The Tragic Odyssey of the USS Indianapolis

The heavy cruiser USS Indianapolis occupies a unique place in the annals of World War II naval history. Its story encompasses secret missions, valor in combat, monumental mistakes, unbelievable hardship, and finally a measure of redemption. Indianapolis’s tale ultimately reflects both the supreme evils and noblest traits that humankind is capable of.

Top Secret Assignment

By 1945, Indianapolis had already seen extensive service in the Pacific fleet. Under Captain Charles B. McVay III, the ship had earned ten battle stars and served as flagship of Admiral Raymond A. Spruance’s Fifth Fleet. In March, Indianapolis endured a kamikaze attack yet somehow remained afloat despite the damage. After repairs, its next assignment was classified: to carry components of the “Little Boy” atomic bomb from California to the island of Tinian. As the largest and fastest available vessel, Indianapolis received the vital mission due to the extreme secrecy surrounding the Manhattan Project. In particular, the ship transported a highly enriched uranium core stored in a lead canister. This material accounted for nearly half of the total global supply of enriched uranium in existence. Delivery of the weapon components enabled the eventual bombing of Hiroshima.

A Catastrophic Night

After successful delivery to Tinian, Indianapolis proceeded towards Leyte in the Philippines,anticipating arrival on July 31st to prepare for the invasion of Japan. Instead, shortly after midnight on July 30th, disaster struck. Japanese submarine I-58, commanded by Mochitsura Hashimoto, spotted the unescorted cruiser and launched a spread of six torpedoes. Despite Captain McVay having implemented a zigzag course to avoid submarine targeting, two torpedoes struck home. One ruptured fuel tanks and touched off massive explosions while the second broke Indianapolis’s keel. Within twelve minutes, the proud heavy cruiser slipped beneath the waves,taking around 300 men down with it. Some 900 crew remained, suddenly cast into the vast open ocean without lifeboats or emergency equipment beyond life jackets. The Navy had made its first catastrophic mistake – failing to provide escorts or implement effective measures against submarine attack on important vessels. However, worse oversights were to come.

Stranded at Sea

Indianapolis survivors now faced an epic struggle to survive until rescue could arrive. Groups clinging together in the water soon become menaced by one of the most feared creatures of the deep – Oceanic whitetip sharks. Drawn by debris, oil,and the prospect of an easy meal, the notoriously aggressive sharks attacked isolated swimmers and * contined circling*. Men tried lashing debris into makeshift rafts, but still could not elevate themselves completely out of the water. Supplies of food, water, and medical equipment were essentially nonexistent beyond emergency rations like Spam and crackers. Men already injured in the sinking soon developed ghastly ulcerations that became infected in the hot and salty seawater, sending some delirious with thirst and pain. The survivors also baked under a relentless tropical sun during the day, facing temperatures exceeding 100 degrees Fahrenheit. Hypothermia set in at night as water temperatures plunged,further weakening the beleaguered sailors. Fear and panic spread.
Yet even amidst these hellish conditions, brave souls emerged. Lieutenant Adrian Marks, flying on patrol, disobeyed orders and landed his PBY Catalina to begin rescuing survivors despite heavy seas tossing the plane violently. His was one of many quiet acts of heroism in subsequent days. However, Indianapolis survivors primarily relied upon one slim reed of hope – that their distress signals prior to sinking had been received and a prompt rescue mission launched. Shockingly, through incompetence, dismissal of reports, and absurd assumptions, the Navy remained unaware that a major warship had gone missing.

The Nightmare Continues

As hour bled into hour and day into day, the situation grew increasingly grim for the Indianapolis marooned at sea. Constant immersion led to hideous debilitations – severe dehydration, hallucinations, blindness. Salt ingestion exacerbated thirst while causing kidneys to shut down. Men drank seawater in desperation, inducing sickness, vomiting, and yet more dehydration in a death spiral. Some simply drowned, too weak to stay afloat. Sharks claimed dozens – emboldened to attack groups of men or even breach rafts. Too delirious to paddle towards mirages or enemy ships, fights broke out and some committed suicide in madness. Extreme exposure led many more to simply expire. All perished alone - surrounded by hundreds, yet without comfort. Estimates suggest that of 900 initial Indianapolis survivors, only a fraction remained alive by the disaster’s fourth hellish dawn.
Their grim ordeal finally ended on August 2nd when Lieutenant Wilbur Gwinn, on routine patrol, spotted Indianapolis survivors and radioed coordinates for rescue. When help arrived, less than a third of the ship’s crew still clung to life. Combined with those lost in the initial sinking, around three quarters of Indianapolis’s 1,195 sailors had perished. Authorities quickly clarified that distress signals had indeed been sent on July 30th. However, outrage mounted as the Navy admitted that only an accidental sighting spared additional hundreds from perishing at sea.

Captain McVay: Scapegoat

Captain McVay had survived his ship’s sinking, only to soon face fresh disaster. At a hastily convened court of inquiry just days after rescue, he stood accused of negligence in the loss of Indianapolis. Despite requirements for zigzagging having been relaxed except in waters thought to contain submarines, McVay faced scrutiny for maintaining a straight course. Most damningly, he made the critical decision to postpone a scheduled banzai drill, leaving crew vulnerable when torpedo impacts struck later that night. Indianapolis survivors were divided regarding McVay’s culpability. After a court martial convicted McVay of negligence, Admiral Chester Nimitz remitted McVay’s sentence but permitted his conviction to stand along with a loss of promotion. Although some relatives of lost Indianapolis crew lambasted McVay, most regarded him as a scapegoat for more systemic Navy blunders. McVay nonetheless spent the remainder of his career enduring endless legal appeals seeking to reinstate his reputation. Humiliated at becoming the only captain court-martialed for losing a ship to enemy action, he took his own life in 1968.

Justice After Death

Decades later, new efforts emerged to exonerate McVay. Sixth-grader Hunter Scott took up McVay’s cause after watching Jaws, inspired by a speech blaming the captain’s unjust conviction for the Indianapolis disaster. His history project marshalled compelling evidence that McVay had been unfairly blamed for failures far beyond his control: chiefly the Navy’s obliviousness to distress signals. After public and Congressional outcry, President Clinton officially absolved McVay in 2000. In 2017 searchers also finally located Indianapolis’s wreckage, bringing closure. By then only a handful of crew remained alive. Among them, seaman Harold Bray reached out to the Japanese submarine commander Mochitsura Hashimoto who sank Indianapolis with a letter expressing forgiveness across former enemy lines. Although opposed in war, both captains recoiled at the needless loss of life. Hashimoto penned an equally conciliatory reply. Their unlikely correspondence closed a final chapter on Indianapolis, reflecting hope and reconciliation rising even from humanity’s darkest episodes.

Conclusion

USS Indianapolis’s saga encapsulates both the best and worst qualities represented across the long annals of warfare at sea. On one hand, much like the Titanic, seemingly preventable oversights bred catastrophe from disaster. On the other, quiet selflessness and sacrifice prevailed even amidst the bleakest suffering and darkest moments. Present too is a lesson regarding the poisonous corrosiveness of blame assigned for political expedience rather than justice. Most enduringly, glimmers of reconciliation emergetriumphantly even from enmity and tragedy. USS Indianapolis’s odyssey persists as an epic fable reflecting humanity’s complex relationship with the oceans that cover our world as well as the angels and demons that reside within all people.