Gerald Paul Preiner
PFC Gerald P. Preiner served with the Marine detachment of the USS Lexington (CV-2).
He was killed in action at the Coral Sea on 8 May 1942.
Branch
Marine Corps Regular
Service Number 303071
Current Status
Remains lost at sea.
Pursuit Category
Based on circumstances of loss, this individual is considered permanently non-recoverable.
Capsule History
Pre-War Life
Birth*
October 12, 1920
at St. Paul, MN
Parents
Anthony Joseph Preiner
Rose Elizabeth (Muellner) Preiner
Education
Grammar school
Occupation & Employer
Cemetery worker
* Military records give Preiner's date of birth as 26 October 1916.
Service Life
Entered Service
March 19, 1941
at Minneapolis, MN
Home Of Record
Howard Gnesen Road
Duluth, MN
Next Of Kin
Parents, Anthony & Rose Preiner
Military Specialty
Gun Pointer
Primary Unit
USS Lexington
AA Battery #4 / Gun 8
Campaigns Served
Coral Sea
Individual Decorations
Purple Heart
Additional Service Details
—
Loss And Burial
Circumstances Of Loss
PFC Gerald Preiner served as a member of the Marine detachment aboard the aircraft carrier USS Lexington. His battle station was in the port side aft gun gallery, manning a 5″ antiaircraft gun. As a gun pointer, Preiner’s job was to aim the big Mark 12 gun according to instructions from Fire Control, and actually fire the weapon on the command of the gun captain.
Preiner was at his post on 8 May 1942, during the battle of the Coral Sea. His comrades were scanning the skies for bogeys when a report from lookouts in Sky Aft came through the phone wires: “Torpedo planes on the port bow.”
The planes came down on a glide and leveled off at about 5,000 yards or less. The guns were brought to bear and the order given to commence firing.... We were looking for more torpedo planes when a bomb hit just outside of the #8 splinter shield. I shifted immediately to dive bombers except for Gun #8 which had been machine gunned.
The strafing attack wounded PFCs Edwin M. Allred and Thurman D. Germany, and killed Gerald Preiner. The rest of the Marines stuck to their guns until, as Lieutenant Cash noted, they could see no more planes. For all of their efforts, the Lexington was fatally damaged.
Captain Frederick Sherman gave the order to abandon ship at 1707 hours, and the Lexington was scuttled by the destroyer USS Phelps later that evening. The carrier went down on an even keel, “with her head up,” as one surviving officer put it. “Dear old Lex…a lady to the last.” The bodies of eighteen Marines were either left aboard the Lexington or lost over the side during the battle.
Burial Information or Disposition
PFC Preiner ultimately went down with his ship. The Lexington is considered to be his final resting place.
Next Of Kin Address
Address of parents, Anthony & Rose Preiner.
Anthony was the sexton of Calvary Cemetery, where most of the Preiners are now buried.
Location Of Loss
The last reported location of the USS Lexington on 8 May 1942.
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