U-Boat Scourge

by J Eugene Porter

  Brand continued for another thirty minutes with a few interruptions. He expressed optimism at how the use of the technology he was developing for attacking U-boats could be turned into a positive for the American submariners. He had several more ideas on the use of technology to help these skippers, but was told not to go into possibilities of new defensive tools. He decided to conclude his remarks after the last question on time of day attacks by airplanes.

  “Gentlemen, I have to end our conversation and head back to Washington. But before I leave, I have a final comment. If you can increase the number of lookouts to a minimum of five truly active individuals, you will decrease the amount of space where they need to search. It will improve the likelihood of spotting an intruder by a minimum of twenty percent and by moving their frame of visual reference every five minutes or so, you will keep their eyes fresh. The more eyes searching for the enemy, the better your chance of survival. Practice this on your crash dives and see how much additional time it adds to your dive cycle. I think it will not add more than five seconds, but the extra eyes may see the enemy further out, perhaps before they see you. Thank you for your time. I wish you success.”

  As he placed his chalk on the tray of the nearest board, he heard something he had not experienced before, the beginnings of applause. Everyone was standing, and a few were even giving him a loud, “Well done.”

  The embarrassed ensign was saved by Commander Jameson, who was also applauding as well as Captain Cutts, who walked up and shook his hand saying, “Well done, Mr. Brand. You have just given these men sound advice and practical knowledge that will help them succeed in their job and even more important, come home safely.”

  The assembled officers all walked up, shook his hand, and thanked him for the information and ideas. The last one to approach was Lieutenant Commander Burton, who had stayed back waiting for the rest to leave. Burton put his hand on James’ shoulder, taking his hand in a hearty handshake. “Mr. Brand, it was an honor having you on the Greenling. I do not know if our paths will cross again, but if that happens, I will buy you the biggest steak dinner available. Thank you for your ideas and for helping me and my crew prepare for the future challenges we are facing. The first Jap ship I sink will be for you.” With that, Burton walked out the door before James could say a word.

  Jameson overheard the comments as did Flannigan. The commander said, “James, you did a fantastic job. What you showed them was another way to survive. They all appreciated it as did we. But, we need to get back to Washington and finalize your report. I know you had some other ideas that you wanted to share, but you did well not to go into futures.”

  Captain Cutts overheard these final comments but knew not to ask.Instead, he approached the assembled group, shook hands with each one, and wished them well. “Gentlemen, thank you for sharing your ideas. By the looks of the men, they will be making changes to how they operate and will formalize these ideas into our skipper training. Again, thank you for your efforts.”

  As they left the room, Brand could see out the window where three of the skippers were standing next to Lieutenant Commander Burton who was using his hands to show how the R4D had been diving on his boat and how he was trying to maneuver it. Brand smiled and walked toward the staff car with Flannigan and Gunny Jones.

  Lieutenant Commander Shoemaker had been notified the team would be scheduled to fly out by 1300 hours and the plane was all set to go as soon as they arrived at the airport.

  Jameson made a quick phone call to Admiral Willson’s office informing him they were leaving New London and would be in Washington in the early evening. Willson was okay with not hearing from Jameson until the next morning but wanted to know when to expect the report from Brand. Jameson was not sure but would let Willson know by morning.

  As the plane left the runway, the team members soaked in the wintery countryside of Connecticut; happy they were not driving back to Washington. The only person not looking out of the window was Brand. He was deep into calculations again, constantly scribbling notes on pieces of paper and looking at his slide rule to come up with different ways to express his findings.

  Always attentive to the ensign, Jameson sat down next to him. “James, I know you’re tired. If you would just shut down for an hour or so, the answers will come.”

  Brand smiled at his mentor. “Sir, I know you’re right, but there are so many things we could be doing to help those submariners. With their current optics and lack of any electronics, they are very susceptible to aircraft attacks. I want to make some recommendations to Admiral King concerning some of the new electronics such as radar that could really help them out.”

  Jameson was aware of the radar systems now available. He had been privy to some of the early meetings when in late 1940, the British under the leadership of Dr. Tizard brought to America the advances in technology the British were working on or had been using. Radar was the biggest item. Even though the U.S. had been working on it for some years, the British system was far ahead regarding range, quality, and usefulness. The breakthrough they brought was in the form of the resonant cavity magnetron, producing microwave power in the kilowatt range, greatly enhancing the power, range, and usefulness of radar. It was over one hundred times more powerful than anything the Americans had developed. Jameson also knew the lead institution on the development of radar was the Radiation (RAD) Laboratory at MIT.

  The staff at MIT was growing daily with many requests coming for land, sea, and aircraft based units. Jameson was aware of the first airborne unit, the ASG which was a British unit now being produced with considerable refinement under the direction of the RAD Lab. The unit became known as the 50kW ASG, known later as “George.” Gyro-stabilized, it could detect ships up to fifteen miles away and a submarine periscope at five miles. This was very important because now the planes could find submarines day or night. Jameson was knowledgeable about most of the significant technologies under development or soon to become operational. He knew Brand was aware of most of them, but he did not want to cloud his thinking by considering possible alternatives. Jameson knew the development was difficult and mass producing the equipment, especially the magnetron, would be slow and costly. He also knew that most of the navy brass were skeptical of anything new, especially technologies they could not comprehend.

