USS Hornet (CV-8)
.jpg) Hornet shortly after completion |
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| Career (United States) |  |
|---|---|
| Name: | USS Hornet |
| Operator: |  United States Navy |
| Ordered: | 30 March 1939 |
| Builder: | Newport News Shipbuilding Company |
| Laid down: | 25 September 1939 |
| Launched: | 14 December 1940 |
| Sponsored by: | Mrs. Frank Knox |
| Commissioned: | 20 October 1941 |
| Struck: | 13 January 1943 |
| Honors and awards: |
American Defense Service Medal with ("A" device); American Campaign Medal; Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal with (4 Battle Stars);[1][2] World War II Victory Medal; |
| Fate: | Sunk in the Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands, 27 October 1942 |
| Notes: | Last U.S. fleet carrier lost in action |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type: | Yorktown-class aircraft carrier |
| Displacement: | As built:20,000 long tons (20,000 t) standard (design),26,507 long tons (26,932 t) (full load), 29,114 long tons (29,581 t) (maximum) |
| Length: |
|
| Beam: | As built:83 ft 3 in (25.37 m) (waterline), 114 ft (35 m) (overall) |
| Draft: | 24 ft 4 in (7.42 m) design, 28 ft (8.5 m) full load |
| Installed power: | 120,000 shp (89,000 kW) |
| Propulsion: | 4 × Parsons geared steam turbines 9 × Babcock & Wilcox boilers 4 × shafts |
| Speed: | 32.52 kn (37.42 mph; 60.23 km/h) (design) 33.84 kn (38.94 mph; 62.67 km/h) (builder's trials) |
| Range: | 12,500 nmi (14,400 mi; 23,200 km) at 15 kn (17 mph; 28 km/h) |
| Complement: | 2,919 officers and enlisted (wartime) |
| Armament: |
As Built: 8 × 5 in (130 mm)/38 cal dual purpose guns 20 × 26 ft 9 in (8.15 m)1.1 in/75 cal 32 × 20 mm anti-aircraft cannons |
| Armor: |
As built:*2.5–4 in (6.3–10 cm) belt
|
| Aircraft carried: | As built: 90 × aircraft |
| Aviation facilities: | 3 × elevators 3 × hydraulic catapults (2 flight deck, 1 hangar deck) |
USS Hornet CV-8, the seventh ship to carry the name Hornet, was a Yorktown-class aircraft carrier of the United States Navy. During World War II in the Pacific Theater, she launched the Doolittle Raid on Tokyo and participated in the Battle of Midway and the Buin-Faisi-Tonolai Raid. In the Solomon Islands campaign she was involved in the Capture and Defense of Guadalcanal and the Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands where she was irreparably damaged and sunk. Hornet was in service for a year and six days and was the last US fleet carrier ever sunk by enemy fire. For these actions, she was awarded four service stars, a citation for the Doolittle Raid in 1995, and her Torpedo Squadron 8 received a Presidential Unit Citation for extraordinary heroism for the Battle of Midway.
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[edit] World War II
She was launched on 14 December 1940 by Newport News Shipbuilding of Newport News, Virginia [3](sponsored by Annie Reid Knox,[4] wife of Secretary of the Navy Frank M. Knox), and commissioned at Norfolk on 20 October 1941, with Captain Marc A. Mitscher in command.[5]
During the uneasy period before the attack on Pearl Harbor, Hornet trained out of Naval Station Norfolk. Her armament was upgraded in her January 1942 yard period, removing all .50 in (13 mm) machine guns and replacing them with thirty 20 mm Oerlikon anti-aircraft cannons. A hint of a future mission occurred on 2 February 1942, when Hornet departed Norfolk with two Army Air Forces B-25 Mitchell medium bombers on deck. Once at sea, the planes were launched to the surprise and amazement [6] of Hornet's crew. Her men were unaware of the meaning of this experiment, as Hornet returned to Norfolk, prepared to leave for combat, and on 4 March sailed for the West Coast via the Panama Canal.[7]
[edit] Doolittle Raid, April 1942
Hornet arrived at Naval Air Station Alameda, California on 20 March 1942.[8] With her own planes on the hangar deck, by midafternoon on 1 April she loaded 16 B-25s on the flight deck.[9] Under the command of Lieutenant Colonel James H. Doolittle, 70 officers and 64 enlisted men reported aboard. In company of her escort, Hornet departed Alameda on 2 April [9] under sealed orders. That afternoon, Captain Marc Mitscher informed his men of their mission: a bombing raid on Japan.
