This Day in Naval History: June 16

1943 - At Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands, Japanese aircraft conduct the largest raid since April 7. Although a large number of enemy planes are shot down, LST-340 and USS Celeno (AK-76) are damaged.

1944 - Marine Gunnery Sgt. Robert H. McCard serves as a platoon sergeant with Company A, Fourth Tank Battalion, Fourth Marine Division as they fight against the Japanese at the Battle of Saipan, Marianas Islands. With his tank destroyed by enemy 77-mm. gun fire, he persists with the attack until he is forced to abandon the tank, exposing himself while covering his evacuating men. Wounded and with the grenade supply diminished, he dismantles a tank machine gun and attacks the enemy positions, killing 16 enemy soldiers before sacrificing his life to save his men. For his "conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity" on this occasion, McCard is posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor.

1953 - During the Korean War, USS Princeton (CVS 37) launches 184 sorties against enemy front-line positions, a new record for offensive sorties flown from a carrier during the Korean War in a single day.

1959 - A P4M "Mercator" is fired on by two North Korean MiG aircraft while on a routine flight over international waters off Korea. The attack wounds one crewman and damages the plane, forcing an emergency landing at Miho, Japan.

1965 - The US Navy schedules the reactivation of USS Repose (AH 16), which is the first hospital ship active for the Vietnam War.

1990 - USS Monterey (CG 61) is commissioned at Mayport, Fla. The Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser is named for the Battle of Monterrey during the Mexican-American War in 1846. She is homeported at Norfolk, Va. 

2006 - USNS Arctic (T AOE 8) arrives at Virginia to drop off a rescued Scottish yachtsman after assisting in his rescue in the mid-Atlantic.


(Source: Naval History and Heritage Command, Communication and Outreach Division)