Congressman Andrew May's Press Blunder Resulted In the Loss of 10 Submarines and 800 Crewmen
Clare Fitzgerald • 22hCertain military information is classified for a specific purpose: to prevent it from falling into the enemy's hands. Unfortunately, Congressman Andrew May was seemingly unaware of this, as an ill-fated press conference he held in 1943 resulted in the loss of approximately 10 submarines and the tragic deaths of 800 US Navy crewmen.
Following the US' entry into World War II, the country's Navy gained recognition for its successes. Despite Japanese efforts to sink American vessels, the Allied forces skillfully evaded their attacks. The advantage lay in the capabilities of the Balao-class submarines, which could dive to depths of 400 feet - deeper than the Japanese set their depth charges.
In 1943, Andrew May, the chairman of the House Military Affairs Committee, embarked on a tour of US military zones in the Pacific Theater. During this time, he gained access to a plethora of sensitive war-related information.
Following his return that June, May conducted a press conference where he disclosed that the high survival rate of American submarines was attributed to the fact that Japanese charges were exploding at too shallow a depth. This information was sent across press wires and published in publications across the US.
Not long after this news spread, the Japanese naval anti-submarine forces adjusted their charges to explode at a greater depth. This prompted Vice Admiral Charles A. Lockwood, commander of the US submarine fleet in the Pacific, to estimate that May's breach cost the Navy 10 submarines and resulted in the deaths of some 800 crewmen.
"I hear Congressman May said the Jap depth charges are not set deep enough," he said. "He would be pleased to know that the Japs set them deeper now." . .
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