June 19, 1944: Despite a malfunctioning engine, Navy Lt. Alexander Vraciu shot down six Japanese "Judy" bombers in eight minutes, while using only 360 rounds of ammunition. Vraciu would shoot down 19 enemy planes (plus 21 on the ground), becoming the Navy's fourth-leading ace of World War II.

The USS Bonhomme Richard and HMS Serapis

From W. Thomas Smith, Jr.’s “This Week in American Military History” article in Human Events:

Sept. 23, 1779: The famous battle of the North Sea opens between Continental Navy frigate Bonhomme Richard under the command of Capt. John Paul Jones​, and Royal Navy frigate HMS Serapis.

During the height of the fighting, Serapis’ Captain Richard Pearson issues an appeal to Jones that the American ship surrender. Jones refuses.

According to the story, the British captain – aware that Bonhomme Richard is badly damaged and sinking – shouts across the water between the two dueling ships, inquiring as to whether or not Jones has lowered or struck his colors. Jones shouts back, “I have not yet begun to fight!”

It has since been widely reported that Jones reply was, “I may sink, but I’ll be damned if I strike!”

In fact, Bonhomme Richard does sink: But not before Pearson himself surrenders (believed to be “the first time in naval history that colors are surrendered to a sinking ship”), and Jones transfers his flag to his newly captured prize, Serapis.

The American fleet sailed the Dutch port of Texel Roads, but Jones had to transfer the entire fleet – minus the USS Alliance – to the French due to political pressure. Jones may have lost his fleet, but his remarkable victory would earn him the title “the Father of the American Navy.”

SAN DIEGO (June 5, 2010) An F6F Hellcat flies alongside an F/A-18C Hornet assigned to the Rough Raiders of Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 125 during a Battle of Midway Commemoration ceremony aboard the USS Midway (CV 41) Museum. The Battle of Midway was the turning point of the War in the Pacific. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class John Philip Wagner Jr./Released)

U.S. 5TH FLEET AREA OF RESPONSIBILITY (June 19, 2010) The aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman enters the U.S. 5th Fleet area of responsibility following successful operations in the U.S. 6th Fleet area of responsibility. Harry S. Truman is deployed as part of the Harry S. Truman Carrier Strike Group supporting maritime security operations and theater security cooperation efforts in the U.S. 5th and 6th Fleet areas of responsibility. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Kilho Park/Released)

An F/A-18E Super Hornet flies over the Kajaki Dam reservoir in Afghanistan, May 20, 2010. The aircraft is part of Strike Fighter Squadron 83. The squadron is assigned to the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower, which is at sea in the Persian Gulf and Middle East regions. U.S. Navy photo by Lt. Cmdr. Ben Stickney

KINGSVILLE, Texas (June 4, 2008) T-45A Goshawks training aircraft cruise together during a recent training flight over the skies of South Texas. The T-45 is a twin-seat, single-engine jet trainer and is the only aircraft in the Navy's inventory used specifically for training pilots to land aboard aircraft carriers. U.S. Navy photo by Lt. j.g. John A. Ivancic (Released)

U.S. Navy sailors manning a Sea Ark patrol boat from a boat detachment with Maritime Expeditionary Security Squadron (MSRON) 3 perform high-speed maneuvers during a Navy Expeditionary Combat Command (NECC) integrated exercise in San Diego on April 22, 2010. The weeklong training exercise is being held through April 23, 2010, and is designed to provide NECC sailors with realistic combat training in preparation for upcoming deployments. Sailors assigned to boat detachments with MSRON-3 deploy globally to provide waterborne security and defense capabilities. (U.S. Navy photo / Petty Officer 1st Class James E. Foehl)

PEARL HARBOR (Sep. 23, 2009) The amphibious transport dock ship USS Green Bay (LPD 20) pulls into Naval Station Pearl Harbor for a routine port visit. Green Bay is the fourth San Antonio-class ship. (U.S. Navy photo/MC2 Robert Stirrup)

Two RH-53 Sea Stallion helicopters painted to resemble Iranian helicopters and parked on the flight deck of the USS NIMITZ (CVN-68) prior to the start of Operation Eagle Claw, a mission to rescue U.S. hostages in Iran - which ended in disaster. (Source: militaryphotos.net)

More on Operation Eagle Claw

An Embrauer EMB-314 Super Tucano used by the Navy for trials as part of the classified "Imminent Fury" program to develop tactical intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance platform to support Special Operations personnel (Photo courtesy of MilitaryPhotos.net)