:34The bow wouldn't lift.
30:36Too much weight in the flooded forward compartment.
30:38Gordon's co-pilot adjusted trim.
30:40Full nose up.
30:42The tail sat lower.
30:43The bow came up slightly.
30:45Water streamed from the forward hatches.
30:4765 knots.
30:4970.
30:49The hull was hammering through the swells.
30:52Every impact sent shockwaves through the airframe.
30:55The crack in the port blister had widened to 12 inches.
30:57Seawater sprayed through with every wave.
31:0172 knots.
31:0274.
31:03A shell hit the water directly beneath them at 9.59.
31:07The explosion lifted the entire aircraft.
31:09The PBY rose 5 feet.
31:12Hung in the air.
31:13The engine was still at full power.
31:1576 knots.
31:16Gordon pulled back on the yoke.
31:18The aircraft was airborne.
31:19Not from aerodynamic lift.
31:21From the explosion.
31:22But airborne.
31:23He held the yoke back.
31:25The PBY climbed.
31:2710 feet.
31:2820.
31:2930.
31:29The Japanese shell had done what the single engine couldn't.
31:32Thrown them into the air.
31:34Now Gordon had to keep them there.
31:3650 feet.
31:37The airspeed was bleeding off.
31:3974 knots.
31:4172.
31:42The aircraft was on the edge of a stall.
31:45Gordon eased the nose down.
31:47Maintained 73 knots.
31:49Just above stall speed.
31:50The PBY leveled at 60 feet.
31:53Lower than before.
31:54The engine couldn't maintain altitude with this weight.
31:57They were slowly descending.
31:591 foot per second.
32:00Barely noticeable.
32:02But continuous.
32:03His navigator did the math.
32:05At current descent rate, they'd hit the water in 60 seconds.
32:08Gordon needed altitude.
32:10But climbing meant bleeding airspeed.
32:12Stalling meant instant death for 23 people.
32:15He held 60 feet.
32:16Held 73 knots.
32:18And watched the engine temperature gauge climb toward 260 degrees.
32:23The shore fell away at 10.01.
32:25They were over open ocean.
32:27Away from the Japanese guns.
32:29But the engine was failing.
32:31Temperature 255 degrees.
32:33Oil pressure fluctuating.
32:35The gauge needle was bouncing between 0 and 5 psi.
32:39The engine was running dry.
32:41Samarai base was 210 miles southeast.
32:44At current fuel consumption, they had maybe 140 miles of range.
32:49They'd fall 70 miles short.
32:51Ditch an open ocean.
32:52No rescue available.
32:54All 23 people would die waiting for help that wouldn't come.
32:58Gordon looked at his instruments.
33:00One engine.
33:01260 degree temperature.
33:04No oil pressure.
33:0523 people.
33:07Fuel for 140 miles.
33:09They needed 210.
33:11The engine seized at 10.03.
33:13The engine didn't seize.
33:15It should have.
33:16Temperature 260 degrees.
33:18Oil pressure zero.
33:20But it kept running.
33:21Rough.
33:22Misfiring.
33:23Shaking the entire airframe.
33:25But running.
33:26Gordon didn't question it.
33:28He reduced power immediately.
33:30Brought the RPM down from emergency to cruise.
33:33The temperature dropped to 250.
33:36Still critical.
33:37Still dying.
33:38But slower.
33:39The PBY was descending.
33:4160 feet altitude.
33:43Then 50.
33:4440.
33:45The single engine couldn't maintain level flight with 23 people aboard.
33:49Gordon had two choices.
33:50Increase power and burn through fuel faster.
33:53Or accept the slow descent and hope they could reach land before hitting the water.
33:58He chose descent.
33:59The mathematics were brutal but clear.
34:01At current fuel consumption, they had 140 miles of range.
34:06Samurai base was 210 miles away.
34:08They'd fall short by 70 miles.
34:11But if he increased power to maintain altitude, they'd fall short by 100 miles.
