Rear Admiral Clarence Wade McClusky, Jr., (June 1, 1902 – June 27, 1976) was a
United States Navy
The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...
aviator during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
and the early
Cold War period. He is credited with having played a major part in the
Battle of Midway
The Battle of Midway was a major naval battle in the Pacific Theater of World War II that took place on 4–7 June 1942, six months after Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor and one month after the Battle of the Coral Sea. The U.S. Navy under ...
. In the words of Admiral
Chester Nimitz
Chester William Nimitz (; February 24, 1885 – February 20, 1966) was a fleet admiral in the United States Navy. He played a major role in the naval history of World War II as Commander in Chief, US Pacific Fleet, and Commander in C ...
, McClusky's decision to continue the search for the enemy and his judgment as to where the enemy might be found, "decided the fate of our carrier task force and our forces at Midway".
Early life
McClusky was born in
Buffalo, New York
Buffalo is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of New York (behind only New York City) and the seat of Erie County. It is at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of the Niagara River, and is across the Canadian border from Sou ...
. He was the second of five children to Clarence Wade McClusky, Sr., an accountant, and Mary Anastasia Stears "May" McClusky. Both of his parents were born in
Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...
, but had spent their adulthoods in Buffalo. Wade, Sr. was a
Presbyterian
Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their nam ...
of
Scotch-Irish ancestry, while May was an
Irish Catholic
Irish Catholics are an ethnoreligious group native to Ireland whose members are both Catholic and Irish. They have a large diaspora, which includes over 36 million American citizens and over 14 million British citizens (a quarter of the Briti ...
. Wade, Sr. refused to raise the children in the Catholic faith, and forbade May from attending Catholic Mass. Wade, Sr. died in an automobile crash on October 8, 1928, after which May returned to the Catholic Church. May persuaded one of McClusky's sisters to convert to Catholicism, but McClusky himself became an
Episcopalian.
McClusky disliked his first name Clarence, and always signed his name as "C. Wade McClusky". He attended
South Park High School in Buffalo, where he was a clever and hard-working student. McClusky graduated in 1918 at the age of 16. As his family's financial situation was strained, he sought employment instead of applying to colleges. His first job involved cleaning the interiors of railroad tanker cars, and associated exposure to various chemicals. McClusky's son Philip recalled in 2015: "He told me once that it was a miserable job and as a result he was determined to go to college or the academy!"
Naval aviator and instructor
McClusky graduated from the
United States Naval Academy
The United States Naval Academy (US Naval Academy, USNA, or Navy) is a federal service academy in Annapolis, Maryland. It was established on 10 October 1845 during the tenure of George Bancroft as Secretary of the Navy. The Naval Academy ...
in 1926, the same class as
Max Leslie and
Lofton R. Henderson; and became a Naval Aviator three years later. Over the next decade, he served in several air units, as well as on command staff, as an instructor at the Naval Academy and at shore facilities. In 1940, he was assigned to Fighting Squadron Six (
VF-6), based on , and assumed command of that squadron in April 1941.
World War II
Lieutenant Commander McClusky became ''Enterprises
air group
A group is a military unit or a military formation that is most often associated with military aviation.
Air and aviation groups
The terms group and wing differ significantly from one country to another, as well as between different branches ...
commander in April 1942. During the
Battle of Midway
The Battle of Midway was a major naval battle in the Pacific Theater of World War II that took place on 4–7 June 1942, six months after Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor and one month after the Battle of the Coral Sea. The U.S. Navy under ...
, while leading his air group's scout bombers on June 4, 1942, he made the critical tactical decision that led to the sinking of two of Japan's
fleet carriers, ' and '.
When McClusky could not find the Japanese carriers where he expected them, and with his air group's fuel running dangerously low, he began a box search and on the second leg spotted the steaming north at
flank speed
Flank speed is an American nautical term referring to a ship's true maximum speed but it is not equivalent to the term ''full speed ahead''. Usually, flank speed is reserved for situations in which a ship finds itself in imminent danger, such as ...
. ''Arashi'' had stayed behind to attack the submarine ', which had been harassing the Japanese fleet. Surmising that ''Arashi'' must be following the main fleet, McClusky ordered a change in course in the same direction as ''Arashi''. This led him directly to the enemy carriers.
McClusky gave the order to attack, which resulted in confusion, with both squadrons of 31 aircraft diving on the closer carrier, ''Kaga''. Doctrine called for McClusky's forward squadron to attack the more distant carrier, ''Akagi'', and the squadron behind his to attack ''Kaga''. Two simultaneous carrier attacks would have made it harder for Japanese
Zeros to respond. Lieutenant
Richard Best, who commanded the other squadron and was considered to be its best pilot, noticed the error and pulled out with two wingmen to attack ''Akagi'', with Best scoring a direct hit amidships and a wingman a near miss which disabled the rudder and rendered ''Akagi'' immobile. The other 28 dive bombers, some of which nearly collided with each other, scored at least four hits on ''Kaga'', leaving it a burning wreck. As he pulled out of his dive, McClusky's plane was pounced on by two Zeros, which put 52 holes in his plane and a bullet through his shoulder. After his gunner shot down one of the Zeros, McClusky was able to land his plane safely on ''Enterprise'' even with partially shot-up controls.
