Harold Buell discusses his wartime experiences and his opinions of multiple dive bomber and fighter pilots who he flew with. The pilots flew off aircraft carriers in the early years of Pacific combat. Some are viewed favorably and some are not.

Harold Buell attended Parsons College in Iowa [Annotator's Note: Fairfield, Iowa] on an athletic scholarship. He was an orphan and could not have otherwise afforded to attend. He worked his way through college paying for his expenses. In his second year, the Federal government introduced the Civilian Pilot Training Program, or CPTP. Buell was one of ten selected from Parsons. That training enabled him to obtain a private pilot's license after 40 or 50 hours of flight time. With that in hand plus the minimum requirement of two years of college, he approached the Navy about their flight program. He was selected in November 1940 for entry into flight school. He enlisted as a Seaman 2nd Class for four years in the Navy in December 1940. If he had failed in flight training, he would have been held for his four year commitment. The Navy propaganda stated that its aviators were the best and Buell chose them as a result. He was trained in Pensacola with an early focus on acrobatics to sort out anyone prone to air sickness. Buell loved it. He wanted to be a "tail hooker" [Annotator's Note: naval slang for a carrier pilot] in fighter aircraft. He was sent to Miami for the advanced training in both fighters and dive bombers. He was ultimately assigned to dive bombers. He later managed to kill more of the enemy while in a dive bomber destroying their ships than he would have as a fighter pilot. He graduated flight training on 1 November 1941. He was commissioned the month before receiving his wings. He and his classmates were sent to fighter, dive bomber or torpedo squadrons aboard aircraft carriers.

Harold Buell was assigned to the Wasp [Annotator's Note: USS Wasp (CV-7)] as a pilot in Squadron VS-71 [Annotator's Note: Scouting Squadron 7 (VS-7)]. He was to join the carrier in Norfolk where carriers Yorktown and Hornet [Annotator's Note: USS Yorktown (CV-5) and USS Hornet (CV-8)] were also based. There were 22 to 25 pilots already there preparing to board one of those carriers. After the attack on Pearl Harbor, the three carriers were immediately dispatched to the Pacific. Buell saw his orders change to rendezvous with the carrier in Pearl Harbor. As a result, he was sent to Scouting 5 [Annotator's Note: Scouting Squadron 5 (VS-5)] on the Yorktown a week or so before the Battle of Coral Sea. Bombing and scouting squadrons had 18 airplanes and 22 pilots. Buell was pleased to be a "tailhook pilot" for a carrier rather than a battleship or cruiser scout plane pilot or an instructor for future pilots. With the rapid growth in numbers of flight trainees, some experienced pilots were turned into instructors. They were known as "plow back" pilots. There were eight carriers when the war started but ten Essex-class carriers were under construction. At one point, the Enterprise [Annotator's Note: USS Enterprise (CV-6)] was the only American carrier in the Pacific until the new Essex-class ships were entered into service. Buell was anxious to get into combat. He was chosen to be a dive bomber pilot. After the war he became a fighter pilot. Buell and three other pilots flew from Pearl Harbor to Fiji where they boarded the Sims [Annotator's Note: USS Sims (DD-409)] to transit to Yorktown. Yorktown's oiler Neosho [Annotator's Note: USS Neosho (AO-23)] and the Sims would be sunk by the Japanese at the Battle of Coral Sea. Initially, thought to be too inexperienced for combat during Coral Sea, Buell and the three new pilots were selected to be in reserve. Losses at Coral Sea would result in Buell being thrown into the fight quicker than he anticipated.