34:16Descending was the better option.
34:18His navigator plotted emergency landing sites.
34:21Small islands dotted the ocean between Kaviang and Samurai.
34:25Most were Japanese-held.
34:27Some were uninhabited.
34:28One option was Green Island.
34:30Allied forces had secured it three weeks ago.
34:33It had a small airstrip.
34:34But Green Island was 40 miles off their direct course.
34:38Detouring would add distance.
34:39More fuel consumption.
34:41They'd never make it.
34:42Gordon held course at 10.05.
34:44Direct line to Samurai.
34:46The PBY descended through 30 feet.
34:4825.
34:49The ocean was calm here.
34:51Long, gentle swells.
34:53Nothing like the chaos inside Kaviang Harbor.
34:56If they had to ditch, this would be the place.
34:58But ditching meant abandoning the aircraft.
35:0023 men in the water.
35:02Miles from land.
35:03Rescue would take hours.
35:05Some of the injured wouldn't survive that long.
35:07The rescued airmen understood the situation.
35:10They'd been listening.
35:11Watching.
35:11They knew the fuel situation.
35:13They knew the engine was failing.
35:15One of the B-25 pilots asked if they should throw equipment overboard.
35:19Reduce weight.
35:20Gordon's flight engineer said no.
35:22They'd already stripped everything non-essential.
35:24Guns.
35:25Ammunition.
35:26Tools.
35:27Life rafts.
35:28Everything was gone.
35:29The only weight left was people.
35:31And they weren't throwing anyone overboard.
35:3320 feet altitude at 10.15.
35:3515 feet.
35:37The PBY was skimming the wavetops.
35:39Any lower and the hull would start dragging in the water.
35:42That would slow them down.
35:44Increase fuel consumption.
35:45Kill any chance of reaching base.
35:47Gordon held 15 feet.
35:49The absolute minimum altitude for controlled flight.
35:52His co-pilot monitored fuel.
35:54They'd burned through 80% of their reserves.
35:57120 miles from Kaviang.
35:5990 miles to Samurai.
36:01The math didn't work.
36:02They were going to fall short.
36:04By 20 miles.
36:05Maybe 30.
36:06Close enough to see the island.
36:08Not close enough to reach it.
36:10The engine temperature climbed again at 1023.
36:13255 degrees.
36:15260.
36:16The cooling system was failing.
36:17The damaged oil line wasn't supplying enough lubrication.
36:21Metal was grinding against metal inside the engine.
36:24Every minute of operation was causing permanent damage.
36:27The engine could seize at any moment.
36:29Gordon reduced power further.
36:31The descent rate increased.
36:331 foot per second.
36:342 feet per second.
36:36They were at 10 feet altitude now.
36:38Wavetops were passing beneath them.
36:40Close enough to see individual whitecaps.
36:42The airspeed dropped to 68 knots.
36:45Just above stall speed.
36:46The buffet was starting.
36:48The wings shaking.
36:49Warning of imminent stall.
36:51He added a touch of power.
36:53The engine coughed.
36:54Caught.
36:55Temperature jumped to 265 degrees.
36:58Gordon held that power setting.
36:59The descent stopped.
37:01Level flight at 8 feet.
37:0269 knots.
37:04The engine screaming.
37:05Temperature pegged at maximum.
37:07Oil pressure still zero.
37:09His navigator updated the calculations at 1030.
37:12Fuel remaining.
37:1312 percent.
37:14Distance to samurai?
37:1570 miles.
37:17At current consumption rate, they had 55 miles of range.
37:20They'd fall short by 15 miles.
37:23But the navigator had noticed something.
37:25Wind had shifted.
37:26Now blowing from the northwest.
37:28Tailwind.
37:295 knots.
37:30That would extend their range by 8 miles.
37:32They'd fall short by 7 miles instead of 15.
37:367 miles.
37:37Gordon could glide 7 miles if the engine quit.
37:40Maybe.