Eleven days later, Hornet joined the aircraft carrier Enterprise off Midway, and Task Force 16 (TF 16) [10] turned toward Japan. With Enterprise providing combat air cover, Hornet was to steam deep into enemy waters. Originally, the task force intended to proceed to within 400 nmi (460 mi; 740 km) of the Japanese coast; however, on the morning of 18 April, a Japanese patrol boat, No. 23 Nitto Maru, sighted the American task force. Nashville sank the patrol boat.[11] Amid concerns that the Japanese had been made aware of their presence, Doolittle and his raiders were forced to launch prematurely from 600 nmi (690 mi; 1,100 km) out instead of the planned 450 nmi (520 mi; 830 km). Because of this decision, none of the 16 planes made it to their designated landing strip in China. After the war, it was found that Tokyo received the Nitto Maru's message in a garbled form and that the Japanese ship was sunk before it could get a clear message through to the Japanese mainland.[12]
As Hornet swung about and prepared to launch the bombers, which had been readied for take-off the previous day, a gale of more than 40 kn (46 mph; 74 km/h) churned the sea with 30 ft (9.1 m) crests; heavy swells, which caused the ship to pitch violently, shipped sea and spray over the bow, wet the flight deck and drenched the deck crews. The lead plane, commanded by Colonel Doolittle, had only 467 ft (142 m) of flight deck, while the last B-25 hung its twin rudders far out over the fantail. Doolittle, timing himself against the rise and fall of the ship's bow, lumbered down the flight deck, circled Hornet after take-off, and set course for Japan. By 09:20, all 16 were airborne, heading for the first American air strike against the Japanese home islands.[11]
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Hornet brought her own planes on deck as TF 16 steamed at full speed for Pearl Harbor. Intercepted broadcasts, both in Japanese and English, confirmed at 14:46 the success of the raids. Exactly one week to the hour after launching the B-25s, Hornet sailed into Pearl Harbor.[13] Hornet's mission was kept an official secret for a year; until then President Roosevelt referred to the base the bombers started from only as "Shangri-La". Several years later, the USN would give this name to an aircraft carrier.
Hornet steamed from Pearl Harbor on 30 April to aid Yorktown and Lexington [14] at the Battle of the Coral Sea, but the battle ended before she reached the scene. On 4 May Task Force 16 crossed the equator, the first time ever for Hornet.[15] After executing, with Enterprise, a feint towards Nauru and Banaba (Ocean) islands which caused the Japanese to cancel their operation to seize the two islands, she returned to Hawaii on 26 May,[16] and sailed two days later to help repulse an expected Japanese assault on Midway.