Harold Buell flew his first combat mission at Midway on anti-submarine reconnaissance. He had only one prior experience in that role but then he flew solo. He was on the Yorktown [Annotator's Note: USS Yorktown (CV-5)] at Coral Sea when it was hit by a bomb. There were multiple hits on the ship. It resulted in many casualties that had to be buried at sea. As squadron commander on the Lexington [Annotator's Note: USS Lexington (CV-16)] in 1944, Buell had a damaged wing on his dive bomber. He had to land even though he had been waved off. He crossed through the barrier and killed the backseat man in his wingman's airplane. On the Yorktown during Coral Sea, battle stations for pilots during combat was the Ready Room. Buell and a few other pilots were sent back to their bunks to get some rest. When Buell reached his compartment, he found a dead man in his roommate's bunk. Dead crewmen had been loaded in some of the officer's quarters. Buell was so tired; he went to sleep in his bunk. He was later stirred by an enlisted man who was surprised that Buell was not dead. After Yorktown reached Pearl Harbor following Coral Sea, Buell helped load supplies on the ship. While in the dry-dock, Buell supervised an enlisted man work party. That was in support of Nimitz [Annotator's Note: Commander in Chief Pacific Fleet Admiral Chester W. Nimitz] order to get the ship back at sea quickly. As Yorktown left Pearl Harbor, Saratoga [Annotator's Note: USS Saratoga (CV-3)] arrived with 100 planes. Scouting 5 [Annotator's Note: Scouting Squadron 5 (VS-5)] from Yorktown was replaced by a full contingent of pilots from Saratoga. The VS-5 squadron was then assigned to the newly arrived aircraft carrier which had orders to depart as soon as it could make ready. The outcome at Midway was very uncertain at that juncture.

Harold Buell was aboard the Saratoga [Annotator's Note: USS Saratoga (CV-3)] when she arrived at Midway following the main battle. He flew scouting reconnaissance missions in the area during the aftermath. The flyers did not realize the battle was over at the time. For Buell, it was a blessing that he was not thrust into the fight. That allowed him to obtain more experience before having to fight the enemy head to head. Buell's roommate and many of his friends were killed during the Battle of Midway. The carrier which lost the most planes was the Enterprise [Annotator's Note: USS Enterprise (CV-6)]. After Midway, Buell was assigned to the Enterprise and landed a replacement plane on her deck. The carrier then headed to Guadalcanal to support the invasion.

Harold Buell was on the Yorktown [Annotator's Note: USS Yorktown (CV-5)] only a brief time before being reassigned. He was a new ensign aboard ship and did not assimilate with the other pilots at that point. The ship operated in a prewar manner with napkin rings and the like in the officers' mess. The mess attendants and cooks were black. Later in the war, the racial barriers were reduced. The Saratoga [Annotator's Note: USS Saratoga (CV-3)] operated less effectively because of unsettled feelings between the ship officers and air officers. Conversely, the officers on the Enterprise [Annotator's Note: USS Enterprise (CV-6)] worked well together. The Enterprise's CAG [Annotator's Note: commander air group], John Cromwell [Annotator's Note: unsure of spelling], was an excellent air officer. He ran things on Enterprise in 1942. He was a hot pilot and made his air group the best. The Yorktown and Enterprise were head and shoulders above Saratoga because of the officer corps and their cooperation with each other. Buell early on showed Cromwell his dive bombing skills. He made practice bomb runs on a sled making 20 to 30 knots and had several hits. Buell's reputation grew from there. Buell loved dive bombing despite the fear he felt at times. He became a mentor to inexperienced pilots who flew with and under him. He had little regard for pilots who failed to score hits on enemy ships.

