Leon S. Vannais

Leon Vannais was born in November 1918 in Hartford, Connecticut. Before joining the Navy, he was a professional pitcher for the New York Giants organization in Double-A Minor League Baseball. Vannais also worked for the International Business Machine Company (IBM) service bureau. In October of 1941, he passed the physical exam and was sworn into the Navy. Pearl Harbor happened shortly afterward, and Vannais was sent a telegram to report to basic training the next day.

Vannais completed basic training at the Corpus Christi Naval Air Station in Texas. He qualified for pilot training, which consisted of learning how to fly a plane, drop torpedoes and bombs and land on aircraft carriers. Vannais joked that he decided on the Navy over other branches of service because “they feed you better.”

After pilot training, Vannais was assigned to fly torpedo (TBF) planes on the USS Intrepid. They were the largest planes deployed on aircraft carriers. He recalled that fighter pilots did not like to fly with them, because TBF planes flew slower than fighter planes due to the size and weight of the torpedoes they carried. TBF planes were flown with a crew, with men stationed on gun turrets, radios, and other positions on the plane. Strikes would last around a half an hour, and Vannais said they were difficult, as the pilot’s aim and position had to be close to perfect.

Kamikaze suicide attacks on the USS Intrepid happened more than a few times. On one occasion, a Japanese pilot missed and landed in the water near the Intrepid. The ship’s crew picked him up out of the water, and put him in the ship’s hospital, where men would find an excuse to see the enemy soldier who was being guarded by two Marines. The Japanese pilot knew no English, but Vannais recalled the men teaching him how to say, “buy more war bonds.” He recalled the story while laughing and said, “you have to have a little humor in that situation.”

During World War II, Disney Studios created insignias for different units, many of them for the Navy. Vannais and his crew decided that they wanted to write a letter to Disney asking for an insignia to put all over their ship. They bypassed all the rules, deciding not to ask the higher-ups for approval. They received an insignia called “Carrier Clowns” with a picture of a clown riding a torpedo with an aircraft carrier in the background. The men in Air Group 18 were proud of it, but since they did not go by the book, their commander made them take it down; they never received a new insignia.

Vannais recalled an occasion when he had to fly a plane with a towed target attached to the back for target practice. The sailors on the ships loved this type of practice, but no one ever wanted to fly the plane. Vannais recalled losing a card game; and, as a result, he got stuck with the job. He flew a TBF with a sleeve attached to the back, and let all the ships in the surrounding area use it for target practice. When Vannais came back to land, he missed the deck and dropped the sleeve, blocking the ship’s view for quite a while. He recalled it being very funny at the time, even though some sailors were annoyed because they had to untangle it.

Vannais served in Air Group 18 from 1942-1945, spending around seven months total on the Intrepid. He received a Silver Star in addition to standard decorations for his time and service areas. 

On July 12, 2007, Leon Vannais died peacefully surrounded by his family.

Additional Resources:

• Intrepid Museum
• Google Books – Intrepid Aviators
• Artful Patriotism – DoD and Disney
• Veterans Legacy Memorial