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• During the first major special attack conducted by the Japanese Navy, pilot Yukio Seki sank carrier USS St. Lo while another suicide pilot damaged carrier USS Santee. ww2dbase [Tokko "Kamikaze" Special Attack Doctrine | Yukio Seki | CPC]
• Heinrich Himmler issued orders on combating youth gangs such as Edelweiss Pirates, which had been known to harbor deserters, escaped prisoners of war, and escaped concentration camp prisoners. ww2dbase [Discovery of Concentration Camps and the Holocaust | CPC]
• Soviet troops captured the German base at Kirkenes, Norway. ww2dbase [TH]
• USS Cod attacked a large Japanese convoy with all of her remaining torpedoes; all torpedoes missed. She shadowed the convoy for another day to report its movements before returning to her home port. ww2dbase [Cod | CPC]
• 34 American B-24 Liberator bombers that were originally destined for the synthetic oil plans at Gelsenkirchen, Germany were diverted to Münster instead, causing much destruction. ww2dbase [CPC]
• USS Pintado chased Japanese light cruiser Tama in assistance of USS Jallao off the Philippine Islands. ww2dbase [Pintado | CPC]
• USS Cabrilla arrived at Fremantle, Australia, ending her sixth war patrol. ww2dbase [Cabrilla | CPC]
• Edward Brooks took command of the US VI Corps. ww2dbase [Edward Brooks | CPC]
• USS Bailey arrived at Mare Island Naval Shipyard, Vallejo, California where she unloaded all ammunition and fuel oil before commencing repairs. ww2dbase [Bailey | DS]
• USS Nicholas screened Rear Admiral Jesse Oldendorf’s cruiser column as they made their withdrawal following the Battle of Surigao Strait. ww2dbase [Philippines Campaign, Phase 1, the Leyte Campaign | Nicholas | DS]

• Casablanca-class escort carrier USS Steamer Bay departed Seeadler Harbor bound for Ulithi, Caroline Islands. ww2dbase [Steamer Bay | Manus, Admiralty Islands | DS]

• At Truk in the Caroline Islands, Isoroku Yamamoto sent a message to Vice Admiral Chuichi Nagumo in the Solomon Islands, noting that intelligence indicated that American carriers would be somewhere northeast of the Solomon Islands on the following day. ww2dbase [Solomon Islands Campaign | Isoroku Yamamoto | Chuichi Nagumo | Truk | CPC]

• USS Tang attacked a Japanese transport, but the Mark 18 electric torpedo she fired circled back and hit Tang, sinking her. Only 9 of the crew of 83 survived the sinking. ww2dbase [Tang | Mark XVIII | Taiwan Strait | CPC]

• Destroyer USS Shaw departed Humboldt Bay, Hollandia (now Jayapura), New Guinea bound for Leyte Gulf, Philippines with a deck load of 128 barrels of fog oil. ww2dbase [Philippines Campaign, Phase 1, the Leyte Campaign | Shaw | Hollandia, New Guinea | DS]

• After 30 days hunting for submarines in the mid-Atlantic without success, Task Group 22.2 centered around escort carrier USS Card arrived at Casablanca, French Morocco for two days' rest and replenishment. ww2dbase [Conclusion of the Battle of the Atlantic | Card | Casablanca | DS]

• The USAAF 306th Bomb Group flying from RAF Thurleigh launched a bombing raid against the oil refinery at Harburg, Germany. ww2dbase [Bombing of Hamburg, Dresden, and Other Cities | RAF Thurleigh | Harburg | DS]

• British V Corps crossed the Ronco River in Italy. ww2dbase [Gothic Line Offensive | Emilia-Romagna | CPC]

• Light carrier Ryuho departed Sasebo, Japan. ww2dbase [Ryuho | Sasebo, Nagasaki | CPC]
• USS Sterlet attacked a Japanese convoy with two salvos of torpedoes southwest of Kagoshima, Japan. All four torpedoes of the first salvo missed. Four of the six torpedoes of the second salvo made contact, three hitting (and sinking) oil tanker Jinei Maru and one hitting a freighter. She remained under water for several hours due to counterattacks by the convoy escorts. Surfacing later, she spotted a Japanese hospital ship and allowed it to continue her journey. ww2dbase [Sterlet | Kagoshima | CPC]

• USS Ticonderoga arrived at Eniwetok, Marshall Islands. ww2dbase [Ticonderoga | Eniwetok | DS]

