Aerial Torpedo Attack
Intrepid headed for Truk, the tough Japanese base in Micronesia. Three US fast carrier task groups arrived on February 17, 1944, sinking two destroyers and 200,000 tons of merchant shipping in 2 days of continuous attacks. ... The night of 17 February 1944 an aerial torpedo struck Intrepid's starboard quarter, 15 feet below her waterline, flooding several compartments and jamming her rudder hard to port. ... By adroitly maneuvering with her port screw and idling her starboard engine, Intrepid maintained course for home for two days until strong winds swung her back in the direction of Tokyo. At this point the crew fashioned a jury-rig sail of hatch covers and scrap canvas which swung Intrepid about and held her on course for home. Decorated by her crazy-quilt sail, Intrepid stood into Pearl Harbor February 24, 1944.
