Before Operation Torch, Philadelphia conducted anti-submarine patrols in the western Atlantic and toward the Panama Canal. She then served as Rear Admiral L. A. Davidson's flagship for the southern attack group of the Western Naval Task Force. The group carried 6,423 troops and 108 tanks toward Safi within the largest American fleet yet sent to war. Philadelphia engaged both the fortified Batterie Railleuse and a nearby 6.1-inch field-gun position while transports unloaded and troops advanced ashore. Her floatplanes directed fire, located and attacked a submarine off Morocco, and later sighted the badly damaged Vichy submarine Medusa beached farther up the coast. The aircraft work shows how the class's reconnaissance facilities supported amphibious gunfire and anti-submarine tasks rather than only fleet scouting.
Chapter · 30:20-34:55
Philadelphia supports the Safi landings in Operation Torch
As flagship of the southern attack group, Philadelphia escorted the Safi landing force and engaged coastal batteries while her aircraft spotted and searched offshore.