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Where was AROU Four in the Pacific Theater?

Discussion in 'Naval Warfare in the Pacific' started by Donald Hamilton, Jul 5, 2011.

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  1. Donald Hamilton

    Donald Hamilton Member

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    My dad's name was John Leldon Hamilton, and he was an AMM2 in the U.S. Navy during WWII. He was assigned to Aviation Overhaul & Repair (AROU) Four, Detachment H3B, # 401 Component from August 1 to October 10, 1945. He was transferred there from Acorn Assembly and Training Detachment (AATD), Port Hueneme, Ca. I'm looking for any information about where Aviation Overhaul & Repair (AROU), Detachment H3B, # 401 Component was located, what their mission was, and where they went as the war was ending. My dad is now deceased, but I recall conversations in which he said that he was on the way to Guam when the war ended, so I presume that he must have been on a ship somewhere. He also mentioned that he was on a ship that was present in the area of Tokyo Bay when the Terms of Surrender were signed on September 2, 1945. the end . I have been unable to find any information on AROU Four, other than the full name, on the internet. If any readers of this forum have any pertinent information, please respond.
    Thanks in advance,
    Don Hamilton
     
  2. R Leonard

    R Leonard Member

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    Designations for this type unit changed over time. AV Repair & OH Unit 4 (Aviation Repair and Overhaul Unit Four) first appears in the USN Aircraft Location Reports in the 21 November 1944 report and is reported as enroute to Guam. The 5 December 1944 report shows AV Repair & OH Unit 4 as still enroute, but the 12 December report shows the unit as established at Guam.

    It would remain there until the end of the war.

    The designation changes to AR&OHUnit-4 with the 27 December 1944 report and then changes to the final iteration of AROU-4 with the 24 Feb 1945 report.

    Regards,

    Rich
     
  3. R Leonard

    R Leonard Member

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    Follow-up

    ref also your post at
    http://www.ww2f.com/information-requests/52031-seeking-information-arou-4-guam-during-ww-ii.html


    The only carriers present in Tokyo Bay during the formal surrender were USS Cowpens, USS Bataan, HMS Ruler and HMS Speaker. USS Salamaua was nearby at the entrance to Tokyo Bay, having arrived on the 2d with a troop convoy for which she supplied escort.

    USS Belleau Wood, specifically, was with Task Force 38 far off shore (read “not with sight of land”) during the surrender.

    I hate to sound like a wet blanket, but the carrier end of the business had their own talented pool of maintenance personnel for operational maintenance. For those planes in need of land based repair and over-haul, in the vernacular called “duds,” a system was in place to fly them to ServRon CVEs and exchange them for nice shiny new ones. There were some 20-25 CVEs devoted to this service in constant shuttle bringing new planes forward and taking the duds back to CASU and AROU units. Planes deemed not worth that effort were simply written off and shoved overboard; there were plenty in the pipeline. Bottom line is the kind of work performed in CASU and AROU type operations was not done aboard carriers; these organizations were “Depot Level” repair facilities, one step removed from the typical A&R shops found at the large naval air stations stateside.

    Belleau Wood was involved in the Magic Carpet operations into early 1946. Could your father have ridden home aboard?

    Regards,

    Rich
     
  4. Donald Hamilton

    Donald Hamilton Member

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    Rich:
    Thank you for this enlightening information. Although it was not the information I was hoping for, it does help to answer the nagging question of what my dad actually did and where he served to support the Pacific war effort. This search for answers to those questions has been a "tail wagging the dog" kind of thing. But now I'm beginning to see light at the end of the tunnel. This has been a long-overdue quest of mine, following up on pieces of information recalled from conversatoins with my dad (who didn't talk much anyway, and it was customary for returning service members of that generation to not talk abour their experiences - understandably so in many cases).
    Based on your latest input to this puzzle, it appears that AROU Four may have been one of the units that USS Belleauwood picked up at the end of the war and returned to American soil as part of "Operation Magic Carpet".
    I truly appreciate all the efforts you have made to help me to answer these questions. The results of this research will ultimately be a part of our family history in a special category about the history of military service of family members (multi-generational).
    Thanks again,
    Don Hamilton


     
  5. Donald Hamilton

    Donald Hamilton Member

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    Rich:
    I sent an initial reply to your post on July 10th, thanking you for your help in my research concerning my dad's service in AROU Four. I have been reading a book entitled "Pacific Legacy" by Rez Allen Smith and Gerald A. Meehl, i found some information which may help to answer the question about USS Belleauwood's presence and support of the Terms of Surrender signing on September 2, 1945. On page 277 of that book, the following excerpt is quoted:
    " Four hundred B-29's came low, low over the Missouri and fifteen hundred fleet planes rose above, around them and on their wings. They dipped over the Missouri, on to Yokohama, inland over Tokyo, then back out to sea again."
    You had stated that the only carriers present in Tokyo Bay on that day were the
    USS Cowpens, USS Bataan, HMS Ruler and HMS Speaker. Presumably, since they were in Tokyo Bay and probably wouldn't have been launching aircraft, those fifteen hundred fleet planes would have come from other carriers within flyover range of Tokyo Bay. I have found a number of websites detailing history of the Belleauwood, and they indicate that her aircraft participated in the flyover on September 2, 1945. That being said, the USS Belleauwood was probably one of those carriers. That still doesn't answer the question of whether my dad was involved in any capacity (even as a passenger as part of Operation Magic Carpet), and I may never find and accurate answer to that question. The quest is intriguing!
    Thanks again,
    Don Hamilton

     
  6. Donald Hamilton

    Donald Hamilton Member

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    This is a follow-up to several of my previous posts concerning AROU Four in Guam during WW II. I am trying to find out how the military personnel who were attached to AROU Four in Guam in the last severl months of the war got back to the United States, and where they may have travelled in the process. My Dad, John Leldon Hamilton, was an AMM2 was assigned to AROU Four and supposedly arrived on Guam in July 1945, just months before the Japanese surrendered. I am trying to find any information which describes what ship or ships that military personnel from AROU Four may have embarked on for the trip back to the states. My dad is deceased now, but I remember him talking about a ship name USS Belleauwood, and he talked about airplanes flying over Tokyo Bay during the signing of the Terms of Surrender on Septamber 2, 1945. I have obtained a copy of his service record, and it contains no entry of him being assigned to USS Belleauwood, so if he was onboard it was probably as a passenger.

    If anyone has access to any records that provide information about the deactivation of AROU Four on Guam and the transport of assigned military personnel back to the states, please let me know.

    Don Hamilton
     
  7. bwest53

    bwest53 recruit

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    Don, my step-father-in-law was in this unit and he has a pretty darned clear memory. It's my understanding that he was told to get home the best way he could. It took him approx. one year to get back via various methods of transport including several different ports. If there is anything else you would like to know, I will be happy to ask him and pass it along.
     
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