landing operations—which went undiscovered by pre-invasion reconnaissance—was also a severe handicap. Sinking of USS Liscome Bay In the early hours of 24 November 1943, the escort carrier and flagship USS Liscome Bay was sunk by the Japanese submarine I-175, which had arrived near Makin just a few hours before. A single torpedo, launched as part of a torpedo spread by I-175, detonated the Liscome Bay'''s aircraft bomb stockpile, causing an explosion which engulfed the entire ship, causing it to sink quickly. The attack on the Liscome Bay accounted for the majority of American casualties in the Battle of Makin. Of the 916 crewmen of Liscome Bay only 272 were rescued, while 644 perished (53 officers and 591 enlisted men), including the flagship's admiral and task force group commander, Rear Admiral Henry M. Mullinnix, carrier captain, Captain Irving Wiltsie, and Pearl Harbor Navy Cross recipient Cook Third Class Dorie Miller. The loss of the Liscome Bay on the eve of Thanksgiving that year was due to a few factors. Two destroyers of the destroyer screen, USS Hull and USS Franks, left the destroyer screen, leaving a gap in the screen. Also, the task force which included the Liscome Bay was not zigzagging. The Japanese submarine I-175 approached the task force undetected and fired a spread of torpedoes through the gap in the anti-submarine screen, one of which struck and sank the Liscome Bay. Aftermath The complete occupation of Makin took four days and cost considerably more in naval casualties than in ground forces. Despite possessing great superiority in men and weapons, the 27th Division had difficulty subduing the island's small defense force. One Japanese Ha-Go tank was destroyed in combat, and two tanks placed in revetments were abandoned without being used in combat. Against an estimated 395 Japanese killed in action during the operation, American ground casualties numbered 66 killed and 152 wounded. U.S. Navy losses were significantly higher: 644 deaths on the Liscome Bay'', 43 killed in a turret fire on the battleship , and 10 killed in action with naval shore parties or as aviators, for a total of 697 naval deaths. The overall total of 763 American dead almost equalled the number of men in the entire Japanese garrison. See also 69th New York Infantry Regiment Marine Raiders Makin (atoll) Gilbert and Marshall Islands campaign Battle of Tarawa Notes References External links Conflicts in 1943 1943 in the