The confused attack order was later explained as a radio error due to
multiple people speaking at the same time. McClusky had been a fighter pilot prior to becoming Air Group Commander and was very familiar with dive bombing doctrine, as was Best. McClusky's decision to lead his squadron in attacking the closer ''Kaga'' was in keeping with doctrine that stated it was the commander on the scene that could make the decision as to what target to bomb.
Within minutes, three of the four Japanese carriers had been turned into burning hulks,
with the ''Sōryū'' being hit by Yorktown's dive bombers. The remaining carrier of the Japanese fleet, ''Hiryū'', was damaged six hours later. The actual sinking of all four carriers was done by torpedoes from Japanese escort ships as the Japanese were unable to move their crippled carriers and did not want them to be captured.
McClusky, for his vital contribution to the outcome of this pivotal battle, was awarded the
Navy Cross
The Navy Cross is the United States Navy and United States Marine Corps' second-highest military decoration awarded for sailors and marines who distinguish themselves for extraordinary heroism in combat with an armed enemy force. The medal is eq ...
. Later in World War II, he commanded the
escort carrier .
After the war
McClusky served in a variety of staff and shore positions in the later 1940s. During the
Korean War
, date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...
, he was chief of staff to the commanders of the
First
First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1).
First or 1st may also refer to:
*World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement
Arts and media Music
* 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and rec ...
and
Seventh Fleets. He commanded
Naval Air Station Glenview
Naval Air Station Glenview or NAS Glenview was an operational U.S. Naval Air Station from 1923 to 1995. Located in Glenview, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago, the air base primarily operated training aircraft as well as seaplanes on nearby Lake M ...
,
Illinois
Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Rockf ...
, in 1952–53, and the Boston Group of the
Atlantic Reserve Fleet
The United States Navy maintains a number of its ships as part of a reserve fleet, often called the "Mothball Fleet". While the details of the maintenance activity have changed several times, the basics are constant: keep the ships afloat and s ...
in 1954–56. McClusky retired from active duty in July 1956 as a Captain but was promoted administratively to Rear Admiral. U.S. Navy policy at the time allowed officers who earned a personal award for heroism (his Navy Cross) to advance one grade upon retirement but without pay. This policy was unofficially known as a promotion to "tombstone Admiral" with the thought being the individual would have that rank inscribed on his tombstone. The policy ended in the early 1960s. Admiral McClusky's tombstone at the United States Naval Academy cemetery has his rank inscribed as Rear Admiral.
The
Buffalo and Erie County Naval and Military Park has commissioned and dedicated a bronze sculpture of McClusky's likeness. It stands in the museum.
Namesakes
was named in his honor.
The Wade McClusky Award is given annually to the most outstanding attack squadron in the US Navy.
Portrayal in media
* In the 1949 film ''
Task Force'', McClusky was portrayed by actor
Bruce Bennett
Bruce Bennett (born Harold Herman Brix, also credited Herman Brix; May 19, 1906February 24, 2007) was an American film and television actor who prior to his screen career was a highly successful college athlete in football and in both intercol ...
.
* In the 1976 film ''
Midway'', he was portrayed by actor
Christopher George
Christopher John George ( Greek: Χριστόφορος Γεωργίου; February 25, 1931 – November 28, 1983) was an American television and film actor who starred in the 1960s television series '' The Rat Patrol''. He was nominated for a G ...
.
* In the 1988 TV miniseries ''
War and Remembrance
''War and Remembrance'' is a novel by Herman Wouk, published in October 1978 as the sequel to Wouk's '' The Winds of War'' (1971). ''The Winds of War'' covers the period 1939 to 1941, and ''War and Remembrance'' continues the story of the extende ...
'', he was portrayed by actor
Earl Hindman
Earl John Hindman (; October 20, 1942 – December 29, 2003) was an American actor, best known for his role as the kindly unseen neighbor Wilson W. Wilson, Jr. on the television sitcom ''Home Improvement'' (1991–99).
Early years
Hin ...
.
* In the 2019 film ''
Midway'', McClusky was portrayed by actor
Luke Evans
Luke George Evans (born 15 April 1979) is a Welsh actor and singer. He began his career on the stage, performing in many of London's West End productions such as ''Rent'', ''Miss Saigon'', and '' Piaf'' before making his film breakthrough in ...
.
References
:
Sources
*
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:McClusky, C. Wade
1902 births
1976 deaths
American people of Irish descent
American people of Scotch-Irish descent
Battle of Midway
Burials at the United States Naval Academy Cemetery
Military personnel from Buffalo, New York
Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United States)
Recipients of the Legion of Merit
Recipients of the Navy Cross (United States)
United States Naval Academy alumni
United States Navy rear admirals
United States Navy pilots of World War II