William B. Ault
Encyclopedia
William Bowen Ault was a commander in the United States Navy
during World War II
and a posthumous recipient of the Navy Cross
.
as a midshipman
. Graduating on 2 June 1922, Ault served at sea on the battleship
before reporting to the Naval Air Station Pensacola
, Florida
, on 23 August 1924 for flight instruction.
After earning his wings, Ault served with Aircraft Squadrons, Scouting Fleet
, before commencing a tour in the aviation unit of the light cruiser
on 10 September 1925. Detached from that ship just over a year later, he served at the Naval Academy as an instructor before reporting for duty with Observation Squadron (VO) 3, Aircraft Squadrons, Scouting Fleet, on 15 June 1927.
Further duty at the Naval Academy, as an instructor in the Department of Ordnance and Gunnery, followed before he flew with Patrol Squadron (VP) 10-S, Scouting Fleet, based in aircraft tender . He then served on the staff of Capt. George W. Steele, Commander, Aircraft, Scouting Force, from June 1931 to June 1932 and alternated tours of duty afloat and ashore: in Torpedo Squadron (VT) 1-S, based on board ; at NAS Norfolk, Virginia
; and in the observation unit of the battleship .
Ault—by this time a lieutenant
—next assisted in fitting-out , thus becoming a "plank owner" of that ship when she went into commission in the autumn of 1937. He then served on Yorktown's sister ship, , commanding VT-6. On 5 August 1939, less than a month before the start of World War II in Poland
, Ault assumed command of the Naval Reserve Aviation Base, Kansas City, Kansas
, a billet in which he served into 1941.
On 22 July 1941, Lieutenant Commander Ault once more reported to Lexington, and, the following day, became her air group commander. He was serving in that capacity when the Japan
ese attack on Pearl Harbor
on 7 December 1941 drew the United States into World War II.
and Salamaua
, New Guinea
, in March 1942. On the day before the strike, 9 March, Ault and a wingman flew to Port Moresby
, where the group commander learned of the existence of a key mountain pass through the forbidding Owen Stanleys
, information that, in the words of the task force commander, contributed "a great deal toward [the] success" of the attacks that ensued. On the day of the raid, 10 March, Ault, given the authority to carry out or abort the attack on the basis of what weather he found, flew unaccompanied to the pass and orbitted. Finding favorable weather, he transmitted information to that effect and directed the passage of planes from Lexington and Yorktown toward Lae and Salamaua. Those groups sank three transports, put a fourth transport out of action, and caused varying degrees of damage to a light cruiser, a minelayer, three destroyers and a seaplane carrier. The transmontane raid postponed the Japanese projected conquest of Tulagi
and Port Moresby for a month, the time necessary to replace the vital amphibious ships lost off New Guinea and marshal carrier air support. Commander, Aircraft Battle Force, later commended Ault for his work.
in May 1942, as Lexington's Air Group Commander, Ault led Lexington's bombers into combat in the successful May 7 attack on the Japanese aircraft carrier
Shoho
, sinking the light carrier fifteen minutes after the first attack. The Shoho was the first Japanese aircraft carrier sunk in World War II.
Early in the morning on 8 May, Ault led the Lexington airwing's attack on the Japanese fleet carrier Shokaku. The attack was successful; the Shokaku was damaged severely enough to warrant its removal from battle and its return to base at Chuuk
.
Both Ault and his radio-gunner, Aviation Radioman 1st Class William T. Butler, apparently suffered wounds when Zero fighters attacked the group commander's SBD Dauntless
. Ault attempted to return to a friendly carrier deck, not realizing that the Lexington had taken mortal damage in his absence. Unaware of Lexington's distress, he radioed the ship at 14:49, to tell her that he had only enough gasoline for 20 minutes. Yorktown, which had taken over communications for "Lady Lex," heard Ault's broadcast but failed to pick him up on her radar. Informed that he was on his own but wished "Good luck." Ault changed course to the north, in a last vain attempt to be picked up on radar. Yorktown again wished him good luck.
Ault, perhaps aware of the fate that lay ahead, radioed : "O.K. So long, people. We put a 1,000 pound hit on the flat top." No further word was received from Lexington's air group commander, and neither he nor Aviation Radioman Butler was ever seen again. No remains of his aircraft have yet been found.
Both Ault and Butler were listed as Missing in Action and presumed dead on May 8, 1942.
The citation reads:
was named for Commander Ault.
The , an Allen M. Sumner class
destroyer
in the United States Navy launched 26 March 1944, was also named for CDR. Ault.
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
and a posthumous recipient of the Navy Cross
Navy Cross
The Navy Cross is the highest decoration that may be bestowed by the Department of the Navy and the second highest decoration given for valor. It is normally only awarded to members of the United States Navy, United States Marine Corps and United States Coast Guard, but can be awarded to all...
.