37:41The PBY had a glide ratio of 8 to 1.
37:44From 8 feet altitude, they could glide 64 feet.
37:47Not 64 miles.
37:49Feet.
37:50If the engine stopped, they had approximately 10 seconds before hitting the water.
37:54The engine kept running.
37:57265 degrees.
37:58Smoke trailing from the cowling.
38:00The smell of burning oil filled the cabin.
38:03Gordon's crew was watching the temperature gauge.
38:05Everyone knew what 270 degrees meant.
38:08Engine failure.
38:10Catastrophic.
38:11Immediate.
38:12266 degrees at 1040.
38:15267.
38:17268.
38:18The gauge was climbing 1 degree every 2 minutes.
38:21At this rate, they'd hit 270 in 4 minutes.
38:244 minutes from catastrophic failure.
38:27Samurai appeared on the horizon at 1042.
38:30A dark smudge against the blue ocean.
38:3230 miles away.
38:33The fuel gauge showed 8%.
38:36The navigator calculated they had 28 miles of range remaining.
38:40They'd make it.
38:41Barely.
38:42If the engine lasted.
38:44269 degrees.
38:46The engine was shaking violently now.
38:48The entire aircraft vibrating.
38:50Rivets were loosening from the constant shaking.
38:53The port wing had visible stress cracks forming near the engine mount.
38:57The whole wing could separate if the vibration continued.
39:00Gordon had no choice.
39:02He had to reduce power.
39:03Slow down.
39:04Let the engine cool slightly.
39:06He eased the throttle back.
39:08The temperature dropped to 265 degrees.
39:11The vibration decreased.
39:13But their airspeed fell to 65 knots.
39:16Below optimal cruise.
39:18Fuel consumption increased.
39:20The range calculations changed.
39:2226 miles remaining.
39:24Samurai was 25 miles away.
39:27The margin was 1 mile.
39:2960 seconds of flight time.
39:31If headwind increased.
39:32If fuel consumption varied.
39:34If anything changed.
39:35They'd ditch 1 mile from safety.
39:37His co-pilot called out landmarks at 1050.
39:41Coral reefs.
39:42Small islands.
39:43Navigation markers.
39:44They were in allied controlled waters now.
39:47Rescue boats operated in this area.
39:49If they ditched.
39:50Someone would find them.
39:52Eventually.
39:53But the injured wouldn't survive a second ditching.
39:56Two of the rescued airmen were unconscious.
39:58Hypothermia.
39:59Shock.
40:00They needed medical care immediately.
40:02Gordon held course.
40:048 feet altitude.
40:0565 knots.
40:07265 degree engine temperature.
40:09Fuel gauge showing 5%.
40:11Samurai 15 miles ahead.
40:13His navigator confirmed they'd make it.
40:16The math worked.
40:17If nothing changed.
40:18If the engine held.
40:20If fuel consumption remained constant.
40:22If.
40:23If.
40:24If.
40:25The engine temperature spiked at 1056.
40:28270 degrees.
40:30The gauge couldn't read higher.
40:31The needle was pegged.
40:33Smoke was pouring from the cowling now.
40:35Black smoke.
40:36Oil smoke.
40:37The engine was destroying itself.
40:40Gordon could hear metal grinding.
40:41Bearings disintegrating.
40:43The engine would seize in seconds.
40:46Samurai was 10 miles ahead.
40:48Visible now.
40:49The runway.
40:50The buildings.
40:51Safety.
40:5210 miles.
40:538 minutes of flight time.
40:54The engine had maybe 2 minutes left.
40:57They'd fall short by 6 miles.
40:59Close enough to see rescue boats.
41:01Not close enough to reach land before the engine exploded.
41:04Gordon pushed the throttle forward.
41:06One last time.
41:08Emergency power.
41:09The engine howled.
41:11Temperature went off the scale.
41:12But they accelerated.
41:1470 knots.
41:1575.
41:16The fuel consumption doubled.