Harold Buell was involved in a carrier versus carrier battle in the Eastern Solomon Islands. Coral Sea, Midway, Eastern Solomons, and Santa Cruz were each engagements over a period of days. Sometimes opposing air groups would bypass each other on the way to their targets. They would not necessarily engage the enemy air wings but stay focused on their objective, the enemy carriers. Eastern Solomons was a brief fight. An enemy jeep carrier [Annotator's Note: a small aircraft carrier mostly used for ground troop support during invasions] was sunk. The Enterprise [Annotator's Note: USS Enterprise (CV-6)] was hit. She then sailed to Nouemea, New Caledonia for repairs. Santa Cruz was next. The Hornet [Annotator's Note: USS Hornet (CV-8)] was lost there. Guadalcanal was next and Saratoga [Annotator's Note: USS Saratoga (CV-3)] was hit and Wasp [Annotator's Note: USS Wasp (CV-7)] was sunk there. That made it a carrier versus carrier fight. Nevertheless, the big three carrier battles were Coral Sea, Midway, and Santa Cruz. There were no other carrier confrontations through 1943 and 1944 until the "Turkey Shoot" [Annotator's Note: Battle of the Philippine Sea in June 1944]. American forces shot down 375 Japanese airplanes during that time. Buell was on the new Yorktown [Annotator's Note: USS Yorktown (CV-10)] where there were 28 aces confirmed that day [Annotator's Note: a pilot needs a minimum of five verified aerial victories to qualify as an ace]. During the Battle of the Eastern Solomons, Buell found the Japanese position while on a search mission. He reported contact and returned to the carrier. The three mission types were search, ASP [Annotator's Note: anti-submarine patrol] around the carrier, and attack missions. Pilots were rotated through various missions. That led Buell to be an attack pilot during different operations. At Guadalcanal, Buell flew a bomber aircraft on the wing of the skipper, Turner Caldwell. As he took off the Enterprise, the Japanese were landing bombs on the ship. Following the air mission, Caldwell was instructed to return to "Cactus", Guadalcanal, because Enterprise was headed to Pearl Harbor. General Vandegrift [Annotator's Note: US Marine Corps General Alexander A. Vandegrift] wanted the Navy pilots to remain with the Henderson Field Marine contingent. The 11 Navy pilots with their 11 gunners would operate out of the field for a month without casualties. Planes were lost but not a man. Planes were cannibalized to keep other planes flying. The Battle of the Eastern Solomons was where Buell ended up on Guadalcanal.

Harold Buell was stationed on Guadalcanal where he found life in the field to be far more difficult than it was on his aircraft carrier [Annotator's Note: USS Enterprise (CV-6)]. Buell slept on a mat on the ground until he received a cot. He no longer had his comfortable carrier bunk. Food was sparse when he arrived there on 24 August [Annotator's Note: 1942]. The Japanese kept disrupting food and supply logistical support. Troops on the islands were forced to eat Japanese food, some of which was quite distasteful. The carrier pilots were used to roast beef and pork chops aboard their ship. Buell lost 30 pounds during his tenure on the island. Purified water had quinine in it which caused a poor quality in taste. The 11 pilots and their gunners were eventually glad to leave Guadalcanal. The squadron skipper, Turner Caldwell, led the group. Buell flew 25 missions during his 28 days of fighting on the island.

Harold Buell and his fellow "Cactus Airforce" pilots searched the Slot for enemy ships. The enemy had Zero [Annotator's Note: Japanese Mitsubishi A6M fighter aircraft, known as the Zeke or Zero] fighters on floats that tangled with isolated search planes. The search planes were looking for Japanese carriers. The objective was to create a carrier to carrier battle. Another mission was to discover and neutralize enemy ships of any nature. Strikes groups of eight to 12 SBDs [Annotator's Note: Douglas SBD Dauntless dive bomber] would be loaded and ready to attack the vessels. Local missions were executed when incoming Japanese raiding aircraft were detected. The alert necessitated American aircraft to clear Guadalcanal. The goal was to keep the fully loaded SBDs from being hit by the raiders. Japanese raids were daily about noontime by Betty [Annotator's Note: Japanese Mitsubishe G4M medium bomber, also known as the Betty] bombers. Many of the American pilots who flew with Buell off Guadalcanal received Medals of Honor. Buell flew all types of missions, usually with a 500 pound bomb on his SBD. Japanese ships shelled the airfield [Annotator's Note: Henderson Field] but damages were quickly repaired. The same was true of the raiding bombers' damages to the field. Repairs were expedited to keep the field in service. Buell attacked enemy warships with another pilot and managed to get a near miss on a Japanese cruiser that damaged it. He also hit a troopship. Several of the troop carrying vessels were sunk and others beached. Supplies were unloaded off the beached ships but those camouflaged supply dumps were discovered and bombed. The resulting secondary explosions were huge. Japanese attacks on the air fields were constant. Over time, logistical support improved and squadron strength of the Cactus Airforce grew. Pilots were wearing out from the constant strain of combat. Buell and others were relieved to fly out on a DC-3 to Nouemea, New Caledonia. He was then flown to Pearl Harbor on Admiral McCain's [Annotator's Note: John S. McCain, Sr.] personal amphibious aircraft. Experienced fighter pilots were needed in new squadrons forming up. When Buell reached Pearl Harbor, he found out that many of the pilots he had previously served with on Enterprise [Annotator's Note: USS Enterprise (CV-6)] and were not stuck on Guadalcanal had returned home. He was not particularly pleased with that situation. He was back on Enterprise for the Santa Cruz battle. Buell was the lone pilot who was at all the major carrier battles: Coral Sea, Midway, Eastern Solomons and Santa Cruz, as well as, subsequent operations.