Early Naval Career
Ault served briefly as an enlisted man in the Navy (19 April 1917 - 23 April 1918) before entering the Naval AcademyUnited States Naval Academy
The United States Naval Academy is a four-year coeducational federal service academy located in Annapolis, Maryland, United States...
as a midshipman
Midshipman
A midshipman is an officer cadet, or a commissioned officer of the lowest rank, in the Royal Navy, United States Navy, and many Commonwealth navies. Commonwealth countries which use the rank include Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, India, Pakistan, Singapore, Sri Lanka and Kenya...
. Graduating on 2 June 1922, Ault served at sea on the battleship
Battleship
A battleship is a large armored warship with a main battery consisting of heavy caliber guns. Battleships were larger, better armed and armored than cruisers and destroyers. As the largest armed ships in a fleet, battleships were used to attain command of the sea and represented the apex of a...
before reporting to the Naval Air Station Pensacola
Naval Air Station Pensacola
Naval Air Station Pensacola or NAS Pensacola , "The Cradle of Naval Aviation", is a United States Navy base located next to Warrington, Florida, a community southwest of the Pensacola city limits...
, Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
, on 23 August 1924 for flight instruction.
After earning his wings, Ault served with Aircraft Squadrons, Scouting Fleet
Scouting Fleet
The Scouting Fleet was part of the United States Fleet in the United States Navy, and renamed the Scouting Force in 1930.Established in 1922, the fleet consisted mainly of older battleships and initially operated in the Atlantic...
, before commencing a tour in the aviation unit of the light cruiser
Light cruiser
A light cruiser is a type of small- or medium-sized warship. The term is a shortening of the phrase "light armored cruiser", describing a small ship that carried armor in the same way as an armored cruiser: a protective belt and deck...
on 10 September 1925. Detached from that ship just over a year later, he served at the Naval Academy as an instructor before reporting for duty with Observation Squadron (VO) 3, Aircraft Squadrons, Scouting Fleet, on 15 June 1927.
Further duty at the Naval Academy, as an instructor in the Department of Ordnance and Gunnery, followed before he flew with Patrol Squadron (VP) 10-S, Scouting Fleet, based in aircraft tender . He then served on the staff of Capt. George W. Steele, Commander, Aircraft, Scouting Force, from June 1931 to June 1932 and alternated tours of duty afloat and ashore: in Torpedo Squadron (VT) 1-S, based on board ; at NAS Norfolk, Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
; and in the observation unit of the battleship .
Ault—by this time a lieutenant
Lieutenant
A lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...
—next assisted in fitting-out , thus becoming a "plank owner" of that ship when she went into commission in the autumn of 1937. He then served on Yorktown's sister ship, , commanding VT-6. On 5 August 1939, less than a month before the start of World War II in Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
, Ault assumed command of the Naval Reserve Aviation Base, Kansas City, Kansas
Kansas City, Kansas
Kansas City is the third-largest city in the state of Kansas and is the county seat of Wyandotte County. It is a suburb of Kansas City, Missouri, and is the third largest city in the Kansas City Metropolitan Area. The city is part of a consolidated city-county government known as the "Unified...
, a billet in which he served into 1941.
On 22 July 1941, Lieutenant Commander Ault once more reported to Lexington, and, the following day, became her air group commander. He was serving in that capacity when the Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese attack on Pearl Harbor
Attack on Pearl Harbor
The attack on Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike conducted by the Imperial Japanese Navy against the United States naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on the morning of December 7, 1941...
on 7 December 1941 drew the United States into World War II.
World War II
Ault helped to plan and execute the attacks on Japanese shipping at LaeLae
Lae, the capital of Morobe Province, is the second-largest city in Papua New Guinea. It is located at the start of the Highlands Highway which is the main land transport corridor from the Highlands region to the coast...
and Salamaua
Salamaua
Salamaua was a small town situated on the north-eastern coastline of Papua New Guinea part of Morobe province. The settlement was built on a minor isthmus between the coast with mountains on the inland side and a headland...
, New Guinea
New Guinea
New Guinea is the world's second largest island, after Greenland, covering a land area of 786,000 km2. Located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, it lies geographically to the east of the Malay Archipelago, with which it is sometimes included as part of a greater Indo-Australian Archipelago...
, in March 1942. On the day before the strike, 9 March, Ault and a wingman flew to Port Moresby
Port Moresby
Port Moresby , or Pot Mosbi in Tok Pisin, is the capital and largest city of Papua New Guinea . It is located on the shores of the Gulf of Papua, on the southeastern coast of the island of New Guinea, which made it a prime objective for conquest by the Imperial Japanese forces during 1942–43...
, where the group commander learned of the existence of a key mountain pass through the forbidding Owen Stanleys
Owen Stanley Range
Owen Stanley Range is the south-eastern part of the central mountain-chain in Papua New Guinea. It was seen in 1849 by Captain Owen Stanley while surveying the south coast of Papua and named after him. Strictly, the eastern extremity of the range is Mount Victoria , which was climbed by Sir William...
