The Faces of Midway
Artist R.G. Smith’s depiction of SBD Dauntless dive-bombers attacking the Japanese aircraft carriers Akagi, Kaga, and Soryu during the Battle of Midway.
Whether they strapped into cockpits of airplanes on the sandy shores of Midway Atoll or on the wooden planks of carrier decks, a select group of young men faced a daunting prospect in early June 1942. Bearing down on them was a mighty Japanese Fleet, some of the ships of which had last ventured this far east in the Pacific Ocean the previous December en route to launch air attacks against Pearl Harbor. This time, owing to code breaking by Naval Intelligence, U.S. Pacific Fleet commander Admiral Chester W. Nimitz knew details of the enemy’s plans. Yet, as it always does in war, success or failure hinged on those closest to the action, which in a carrier battle included naval aviators who winged their way towards the enemy.
The National Naval Aviation Museum holds a collection of archival records in its collection consisting of the flight training records of individual aviators. They provide a unique glimpse into the months in which young men first learned to fly, taking the first steps towards active service in the fleet. Using these records, and other sources in the historical collection, we present the faces of Midway.
Aviation Machinist's Mate Third Class Harry L. Corl
A select number of blue jackets like Aviation Machinist’s Mate Harry L. Corl, pictured here at Naval Air Station (NAS) Pensacola, Florida, earned the opportunity to receive their wings of gold and designation as a naval aviation pilot (NAP). When he entered flight training, the world was not yet at war, but by the time of his last training flights, Germany had invaded Poland and Europe was ablaze with the fires of World War II. For Corl, the war that began while he learned to fly took him not across the Atlantic, but to the waters of the Pacific. Flying TBD Devastators in Torpedo Squadron (VT) 3 off the carrier Yorktown (CV 5) at the Battle of Midway, Corl and his gunner, Aviation Radioman Third Class Lloyd F. Childers, launched to attack the Japanese fleet on the morning of June 4, 1942. By this time, he had been promoted to the rank of warrant officer, and was a wingman to squadron skipper Lieutenant Commander Lance Massey. Attacking the Japanese carrier Hiryu, Corl jettisoned his torpedo after rounds from an attacking Japanese Zero fighter damaged his elevator controls, momentarily causing his plane to head towards the water. However, he was able to use the trim tab to maintain control. Departing the area of the Japanese fleet, Corl’s TBD and that flown by Chief Aviation Pilot Wilhelm G. Esders were the only squadron aircraft that had not been shot down. However, as they headed back towards Yorktown’s position, the two torpedo planes endured repeated attacks by enemy fighters. Though they survived the enemy attacks, Corl and Esders both had to ditch their planes at sea before reaching Yorktown. All told, the two pilots and Childers (Esders’ gunner, Aviation Radioman Second Class Mike Brazier, died of his wounds) were the only survivors of VT-3’s attack that day. Receiving the Navy Cross for his actions, Corl returned to combat at the Battle of the Eastern Solomons in August 1942, flying a TBF Avenger with VT-3. He was shot down and killed in action.