USS Grayson (DD-435) - Guadalcanal

Guadalcanal

Grayson again found herself with a fast carrier force as she sailed from Pearl Harbor 15 July to escort Enterprise and Hornet. Reaching Guadalcanal via Tongatapu on 7 August 1942, the carriers launched their planes to cover Marine landings there, America's first major blow of the war on the road to Japan; and then operated in the area to block Japanese reinforcements. As they maneuvered off Guadalcanal, Enterprise was hit by Japanese bombs 24 August in an action filled half-hour which saw Grayson down two planes and damage a third. The task group dispersed, Enterprise returning to Pearl Harbor for repairs, and Grayson joined Task Force 11 (TF 11), built around Saratoga (CV-3) under Admiral Frank Jack Fletcher. Action soon followed. Sighting a Japanese submarine on the surface the next day, 25 August, Grayson closed for the kill. After expending 46 depth charges — her entire supply — in a series of five attacks, the destroyer saw a huge air bubble and oil slick rise to the surface indicating that they had sunk an Imperial submarine.

The battle-proven ship and crew remained in the bitterly contested waters around Guadalcanal for nearly eight months in a variety of duties. The Grayson convoyed troop transports loaded with reinforcements from Nouméa and other staging areas to Guadalcanal, patrolled in "The Slot", served as a radar picket ship, and performed valuable rescue work. On 18 October she picked up 75 survivors from Meredith (DD-434), sunk by aerial torpedo 16 October, and helped escort the barge Vireo, loaded with desperately needed fuel and ammunition, to Guadalcanal.