USS HORNET (CV-8)

The seventh 'USS ''Hornet'' (CV-8)' of the United States Navy was a Yorktown class aircraft carrier of World War II, notable for launching the Doolittle Raid, as a participant in the Battle of Midway, and for action in the Solomons before being irreparably damaged in the Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands.
She was launched 14 December 1940 by Newport News Shipbuilding of Newport News, Virginia, sponsored by Annie Reid Knox (wife of Secretary of the Navy Frank M. Knox), and commissioned at Norfolk 20 October 1941, Captain Marc A. Mitscher in command.
During the uneasy period before the attack on Pearl Harbor, ''Hornet'' trained out of Norfolk. A hint of a future mission occurred 2 February 1942 when ''Hornet'' departed Norfolk with two Army Air Force B-25 Mitchell medium bombers on deck. Once at sea, the planes were launched to the surprise and amazement 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.

Contents

Doolittle Raid, April 1942

Battle of Midway, June 1942

Solomons campaign, August–October, 1942

See also

External links

Doolittle Raid, April 1942

Main articles: Doolittle Raid

''Hornet'' arrived Alameda, California 20 March. With her own planes on the hangar deck, she loaded 16 Army Air Force B-25 bombers on the flight deck. Under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Jimmy Doolittle 70 officers and 64 enlisted men reported aboard. In company of escort ships ''Hornet'' departed Alameda 2 April and embarked on her mission under sealed orders. That afternoon Captain Mitscher informed his men of their mission: a bombing raid on Japan.
Eleven days later ''Hornet'' joined ''Enterprise'' (CV-6) off Midway and Task Force 16 turned toward Japan. With ''Enterprise'' providing combat air cover, ''Hornet'' was to steam deep into enemy waters where Colonel Doolittle would lead the B-25s in a daring strike on Tokyo and other important Japanese cities. Originally, the task force intended to proceed to within of the Japanese coast; however, on the morning of 18 April a Japanese patrol boat, ''No. 23 Nitto Maru'', sighted the United States task force. The cruiser ''Nashville'' (CL-43) sank the patrol boat, but it had already contacted other Japanese forces and exposed the presence and location of the American task force. Though some from the Japanese coast, confirmation of the patrol boat's warning prompted Admiral William F. Halsey at 08:00 to order the immediate launching of the "Tokyo Raiders".
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 churned the sea with 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 but 467 feet of flight deck while the last B-25 hung far out over the fantail. The first of the heavily-laden bombers, timing itself 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 of the bombers were airborne, heading for the first American air strike against the heart of Japan.

''Hornet'' brought her own planes on deck and 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. ''Hornet's mission was kept an official secret for a year; until then President Roosevelt referred to the origin of the Tokyo raid only as "Shangri-La".
''Hornet'' steamed from Pearl Harbor 30 April, to aid ''Yorktown'' (CV-5) and ''Lexington'' (CV-2) at the Battle of the Coral Sea. But that battle was over before she reached the scene. She returned to Hawaii 26 May and sailed 2 days later with her sister carriers to repulse an expected Japanese fleet assault on Midway.

