The Loss of the 'Langley'
And the final curtain in Java
From:https://thejavagoldblog.wordpress.com/ USS Langley and USAT Seawitch sailed on February 22, 1942 as part of convoy MS-5. But that same night Langley’s skipper, Commander Robert P. McConnell received a direct order from Vice-Admiral Helfrich (by now ABDA naval commander in chief), to leave the convoy and at his best possible speed – which was 13 knots – set a direct course for Tjilatjap, a port on Java’s south coast that was still relatively safe. The plan called for USS Langley to reach Tilatjap in the afternoon of February 27, risking a daylight arrival. The Langley lost precious hours in steaming on various courses waiting for escorts that never turned up. She finally teamed up with two damaged destroyers, USS Whipple (DD-217) and USS Edsall (DD-219), and started her final run in but the time lost proved to be fatal.
At 11:40 in the morning of February 27, at a point about 75 miles from Tjilatjap, nine Japanese Mitsubishi G4M bombers appeared over the ships. Their commander, Lt. Jiro Adachi, immediately singled out the Langley as the important target. The Langley took three hits that set fire to the P-40’s on deck and the drums of gasoline that were stowed between them. Then a fourth and a fifth bomb hit increased the conflagration, near misses buckled the hull and water was rushing inside.
Escorting Zero fighters strafed the decks of the burning ship and soon, the Langley was a raging mass of unquenchable fires. Listing badly and out of control and Commander McConnell ordered abandon ship. Out of a crew of 300, 16 were killed and the survivors were taken aboard the escorting destroyers. To prevent the Langley from falling into Japanese hands, they used torpedoes and 4 Inch shells to sink her.