Three Academy Alumni Played Pivotal Roles During the Battle of Midway
By Major Thomas Rychlik ’79, USMC (Ret.), and Charles Race
Published in the July–August 2024 issue of Shipmate.
Presented on HonorAmericanHeroes.org with the permission of Major Thomas Rychlik, one of the work’s credited authors.
Three Academy Alumni. Three Torpedo Squadrons. One Historic Battle.
Lieutenant Commander John C. Waldron, United States Naval Academy Class of 1924, led Torpedo Squadron Eight from USS Hornet.
Lieutenant Commander Eugene E. Lindsey, Class of 1927, led Torpedo Squadron Six from USS Enterprise.
Lieutenant Commander Lance E. Massey, Class of 1930, led Torpedo Squadron Three from USS Yorktown.
On June 4, 1942, all three led their squadrons against the Japanese carrier striking force near Midway Atoll.
Their Douglas TBD Devastators were obsolete, slow, poorly protected, and armed with torpedoes whose reliability had repeatedly failed American crews. Many of their pilots had limited combat experience. Some had never launched from an aircraft carrier carrying an armed torpedo.
They went forward anyway.
A Legacy Written Under Fire
Published as part of Shipmate magazine’s “Legacy of Valor” series, Sacrifice and Valor places the actions of Waldron, Lindsey, and Massey within the traditions of service, leadership, and duty instilled at the United States Naval Academy.
The article begins with Waldron’s preparation of Torpedo Eight. Faced with vulnerable aircraft and newly trained aviators, he worked to improve both the skill of his crews and the survivability of their planes. He ordered regular physical training, added makeshift armor around crew positions, and increased the defensive firepower available to his radiomen and gunners.
On the morning of the battle, Waldron challenged the course assigned to the Hornet air group. Convinced that it would lead away from the enemy, he separated Torpedo Eight from the main formation and took his squadron southwest.
His judgment brought Torpedo Eight directly to the Japanese carriers.
The First Attack
Waldron and his men descended toward sea level and began a lengthy approach against the carrier force while Japanese Zero fighters attacked from above.
Every aircraft in the squadron was shot down. Waldron was killed, along with 28 other airmen. Ensign George Gay was the only survivor.
No American torpedo struck a Japanese carrier. Yet the attack forced the enemy to maneuver, intensified combat air patrol operations at low altitude, and helped deny the Japanese the uninterrupted time needed to prepare their own strike against the American carriers.
The authors describe Waldron’s attack as the beginning of a larger sequence.
Lindsey and Torpedo Six
Smoke, antiaircraft fire, and the visible signs of battle helped draw Torpedo Squadron Six toward the Japanese carriers.
Led by Eugene Lindsey from USS Enterprise, the squadron made another unsupported attack under devastating fighter opposition. Ten of Lindsey’s 14 aircraft were shot down, including his own.
Lindsey had already been injured in a carrier landing accident only days before the battle. Despite those injuries, he refused to surrender command of his squadron and led his men into combat.
Massey and Torpedo Three
Torpedo Squadron Three soon followed from USS Yorktown under Lance Massey.
Unlike the earlier formations, Torpedo Three approached with six Wildcat fighters and with Bombing Squadron Three positioned above. Japanese fighters concentrated heavily on the low-flying torpedo bombers, leaving the dive bombers at altitude with far less opposition.
As the attacks against Akagi, Kaga, and Soryu unfolded, Massey redirected his squadron toward Hiryu, the remaining Japanese carrier that had not yet been attacked.
The decision required Torpedo Three to continue farther into the battle while under concentrated enemy opposition. Ten of its 12 aircraft were shot down. The final two were later forced to ditch because of battle damage and fuel exhaustion.
Massey did not return.
The Opening Above Them
While Japanese fighters focused on the American torpedo bombers below, dive bombers from Enterprise and Yorktown arrived overhead.
Within minutes, three Japanese carriers were burning.
The torpedo squadrons didn’t deliver the bombs that crippled those ships. Their attacks helped create the conditions under which those bombs could be delivered. Waldron, Lindsey, and Massey led their men through the enemy’s defenses, held Japanese fighters at low altitude, and kept the carrier force reacting during the decisive minutes of the battle.
Their role deserves to be understood as part of one connected chain of courage.
Editorial Note
The Shipmate article states that it was first published in the Watertown Daily Times in September 2023. This edition was published in the July–August 2024 issue of Shipmate and presents the account specifically through the legacy of three United States Naval Academy alumni.
The article should appear beneath this introduction in its original published form. Historical interpretations, quoted material, casualty figures, and conclusions should remain attributed to the authors.
Read the Original Article
Read the complete Shipmate feature by Major Thomas Rychlik ’79, USMC (Ret.), and Charles Race. The article follows John C. Waldron, Eugene E. Lindsey, and Lance E. Massey from their Naval Academy backgrounds to the torpedo attacks that helped shape the decisive morning of June 4, 1942.
Why This Story Belongs Here
Waldron, Lindsey, and Massey represent three of the six aviators honored by the Honor American Heroes campaign.
Their stories are joined by those of Clarence W. McClusky, Max F. Leslie, and Richard H. Best, whose leadership and dive-bombing attacks helped convert the opening into a decisive American victory.
The Midway Six didn’t perform identical missions. They commanded different formations, flew from different carriers, faced different decisions, and contributed to the battle in different ways. What united them was the willingness to accept extraordinary personal risk when the outcome of the Pacific war remained uncertain.
Sacrifice and Valor helps preserve that record by showing how three Naval Academy alumni carried the responsibilities of command into one of the most dangerous missions in American military history.
They knew the limitations of their aircraft. They understood the strength of the enemy. They knew what the attack could cost. They led from the front.
About Major Thomas Rychlik
Major Thomas Rychlik, USMC (Ret.), is a member of the United States Naval Academy Class of 1979. His historical work has helped document the actions of the torpedo squadron commanders at Midway and advance the effort to secure greater national recognition for John C. Waldron, Eugene E. Lindsey, and Lance E. Massey.
Honor American Heroes is grateful to Major Rychlik for allowing this work to be shared with a wider audience.
About Charles Race
Charles Race is a writer and researcher whose work has focused on naval history and the legacy of John C. Waldron. His collaboration with Major Rychlik helps connect the individual stories of Midway’s commanders to the larger tactical and strategic history of the battle.
Permission and Publication Notice
This work is presented with the permission of Major Thomas Rychlik, one of its credited authors. The original title, byline, publication information, and historical content have been preserved.
Shipmate, the United States Naval Academy Alumni Association, and the original publisher are identified for attribution purposes. Honor American Heroes did not participate in the original publication or editing of the article.