The Long War
July 23, 2009
Leslie Peck was trying to figure out what to do with his life. Then the Bombing at Pearl Harbor gave him an opportunity to do and see things otherwise unimaginable.
Les served from 1942 til 1945. He was a member of the USS Wasp CV-7 in the Atlantic and Pacific. The Wasp was torpedoed and sunk.. a tragic event that still is very clear in his memory. He then served on the “Lucky Lady” USS Santa Fe CL-60.
He shares his first hand accounts of many historical events that will forever be written in history. He is a real honorable man and we appreciate his time talking to us.
| USS Wasp (CV-7), entering Hampton Roads | |
| Career (US) |  |
|---|---|
| Ordered: | 19 September 1935 |
| Laid down: | 1 April 1936 |
| Launched: | 4 April 1939 |
| Sponsored by: | Mrs. Charles Edison |
| Commissioned: | 25 April 1940 (first Commanding Officer: Captain John W. Reeves, Jr.) |
| Struck: | 15 September 1942 |
| Honors and awards: |
American Defense Service Medal (“A” device) / American Campaign Medal/European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal (1 star) / Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal (1 star) / World War II Victory Medal |
| Fate: | Disabled by enemy action, scuttled 15 September 1942 |
| General characteristics | |
| Displacement: | As built: 14,700 tons standard 19,116 tons full load |
| Length: | 688 ft (209.7 m) (waterline) 741 ft 3 in (225.9 m) (overall) |
| Beam: | 80 ft 9 in (24.6 m) (waterline) 109 ft (33.2 m) (overall) |
| Draft: | 20 ft (6.1 m) |
| Propulsion: | 6 × boilers at 565 psi Parsons steam turbines 2 × shafts 70,000 shp |
| Speed: | 29.5 kn (33.9 mph; 54.6 km/h) |
| Range: | 12,000 nmi (22,000 km) at 15 kn (17 mph; 28 km/h) |
| Complement: | 1,800 officers and men (peacetime) 2,167 (wartime) |
| Sensors and processing systems: |
CXAM-1 RADAR[1] |
| Armament: | As built:
|
| Armor: | As built: 60 lb STS conning tower 3.5 in side and 50 lb deck over steering gear |
| Aircraft carried: | As built: Up to 76 3 × elevators (1 at deck edge) 2 × flight deck hydraulic catapults 2 × hangar deck hydraulic catapults |
| Career |  |
|---|---|
| Namesake: | Santa Fe, New Mexico |
| Builder: | New York Shipbuilding Co. of Camden, New Jersey |
| Laid down: | 7 June 1941 |
| Launched: | 10 June 1942 |
| Commissioned: | 24 November 1942 |
| Decommissioned: | 19 October 1946 |
| Struck: | 1 March 1959 |
| Honours and awards: |
  13 Battle stars |
| Fate: | Scrapped in 1959 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type: | Cleveland-class light cruiser |
| Displacement: | 10,000 tons |
| Length: | 610 ft 1 in (186.0 m) |
| Beam: | 66 ft 4 in (20.2 m) |
| Draft: | 25 ft 1 in (7.6 m) |
| Speed: | 31.6 kn (36.4 mph; 58.5 km/h) |
| Complement: | 1,384 officers and enlisted |
| Armament: |
|
Written by Chris Wulf
· Filed Under News
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