Sumner class DD's

[Spooooooooooooooooooooon]

Over the weekend I visited the CV Yorktown, submarine Clamagore and the Sumner class DD Laffey in Charleston harbor.  Great museum and well worth the visit.

I wasn't familiar with the Allen M. Sumner class DD's, but a little research shows the USA built 58 of them in WW2 between 1943 and 1945.  Basically an improved Fletcher class.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allen_M._Sumner-class_destroyer

The USS Laffey in particular has an amazing story.  I wish I had taken more pics on board but will leave you all with this one:  My grandson sitting on a park bench in front of the ship.

The USS Laffey's story is so amazing I hope to see her in game as a premium.  Here's a bit of her combat history:

On 16 April 1945, Laffey was assigned to radar picket station 1 about 30 mi (26 nmi; 48 km) north of Okinawa, and joined in repulsing an air attack which downed 13 enemy aircraft that day. The next day, the Japanese launched another air attack with some 50 planes:

• At 08:30, a Aichi D3A Val dive bomber appeared near the Laffey for reconnaissance. When the D3A was fired upon, it jettisoned its bomb and left. Soon after, four D3As broke formation and made a dive into Laffey. Two of the D3As were destroyed by 20 mm guns and the other two low angle attacks crashed into the sea. Immediately afterward, one of Laffey's gunners destroyed a Yokosuka D4Y making a strafing approach on the port beam. Ten seconds later, Laffey's main gun battery hit a second D4Y on a bombing approach from the starboard beam. The D4Y's bomb detonated in the water, wounding the starboard gunners with shrapnel. The flames were quickly extinguished by the damage control team.
• At 08:42, Laffey destroyed another D3A approaching the port side. While the bomber didn't completely impact the ship, it made a glancing blow against the deck before crashing into the sea, also spewing some lethal aviation fuel from its damaged engine. Three minutes later, another D3A approaching from port crashed into one of the 40 mm mounts of the ship, killing three men, destroying 20 mm guns and two 40 mm guns, and setting the magazine afire. Immediately afterward, another D3A made a strafing approach from the stern, impacted the after 5"/38 caliber gun mount, and disintegrated as its bomb detonated the powder magazine, destroying the gun turret and causing a major fire. Another D3A on a making a similar approach from astern also impacted the burning gun mount after being set afire by Laffey's gunners. At about the same time, another D3A on a bomb run approaching from astern dropped its bomb, jamming Laffey's rudder 26° to port and killing several men. Another D3A and another D4Y approached from port and hit Laffey.

Meanwhile, four FM-2 Wildcats took off from the escort carrier Shamrock Bay, attempting to intercept kamikazes attacking Laffey. One of the Wildcat pilots, Carl Rieman, made a dive into the kamikaze formation and targeted a D3A. His wingman took out that dive bomber while Rieman lined up behind another D3A, opened fire, and destroyed the enemy aircraft. Ten seconds later, Rieman pursued a Nakajima B5N torpedo plane, fired, and killed the Japanese pilot. Only five seconds later, Rieman lined up behind another B5N and expended the last of his ammunition. As Rieman returned to his carrier, he made diving passes at kamikazes, forcing some of them to break off their attacks. The other three Wildcats destroyed a few aircraft and then interfered with the enemy's attack runs after they exhausted their ammunition until forced to return to Shamrock Bay when their fuel ran too low to stay. The Wildcats were replaced by a group of 12 American Vought F4U Corsair fighters.

Another D3A approached the disabled Laffey from port. A Corsair pursued the kamikaze and destroyed it after forcing it to overshoot the ship. The Corsair lined up behind a Ki-43 'Oscar' making a strafing approach on Laffey from starboard. One of Laffey's gunners hit the Oscar, causing it to crash into the ship's mast and fall into the water. The pursuing Corsair also crashed into the ship's radar antenna and fell into the water, but the pilot was later rescued by LCS-51.

Another D3A came from the stern and dropped a bomb detonating off the port side. The D3A was later destroyed by a Corsair. The Corsair quickly lined up behind another D3A and fired; but the bomb from the second D3A hit and destroyed one of Laffey's 40 mm gun mounts, killing all its gunners. The Corsair lined up behind two Oscars approaching from the bow, took out one, and was shot down by the other. The surviving Oscar was then shot down by Laffey's gunners. Laffey's main battery destroyed a D3A approaching from starboard. The last attacker, a D4Y, was shot down by a Corsair.