[edit] Battle of Midway, June 1942
On 28 May, Hornet and Task Force 16 steamed out of Pearl Harbor heading for Point "Luck", an arbitrary spot in the ocean roughly 325 miles northeast of Midway, where they would be in a flank position to ambush Japan's mobile strike force of four frontline aircraft carriers the Kido Butai.[17] Japanese carrier-based planes were reported headed for Midway in the early morning of 4 June 1942. [18] Hornet, Yorktown, and Enterprise launched aircraft, [19] just as the Japanese carriers struck their planes below to prepare for a second attack on Midway. Hornet dive bombers followed an incorrect heading and did not find the enemy fleet. Several bombers and all of the escorting fighters were forced to ditch when they ran out of fuel attempting to return to the ship. [20] Fifteen torpedo bombers of Torpedo Squadron 8 (VT-8) found their enemy and pressed home their attacks. They were met by overwhelming fighter opposition about 8 nmi (9.2 mi; 15 km) out, and with no escorts to protect them, they were shot down one by one. Ensign George H. Gay, USNR, was the only survivor of 30 men. [21]
Further attacks by Enterprise and Yorktown torpedo planes proved equally disastrous, but succeeded in dispersing both the carriers and their fighter cover. Japanese fighters were finishing off the last of the torpedo planes over Hiryū when dive bombers of Enterprise and Yorktown attacked and sank the three remaining Japanese carriers. Hiryu was hit late in the afternoon of 4 June by a strike from Enterprise and sank early the next morning. Hornet aircraft, launching late due to the necessity of recovering Yorktown scout planes and faulty communications, attacked a battleship and other escorts, but failed to score hits. Yorktown was lost to combined aerial and submarine attack. [22]
Hornet's planes attacked the fleeing Japanese fleet on 6 June 1942, and assisted in sinking the cruiser Mikuma, damaging a destroyer, and left the cruiser Mogami aflame and heavily damaged. Her attack on Mogami ended one of the decisive battles of history. [22] Midway was saved as an important base for operations into the western Pacific. Of greatest importance was the crippling of Japan's carrier strength, a severe blow from which they never fully recovered. The four large carriers took with them to the bottom some 250 aircraft and a high percentage of Japan's most highly trained and battle-experienced carrier pilots. The victory at Midway is widely seen as a turning point in the battle for the Pacific.[citation needed]
[edit] Solomons campaign, August–October, 1942
Following the battle of Midway, Hornet had a new CXAM radar installed atop her tripod mast, and her SC radar was relocated to the mainmast, an additional 1.1 in (28 mm) quad mount was added at the bow, her complement of 20 mm armament was increased from 30 to 32 mounts, her athwartships hangar deck catapult was removed, and she trained out of Pearl Harbor. She sailed on 17 August to guard the sea approaches to bitterly-contested Guadalcanal in the Solomons. Bomb damage to Enterprise (24 August), torpedo damage to Saratoga (31 August), and loss of Wasp (15 September) reduced the number of carriers in the South Pacific to only one: Hornet. She bore the brunt of providing air cover in the Solomons until 24 October, when she joined Enterprise northwest of the New Hebrides and steamed to intercept a Japanese carrier/battleship force bearing down on Guadalcanal.
_during_battle_of_the_Santa_Cruz_Islands.jpg)
The Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands took place on 26 October without contact between surface ships of the opposing forces. That morning, Enterprise's planes bombed the carrier Zuihō, while planes from Hornet severely damaged the carrier Shōkaku and the cruiser Chikuma. Two other cruisers were also attacked by Hornet's aircraft. Meanwhile, Hornet was attacked by a coordinated dive bombing and aerial torpedo attack. In a 15-minute period, Hornet took three bomb hits from Aichi D3A "Val" dive bombers, another bomb hit compounded by the "Val" itself crashing into the deck, two torpedo hits from Nakajima B5N "Kates", and another "Val" crashing into the deck.
Rear Admiral Murray ordered the cruiser Northampton to tow Hornet. Since the Japanese were attacking Enterprise, it allowed Northampton to tow at about 5 knots (9.3 km/h; 5.8 mph). Hornet, while under tow, came under attack again from another wave of torpedo bombers later in the day. A "Kate" scored another torpedo hit, and "abandon ship" was ordered. Captain Charles P. Mason, the last man on board, climbed over the side, and survivors were soon picked up by destroyers.
U.S. forces then attempted to scuttle Hornet, which absorbed nine torpedoes and more than 400 5 in (130 mm) rounds from the destroyers Mustin and Anderson. Mustin and Anderson moved off when a Japanese surface force appeared in the area. Japanese destroyers Makigumo and Akigumo then finished Hornet with four 24 in (610 mm) torpedoes. At 01:35 on 27 October, she finally sank with the loss of 140 of her crew.[23] Other than light and escort aircraft carriers, the USS Hornet became the last U.S. carrier to be sunk by enemy action during World War II. Hornet was struck from the Naval Vessel Register on 13 January 1943, but her name was later revived in a subsequent Essex class aircraft carrier, USS Hornet (CV-12).
