On June 24, the US-based Caladan Oceanic Expeditions and UK-based EYOS Expeditions announced their discovery of the location of the World War II destroyer-escort USS Samuel B. Roberts.
The announcement — made by Caladan founder Victor Vescovo, a retired US naval officer — came a year after the discovery of the World War II destroyer USS Johnston in the same area.
The ships and their crews earned legendary reputations for their pivotal role in the Battle of Leyte Gulf, the largest naval battle in history and the last naval clash involving battleships.
Eight decades after that battle, their discovery has made them the two deepest shipwrecks ever found.
The destroyers
USS Johnston was a Fletcher-class destroyer commissioned on October 27, 1943.
It had a crew of 273 and displaced 2,700 tons. It was armed with five 5-inch guns, five twin 40mm and seven single 20mm AA guns, and two five-tube torpedo mounts. It could also launch depth charges from six K-gun projectors and two racks.
USS Samuel B. Roberts was a John C. Butler-class destroyer-escort — a class of smaller, more lightly armed ships primarily meant for anti-air and anti-submarine warfare.
It was commissioned on April 28, 1944, had a crew of 222, and a displacement of 1,745 tons. It was armed with two 5-inch guns, two twin 40mm and 10 20mm single AA guns, nine depth-charge projectors (including a hedgehog projector), and two depth-charge racks.
In October 1944, Johnston, under the command of Cmdr. Ernest E. Evans, and Samuel B. Roberts, commanded by Lt. Cmdr. Robert W. Copeland, were part of “Taffy 3,” a small task force of six escort-carriers, three destroyers, and four destroyer-escorts.
Taffy 3’s mission was to defend US forces landing on the Philippine island of Leyte against Japanese submarine and air attacks.
On October 25, they confronted Vice Adm. Takeo Kurita’s Center Force, consisting of four battleships, six heavy cruisers, two light cruisers, and 11 destroyers. One of Kurita’s battleships, Yamato, was the largest battleship ever built and weighed as much as all of Taffy 3’s ships combined.
The Japanese force’s mission was to punch through US defenses and destroy the invasion force. On paper, Taffy 3 stood no chance.
USS Johnston
Shortly after Kurita’s ships were spotted at about 6:35 a.m., the American destroyers formed a protective circle around the escort-carriers, laid smoke screens, and attempted to disengage and reposition so other US ships could support them.
Meanwhile, the carriers launched all of their roughly 150 aircraft, many which had been armed for ground-attack or anti-submarine missions rather than for attacks on surface ships.
Johnston, in the rear of the formation and closest to the Japanese, was the first American vessel to open fire. Determined to buy time for the rest of Taffy 3, Evans charged the Japanese in a head-on attack.
The destroyer fired over 200 rounds and all 10 of its torpedoes in 10 minutes. One torpedo hit the heavy cruiser Kumano, ripping off its bow and forcing it to retreat.
But Johnston was soon blasted by shells from the Japanese battleships, which killed dozens, badly wounded Evans, destroyed the bridge, and disabled all but two of the 5-inch gun turrets.
Heavily damaged, Johnston spent the next two hours attempting to draw enemy fire by maneuvering and shooting at as many Japanese ships as it could.
At 8:30 a.m. Johnston attempted to aid the escort-carrier USS Gambier Bay by intercepting the Japanese ships closing in on it, firing wildly the whole time. The Japanese ships instead surrounded Johnston and pummeled it with shellfire.
The damage was too great and Evans ordered the crew to abandon ship at 9:45 a.m. It sank about half an hour later, taking 186 sailors, including Evans, with it. (Evans posthumously received the Medal of Honour.)
USS Samuel B. Roberts
The Samuel B. Roberts entered the fray at 7:35 a.m., after Taffy 3’s commander ordered the force’s other destroyers to conduct torpedo attacks.
As it sailed to attack the heavy cruiser Chokai, the destroyer-escort passed Johnston and received a salute from the wounded Evans. Because of its speed and agility, Samuel B. Roberts closed on Chokai without being hit and struck the cruiser with a torpedo before turning its attention to other Japanese ships.
For over an hour, Samuel B. Roberts shot at anything it could find with its two 5-inch guns, engaging ships that were 10 to 30 times its size. The crew fired 608 of the ship’s 650 shells, and when standard shells ran low, they fired illumination and anti-aircraft rounds.
Like other US destroyers, Samuel B. Roberts aimed at the Japanese ships’ superstructures because its rounds couldn’t penetrate their hull armor, which allowed it to knock out a turret on the heavy cruiser Chikuma.
Samuel B. Roberts’ luck eventually ran out. At about 8:50 a.m., it was hit by three 14-inch high-explosive shells from the battleship Kongo. A crewman later compared the impact to “two trains colliding head-on.”
The explosions caused massive casualties and damage, ripping a 40-foot (12 metres) hole on the ship’s port side near the waterline. The destroyer-escort was brought to a standstill and began to sink.
Copeland, the commanding officer, later said Samuel B. Roberts “was simply shot to pieces the last 15 minutes she was in action.” At 9:35, Copeland ordered his crew to abandon ship, but 89 sailors went down with the Roberts, which became known as “the destroyer-escort that fought like a battleship.”
Intense resistance from Johnston and Samuel B. Roberts, as well as the rest of Taffy 3 convinced Kurita that he faced a larger force. After losing three heavy cruisers, he ordered Center Force to withdraw.
The deepest shipwrecks
Johnston’s wreck was first found in October 2019, on a cliff more than 20,000 feet (6,096 metres) underwater.
Its bow — with its hull number, 577, visible on both sides — was later found farther down the cliff at 21,180 feet (6,456), which at the time made it the deepest wreck ever found.
Vescovo, who led the expedition, confirmed Johnston’s location on April 1, 2021.
On June 18, members of another Vescovo-led expedition spotted a torpedo rack that was “undeniably” from USS Samuel B. Roberts. The destroyer-escort was in two pieces at 22,620 feet (6,894 metres) beneath the Philippine Sea, making it the deepest shipwreck ever found.
To find the wreck, Caladan Oceanic and an EYOS Expeditions team conducted six dives over eight days with the submersible Limiting Factor, which can reach depths of 36,000 feet (10,972).
The wreck is now considered a war grave and is protected under the Sunken Military Craft Act.
Two other US Navy ships have been named Samuel B. Roberts, including an Oliver Hazard Perry-class frigate that hit a mine in the Persian Gulf in April 1988, prompting a short but fierce clash with Iran.
“USS Samuel B. Roberts was lost in one of the most valiant actions in the history of the US Navy,” Samuel Cox, a retired admiral and director of Naval History and Heritage Command, said after the discovery. “The gallantry of her crew serves to inspire US Navy personnel today, knowing they are entrusted with upholding the legacy and example of this ship and crew.”