Laffey survived despite being badly damaged by four bombs, six kamikaze crashes, and strafing fire that killed 32 and wounded 71. Assistant communications officer Lt. Frank Manson asked Captain Becton if he thought they'd have to abandon ship, to which he snapped, "No! I'll never abandon ship as long as a single gun will fire." Becton did not hear a nearby lookout softly say, "And if I can find one man to fire it."^[5]

 

 

[JochenHeiden]

I went to that museum when I was at Charleston AFB for a school.  Definitely worth the visit.  Interestingly enough we are getting a Sumner-class DD in the Tier X Pan-Asian destroyer.

[Chaos_EN2]

+1 posting

[Tachnechdorus]

I also visited those ships at Charleston when we had our 30 year ships re-union 

[Shigure_DD]

 

[Fog_Repair_Ship_Akashi]

49 minutes ago, Spooooooooooooooooooooon said:

Over the weekend I visited the CV Yorktown, submarine Clamagore and the Sumner class DD Laffey in Charleston harbor.  Great museum and well worth the visit.

I wasn't familiar with the Allen M. Sumner class DD's, but a little research shows the USA built 58 of them in WW2 between 1943 and 1945.  Basically an improved Fletcher class.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allen_M._Sumner-class_destroyer

The USS Laffey in particular has an amazing story.  I wish I had taken more pics on board but will leave you all with this one:  My grandson sitting on a park bench in front of the ship.

The USS Laffey's story is so amazing I hope to see her in game as a premium.  Here's a bit of her combat history:

On 16 April 1945, Laffey was assigned to radar picket station 1 about 30 mi (26 nmi; 48 km) north of Okinawa, and joined in repulsing an air attack which downed 13 enemy aircraft that day. The next day, the Japanese launched another air attack with some 50 planes:

• At 08:30, a Aichi D3A Val dive bomber appeared near the Laffey for reconnaissance. When the D3A was fired upon, it jettisoned its bomb and left. Soon after, four D3As broke formation and made a dive into Laffey. Two of the D3As were destroyed by 20 mm guns and the other two low angle attacks crashed into the sea. Immediately afterward, one of Laffey's gunners destroyed a Yokosuka D4Y making a strafing approach on the port beam. Ten seconds later, Laffey's main gun battery hit a second D4Y on a bombing approach from the starboard beam. The D4Y's bomb detonated in the water, wounding the starboard gunners with shrapnel. The flames were quickly extinguished by the damage control team.
• At 08:42, Laffey destroyed another D3A approaching the port side. While the bomber didn't completely impact the ship, it made a glancing blow against the deck before crashing into the sea, also spewing some lethal aviation fuel from its damaged engine. Three minutes later, another D3A approaching from port crashed into one of the 40 mm mounts of the ship, killing three men, destroying 20 mm guns and two 40 mm guns, and setting the magazine afire. Immediately afterward, another D3A made a strafing approach from the stern, impacted the after 5"/38 caliber gun mount, and disintegrated as its bomb detonated the powder magazine, destroying the gun turret and causing a major fire. Another D3A on a making a similar approach from astern also impacted the burning gun mount after being set afire by Laffey's gunners. At about the same time, another D3A on a bomb run approaching from astern dropped its bomb, jamming Laffey's rudder 26° to port and killing several men. Another D3A and another D4Y approached from port and hit Laffey.

Meanwhile, four FM-2 Wildcats took off from the escort carrier Shamrock Bay, attempting to intercept kamikazes attacking Laffey. One of the Wildcat pilots, Carl Rieman, made a dive into the kamikaze formation and targeted a D3A. His wingman took out that dive bomber while Rieman lined up behind another D3A, opened fire, and destroyed the enemy aircraft. Ten seconds later, Rieman pursued a Nakajima B5N torpedo plane, fired, and killed the Japanese pilot. Only five seconds later, Rieman lined up behind another B5N and expended the last of his ammunition. As Rieman returned to his carrier, he made diving passes at kamikazes, forcing some of them to break off their attacks. The other three Wildcats destroyed a few aircraft and then interfered with the enemy's attack runs after they exhausted their ammunition until forced to return to Shamrock Bay when their fuel ran too low to stay. The Wildcats were replaced by a group of 12 American Vought F4U Corsair fighters.

