Shot up rudder.

James "Beanbag" Barnitz and his gunner ARM3c Herbert Stienkmeyer brought this one home. Had the burst happened a thousandth of a second sooner the 18 year old gunner would have been right in the middle of it.

Man that was close

Pilot behind rudder, gunner in left foreground, VB15 crewmembers behind prop.

Top photo from Naval Archives. Bottom photo from a 1944 issue of "USS ESSEX BUCCANEER".

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