• Off northeastern Luzon, Philippines, aircraft from US Navy Task Force 38 attacked the Japanese carrier force consisted of fleet carrier Zuikaku and light carriers Zuiho, Chitose, and Chiyoda in the Battle off Cape Engaño. The Japanese force was escorted by two battleship-carrier hybrids (Hyuga and Ise; aircraft-less on this date), three light cruisers (Oyodo, Tama, and Isuzu), and nine destroyers at about 0830 hours, 26 minutes after those planes were detected by Zuikaku's radar. The overwhelmingly larger American force, under Admiral William Halsey, centered around fleet carriers USS Lexington, USS Intrepid, USS Essex, USS Franklin, USS Enterprise, further bolstered by a great many light carriers, battleships, cruisers, and destroyers. Zuikaku was damaged by skilled damage control teams extinguished the fires and corrected the listing by 0850 hours. Chitose was fatally damaged by the first attack wave, sinking at 0937 hours. At 0953 hours, a second attack wave struck, fatally damaging Chiyoda, leaving her dead in the water to be sunk by American destroyers later at 1655 hours. The second wave also damaged Zuiho's flight deck, the last functional flight deck of Vice Admiral Jisaburo Ozawa's force; Japanese combat air patrol planes in the air would need to ditch when they ran out of fuel. At 1032 hours, Ozawa transferred his flag from the damaged Zuikaku to Oyodo. At 1308, the Japanese sighted an incoming third wave of American aircraft. Six torpedoes struck Zuikaku, causing massive flooding and several fires in the hangar; the commanding officer addressed the surviving crew, ordered the lowering of the ensign, and gave the abandon ship order at 1358 hours; Zuikaku sank by the stern at 1414 hours. Zuiho suffered two torpedo, two bomb hits, and a great many near-misses during the third attack wave, and she was dead in the water at 1445 hours. At 1455 hours, a fourth wave struck, sealing the doom of Zuiho with ten near-misses, leading to Zuiho's commanding officer giving the abandon ship order; she sank at 1526 hours. ww2dbase [Philippines Campaign, Phase 1, the Leyte Campaign | Jisaburo Ozawa | William Halsey | Marc Mitscher | Zuikaku | Ise | Hyuga | Oyodo | Isuzu | Tama | Cassin Young | Intrepid | Chitose | Chiyoda | Enterprise | Zuiho | Essex | Franklin | Lexington (Essex-class) | Philippine Sea | CPC]
• Ernest Evans was killed in action during the Battle off Samar during the Leyte Campaign in the Philippine Islands. ww2dbase [Philippines Campaign, Phase 1, the Leyte Campaign | Ernest Evans | Samar | CPC]
• The Fletcher-class destroyer USS Hoel was sunk by the Japanese cruiser Kongo off Samar, Philippine Islands. ww2dbase [Philippines Campaign, Phase 1, the Leyte Campaign | Hoel | AC]
• As Kurita’s Center Force closed on Clifton Sprague’s escort carriers off Samar, destroyer USS Johnston attacked and launched torpedoes against the cruiser Kumano, blowing off Kumano’s bow and forcing her withdrawal. ww2dbase [Philippines Campaign, Phase 1, the Leyte Campaign | Ernest Evans | Kumano | Johnston | DS]
• In the Battle off Samar in the Battle of Leyte Gulf, destroyers USS Hoel and Heerman launched three Mark XV torpedoes at two different Japanese cruisers and missed. The torpedoes went on to advance on the battleship Yamato, the Japanese force flagship. Yamato’s evasive action took the force commander, Admiral Takeo Kurita, so far from the action that he effectively lost his ability to command the battle and likely contributed to his ultimate decision to break off the engagement and withdraw his force. ww2dbase [Philippines Campaign, Phase 1, the Leyte Campaign | Takeo Kurita | Yamato | Hoel | Mark XV | Philippine Sea | DS]

• Destroyer Yukikaze assisted in the sinking of USS Johnston during the Battle off Samar off the Philippine Islands. ww2dbase [Philippines Campaign, Phase 1, the Leyte Campaign | Yukikaze | Samar | CPC]
• USS Alabama supported landing operations on Leyte, Philippine Islands. ww2dbase [Philippines Campaign, Phase 1, the Leyte Campaign | Alabama | CPC]
• Nachi arrived at Coron, Palawan, Philippine Islands. ww2dbase [Nachi | Coron, Palawan | CPC]
• After six days of shore bombardments of the island of Leyte in the Philippines, USS Portland withdrew to join the battleship and cruiser force tasked with intercepting Japan's Southern Force in the Surigao Strait. Portland was part of the force that crossed the "T" of the Japanese force and directed most of her fire against the cruiser Mogami. After the decisive victory in the Surigao Strait, Portland returned to Leyte Gulf and prepared to fend off Japan's Center Force, then engaged with Task Force 77.4.3 in the Battle off Samar. ww2dbase [Philippines Campaign, Phase 1, the Leyte Campaign | Portland | Surigao Strait, Leyte | DS]

• Patrol Boat No. 102 arrived at Saei, Takao (Chinese: Zuoying, Kaohsiung), Taiwan at 1640 hours. ww2dbase [Stewart | Takao | CPC]

• USS Astoria departed San Francisco, California, United States. ww2dbase [Astoria (Cleveland-class) | San Francisco, California | CPC]
• At the White House in Washington DC, United States, President Franklin had lunch with his daughter, Anna (Mrs. John Boettiger), Navy Rear Admiral Emory Land, Chairman of the United States Maritime Commission, and industrialist Henry J. Kaiser. ww2dbase [White House | Franklin Roosevelt | Henry Kaiser | Washington, DC | DS]

25 Oct 1944 Interactive Map