Another D3A approached the disabled Laffey from port. A Corsair pursued the kamikaze and destroyed it after forcing it to overshoot the ship. The Corsair lined up behind a Ki-43 'Oscar' making a strafing approach on Laffey from starboard. One of Laffey's gunners hit the Oscar, causing it to crash into the ship's mast and fall into the water. The pursuing Corsair also crashed into the ship's radar antenna and fell into the water, but the pilot was later rescued by LCS-51.

Another D3A came from the stern and dropped a bomb detonating off the port side. The D3A was later destroyed by a Corsair. The Corsair quickly lined up behind another D3A and fired; but the bomb from the second D3A hit and destroyed one of Laffey's 40 mm gun mounts, killing all its gunners. The Corsair lined up behind two Oscars approaching from the bow, took out one, and was shot down by the other. The surviving Oscar was then shot down by Laffey's gunners. Laffey's main battery destroyed a D3A approaching from starboard. The last attacker, a D4Y, was shot down by a Corsair.

Laffey survived despite being badly damaged by four bombs, six kamikaze crashes, and strafing fire that killed 32 and wounded 71. Assistant communications officer Lt. Frank Manson asked Captain Becton if he thought they'd have to abandon ship, to which he snapped, "No! I'll never abandon ship as long as a single gun will fire." Becton did not hear a nearby lookout softly say, "And if I can find one man to fire it."^[5]

 

 

Well i think the USS Laffey would make an epic premium (both the Sumner and the Benson-class). Been to Patriots point and the Yorktown incredible place to see. While we may not be getting the Laffey we are getting her class. The tier X Pan-Asian DD is a Sumner-Class DD. A very nice post my friend, a salute to you.

[Fog_Repair_Ship_Akashi]

1 hour ago, Spooooooooooooooooooooon said:

Over the weekend I visited the CV Yorktown, submarine Clamagore and the Sumner class DD Laffey in Charleston harbor.  Great museum and well worth the visit.

I wasn't familiar with the Allen M. Sumner class DD's, but a little research shows the USA built 58 of them in WW2 between 1943 and 1945.  Basically an improved Fletcher class.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allen_M._Sumner-class_destroyer

The USS Laffey in particular has an amazing story.  I wish I had taken more pics on board but will leave you all with this one:  My grandson sitting on a park bench in front of the ship.

The USS Laffey's story is so amazing I hope to see her in game as a premium.  Here's a bit of her combat history:

On 16 April 1945, Laffey was assigned to radar picket station 1 about 30 mi (26 nmi; 48 km) north of Okinawa, and joined in repulsing an air attack which downed 13 enemy aircraft that day. The next day, the Japanese launched another air attack with some 50 planes:

• At 08:30, a Aichi D3A Val dive bomber appeared near the Laffey for reconnaissance. When the D3A was fired upon, it jettisoned its bomb and left. Soon after, four D3As broke formation and made a dive into Laffey. Two of the D3As were destroyed by 20 mm guns and the other two low angle attacks crashed into the sea. Immediately afterward, one of Laffey's gunners destroyed a Yokosuka D4Y making a strafing approach on the port beam. Ten seconds later, Laffey's main gun battery hit a second D4Y on a bombing approach from the starboard beam. The D4Y's bomb detonated in the water, wounding the starboard gunners with shrapnel. The flames were quickly extinguished by the damage control team.
• At 08:42, Laffey destroyed another D3A approaching the port side. While the bomber didn't completely impact the ship, it made a glancing blow against the deck before crashing into the sea, also spewing some lethal aviation fuel from its damaged engine. Three minutes later, another D3A approaching from port crashed into one of the 40 mm mounts of the ship, killing three men, destroying 20 mm guns and two 40 mm guns, and setting the magazine afire. Immediately afterward, another D3A made a strafing approach from the stern, impacted the after 5"/38 caliber gun mount, and disintegrated as its bomb detonated the powder magazine, destroying the gun turret and causing a major fire. Another D3A on a making a similar approach from astern also impacted the burning gun mount after being set afire by Laffey's gunners. At about the same time, another D3A on a bomb run approaching from astern dropped its bomb, jamming Laffey's rudder 26° to port and killing several men. Another D3A and another D4Y approached from port and hit Laffey.