41:18Tripled.
41:19The range calculations collapsed.
41:21But speed increased.
41:23Time to base decreased.
41:246 miles.
41:255 minutes of flight time at current speed.
41:28The fuel gauge showed 2%.
41:30The engine was screaming.
41:32The temperature gauge had failed.
41:34No reading.
41:35Just smoke and grinding metal and the smell of burning oil.
41:384 miles.
41:393 minutes.
41:40The PBY was racing toward Samurai at 80 knots.
41:43Faster than they'd flown all day.
41:45The engine could explode at any second.
41:483 miles.
41:492 minutes.
41:50The runway was straight ahead.
41:52Gordon could see people on the ground.
41:54Watching.
41:55Waiting.
41:562 miles.
41:571 minute.
41:58The fuel gauge hit zero.
42:00The engine was running on fumes.
42:02Metal fragments.
42:03Hope.
42:041 mile.
42:0530 seconds.
42:06The engine seized at 10.59.
42:091 mile from Samurai base.
42:1123 people.
42:13No engine.
42:148 feet altitude.
42:1660 seconds from death or survival.
42:18The PBY was gliding.
42:20No engine.
42:21No power.
42:228 feet altitude.
42:2480 knots airspeed bleeding to 75.
42:26Gordon had maybe 40 seconds before the aircraft hit the water.
42:31Samurai base was 1 mile ahead.
42:335,280 feet.
42:36The runway threshold was 4,000 feet away.
42:39Gordon did the math instantly.
42:41Glide ratio 8 to 1.
42:43From 8 feet altitude, they could glide 64 feet.
42:46Not 4,000 feet.
42:48They'd hit the water 3,900 feet short of the runway.
42:52The aircraft would survive the ditching.
42:54Probably.
42:55The hull was already damaged, but it would hold together for one more water landing.
42:59The people would survive.
43:01All 23.
43:02Close enough to shore for rescue boats to reach them in minutes.
43:05But two of the rescued airmen were unconscious.
43:08Hypothermia.
43:09They needed immediate medical care.
43:12Every minute in cold water would kill them.
43:14Gordon looked at the runway.
43:164,000 feet away.
43:18Impossible to reach.
43:19But there was water between here and there.
43:21Smooth water.
43:22The harbor.
43:24Protected.
43:24Calm.
43:25He aimed for the harbor entrance at 1100.
43:28The PBY was descending.
43:307 feet altitude.
43:326 feet.
43:33The airspeed was 70 knots.
43:35Still above stall speed.
43:37Still flying.
43:38But barely.
43:39Gordon held the nose up.
43:40Kept the wings level.
43:42The harbor entrance was 2,000 feet ahead.
43:455 feet altitude.
43:464 feet.
43:47The wavetops were passing beneath them.
43:50Close enough to see spray.
43:52The PBY's hull was almost touching the water.
43:55Gordon held altitude.
43:56Held airspeed.
43:572 seconds from touchdown.
43:59The harbor entrance passed beneath them.
44:02Protected water.
44:03Calm.
44:04Perfect for landing.
44:05Gordon pulled back slightly on the yoke.
44:08Flared.
44:08The PBY settled onto the harbor surface at 1101.
44:12Gentle.
44:13Controlled.
44:14The damaged hull kissed the water.
44:16Skipped once.
44:17Settled.
44:18The aircraft coasted forward.
44:20Momentum carrying them toward shore.
44:22No power.
44:23Just gliding across calm water.
44:26Like a wounded bird finally coming to rest.
44:28Rescue boats were already moving.
44:30The base had been watching.
44:31They'd seen the PBY approaching on one engine.
44:34Trailing smoke.
44:35They'd seen the engine quit.
44:37Watched the glide.
44:38The landing.
44:39Boats reached them within 90 seconds.
44:41Medics aboard.
44:42Stretchers ready.
44:43The two unconscious airmen were off the PBY first.
44:47Then the other injured.