Harold Buell returned to Pearl Harbor [Annotator's Note: after flying with the "Cactus Airforce" off Henderson Field on Guadalcanal in the summer of 1942] and became a replacement pilot before being assigned to the USS Enterprise (CV-6). [Annotator's Note: A brief discussion by Buell transpires about a previous interview he provided to a different interviewer plus other various topics.] When Buell returned to Enterprise, it was with Air Group 10. During the Battle of Santa Cruz, the Hornet [Annotator's Note: USS Hornet (CV-8)] was lost due to poor decisions. She did not find the storm that Enterprise did. That helped the "Big E" camouflage herself from the enemy. Buell started with search missions during the operation. He finally did fly strike missions and dive bomb the Japanese carrier Zuikaku. He is proud of his bombing accomplishment during which he penetrated numerous enemy defensive fighters. Jocko Clark [Annotator's Note: US Navy Admiral Joseph Clark] wanted Buell to lead the strike of two squadrons, including one from the new Yorktown [Annotator's Note: USS Yorktown (CV-10)]. Eight hits gutted the enemy carrier. It was no longer able to fly future combat missions off her deck. Zuikaku was part of the decoy fleet at the Battle of Leyte Gulf. She ultimately was sunk there.

Harold Buell did two combat cruises with two different squadrons aboard the USS Enterprise (CV-6), the "Big E." She was an efficient ship run by effective officers who kept bringing in good officers to serve under them. Other carriers did not manage to acquire the same quality personnel. Navy Academy men ran the Navy as they were trained to do. They did a good job of it. Carriers had elite leaders. Buell, as a lieutenant, crashed on Lexington [Annotator's Note: USS Lexington (CV-16)] and killed two people in the process. The air boss gave Buell a rough time and was going to court martial him. Buell's actual CAG [Annotator's Note: commander, air group], Roy Johnson, prevented that from happening. Buell was eventually transferred off Enterprise although his preference would have been otherwise. He wound up in Bombing 2 [Annotator's Note: Bombing Squadron 2 (VB-2)] aboard the Hornet [Annotator's Note: USS Hornet (CV-8)]. The skipper of the squadron bordered on being incompetent. He was neither an able aviator nor combat leader. Buell and another experienced pilot helped make the squadron into an effective dive bombing unit. Buell not only felt the squadron skipper could not handle his job, but he also had a confrontation with the executive officer. Buell felt the XO [Annotator's Note: executive officer] was a coward. There was a reluctance to relieve a skipper in a combat situation so the errant officer was never removed. Buell always felt lucky to be in a plane loaded with a bomb that many other men had worked toward placing over the target. Since he was in that position, he had the responsibility to deliver a successful kill against the enemy. He bucked heads with some of the Academy men as a result of his attitude. Jig Dog Ramage [Annotator's Note: later US Navy Rear Admiral James D. Ramage] was an Academy man who was willing to learn. During the war, Buell was an officer in the Naval Reserve. After the war, he and 3,000 others converted to being in the regular Navy. Buell served a total of 22 years as a Regular.