Battle of Midway, June 1942

Japanese carrier-based planes were reported headed for Midway the early morning of 4 June 1942. ''Hornet'', ''Yorktown'', and ''Enterprise'' launched strikes as the Japanese carriers struck their planes below to prepare for a second strike on Midway. ''Hornet'' dive bombers were unable to locate their targets, but 15 planes comprising her Torpedo Squadron 8 found their enemy and pressed home their attacks. They were met by overwhelming fighter opposition about from three Japanese carriers and were shot down one by one as they attempted to engage the ships. Ensign George H. Gay, USNR, the only survivor of thirty men, reached the surface as his plane sunk. He hid under a rubber seat cushion to avoid strafing, and witnessed the greatest carrier battle in history.
Of 41 torpedo planes launched by the American carriers, only six returned. Their sacrifices drew enemy fighters away from dive bombers of ''Enterprise'' and ''Yorktown'' who sank three Japanese carriers with an assist from submarine ''Nautilus'' (SS-168). The fourth Japanese carrier, ''Hiryū'', was hit late in the afternoon of 4 June and went down in the early hours of the morning on the following day. ''Yorktown'' was lost to combined aerial and submarine attack.
''Hornet'' planes attacked the fleeing Japanese fleet 6 June 1942 to assist in sinking cruiser ''Mikuma'', damaged a destroyer, and left cruiser ''Mogami'' aflame and heavily damaged. Hits were also made on other ships. ''Hornet's'' attack on ''Mogami'' wrote ''finis'' to one of the decisive battles of history that had far reaching and enduring results on the Pacific War. Midway was saved as an important base for operations into the western Pacific. Likewise saved was Hawaii. Of greatest importance was the crippling of Japan's carrier strength, a severe blow from which she never fully recovered. The four large aircraft carriers sent to the bottom of the sea carried with them some 250 planes along with a high percentage of Japan's most highly trained and battle-experienced carrier pilots. This great victory by ''Hornet'' and the other ships at Midway is widely seen as a turning point in the battle for the Pacific.

Solomons campaign, August–October, 1942

Following the Battle of Midway, ''Hornet'' had new radar installed and trained out of Pearl Harbor. She sailed 17 August 1942 to guard the sea approach to bitterly-contested Guadalcanal in the Solomons. Bomb damage to ''Enterprise'' (24 August), torpedo damage to ''Saratoga'' (CV-3) (31 August), and loss of ''Wasp'' (CV-7) (15 September) reduced carriers in the South Pacific to one: ''Hornet''. The ''Hornet'' bore the brunt of air cover in the Solomons until 24 October 1942 when it joined ''Enterprise'' northwest of the New Hebrides and steamed to intercept a Japanese carrier-battleship force bearing down on Guadalcanal.

The Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands took place 26 October 1942 without contact between surface ships of the opposing forces. That morning ''Enterprise'' planes bombed carrier ''Zuihō''. Planes from ''Hornet'' severely damaged carrier ''Shōkaku'', and cruiser ''Chikuma''. Two other cruisers were also attacked by ''Hornet'' aircraft. Meanwhile, the ''Hornet'' was attacked by a coordinated dive bombing and torpedo plane attack. In a 15-minute period, the ''Hornet'' took three bomb hits from Aichi D3A Val divebombers, another bomb hit followed by the divebomber itself crashing into the deck, two torpedo hits from Nakajima B5N Kates, and one more Val crashing into the deck. Later in the day, one more B5N scored a torpedo hit, and "abandon ship" was ordered. Commented one sailor, awaiting rescue, when asked if he planned to re-enlist, "Dammit, yes—on the new ''Hornet''!" Captain Charles P. Mason, the last man on board, climbed over the side and survivors were soon picked up by destroyers.
US forces then attempted to scuttle the abandoned ''Hornet'', which survived nine torpedoes and more than 400 rounds of 5 inch shells fired from destroyers ''Mustin'' (DD-413) and ''Anderson'' (DD-411). ''Mustin'' and ''Anderson'' moved off when Japanese naval forces appeared in the area. Japanese destroyers then finished the ''Hornet'' with hits from four torpedoes. At 01:35, 27 October 1942, she finally sank off the Santa Cruz Islands. The carrier's name was struck from the Naval Vessel Register 13 January 1943.
''Hornet'' received four battle stars for World War II service. Torpedo Squadron 8 was awarded the Presidential Unit Citation "for extraordinary heroism and distinguished service beyond the call of duty" in the Battle of Midway.

See also

★ USS ''Hornet'' for other Navy ships of the same name.

★ List of aircraft carriers and list of aircraft carriers of the United States Navy

★ List of World War II ships

★

''Yorktown'' | ''Enterprise'' | ''Hornet''
'List of aircraft carriers of the United States Navy'

External links

★ Navy photographs of ''Hornet'' (CV-8)

★ Maritimequest USS Hornet CV-8 Photo Gallery

★ More detail on last hours of Hornet.