44:4813 rescued air crew total.
44:51Wait.
44:51Gordon counted again.
44:5315.
44:54Not 13.
44:5515 men pulled from Kaviang Harbor.
44:57The navigator recounted.
44:59First landing.
45:00Found no survivors.
45:02Second landing.
45:03Four men.
45:04Third landing.
45:05Five men.
45:06Fourth landing.
45:07Six men.
45:08Total.
45:0915 rescued.
45:10All 15 alive.
45:12Hypothermic.
45:13Exhausted.
45:14Some injured.
45:15But alive.
45:15The medics worked fast.
45:17Blankets.
45:18Hot fluids.
45:19Emergency treatment for the worst cases.
45:21Within 10 minutes, all 15 were in the base hospital.
45:24The two critical cases were stabilized.
45:27They'd survive.
45:28Gordon's crew stepped off the PBY at 11.15.
45:31Eight men.
45:32All exhausted.
45:34All uninjured.
45:34They'd flown into enemy harbor four times.
45:37Made four combat landings under fire.
45:40Taken hits from Japanese shore batteries.
45:42Rescued 15 air crew.
45:44Brought them home on one engine with zero fuel.
45:47The Arkansas traveler was taking on water.
45:50Sinking slowly at the dock.
45:51But the mission was complete.
45:53The base commander met Gordon on the dock at 11.20.
45:56Wanted the full report.
45:57Gordon kept it simple.
45:59Four landings.
46:0015 rescued.
46:01Aircraft damaged beyond repair.
46:03Request permission to debrief his crew and get some sleep.
46:07The commander agreed.
46:08But he made one call first.
46:10To Fleet Air Wing 17 headquarters.
46:12To Admiral Thomas Kincaid.
46:14This mission needed to go up the chain.
46:16Immediately.
46:17The report reached Washington within 48 hours.
46:20Four combat landings in enemy harbor.
46:2215 lives saved.
46:24Eight crew members performed beyond any reasonable standard.
46:28The Navy had protocols for this.
46:30Medal recommendations.
46:31Awards review.
46:32The paperwork started moving through channels.
46:35Gordon didn't know about any of that.
46:37He slept for 14 hours.
46:39Woke up.
46:40Checked on his crew.
46:42All fine.
46:43Checked on the 15 rescued airmen.
46:45All recovering.
46:46Two critical cases were stable.
46:48Expected full recovery.
46:50The Arkansas traveler was beyond repair.
46:53Hull cracked.
46:54Engine destroyed.
46:56Tail shredded.
46:56The aircraft would never fly again.
46:59But 23 people had walked away alive.
47:01The official citation came through in September, 1944.
47:06Seven months after the mission.
47:08Gordon was promoted to full lieutenant.
47:10Then the citation was read.
47:12Medal of Honor.
47:14For extraordinary heroism above and beyond the call of duty.
47:18Four separate landings under intense enemy fire.
47:20Fifteen personnel rescued.
47:23Aircraft overloaded and damaged.
47:25Flying conditions nearly impossible.
47:27The citation described each landing.
47:30Each rescue.
47:31The final approach on one engine.
47:33The control ditching in Samarai Harbor.
47:35Gordon became the only PBY Catalina pilot in United States Navy history to receive the Medal of Honor.
47:42The only one.
47:43Out of thousands of PBY pilots who flew patrol missions across the Pacific and Atlantic.
47:49Thousands who performed rescues.
47:51Hundreds who flew under fire.
47:53One received the Medal of Honor.
47:55Nathan Gordon.
47:56His eight crew members each received the Silver Star.
47:59Second only to the Medal of Honor for valor in combat.
48:02The citation for each crew member detailed their actions.
48:06The radio man who kept communications running while standing in two feet of water.
48:10The flight engineer who sealed hatches while under fire.
48:13The waste gunners who suppressed Japanese positions.
48:17The navigator who plotted courses while the aircraft was breaking apart.
48:21Every man had performed beyond standard.
