TIME: 0900-1435
WEATHER/VISIBILITY/SEA STATE:
Initially clear and sunny then light squalls/Excellent/Good.
SURPRISE: none
MISSION: Allies to withdraw,
Japanese to intercept.
The naval action precipitated by the Japanese interception of Exeter and her escorts is generally described as a continuation of the Battle of the Java Sea. However, this action was fought on a different day, with different objectives, in (slightly) different waters and by some different participants. For these reasons, it is considered a different action here.
The defeated remnants of the ABDA Eastern Strike Force gathered in Surabaja during the afternoon and evening of February 27. Heavy cruiser HMS Exeter, her boilers damaged by an 8” hit immediately undertook emergency repairs. The RNN destroyer Witte de With had shepherded Exeter from the battle. USN destroyer Pope, veteran of the two surface engagements fought by the United States Navy in the East Indies, Balikpapan and Badung Strait, missed the battle due to engineering problems, but these were repaired in time, to help bring Exeter back to Surabaja. The four USN destroyers of DESRON 58, John D. Ford, John D. Edwards, Alden and Paul Jones, made port that evening to replenish their fuel, if not their stock of torpedoes. Finally arriving last was HM destroyer Encounter, delivering survivors rescued from Kortenaer.
By the morning of February 28 Japanese fleets were poised east, west and center to deliver the forces that would compel Java’s swift surrender. Surabaja, on the north shore, had gone in just two days from being a principal base to a trap. For the flotilla of Allied survivors few escape routes remained. The Bali Strait between Bali and Java was closest; however, the approach was considered too shallow for Exeter while the Bali shore, being held by the Japanese was considered too dangerous. Lombok Strait between Bali and Lombok was another possibility, although in this case the enemy held both shores. The only other exit, far to the west, was the Sunda Strait between Java and Sumatra.
On the evening of February 28, against a backdrop of black smoke and demolitions, and under the observation of Japanese spotter aircraft, the Allied ships, negotiated the winding channel out of Surabaja for the last time. The four American destroyers of DESDIV 58 led the way at 1700 hours; they would chance the Bali Strait. Exeter followed two hours later. Emergency repairs had improved her speed to 16 knots (and eventually, by the time of the battle, to 23). Vice Admiral Palliser, chief of staff to ABDAfloat, and the senior Royal Navy officer on Java, ordered her to head north across the Java Sea, east of Bawean Island, toward the south coast of Borneo, and then swing west and finally back south for the Sunda Strait. By making a wide circle to the north perhaps she could avoid the Japanese. Given hindsight it is clear that the Bali or Lombok Straits would have been safer passages; at least Exeter would not have suffered such a long, mostly daylight, approach through enemy infested waters. Destroyers HMS Encounter and USS Pope provided her escort. Witte de With was to have joined this force, but in another example of inter-Allied miscommunication, her captain did not receive these orders until after he had granted a portion of his crew shore leave. Suffering also from mechanical defects, she remained at Surabaja to be bombed and then scuttled on March 2, demonstrating the fate the other ships would have suffered had they lingered. Major Dutch ships scuttled along with the Witte de With included destroyer Banckert, submarines K-X, K-XIII, K-XVIII, minelayers Soemenep, Bangkalen and Rigel and the training ship Soerabaja.
As Exeter sailed, the Eastern Strike force, victors of the Battle of the Java Sea, lingered in the waters north and east of Surabaja, covering the transports then approaching Kragan. As Houston and Perth were to discover several hours later, the Western Strike Force had arrived at Sunda Strait . Additional forces including a group centered around the light carrier Ryujo and the seaplane carrier Chiyoda were entering the Java Sea from the north.
Through the night Exeter steamed north until she was well past Bawean Island, whereupon the flotilla turned to a west by northwest heading. Her Captain, O. L. Gordon, sighted three ships at 0400 on the morning of the first, but was able to pass by without being sighted in return. The morning of the 1st dawned clear and calm, a brilliant, late summer day in the tropics. Exeter was heading west, northwest about 60 nautical miles off Borneo, approaching 110° east longitude. Allied lookouts reported empty seas encouraging a cautious – but unfounded – optimism
On the morning of March 1st the heavy units of the Eastern Strike force, heavy cruisers Nachi and Haguro accompanied by destroyers Yamakaze and Kawakaze loitered well north of Kragan. Their primary mission was to support the landings then underway, but they were better deployed to block passage through the Java Sea. At 0930 their lookouts reported masts 33,000 yards to the north, northwest. Two minutes later, Allied lookouts were making sighting reports of their own. Because the Japanese cruisers were short of ammunition after their exertions of 27 February, they observed, maintained contact and radioed for reinforcements. Gordon, his options extremely limited, continued heading northwest. Within a half hour, even his limited options vanished as heavy cruisers Ashigara and Myoko and destroyers Akebono and Ikazuchi, answering the call for assistance, appeared in the west. By 1010 these two cruisers were about 33,750 yards due west of the Allies, while their destroyers were about 10,000 yards closer. At 1020 the Allies opened fire on Akebono and Ikazuchi.. The Japanese destroyers and their two cruisers replied, the cruisers from about 25,000 yards. The Allied destroyers, weaving back and forth around the slower Exeter, made smoke and the Allied force turned east.