  Jameson left Brand to work away on his ideas, and upon landing, he would have a better chance to talk to him in private about how to present his information for maximum effect.

  Part 5

  23

  26 February 1942

  Bethesda, Maryland

  • USS Langley (ACV) with 32 Army fighters on board is sunk in route to Java by Japanese planes.

  Brand had slept little the past two nights after learning Admiral King would be unavailable until at least February 27. He finished his report two days prior and asked the commander to look through it, requesting suggestions to make it more readable and reasonable. Jameson had told him the first day back that asking for the moon was not possible because of all the other constituencies requesting priorities in people, dollars, manufacturing space, raw materials, and on and on. Every military command wanted to be the top priority in every category. If the navy received priority on steel, the army did not get trucks and tanks. If the army Air Corps wanted more men with college backgrounds to become aviators, the navy would lose valuable talent for their operations, either in the air units or in the fleet. Everyone wanted more fuel and the ongoing attacks along the east coast hampered efforts to get fuel to the cities of New York, Philadelphia, and Boston, plus the promised shipments to Britain. Everyone wanted everything fast and could not understand why another groups was getting more.

  Washington was getting full as well. There were so many jobs opening within the various headquarters of the military, plus all the new war-related commissions and boards, that there was no room for anyone. People were now officially asked to rent out spare bedrooms and public transportation was becoming impossible. There were few cars
and with gasoline rationing, car pools were also jammed. Washington, D.C., had gone from a swampy backwater town to a major city in only a year, and with the war now going on across the world, Washington became the focus of all war-related activity in the country.

  Because of this unprecedented growth, Dr. Feldman had been happy to stay at the Bethesda home of Commander Jameson. This was highly desired by the commander as well as by Brand who had developed a close friendship with the good doctor. They played chess together and often their medical conversations would bring about ideas that could become useful to the military. Feldman watched over Brand like a mother lion and was very protective of his health, both physical and mental. He was acutely aware of the obsessive nature of geniuses who strive so hard as to hurt themselves. Dr. Feldman enlisted the new corpsman, Pharmacist Mate Hamlin to be vigilant whenever Feldman was not around and to report directly to him of any change in moods, personality, color, or just about anything that would be out of the ordinary. Feldman had also developed a close relationship with Gunnery Sergeant Jones who watched the young ensign like a surrogate father and was also glad the doctor was staying at the house.

  After a not so rousing game of chess which the doctor lost in about six moves, he told James that he was going to get a snack and asked if there were something he would like. James looking back at the doctor saying, “Well, I’m not hungry, but would love to get out of prison for a while. It was great going to the bases. Working with the plane and sub crews was a wonderful experience and added a lot to my research. Do you think we can go someplace?”

  Feldman anticipated Brand’s restlessness and the commander had briefed him on the new wanderlust that Brand was experiencing. He wanted to do and see things that tied to his research. Some were fine with the commander, but he didn’t want to risk Brand’s talents doing things that were marginally important. The doctor replied, “James, this is going to be a long war; you know that better than most. There are so many things to do, and the country—not just you—has only begun to fight. So far, we have seen very few injuries of war. But from what some of the British doctors tell us, I can wait. I’m sure the powers will have you moving again soon. Until then, get out of this house and go for walks. If you would like, I can take you to the labs at the hospital and show you some of the things we are working on. Would that help?”

  James smiled his big toothy grin saying, “That would be great. I would love to see what’s going on at that big hospital of yours. Lieutenant Flannigan tells me you’re having wild parties with the nurses every night and making all kinds of drinks to keep them frisky.”

  Feldman laughed. “I wish there were nurses like that, but there are a few you should meet. Quite attractive young ladies of the first order, but they are not frisky.”

  Feldman walked out of the room and headed for the kitchen to see what was left in the icebox. The housekeeper, Miss Dora Jane, always had good chicken or ham leftovers. The old woman was probably sixty but was very spry and ran the house like an army camp. Her assistant, Missy Rains, looked to be fifty, but was always cleaning the house and helping cook the meals. The food, facilities, and company were much superior to the BOQ at the hospital. He was glad the commander had gone to bat to gain approval for him to stay at the house.

  Just as he walked into the kitchen, he saw Lieutenant Flannigan walking out in the other direction. “Flannigan, you got a minute?”

  Flannigan turned around. “What can I do for you, Doc?”

  Feldman pointed to the kitchen table and sat down. “I’m worried about Brand. He needs to get some exercise on a regular basis and not spend all his time in his room or office. I asked if he wanted to come to the hospital for a tour and that seemed to excite him. Any other ideas?”