[edit] Awards
Hornet was awarded 4 Service stars.
| Action No. | Operation:Action | Operation Period | Period of CV-8 Participation | Battle Stars Awarded | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| (1) | Midway | 3-6 Jun 42 | 3 Jun 42 - 6 Jun 42 | 1 | A Presidential Unit Citation was awarded for this battle to Torpedo Squadron 8 operating from U.S.S. Hornet CV-8 |
| (2) | Buin-Faisi-Tonolai raid | 5 Oct 42 | 5 Oct 42 | 1 | |
| (3) | Capture and defense of Guadalcanal | 10 Aug 42 - 8 Feb 43 | 16 Oct 42 | 1 | |
| (4) | Santa Cruz Islands | 26 Oct 42 | 26 Oct 42 | 1 | U.S.S. Hornet CV-8 was sunk at this battle after being in service for a year and six days. |
| Total Battle Stars | 4 |
Additionally, Torpedo Squadron 8 flying from Hornet CV-8 was awarded the Presidential Unit Citation.[24]"for extraordinary heroism and distinguished service beyond the call of duty" in the Battle of Midway.
[edit] Notes
 |
This article includes a list of references, but its sources remain unclear because it has insufficient inline citations. Please help to improve this article by introducing more precise citations. (May 2010) |
- ^ a b Navy and Marine Corps Awards Manual, NAVPERS 15,790 (REV.1953), PART IV - LIST OF SHIPS AND UNITS ELIGIBLE FOR ENGAGEMENT STARS, (A) UNITED STATES SHIPS, Hornet (CV 8)
- ^ a b Navy and Marine Corps Awards Manual, NAVPERS 15,790 (REV.1953), Part III.--List of Authorized Operations and Engagements, ASIATIC-PACIFIC AREA, Hornet (CV 8), Code P7, P9, P12, and P14
- ^ Rose, p. 6
- ^ Rose, p. 5
- ^ Rose, p. 10
- ^ Rose, p. 38-39
- ^ Rose, p. 41
- ^ Rose, p. 42
- ^ a b Rose, p. 52
- ^ Rose, p. 62
- ^ a b Rose, p. 65-71
- ^ Rose, p. 71
- ^ Rose, p. 77
- ^ Rose, p. 81-82
- ^ Rose, p. 90
- ^ Rose, p. 97
- ^ Rose, p. 49, 110-111
- ^ Rose, p. 120-122
- ^ Rose, p. 125
- ^ Rose, p. 1128-130
- ^ Rose, p. 129-132, 146-149
- ^ a b Rose, p. 97-155
- ^ Hammel, Eric M. (2005). Carrier Strike: The Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands, October 1942. Zenith Imprint, p. 380. ISBN 0760321280
- ^ Navy and Marine Corps Awards Manual, NAVPERS 15,790 (REV.1953), PART II UNIT AWARDS, PRESIDENTIAL UNIT CITATION (GROUP II)
[edit] References
- Rose, Lisle A. (1995). The Ship That Held the Line, The U.S.S. Hornet and the First Year of the Pacific War. Naval Institute Press. ISBN 1-55750-008-8.
- This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be found here.
[edit] External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: |
- Navy photographs of Hornet (CV-8)
- Maritimequest USS Hornet CV-8 Photo Gallery
- More detail on last hours of Hornet.
- WWII Archives Hornet (CV-8) original Ship Action Reports Scanned in from the National Archives
- WWII Archives U.S.S. Hornet (CV-8) original 32 Page War Damage Report Scanned in from the National Archives
- NavSource Aircraft Carrier Photo Index for Hornet (CV-8), with Awards, Medals, and Ribbons Listing
- USS Hornet Damage Report during the Battle of Midway
- Decorations - Task Force 16 Citation awarded retroactively to Hornet CV-8 on May 15, 1995 and other ships of TF16 for the Doolittle Raid in 1942
- Commanders of the USS Hornet (CV-8)
- Video of the Battle of Santa Cruz and sinking of USS Hornet (CV-8)
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Coordinates: 8°38′23″S 166°42′34″E / 8.63972°S 166.70944°E
