CHESTER "PETE" ZELLER   Chief Machinist's Mate, U.S. Navy, 1939-1945, U.S.S. Lexington "Plankowner" HISTORY Page 5

I must say now that, I remembered my days as an Alter Boy and hoped that God would remember me and that somehow we would not get hit. Now, these were only the Japanese planes that got through our combat air patrol. Most of these were shot down by the ship's guns and the rest of them were shot down by our fighter planes and dive bombers and torpedo planes. I'm not real sure, but I've heard that it was 420 Japanese planes and I don't recall how many, if any, of our planes were lost. But that was a busy day and one that I'll remember for a long time. Q.     What other memorable battles do you recall? A.     Some of the other memorable battles come to me at times, but they don't seem to have a name or location. By this time I had been promoted to Chief Machnist's Mate and I was quite friendly with the Chief Pharmacist's Mate (Cofferon) and he related this story to me. I knew that he and the Senior Medical Officer, a Lieutenant Commander, didn't get along well. It seems the Commander sort [of] had it in [for] the old Chief. One day, at general quarters, a sailor on the Flight Deck got decapitated by a propeller and Cofferon called the Sick Bay and said to the Doctor, "Will you send up the bomb elevator, I have a body I want to send down." Now the Doctor bristled and said, "How do you know the man is dead, you are not a Doctor." And Cofferon said, "I'm pretty sure he is dead, for I have his head in a bucket." And the Chief had the last word. Q.     Were you on board the Lex on November 6, 1944, when a Kamikaze hit the ship? If yes, what do you recall about this event? A.    When the Kamikaze struck the Lexington, I do remember it was mid-afternoon, but there wasn't much action except [that] the ship's guns were banging away quite a lot that afternoon. When word was passed, we couldn't believe that about 40 of our shipmates had been killed. All of whom were buried at sea later. The burials were not well advertised and I believe it was for morale reasons. The ship was really hit hard on that one and many of the guns on the starboard side were gone.

Lady Lex Links Veterans of the Blue Ghost Home Page George "Ray" Rabenstine History Page Helen Rabenstine History Pages Chester "Pete" Zeller History Pages Add Your Oral History! Questionnaire for Veterans of the Blue Ghost US.S. Lexington Museum on the Bay Tarawa to Tokyo Sabrina Roper's Fantastic site on the U.S.S. Lexington U.S.S. Lexington CV-16 Association NavSource Online: Aircraft Carrier Photo Archive History of the U.S.S. Lexington at Wordiq.com About Me References Send Some Love to "Iraqi Bill"

Q.     Did you receive any injuries during your military service? If yes, describe how they happened. A.     I did not receive any injuries during my military service. Q.     The U.S.S. Lexington crossed the equator 14 times during WWII, and in at least April and September 1944, there were silly ceremonies on board that marked the occasion, (men dressed up in costumes getting thier heads shaved and "running the gauntlet,"  which entailed a man running between two rows of men and being pushed around). Do you remember these events? If yes, please describe them. A.     Crossing the equator was a milestone and that was about all it was, except I do remember getting a lot of whacks on the rear and well sloshed in the water tank that was was constructed on the Flight Deck for that purpose. I can't remember the date, but it was one of those days that all was quiet and I was on the Flight Deck for a rest and beside me was another Machnist's Mate Gene Krell. Gene said to me, "Pete, look how blue that water is. I don't think I've ever seen such blue water." Well within about five minutes an announcement came over the PA system. "The ship is now passing over the deepest known ocean depth. It is the Marianas trench and the water depth here is 37,500 feet deep." Close to seven miles to the bottom. Q.     Did you receive any awards or recognition while in the Navy? If yes, do you remember what they were and why you received them? A.     I did not receive any awards except the normal ones that nearly all service men were awarded. The American Theater, The Asiatic Pacific Medal, the European Medal, and the American Defense Medal. Of these, all men that were in the theater of action were awarded that medal.

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