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On the afternoon of
April 12, 1945 Tennessee was steaming in air-defense formation off
Okinawa when kamikaze aircraft began an attack. Nearby
Zellars (DD-777) was set ablaze by a crashing plane. Meanwhile, 5
suicide aircraft attacked Tennessee and all were shot down. At the
same time, a Val dive bomber, flying low on the starboard bow, headed
directly for Tennessee’s bridge. One of the plane's fixed wheels was
torn off, and its engine began to smoke. Heading at first for Tennessee’s
tower foremast, the Japanese pilot swerved slightly and crashed into the
signal bridge. The burning wreck slid aft along the superstructure, crushing
antiaircraft guns and their crews. The aircraft and its 250 pound bomb went
through the wooden deck and exploded. Twenty-two men were killed or fatally
wounded, with another 107 injured. Tennessee’s dead were buried at sea and
the wounded transferred the following day to the casualty-evacuation
transport Pinkney (APH-2). By April 14, the ship was back on the
firing line.
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