, information that, in the words of the task force commander, contributed "a great deal toward [the] success" of the attacks that ensued. On the day of the raid, 10 March, Ault, given the authority to carry out or abort the attack on the basis of what weather he found, flew unaccompanied to the pass and orbitted. Finding favorable weather, he transmitted information to that effect and directed the passage of planes from Lexington and Yorktown toward Lae and Salamaua. Those groups sank three transports, put a fourth transport out of action, and caused varying degrees of damage to a light cruiser, a minelayer, three destroyers and a seaplane carrier. The transmontane raid postponed the Japanese projected conquest of Tulagi
Tulagi
Tulagi, less commonly Tulaghi, is a small island in the Solomon Islands, just off the south coast of Florida Island. The town of the same name on the island Tulagi, less commonly Tulaghi, is a small island (5.5 km by 1 km) in the Solomon Islands, just off the south coast of Florida...
and Port Moresby for a month, the time necessary to replace the vital amphibious ships lost off New Guinea and marshal carrier air support. Commander, Aircraft Battle Force, later commended Ault for his work.
Battle of the Coral Sea
In the later Battle of the Coral SeaBattle of the Coral Sea
The Battle of the Coral Sea, fought from 4–8 May 1942, was a major naval battle in the Pacific Theater of World War II between the Imperial Japanese Navy and Allied naval and air forces from the United States and Australia. The battle was the first fleet action in which aircraft carriers engaged...
in May 1942, as Lexington's Air Group Commander, Ault led Lexington's bombers into combat in the successful May 7 attack on the Japanese aircraft carrier
Aircraft carrier
An aircraft carrier is a warship designed with a primary mission of deploying and recovering aircraft, acting as a seagoing airbase. Aircraft carriers thus allow a naval force to project air power worldwide without having to depend on local bases for staging aircraft operations...
Shoho
Shoho
was a after Kan'ei and before Keian. This period spanned the years from December 1644 through February 1648. The reigning emperor was .-Change of era:* 1644 : The era name was changed to Shōhō to mark the enthronement of the new emperor Go-Kōmyō...
, sinking the light carrier fifteen minutes after the first attack. The Shoho was the first Japanese aircraft carrier sunk in World War II.
Early in the morning on 8 May, Ault led the Lexington airwing's attack on the Japanese fleet carrier Shokaku. The attack was successful; the Shokaku was damaged severely enough to warrant its removal from battle and its return to base at Chuuk
Chuuk
Chuuk — formerly Truk, Ruk, Hogoleu, Torres, Ugulat, and Lugulus — is an island group in the south western part of the Pacific Ocean. It comprises one of the four states of the Federated States of Micronesia , along with Kosrae, Pohnpei, and Yap. Chuuk is the most populous of the FSM's...
.
Both Ault and his radio-gunner, Aviation Radioman 1st Class William T. Butler, apparently suffered wounds when Zero fighters attacked the group commander's SBD Dauntless
SBD Dauntless
The Douglas SBD Dauntless was a naval dive bomber made by Douglas during World War II. The SBD was the United States Navy's main dive bomber from mid-1940 until late 1943, when it was largely replaced by the SB2C Helldiver...
. Ault attempted to return to a friendly carrier deck, not realizing that the Lexington had taken mortal damage in his absence. Unaware of Lexington's distress, he radioed the ship at 14:49, to tell her that he had only enough gasoline for 20 minutes. Yorktown, which had taken over communications for "Lady Lex," heard Ault's broadcast but failed to pick him up on her radar. Informed that he was on his own but wished "Good luck." Ault changed course to the north, in a last vain attempt to be picked up on radar. Yorktown again wished him good luck.
Ault, perhaps aware of the fate that lay ahead, radioed : "O.K. So long, people. We put a 1,000 pound hit on the flat top." No further word was received from Lexington's air group commander, and neither he nor Aviation Radioman Butler was ever seen again. No remains of his aircraft have yet been found.
Both Ault and Butler were listed as Missing in Action and presumed dead on May 8, 1942.
Navy Cross
Ault's leadership of Lexington's air group in the Battle of the Coral Sea earned him the posthumous award of the Navy Cross.The citation reads:
Legacy
On September 25, 1943, the United States Naval land airplane airfield at Whidbey IslandNaval Air Station Whidbey Island
Naval Air Station Whidbey Island is a naval air station located in two sections around Oak Harbor, Washington, USA. It was commissioned as an active U.S. Navy installation on 21 September 1942....
was named for Commander Ault.
The , an Allen M. Sumner class
Allen M. Sumner class destroyer
The Allen M. Sumner class was a group of 58 destroyers built by the United States during World War II. Another twelve ships were completed as destroyer minelayers...
destroyer
Destroyer
In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast and maneuverable yet long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against smaller, powerful, short-range attackers. Destroyers, originally called torpedo-boat destroyers in 1892, evolved from...
in the United States Navy launched 26 March 1944, was also named for CDR. Ault.
External links
- Commander William Bowen Ault MIA - Photograph of Commander William B. Ault
- Battle of the Coral Sea - includes photos of ships involved in the Battle of the Coral Sea
- From Coral Sea to Whidbey Island - article about CDR. Ault's son visiting the Naval Air Station.
- The Action of May 8 - detailed description of the Battle of Coral Sea, including Ault's role.
- Commander Ault's Biography - Ibiblio.org's biography on Commander Ault