Waldron was the commanding officer of Torpedo Squadron 8. He was, apparently, one of those hard-driving sons-of-guns that are paradoxically beloved by the young men they drive so hard. Waldron taught his boys to fly from the decks of aircraft carriers and launch torpedoes at enemy warships. In early June 1942, as Task Force 16 sailed to engage the numerically superior and until-then-undefeated Japanese First Air Fleet, Waldron was still relentlessly training his men, reviewing tactical situations and running them around the flight deck, much to the bemusement of the pilots of Hornet's more relaxed air squadrons.
Torpedo 8 sailed one day too soon to upgrade to the new, and far superior Grumman TBF Avenger. Instead, they'd go into battle against the most accomplished carrier air force in the world flying the obsolete TBD Devastator. In addition to an aircraft that was too short-ranged and too slow, Waldron knew that his men were armed with seriously defective torpedoes. They'd be flying low and slow and straight; sitting ducks for Japan's elite Zero aces and antiaircraft gunners, hoping for a chance to fire a weapon that was more likely than not to malfunction.
This portrait of Waldron, taken on the way out to Midway, bears close study. I particularly like how Waldron is armed with his GI 1911 and two spare magazines, and a knife. If his torpedo doesn't work, he'll sink the Japanese flagship with .45 ACP. If need be, he's ready to jump in the water and engage the shipwrecked Yammamoto in a knife fight. I also like the tie. He's ready to fight to the death, but he wants you to know he's a professional.
Early in the morning on 4 June 1942, all of Hornet's aircraft were launched at the Japanese fleet. Just before takeoff, Waldron got in a near-violent argument with Stan Ring, Hornet's air group commander. Waldron wanted some of Hornet's fighter planes to fly low, with Torpedo 8, to provide defensive cover for his boys against the Zeros. Ring refused. Based on the air reconaissance report locating the Japanese carriers, and the knowledge that they'd have to recover planes from their air strike on Midway Island, Waldron had correctly predicted a Japanese course change. He argued for an attack course that would meet the Japanese at this rendevous. Ring insisted on flying in the opposite direction.
Once airborne, Waldron taunted Ring over the radio: "I'm going to attack the Japanese fleet, Stan. Where are you going?" Waldron led Torpedo 8 toward the Japanese fleet. Ring flew all Hornet's other aircraft off to nowhere. Many ran out of gas and ditched in the sea; some made it to Midway island. None got in to the fight.
Waldron got into the fight. He led his squadron straight to the Japanese carriers. One by one, his planes were picked off by Japanese defending fighter planes. Only one pilot survived: Ensign George Gay. When Gay last saw Waldron, he was standing up in the cockpit of his burning aircraft, trying to get out.
Eventually Gay was shot down, too. He credits Waldron for his survival: among all the other things Waldron relentlessly trained them for, he'd drilled his pilots on how to evade capture and survive in the water. Other US aviators fished from the water were tortured and killed by the Japanese. Gay was rescued by a US flying boat the next day.
Gay was the only Torpedo 8 pilot to successfully launch a torpedo at a Japanese ship that day, and the torpedo was a dud, just as Waldron had feared. Nevertheless, Waldron's attack was decisive. He'd located the Japanese fleet, and by flying low and slow and straight as required for torpedo launching, he'd drawn all the Japanese fighters down to wave top level.
When Enterprise's and Yorktown's dive bombers arrived, they found the skies clear and the Japanese fleet undefended. The Zeros had gone low and slow to stop Torpedo 8's attack, and they couldn't gain speed and altitude in time to engage the dive bombers.
All the Japanese carriers that participated in the Midway strike were sunk that day. It was a turning point in the war. Until then, the Japanese Navy seemed invincible and the First Air Fleet was the premier carrier-based air force in the world. Losing their four most powerful aircraft carriers was a catastrophe for the Japanese, but worse was the loss of their elite cadre of naval aviators. Most of the best Japanese pilots - the same men who'd shocked the world with their attack on Pearl Harbor - were sitting in their planes, waiting to take off, when the American bombs started to fall among them. Americans who faced Japanese replacement pilots after Midway said they just weren't the same elite force they had been before.
So, what's so compelling about Waldron? I can't put my finger on any one thing, but there are a couple of things I can pin down.
First, he loved, and was loved by, the men he led. He worked them hard and trained them hard and had high expectations, but always with their well being in mind. As Hornet was preparing to ship out to Midway, Waldron was arguing with a quartermaster at Pearl Harbor. The TBDs were supplied with a single rear-facing machine gun for defense, but Waldron found out that some twin mount guns had been prepared for another aircraft type. If he had to lead his men to battle against overwhelming odds, he wanted to give them every advantage he possibly could. When Torpedo 8 took off on the morning of June 4, 1942, every plane was fitted with twin mounted defensive guns. Survivors of Torpedo 8 - Gay, and those who didn't ship out on Hornet for the Midway battle - spoke and wrote about Waldron as if they were all brothers and Waldron was their beloved father.
Second, he went out and did his duty against what he knew were impossible odds. I think he knew he wasn't coming back. The chances of Torpedo 8 actually hitting any major Japanese ship with a torpedo that day were exceedingly remote, and Waldron knew it. Knowing what he knew, it would have been hard to imagine what possible use his attack - his sacrifice - would be. So why did he go? He could have followed his orders, and followed Stan Ring, out into the empty sea and landed at Midway. Torpedo 8 would have been re-equipped with TBFs, and Waldron would have fought the Japanese somewhere else, against far better odds. He couldn't possibly have known that his seemingly futile attack would be the key to victory at Midway, and the turning point in the Pacific war. I think he just knew in his bones that attacking the Japanese was the right thing to do, and he believed that if he did the right thing, it would somehow turn out right. There's really no other word for that than faith. Do the right thing, even when it seems costly and futile, and do it with faith that good will come of it.
I'm not sure I want my son to be a warrior, and I sure don't want him to have to sacrifice his life in battle like Waldron did. But if he has Waldron's faith in doing the right thing, I'll be mighty pleased.