Meanwhile, four FM-2 Wildcats took off from the escort carrier Shamrock Bay, attempting to intercept kamikazes attacking Laffey. One of the Wildcat pilots, Carl Rieman, made a dive into the kamikaze formation and targeted a D3A. His wingman took out that dive bomber while Rieman lined up behind another D3A, opened fire, and destroyed the enemy aircraft. Ten seconds later, Rieman pursued a Nakajima B5N torpedo plane, fired, and killed the Japanese pilot. Only five seconds later, Rieman lined up behind another B5N and expended the last of his ammunition. As Rieman returned to his carrier, he made diving passes at kamikazes, forcing some of them to break off their attacks. The other three Wildcats destroyed a few aircraft and then interfered with the enemy's attack runs after they exhausted their ammunition until forced to return to Shamrock Bay when their fuel ran too low to stay. The Wildcats were replaced by a group of 12 American Vought F4U Corsair fighters.

Another D3A approached the disabled Laffey from port. A Corsair pursued the kamikaze and destroyed it after forcing it to overshoot the ship. The Corsair lined up behind a Ki-43 'Oscar' making a strafing approach on Laffey from starboard. One of Laffey's gunners hit the Oscar, causing it to crash into the ship's mast and fall into the water. The pursuing Corsair also crashed into the ship's radar antenna and fell into the water, but the pilot was later rescued by LCS-51.

Another D3A came from the stern and dropped a bomb detonating off the port side. The D3A was later destroyed by a Corsair. The Corsair quickly lined up behind another D3A and fired; but the bomb from the second D3A hit and destroyed one of Laffey's 40 mm gun mounts, killing all its gunners. The Corsair lined up behind two Oscars approaching from the bow, took out one, and was shot down by the other. The surviving Oscar was then shot down by Laffey's gunners. Laffey's main battery destroyed a D3A approaching from starboard. The last attacker, a D4Y, was shot down by a Corsair.

Laffey survived despite being badly damaged by four bombs, six kamikaze crashes, and strafing fire that killed 32 and wounded 71. Assistant communications officer Lt. Frank Manson asked Captain Becton if he thought they'd have to abandon ship, to which he snapped, "No! I'll never abandon ship as long as a single gun will fire." Becton did not hear a nearby lookout softly say, "And if I can find one man to fire it."^[5]

Also I have this from YouTube, they actually play this at the memorial since it explains the Laffey's story so well.

Admittedly the Laffy's story isn't said till 10:30 but still a really interesting look into the whole Kamikaze concept.

[Spooooooooooooooooooooon]

1 hour ago, Fog_Repair_Ship_Akashi said:

Also I have this from YouTube, they actually play this at the memorial since it explains the Laffey's story so well.

Admittedly the Laffy's story isn't said till 10:30 but still a really interesting look into the whole Kamikaze concept.

That gets the blood pumping.  

[hangglide42]

2 hours ago, Spooooooooooooooooooooon said:

Over the weekend I visited the CV Yorktown, submarine Clamagore and the Sumner class DD Laffey in Charleston harbor.  Great museum and well worth the visit.

I wasn't familiar with the Allen M. Sumner class DD's, but a little research shows the USA built 58 of them in WW2 between 1943 and 1945.  Basically an improved Fletcher class.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allen_M._Sumner-class_destroyer

The USS Laffey in particular has an amazing story.  I wish I had taken more pics on board but will leave you all with this one:  My grandson sitting on a park bench in front of the ship.

The USS Laffey's story is so amazing I hope to see her in game as a premium.  Here's a bit of her combat history:

On 16 April 1945, Laffey was assigned to radar picket station 1 about 30 mi (26 nmi; 48 km) north of Okinawa, and joined in repulsing an air attack which downed 13 enemy aircraft that day. The next day, the Japanese launched another air attack with some 50 planes:

