- General Collections
- 1941
- 1942
- Battles of Java Sea and Sunda Strait
- Bataan and Corregidor
- Early Naval Raids
- Doolittle Raid
- Battle of the Coral Sea
- Battle of Midway
- Submarine Combat Patrols
- Battle of the Atlantic
- Solomons Campaign: Guadalcanal
- Operation Torch: Invasion of North Africa
- Building the Infrastructure for War
- Manning the U.S. Navy
- 1943
- Establishment of Numbered Fleets
- The Aleutians Campaign
- Battle of the Atlantic—Continued
- On the Offensive Beyond Guadalcanal
- Sicilian Campaign: Operation Husky
- Tarawa: Breaking into the Gilberts
- Landings at Salerno, Italy: Operation Avalanche
- Naval Air Strikes Against German Shipping: Operation Leader
- 1944
- Operation Shingle: Landing at Anzio, Italy
- Gamble at Los Negros: The Admiralty Islands Campaign
- Evacuation by Submarine: USS Angler in the Philippines
- Securing New Guinea: Operations Reckless and Persecution
- Exercise Tiger: Disaster at Slapton Sands
- Defeating the Sharks: The Capture of U-505
- Pearl Harbor Ablaze Again: The West Loch Disaster
- Operation Overlord: Invasion of Normandy
- Operation Forager: The Battle of Saipan
- The Battle of the Philippine Sea
- Port Chicago Naval Magazine Explosion
- Operation Forager Continued: Landings on Guam and Tinian
- Operation Dragoon: The Invasion of Southern France
- Operation Stalemate II: The Battle of Peleliu
- The Battle of Leyte Gulf
- The Battle off Samar: The Sacrifice of "Taffy 3"
- United States Navy War Instructions, 1944
- The Japanese “Hell Ships” of World War II
- 1945
- Battle of Iwo Jima
- Navy Nurses Behind Enemy Lines in the Philippines
- Operation Plunder: Crossing the Rhine
- Battle of Okinawa
- Okinawa Highlights: 4-11 April 1945
- Battle of Okinawa: Historic Overview & Importance
- Okinawa Highlights: 12–19 April 1945
- Kamikaze Attack on USS Isherwood
- The Destruction of USS Pringle
- The Sinking of USS Little
- The Most Dangerous Place off Okinawa
- A Kamikaze Attack on New Mexico, Fifth Fleet Flag: A Photo Essay
- A Ceremony for the Fallen: Aftermath of a Kamikaze Attack
- Admiral Spruance Recounts Kamikaze Attack on His Flagship, New Mexico (BB-40)
- On the Verge of Breaking Down Completely: Combat Fatigue off Okinawa and the Destruction of USS Longshaw
- Investigating Okinawa: The Story Behind A Kamikaze Pilot’s Scarf
- The Loss of USS Twiggs at Okinawa
- The Most Difficult Antiaircraft Problem Yet Faced By the Fleet
- Victory in Europe (V-E) Day
- Japan's Surrender and Aftermath
- World War II Profiles in Duty
- ENS Allen W. Bain and Minneapolis (CA-36)
- LT Eugene A. Barham and Laffey (DD-459)
- LT Richard H. Best of VB-6
- LCDR Joseph W. Callahan and Ralph Talbot (DD-390)
- LT Albert P. “Scoofer” Coffin of Torpedo Ten
- MAtt1/c Leonard R. Harmon and CDR Mark H. Crouter of San Francisco (CA-38)
- CDR Frank A. Erickson—First Helicoptar SAR
- CDR Ernest E. Evans of Johnston (DD-557)
- S1/c James Fahy on Montpelier (CL-57)
- Float Plane Pilots in the Pacific
- AMM1/c Bruno P. Gaido of VS-6
- CAPT Joy Bright Hancock
- Charles Kleinsmith and Yorktown (CV-5)
- LCDR Edwin T. Layton of PACFLT N2
- LCDR Maxwell F. Leslie of VB-3
- LCDR Eugene E. Lindsey of VT-6
- ENS Donald W. Lynch and Mugford (DD-389)
- Theodore W. Marshall of VP-22
- LCDR Lance E. Massey of VT-3
- LCDR Bernard F. McMahon and Drum (SS-228)
- ARM1/c Oliver Rasmussen
- LTJG Melvin C. Roach, Guadalcanal Fighter Pilot
- CDR Joseph J. Rochefort and "Station Hypo"
- Chief Machinist William A. Smith and Enterprise (CV-6)
- LTJG Steffenhagen and Shōhō
- Submerged Appendectomy
- LCDR John C. Waldron of VT-8
- LCDR William J. “Gus” Widhelm of Scouting Eight
- Image (gif, jpg, tiff)
- NHHC
Lieutenant Commander John C. Waldron
24 August 1900–4 June 1942
Torpedo Squadron 8 (VT-8) pilots, with Lieutenant Commander John C. Waldron at center, circled. Photo taken shortly before the Battle of Midway, circa mid-May 1942. Other pilots depicted include Ensign Harold J. Ellison; Ensign Henry R. Kenyon; Ensign John P. Gray; Ensign George H. Gay, Jr.; Lieutenant (j.g.) Jeff D. Woodson; Ensign William W. Creamer; Aviation Pilot First Class Robert B. Miles; Lieutenant James C. Owens, Jr.; Ensign E. L. Fayle; Lieutenant Raymond A. Moore; Ensign Ulvert M. Moore; Ensign William R. Evans; Ensign Grant W. Teats; and Lieutenant (j.g.) George M. Campbell (NH 93595).
Waldron was born on 24 August 1900 and grew up in Fort Pierre, South Dakota. He entered the Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, in 1920. His fellow midshipmen described him as a “sea-going cow puncher,” a reference to Waldron’s upbringing in a part of the country that was associated in the popular imagination with cowboys and wide-open spaces. The moniker applied, too, in the sense that Waldron liked fighting sports such as boxing and wrestling.
Waldron completed his studies and was commissioned as an ensign on 5 June 1924. After service at sea on USS Seattle (CA-11), he commenced Navy flight training in Pensacola, Florida. A fully-fledged naval aviator by 1927, Waldron gained command and flight experience over the course of the next decade. He attained the rank of lieutenant commander in 1939 and took charge of Torpedo Squadron 8 aboard USS Hornet (CV-8) shortly before the attack on Pearl Harbor.
At the Battle of Midway on 4 June 1942, Waldron noticed that the flight course assigned to his squadron would take it in the wrong direction. Determined to correct the mistake and contribute to the battle, Waldron disobeyed orders by leading his pilots to break formation. The gamble, which could have resulted in a court-martial, paid off. With the help of torpedo squadrons from USS Enterprise (CV-6), Waldron’s squadron hobbled Japanese capabilities and brought victory within reach.
The transcript of Waldron’s final radio transmission reads, “My two wingmen are going in the water.” Subsequent reports indicate that their planes and Waldron’s had been hit by several antiaircraft shells and gone down in flames. Waldron did not survive.
Footnotes
- Accessibility/Section 508 |
- Employee Login |
- FOIA |
- NHHC IG |
- Privacy |
- Webmaster |
- Navy.mil |
- Navy Recruiting |
- Careers |
- USA.gov |
- USA Jobs
- No Fear Act |
- Site Map |
- This is an official U.S. Navy web site