  Flannigan looked at the doctor and heaved a sigh of relief, “I am glad you see it, too. He seems so consumed in the research that he is not taking regular meals or getting out of the room, let alone the house. I thought about getting the team set up for some PT. Can he handle it yet?”

  Feldman thought for a moment. “Sure thing. His arm is doing well, and if you don’t kick him in the chest, he should be fine. I would watch him if there is much running involved or if he seems to have a lot of pain in the arm or right shoulder. But I think it would be a good idea. Also, encourage him to do his fighting thing. I saw what he did to that SOB in San Diego, and he should continue to practice that skill.” With a devilish grin, he added, “You and your people might even learn something new from him.”

  Flannigan couldn’t help but smile in return. “Doc, I’ll get a schedule set up with the gunny starting tomorrow. I’ll also ask the commander to join in so there will be no way for Brand to avoid it. I’ll make sure Hamlin is watching him always. He seems to be very concerned as well.”

  “Hamlin is a good man and is up on all of Brand’s issues. He will let me know if he sees anything out of place. I will let you know as soon as I set up a tour of the hospital so you can arrange an escort. You should come as well. A dashing marine lieutenant would be welcome by all of those lonely nurses.”

  Flannigan slowly added, “I will be the judge as to the amount of beauty and variety you have at the hospital. What I have seen of navy nurses does not speak well of the recruiting process.”

  Feldman laughed, “Well you should come by and see the new crop of ladies. I am sure one or two would meet the muster of the Marine Corps.”

  24

  27 February 1942

  Bethesda Naval Hospital

  • Battle of Java Sea is fought as an Allied naval force under Rear Admiral Doorman, Royal Netherlands Navy of five cruisers, and 11 destroyers in the Java Sea attacks enemy force covering Java invasion convoy. Two Netherlands cruisers, two British destroyers, one Netherlands destroyer are sunk. One United States cruiser and one British cruiser are damaged.

  Feldman had been making his morning rounds since 0630 and with so few patients under his care, he was basically finished by 0800. He had gone off to check with Dr. Baker, the top anesthesiologist at the hospital, to discuss the levels of morphine that should be prescribed to some of his older heart patients after surgery. He was acutely aware of the addictive properties of long duration treatments with morphine, but there was not much else that was effective. He had been talking to some of the younger surgeons about this, and all had agreed when the time came for mass casualties, the overuse of morphine would lead to an epidemic of addiction. Dr. Baker was a leading advocate of alternative treatments, quickly backing off on the amount given even though there was a large amount of discomfort and pain involved. The two had been talking for no more than ten minutes when a nurse walked in and asked if he was expecting anyone. “Would it be a very young-looking ensign and a handsome marine lieutenant, Nurse Warren?”

  Nurse Warren enjoyed the sense of humor Dr. Feldman brought to the hospital, and it was nice to see some young doctors these days instead of the old men that had run the hospital for some time. “Yes, Doctor, there are two officers escorted by two marines and a navy corpsman. Shall I show them to your office?”

  Dr. Baker shrugged his shoulders at the interruption, knowing that it was a “what if” conversation only and did not involve an active patient.

  Feldman acknowledged this saying, “If it is all right with Dr. Baker, I ’ll talk to them outside and show them around the city streets of our little hospital.”

  Baker decided to play along. “Dr. Feldman is right. If there is a group of marines around, someone must take them by the hand and lead them to the promised land or the latrine, whichever is closer.”

  Feldman and Nurse Warren both laughed at the joke by the older doctor. “Okay, Nurse Warren, take me to these wayward souls so that I may provide them counsel.”

  Nurse Warren, who was a lieutenant junior grade, and a one-year veteran of naval service led Dr. Feldman down the hall to where the ensign and the marine lieutenant were studying the large boards with clinic names, doctor offices, and administration locations listed in alphabe
tical order with the chief of medicine listed first. Feldman saw them first and had Nurse Warren follow him to the group.

  “Nurse Warren,” he said loudly, “what you see before you are some of the bravest men in the naval service. May I present to you First Lieutenant Flannigan and his understudy in bravery, Ensign Brand.”

  Both Brand and Flannigan nodded to the young nurse, and both said something in barely audible tones about nice meeting you or something like that but the nurse could not quite hear them.

  Feldman pounced, “Gentlemen, behold a fellow officer of the naval service. I think you can do better than a few mumbles.” Gunnery Sergeant Jones was standing behind the ensign and smiled broadly knowing that the good doctor had correctly surmised the two young men were a bit shy around the opposite sex.

  “Lieutenant Warren, I apologize for my poor manners. Please accept those of Ensign Brand as well.” Flannigan looked at the young nurse with new appreciation and finally came to understand the beauty hidden in the navy’s white nurse uniform and the silly cap they all wore. “May I ask how long you have been at Bethesda?”

  Nurse Warren smiled broadly at the tall marine officer and paid little notice to the younger officer standing next to him. “Well, Lieutenant, it’s nice to know the Marine Corps properly taught its officers to talk to women in such a courteous way. And, Ensign, what do you have to say for yourself?”