• At 08:30, a Aichi D3A Val dive bomber appeared near the Laffey for reconnaissance. When the D3A was fired upon, it jettisoned its bomb and left. Soon after, four D3As broke formation and made a dive into Laffey. Two of the D3As were destroyed by 20 mm guns and the other two low angle attacks crashed into the sea. Immediately afterward, one of Laffey's gunners destroyed a Yokosuka D4Y making a strafing approach on the port beam. Ten seconds later, Laffey's main gun battery hit a second D4Y on a bombing approach from the starboard beam. The D4Y's bomb detonated in the water, wounding the starboard gunners with shrapnel. The flames were quickly extinguished by the damage control team.
• At 08:42, Laffey destroyed another D3A approaching the port side. While the bomber didn't completely impact the ship, it made a glancing blow against the deck before crashing into the sea, also spewing some lethal aviation fuel from its damaged engine. Three minutes later, another D3A approaching from port crashed into one of the 40 mm mounts of the ship, killing three men, destroying 20 mm guns and two 40 mm guns, and setting the magazine afire. Immediately afterward, another D3A made a strafing approach from the stern, impacted the after 5"/38 caliber gun mount, and disintegrated as its bomb detonated the powder magazine, destroying the gun turret and causing a major fire. Another D3A on a making a similar approach from astern also impacted the burning gun mount after being set afire by Laffey's gunners. At about the same time, another D3A on a bomb run approaching from astern dropped its bomb, jamming Laffey's rudder 26° to port and killing several men. Another D3A and another D4Y approached from port and hit Laffey.

Meanwhile, four FM-2 Wildcats took off from the escort carrier Shamrock Bay, attempting to intercept kamikazes attacking Laffey. One of the Wildcat pilots, Carl Rieman, made a dive into the kamikaze formation and targeted a D3A. His wingman took out that dive bomber while Rieman lined up behind another D3A, opened fire, and destroyed the enemy aircraft. Ten seconds later, Rieman pursued a Nakajima B5N torpedo plane, fired, and killed the Japanese pilot. Only five seconds later, Rieman lined up behind another B5N and expended the last of his ammunition. As Rieman returned to his carrier, he made diving passes at kamikazes, forcing some of them to break off their attacks. The other three Wildcats destroyed a few aircraft and then interfered with the enemy's attack runs after they exhausted their ammunition until forced to return to Shamrock Bay when their fuel ran too low to stay. The Wildcats were replaced by a group of 12 American Vought F4U Corsair fighters.

Another D3A approached the disabled Laffey from port. A Corsair pursued the kamikaze and destroyed it after forcing it to overshoot the ship. The Corsair lined up behind a Ki-43 'Oscar' making a strafing approach on Laffey from starboard. One of Laffey's gunners hit the Oscar, causing it to crash into the ship's mast and fall into the water. The pursuing Corsair also crashed into the ship's radar antenna and fell into the water, but the pilot was later rescued by LCS-51.

Another D3A came from the stern and dropped a bomb detonating off the port side. The D3A was later destroyed by a Corsair. The Corsair quickly lined up behind another D3A and fired; but the bomb from the second D3A hit and destroyed one of Laffey's 40 mm gun mounts, killing all its gunners. The Corsair lined up behind two Oscars approaching from the bow, took out one, and was shot down by the other. The surviving Oscar was then shot down by Laffey's gunners. Laffey's main battery destroyed a D3A approaching from starboard. The last attacker, a D4Y, was shot down by a Corsair.

Laffey survived despite being badly damaged by four bombs, six kamikaze crashes, and strafing fire that killed 32 and wounded 71. Assistant communications officer Lt. Frank Manson asked Captain Becton if he thought they'd have to abandon ship, to which he snapped, "No! I'll never abandon ship as long as a single gun will fire." Becton did not hear a nearby lookout softly say, "And if I can find one man to fire it."^[5]

 

 

 

Hey Spooo.....ooon!   This was a very classic battle in the legacy of the poor radar picket ships during WWII - For anyone interested in a visual depiction of this exact battle, there is a series called "Dogfights" that you can probably find on the AHC (formerly the Military Channel) or History Channel.  The series is basically 3D CG depictions of famous battles (mainly aerial, but also some famous naval ones) - this battle is actually shown as one of the segments in an episode of the series.

 

[Shigure_DD]

 

[Umikami]

Nice post Spoon; thanks for the 4-1-1.

[ForgMaxtor]

On 9/5/2017 at 10:26 AM, Spooooooooooooooooooooon said:

Over the weekend I visited the CV Yorktown, submarine Clamagore and the Sumner class DD Laffey in Charleston harbor.  Great museum and well worth the visit.