48:24Every man was recognized.
48:26The statistics took time to compile.
48:28Fifth Air Force raid on Kaviang, February 15, 1944, resulted in eight aircraft shot down.
48:35Fifty-six air crew went into the water.
48:37Fifteen were rescued by Gordon.
48:39Four were rescued by other PBY crews later that day.
48:43Thirty-seven died.
48:45Without Gordon's four landings, the death toll would have been 52.
48:48His actions cut the casualties by 29%.
48:51Fifteen families received their sons and husbands back.
48:55Because one pilot made four impossible landings.
48:58Gordon flew 43 more combat missions after Kaviang.
49:02Completed his tour in December 1944.
49:04Was reassigned stateside for training duty.
49:07Earned two Distinguished Flying Crosses, six Air Medals, a Presidential Unit Citation.
49:12But the four landings at Kaviang remained his defining moment.
49:16The mission that separated him from every other patrol pilot in the war.
49:20The rescued airmen went back to combat.
49:23Most completed their tours.
49:24Returned home.
49:25Several stayed in contact with Gordon after the war.
49:28Sent Christmas cards.
49:30Letters.
49:30They never forgot the PBY that landed four times.
49:34The pilot who risked eight lives to save 15.
49:37The man who decided mathematics didn't matter when people were drowning.
49:41Gordon was discharged in 1945.
49:43Lieutenant Commander.
49:45Medal of Honor recipient.
49:46He returned to Arkansas, to his law practice, to civilian life.
49:50The war was over.
49:52The rescues were history.
49:53But the story of February 15th, 1944, would follow him for the rest of his life.
49:59What happened to the pilot who made four suicide landings?
50:02The man who became the only PBY pilot to earn the Medal of Honor?
50:06The answer surprised everyone who knew him.
50:09Gordon went home to Arkansas in 1945.
50:11Back to Moralton.
50:13Population 3,000.
50:14The town where he was born September 4th, 1916.
50:18He opened his law office again.
50:20Same building.
50:21Same desk.
50:22Same quiet practice he'd left four years earlier.
50:25The war was over.
50:26The Medal of Honor sat in a drawer.
50:28He had cases to handle.
50:29But Arkansas had other plans.
50:31In 1946, the Democratic Party approached him.
50:35They wanted him to run for lieutenant governor.
50:37Gordon wasn't interested in politics.
50:40He was a lawyer.
50:40A pilot.
50:42Not a politician.
50:43They kept asking.
50:44He finally agreed.
50:45One term.
50:46Then back to law.
50:48He won the election in 1946.
50:50Took office January 1947.
50:53Age 30.
50:54Lieutenant Governor of Arkansas.
50:56The youngest in state history.
50:57He served under Governor Ben Laney.
51:00Four-year term.
51:01When it ended, Gordon prepared to return to his law practice.
51:04The party asked him to run again.
51:06He won.
51:07Served under Governor Sid McMath.
51:09Then Governor Francis Cherry.
51:11Then Governor Orville Faubus.
51:13Ten terms.
51:14Twenty years.
51:151947 to 1967.
51:18He served under four different governors.
51:20Became the longest serving lieutenant governor in Arkansas history.
51:24A record that still stands.
51:25The man who made four suicide landings spent two decades in quiet public service.
51:31No scandals.
51:32No drama.
51:33Just steady, competent governance.
51:35He never talked about Caviang.
51:37People knew about the Medal of Honor.
51:39Everyone in Arkansas knew.
51:40But Gordon didn't discuss it.
51:42When reporters asked, he gave simple answers.
51:45Did my job.
51:46Crew did their job.
51:48Fifteen men went home.
51:49That's what mattered.
51:50He deflected attention to his crew.
51:52Eight men who never received the recognition they deserved.
51:55Eight men who made the rescues possible.
51:58The fifteen rescued airmen never forgot.
52:00They tracked him down over the years.
52:02Wrote letters.
52:03Visited.
