USS Abner Read was an American Navy Destroyer of 2,050 tons built in1942 by Bethlehem Co., San Francisco. She was powered by a steam, turbine engine giving 60,000s.h.p.and 36.5 knots. USS Abner Read was attacked by Japanese aircraft off Samar in the Philippines, on 1st November 1944. The vessel, which carried a complement of over 250, was hit and sunk. In the hope of turning back the American invasion, the Japanese struck back fiercely with sea and air power. On 1 November 1944, the Japanese launched kamikaze attacks on members of TG 77.1, which was patrolling lower Leyte Gulf to protect a beachhead. At approximately 1341, a Aichi D3A "Val" burst into flames and crashed toward Abner Read. A bomb from the raider dropped down one of the destroyer's stacks and exploded in her after engine room. The plane, in the meantime, came down diagonally across the main deck, setting fire to the entire after section. The ship lost water pressure and this made firefighting efforts impossible. At 1352, a tremendous internal explosion occurred, causing her to list about 10 degrees to starboard and to sink by the stern. At 1415, Abner Read rolled over on her starboard side and sank stern first. Destroyers quickly came to the aid of survivors and rescued all but 22 members of Abner Read's crew. USS Abner Read (DD-526), after being hit by a Japanese "Val" single-engined dive bomber off Samar, while operating with T.G.77.1. She took only 36 minutes to plunge to the bottom of Letye Gulf, on 1 November 1944. Photo from "United States destroyer Operations in World War II" by Theodore Roscoe.