FORCES ENGAGED: ACTION SOUTH OF BORNEO
ALLIED
| TYPE | NAME | YEAR | DISP FL | MAIN | SEC | TT | SPD |
| CA
DD DD |
Exeter
Encounter Pope |
29
34 20 |
11,000
2,025 1,308 |
6x8/50
4x4.7/45 4x4" |
8x4/45
1x3" |
6x21
8x21" 12x21 |
23
36 35 |
| TOTAL | 3 | 28 | 14,333 |
| CA
CA CA CA DD DD DD DD |
Ashigara
Myoko Nachi Haguro Akebono Ikazuchi Kawakaze Yamakaze |
28
27 27 28 30 31 36 36 |
14,743
14,743 14,743 14,743 2,389 2,264 2,042 2,042 |
10x8/50
10x8/50 10x8/50 10x8/50 6x5/50 6x5/50 5x5/50 5x5/50 |
8x5/40
8x5/40 8x5/40 8x5/40 |
16x24
16x24 16x24 16x24 9x24 9x24 8x24 8x24 |
33.8
33.8 33.8 33.8 35 34 34 34 |
| TOTAL | 8 | 31 | 67,709 |
For the next half hour the northern Japanese cruisers swapped long range salvos with Exeter. Myoko and Ashigara expended ammunition liberally (together they used 1,171 8” shells in the action) but, although they had spotter aircraft over the Allied ships, they failed to score any hits. Exeter, suffering from fire control problems, saw her salvos repeatedly fall wide of their targets. The Japanese gradually closed range, pinching in on the slower Allied column.
At around 1100 Gordon spotted a band of clouds to the east. Knowing these presaged rainsqualls and possible shelter he rang for every knot of speed his engine crews could press on. Ten minutes later, in an attempt to buy time, he launched torpedoes from long-range at Myoko and Ashigara. Pope supplemented this attack with a salvo of four several minutes later. These forced the Japanese cruisers to evade by making a tight 360? circle. Pope also circled and fired five more torpedoes at Nachi and Haguro. With Encounter she then engaged Akebono and Ikazuchi which were pressing close on the starboard beam. The battle was rapidly reaching a climax. At 1115 Nachi and Haguro finally attacked, opening fire from about 17,000 yards and launching four torpedoes each at 1120 and 1122. The Japanese destroyers also began making torpedo attacks: Kawakaze fired two at 1119 followed by Yamakaze with four at 1121.
At 1120 Japanese gunnery finally scored a decisive hit on Exeter, again on a boiler room, causing a complete loss of power. Guns askew she gradually slowed to 4 knots as 8” salvos continued to straddle (but not hit) her. Captain Gordon ordered his destroyers to run for it, but it was too late for Encounter. Between the Japanese and Pope, she attracted most of their fire. Then the suction lines to her pumps broke. With her speed and maneuverability compromised, an 8” shell from the northern cruisers hit her hard at 1135. Lieutenant Commander E. V. St. J. Morgan ordered his ship scuttled and the crew over the side. While Myoko, Ashigara and Irazuchi continued to fire torpedoes at the stricken British ships, Pope, commanded by Lieutenant Commander W. C. Blinn, raced for the weather dead ahead. At about 1200, making smoke and chasing salvos, he made it into a rainsquall. Up to this point Pope had fired 345 4” shells and 9 torpedoes.
As Pope escaped, the Japanese finished off the two Royal Navy warships. Nachi and Haguro ceased fire at 1145 after shooting off 170 and 118 rounds of 8” respectively, and presumably turned back toward the landings they were supposed to be supporting. With Exeter slowly heeling and still under heavy fire, Gordon ordered flood valves opened and his crew to abandon ship. The crew was going over the side when Irazuchi finally hit her with a Type 90 torpedo, the only one of the fifty torpedoes fired during the battle to find a target. The cruiser sank at 1205. Of her crew the Japanese rescued approximately 300 men (letting many more drown). Encounter followed her to the bottom at 1205. Myoko, and Ashigara finally ceased fire at this time.
Pope used her temporary
safety to move ammunition to her depleted forward magazines and secure
boiler room damage resulting from a collapsed firewall. She emerged
from a second squall at around 1230, but with the weather passing her and
no place else to hide, she was soon observed by a Type 0 (Pete) spotter
from Chitose. Eventually ten more Petes joined and at 1300
proceeded to attack, one after the other, with 132 pound bombs. Pope
fought back with her 3” antiair gun until it failed after 75 rounds
and with her four smaller machine guns. Fragments from one near miss
damaged the range finder and wounded two crew. On the last attack
another near miss holed the destroyer and knocked her port propeller shaft
out of line forcing the forward engines to shut down. Struggling
to repair the flooding caused by this attack, Pope was faced with
a new threat: six Type 97 (Kate) bombers from Ryujo. Beginning
at 1335 they proceeded to deliver 6 550 pound and 24 132 pound bombs on
the stricken ship. Sluggish to the helm, settling aft and with only
one propeller, Blinn still managed to avoid a direct hit. As this
attack was underway, however, it was clear that Pope could not be
saved. Blinn ordered two 10 pound scuttling charges set and his crew
into the destroyer’s whaleboat and rafts. Shortly after the charges
exploded and as the boat and rafts were pulling away, Myoko and
Ashigara arrived to hasten the settling ship along her way with
8” salvos. She finally went under at 1410 – the last Allied warship
to be sunk in the Java Sea. All 151 of Pope’s crew survived
and were eventually rescued by the Japanese on March 3, although 27 died
in captivity. The Japanese expended 2,650 shells and 35 torpedoes
to sink these three ships. Although American sources claim they inflicted
some damage on the Japanese, this does not appear to be the case.