52:04Some attended his political events.
52:06One showed up at his office in 1953.
52:09Knocked on the door.
52:10Said he just wanted to shake the hand of the man who pulled him from Caviang Harbor.
52:14Gordon shook his hand.
52:15Offered him coffee.
52:16Asked about his family.
52:18Never mentioned the rescue.
52:19In 1980, the Arkansas Aviation Historical Society inducted Gordon into the Arkansas Aviation Hall
52:26of Fame, one of the first five inductees.
52:29The ceremony was small.
52:30Gordon gave a short speech.
52:32Thanked his crew again.
52:33Mentioned the fifteen rescued airmen.
52:36Said the Medal of Honor belonged to all 23 people who were on that PBY.
52:40Not just him.
52:41He lived quietly after leaving office.
52:44Returned to law practice.
52:45Stayed in Arkansas.
52:47Watched his state change.
52:48Watched the country change.
52:50The PBY Catalina became obsolete.
52:52Retired from military service.
52:54A few remained as firefighting aircraft.
52:57Most were scrapped.
52:58The Arkansas Traveler was gone.
53:00Broken apart at Samurai Base in 1944.
53:03But the story remained.
53:05Nathan Green Gordon died September 8, 2008.
53:09Little Rock, Arkansas.
53:10Four days after his 92nd birthday.
53:13Pneumonia and complications.
53:15He was buried in Elmwood Cemetery.
53:17Moralton.
53:18Plot 8A.
53:20Military honors.
53:21Full ceremony.
53:22The fifteen men he rescued were gone by then.
53:25Most had died in the decades since the war.
53:27But their children attended.
53:29Their grandchildren.
53:30Families who existed because one pilot made four landings.
53:33The Medal of Honor citation is preserved at the Smithsonian.
53:37National Air and Space Museum.
53:39Washington, D.C.
53:40Visitors can read it.
53:41Four separate landings under enemy fire.
53:44Fifteen personnel rescued.
53:46The only PBY pilot to receive the nation's highest honor.
53:50The citation doesn't mention what happened next.
53:52The 20 years in public service.
53:54The quiet dignity.
53:55The refusal to claim glory that belonged to his crew.
53:59Today, there are no surviving members of VP-34 Black Cats.
54:03The squadron was disbanded April 7, 1945, three months before Japan surrendered.
54:09The men scattered, returned to civilian life.
54:12But the squadron's record remains.
54:14Dozens of night missions.
54:16Hundreds of Japanese ships attacked.
54:18Countless aircrew rescued.
54:19And one mission on February 15, 1944, that stands above all others.
54:24The mathematics of that day are simple.
54:27Fifteen families received their sons back.
54:30Eight crew members risked their lives repeatedly.
54:32Twenty-three people survived because one pilot decided that mathematics didn't matter when people were drowning.
54:38That courage mattered more than fuel calculations.
54:41That doing the right thing was worth dying for.
54:44Nathan Gordon never asked anyone to remember him.
54:47He put the Medal of Honor in a drawer and went back to work.
54:51So we're asking for him.
54:52Hit that like button.
54:54One click.
54:55That's all it takes to make sure this story reaches someone who's never heard it.
54:59Subscribe and turn on notifications.
55:01We dig through military archives, old squadron records, declassified reports.
55:07We find men like Gordon.
55:09Pilots who landed four times in enemy harbors.
55:12Crews who earned silver stars and never talked about it.
55:15These stories are real.
55:16And they're disappearing.
55:18Drop a comment and tell us where you're watching from.
55:20United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand.
55:25We've heard from all of you.
55:27This community stretches across the world.
55:29Tell us if someone in your family served.
55:32Tell us their name.
55:33Tell us their story.
55:34Or just let us know you're here.
55:36Gordon's crew never got the recognition they deserved.
55:39He said so himself.
55:40So this one's for all 23 men who were on that PBY.
55:46And thank you for making sure they don't disappear into silence.
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