Harold Buell wanted to hit a major enemy warship but seemed to never have the opportunity. He finally had his chance against the Zuikaku. [Annotator's Note: The Zuikaku was one of the six major Japanese fleet aircraft carriers that were involved in the 7 December 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor.] Late on 20 June 1944, a report came in that a Japanese carrier force had been spotted. Buell was on Hornet [Annotator's Note: with Bombing Squadron 2 (VB-2) aboard the USS Hornet (CV-12)] and took note of the 250 mile range from the ship that he could safely operate within to engage the enemy. It would require a time consuming night recovery but enough fuel should still be available. The location plotted for the enemy force was well beyond the nominal radius of operation. Nevertheless, the planes were launched knowing that they would not be recovered. Of the 14 launched, only four landed back on Hornet. The squadron skipper was leading one section and Buell led the other with the CAG [Annotator's Note: commander, air group] flying with them. Jackson D. Arnold was the CAG flying a fighter with the bombers. Arnold would retire as a four star admiral. When Buell sighted Zuikaku, there were 11 escorting vessels protecting her. He transmitted a request to allow him to attack. It went directly to the CAG, bypassing the skipper. CAG immediately authorized Buell to proceed. Buell took his six bombers in his section and dove on Zuikaku. The carrier went to full power at 30 knots and maneuvered evasively. Buell came down on his target while she was in a turn. He placed his armor piercing bomb in the middle of the flight deck even with the front of the island. It reached the hanger deck and exploded. There were no aircraft on the ship, but, had there been, Buell's hit would have been cataclysmic. Buell's section landed two direct hits and two other bomber flights hit Zuikaku with six more direct hits. The ship was gutted. The Japanese admiral aboard decided to remove his flag as well as the picture of the Emperor from Zuikaku. Damage Control reported that the carrier's fires were under control. The ship lived to fight another day. Buell's attack on the enemy carrier seemed to him to be one of the smoothest that he ever led. The battle is looked upon as one of the greatest air-sea battles of World War 2. Most American aircraft never made it back to their carrier decks. Buell managed to do so.

Harold Buell flew both the Douglas SBD Dauntless and the Curtis SB2C Helldiver dive bombers. There were positive and negatives about each. The "Beast" [Annotator's Note: the Curtis SB2C Helldiver] had two cannons that could do far more damage than the armament of the SBD. A flight of three SB2Cs with their six cannons blew a Japanese troopship to pieces after the secondary explosions. The .50 calibers could never do that much damage. The SB2C also carried more ordnance and a greater fuel load. A drop tank was difficult to use on an SBD because it consumed ordnance capacity. Buell preferred the SBD's maneuverability. Straight deck landings made the Dauntless a better plane while the angled decks would prove more suitable for the Beast. To bring on inexperienced flyers, the SBD would have been Buell's preferred aircraft.

Harold Buell returned to the United States after his Air Group 2 on Hornet [Annotator's Note: USS Hornet (CV-12)] was relieved. Buell was proud of his air groups and their capability during the war. Early in the war, some claims for enemy sinkings or damage were overstated. Some officers received commendations which would later during the war be more difficult to achieve. [Annotator's Note: Buell momentarily leaves the interview.] Buell has no regrets about his performance during the war. He was practiced at and knowledgeable about hitting moving targets. Some ships still managed to get away. He felt bad about the ones that did get away, particularly when he was leading the flight. His hits on fast moving destroyers gave him the most pride. He does wish that Zuikaku would have sunk after he hit her.

Harold Buell is proud to have been a dive bomber pilot. He was recalled from the United States to help a squadron that needed an experienced flyer to mentor them. Captain McClusky [Annotator's Note: Captain Clarence Wade McClusky was a hero of the Battle of Midway] asked him to remain in combat status. Buell did manage to get some leave in the United States before being sent back to the front. He nevertheless had to return to combat. Buell talks about many of the pilots he served with and knew. Buell always wanted to dive bomb and attack. That was his mission. He fought with the circumstances and means provided to him. Under certain circumstances, he took leadership roles instead of following an incapable leader. He took the initiative when it was necessary. Going into the fight, it was certain that losses would occur. The mission had to be accomplished. When he hit the objective and did not lose any people, he felt he was both lucky and good. He was a real pro at what he did. He did the best he could.