I wasn't familiar with the Allen M. Sumner class DD's, but a little research shows the USA built 58 of them in WW2 between 1943 and 1945.  Basically an improved Fletcher class.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allen_M._Sumner-class_destroyer

 

Ya, the whole Patriot's Point museum is well worth it.  Been a while since I was there but I'll definitely second the recommendation.

IMHO, the Sumner class is best understood as a slightly smaller sibling class to the Gearing.  The Gearing class was basically a Sumner class with the hull lengthened slightly to create more fuel storage for better range.  In terms of armament and other tactical attributes, the Sumner and Gearing classes were virtually identical.  The two classes were so similar that they are sometimes considered one class with two subdivisions -- i.e., the "Sumner/Gearing" class.  Compared to the Fletchers, The Sumner/Gearings featured a slightly larger hull form which allowed them to mount a 3x2 main battery, rather than the Fletcher's 5x1.  They also had twin rudder layout compared to the Fletcher's single, giving them better low-speed maneuverability especially.  Even considering these improvements, I do think it's accurate to consider the Sumner/Gearing design an incremental evolution of the Fletcher design.

In general the Gearings did tend to stay in USN service longer than the Sumners, because their slightly larger size meant more room for Cold War-era systems upgrades.  But these upgrades are largely out of WoWS scope; in the WWII-era, the armaments of the two classes was nearly identical.

I do think a Sumner class Premium would be a fun addition the game, especially if it were a ship with a storied history such as Laffey.  The challenge would be to find ways to differentiate a Sumner premium from the Gearing class already in game, since the armament for the two classes was virtually identical.  An in-game Sumner would probably need to be nerfed relative to the Gearing to make it fit no higher than T9 as I don't think WG has any interest in releasing a T10 Premium.

 

 

[Spooooooooooooooooooooon]

39 minutes ago, ForgMaxtor said:

 

In general the Gearings did tend to stay in USN service longer than the Sumners, because their slightly larger size meant more room Cold War-era systems upgrades.  But these upgrades are largely out of WoWS scope; in the WWII-era, the armaments of the two classes was nearly identical.

 

Speaking of which, they had a hangar on the Laffey, inside of which was some kind of helicopter that appeared to be remote controlled.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gyrodyne_QH-50_DASH

[Umikami]

7 hours ago, Spooooooooooooooooooooon said:

Speaking of which, they had a hangar on the Laffey, inside of which was some kind of helicopter that appeared to be remote controlled.

Yeah, that was the remote controlled sub-chaser drone, and it from way back in the 50's!

[CGN_41]

The Sumner class was started at the beginning of WWII after the treaty limitations ran out. the Sumner's are actually smaller versions of the Gearings. As the Sumner class ships came online, the US navy decided they needed a DD with longer range, so they cut the Sumners in half and added an 80 FT section and increased the Beam width to get the extra range.  I have visited Patriots point long ago and it is a great place to see and walk around the ships located there. If you get the change to get to Boston, the original sailing frigate, USS Constitution is there, still on active duty after 200 yrs of service.

[inktomi19d]

On 9/5/2017 at 11:21 AM, Fog_Repair_Ship_Akashi said:

Well i think the USS Laffey would make an epic premium (both the Sumner and the Benson-class). Been to Patriots point and the Yorktown incredible place to see. While we may not be getting the Laffey we are getting her class. The tier X Pan-Asian DD is a Sumner-Class DD. A very nice post my friend, a salute to you.

The Benson-Class DD-459 was pretty freaking impressive too, given that she engaged a battleship at 500 yards or less, shot off part of the bridge, destroyed the radio room and ship’s intercom, wounded the battleship’s captain and the IJN task force admiral and killed the admiral’s staff, and effectively took the Japanese flagship out of the fight all with her 5” main battery and her anti-aircraft guns. Sure, her torpedoes were duds (or were too close to arm), and she couldn’t penetrate the Hiei’s hull plating, but Laffey gave her all.

 

The Captain of the later DD-724 (the second Laffey) had been first officer of the ship immediately behind the Laffey when she took the torpedo hit that sunk her (she already had her stern blown off by a 14” shell, but was still afloat and was being evacuated in good order).