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USS Liberty Court of Inquiry
testimony concerning the ship's flag
TESTIMONY
Q. Do you recall the flag or the national ensign flying?
[Ensign Scott:] Yes sir, it was flying. I noticed at
first light that the ensign was flying. I looked up to it
to check the wind direction just in the event I had to
blow tubes and I wanted to have a favorable wind
direction. That's about all I recall about the flag being
up on the day and night while we were over here. I don't
recall seeing it down at all.
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[LT. Golden:] Yes sir. At approximately 1145, I
completed eating lunch, and went to the 01 level forward
to sunbathe along with the Captain and some of the other
officers. I have a lounge chair, most of us do have;
while laying on my back sunbathing, I noticed a plane
flying over. I dozed off, and approximately 25 minutes or
so later on, I woke up and saw a plane circling again
coming from the port beam, crossing the ship. While
watching it, I glanced up and noticed it just crossing
over the stack area, and I noticed a small amount of smoke
coming out of my stack, and also the flag was flying.
Counsel for the Court: Was it extended?
[LT. Golden:] Yes sir, there was a slight breeze
blowing.
Q. Where was the flag flying from, Lieutenant GOLDEN?
[LT. Golden:] The foremast.
Q. And It was standing out where it could be seen?
[LT. Golden:] Yes sir. Not completely the full length,
but it was standing out.
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Counsel for the Court: Did you have occasion to see the
national ensign flying?
[LTGJ Painter:] Yes sir, I did. I saw the national
ensign flying after the, it was at the time I believe when
we were going to abandon ship. I ran out on the main deck
to get the life rafts ready. I remember distinctly
looking back up and seeing the Ensign flying. This was, I
think, after the air raid, after the torpedo attack.
Q. Had you seen it earlier that morning?
[LTGJ Painter:] I saw it earlier that morning when I
came up, I don't know when it was. I came up on and of
off that morning checking a patrol plane that had been
flying over us. The quartermaster, DAVID QM2, had told me
that the night that he was wounded that he had put the
flag up at 0730 that morning.
Q. So you, in recollection, recall seeing the flag flying
in the morning and after the torpedo attack?
[LTGJ Painter:] Yes, before and after the torpedo
attack.
Q. Do you know whether or not it was the same flag?
[LTGJ Painter:] I couldn't tell you sir. The way I
thought at one time, what the heck was it, I noticed there
was something funny about it. I might have seen the flag
twice, because once I saw one that had been shot up and it
was ragged, and the next time I looked at it I didn't
notice whether it was ragged or not. I couldn't say
either way whether it was the same flag.
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Counsel for the Court: Did you have occasion to see the
national colors flying?
[Chief Smith:] Yes sir. At the time I ran out of the
radio central space to the transmitter room.
Q. What time was this?
[Chief Smith:] I would say about 1225, this was about two
minutes either way. And this was Zulu time because I'm
basing it on the log here. I had occasion to look at it
because I was under the impression we were being attacked
by UAR, and I wanted to see, and by the time that report
came down to us from the bridge that they were Israelis, I
wanted to check myself personally to see if our flag was
flying because I couldn't understand it. For some reason
I saw the flag flying at that time. If this was the
original flag or not, I do not know sir. - - - - - - - -
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Counsel for the Court: Excuse me, any time prior to the
attack, did you notice the national colors flying?
[LTJG Watts:] Yes sir. At lunch that day, we were
discussing the situation and Mr. Golden made the statement
that someone had said something about the ensign flying so
the people would know who we were. Mr. Golden made the
statement something like, "Don't we have a bigger flag we
can fly, maybe the holiday colors ?" Then after lunch we
went out on the 01 level forward and most of the officers
were around there sunbathing immediately preceding 1300.
At approximately 1245, an aircraft flew over approximately
5,000 to 8,000 feet, and his line of flight took it over
the radar mast, and I was watching it and made a comment
about it that it looked like a C119 flying boxcar. And as
it flew over the radar mast, the ensign was flying from
the gaff. I noticed that it was flying, at this time
there was a breeze.
Q. Extended?
[LTJG Watson:] Yes sir.
President: Was it from the mast aft or the mast directly
over the bridge?
[LTJG Watson:] The mast directly over the bridge, sir.
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1426 [LOG] NOTICED NORMAL STEAMING ENSIGN SHOT AWAY DURING
AIR ATTACK HOLIDAY SIZE ENSIGN HOISTED ON PORT YARDARM.
[CAPT. McGonagle:] About this time I noticed that our
Ensign had been shot away during the air attack and
ordered DAVID, signalman, to hoist a second Ensign from
the yardarm. During the air attack, our normal Ensign was
flying. Before the torpedo attack, a holiday size Ensign
was hoisted. ? ??????? ??? ???? ?? ????? I could to
standby for torpedo attack from starboard.
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[Ensign Lucas:] There was a time when I was in the
pilot house that I heard the Commanding Officer holler to
someone, perhaps signalman DAVID, to get the Ensign, the
colors, off the deck. I went out to the starboard wing,
and there was an Ensign on the deck. I went out a little
bit further and looked up and we were flying our Ensign.
I found that later all of the starboard halyards or
hoists had been shot down and that signalman DAVID had run
up another Ensign.
Q. Do you recall how long the Ensign was down?
[Ensign Lucas:] I cannot recall for sure. From the first
air attack, the radar was made inoperative, the antenna on
the mainmast was damaged, obviously on the first air pass
and the Ensign would be flying just below it and just aft
of it. Evidently, the shelling that got the radarscope,
well it could have very possibly severed the halyard lines
at that time. I do not recall when the Commanding Officer
saw the Ensign on the deck and told someone to pick it up,
but I do recall going out on the starboard wing, looking
up and seeing that there was an Ensign flying.
Q. Do you remember the time frame when you looked and saw
the Ensign flying, was it during the surface or the air
attack?
[Ensign Lucas:] I can't set an exact time on it. I do
believe that I recall that at this time the patrol craft
was off our starboard side at an approximate bearing of
120. It seems to me that this might have been around the
time when I investigated the firing coming from mount 53
and found it was bullets cooking off as opposed to men
being there actually firing.
Q. Did you look and see the Ensign flying before the
torpedo hit, or was it after?
[Ensign Lucas:] I cannot honestly recall whether it was
before or after.
FINDINGS:
2. The calm conditions and slow ship speed may well have
made the American Flag difficult to identify.
28. Flat, calm conditions and the slow five knot patrol
speed of LIBERTY in forenoon when she was being looked
over initially may well have produced insufficient wind
for steaming colors enough to be seen by pilots.
4. The colors were shot down early in the action and were
replaced prior to the PT attack.
6. There are no available indications that the attack was
intended against a U.S. Ship.
1. Available evidence combines to indicate the attack on
LIBERTY on 8 June was in fact a case of mistaken identity.
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