the destroyer directed her CAP fighters out to meet a number of raids, but she, herself, fought no engagements with enemy aircraft. On the 18th, Ammen stood down and headed back to Hagushi. On the 19th, she put into Kerama Retto for repairs alongside until the 22d. After two days back at Hagushi, the destroyer resumed duty with the radar pickets in the afternoon of 24 May. Her return coincided with the seventh of Japan's 10 kikusui attacks on Okinawa shipping. The onslaught had begun the previous evening but had subsided somewhat during the daylight hours of the 24th when Ammen resumed duty as a fighter director. Just before 2000, the Japanese renewed their attacks with increasing intensity. The first six raids she detected posed no real threat to Ammen and her colleagues at radar picket station 15. The seventh raid closed to within five miles of her station but kept its distance in face of antiaircraft fire from Ammens consorts. From that time until about 0300 on the 25th, aircraft flew back and forth over station 15. The warships assigned there let fly with their antiaircraft batteries whenever enemy planes approached. Throughout the night of 24–25 May, no Japanese aviator made a really determined attack on radar picket station 15. In fact, Ammens radar screen remained clear of bogies during the morning watch of 25 May. Half an hour into the forenoon watch, however, things began to warm up. She detected a group of enemy planes approaching from the north about 40 miles distant. The destroyer dispatched her CAP fighters to meet the enemy, and they bagged two Nakajima Ki-44 "Tojo" Army fighters and two Kawasaki Ki-61 "Tony" Army fighters. Unfortunately, a fifth plane-another "Tojo"-slipped through and, a little after 0900, began a suicide dive, apparently at Ammen. The destroyer opened fire, but the kamikaze maintained his course and gathered speed. Instead of striking Ammen, though, he passed along her length and did a wingover into crashing her after torpedo mount. Though battered, Stormes remained afloat and, after repairs, continued in active service for almost three decades. Relative peace returned to radar picket station 15 that night, and continued until early on 27 May when the Japanese launched their eighth kikusui attack-the last in which 100 or more planes were involved. Attacks on other stations began as early as the end of the morning watch. Ammen made no contact