Warships of the US Navy: Aircraft Carriers preserved

USN Aircraft Carriers preserved

USS Hornet (CV-12)

(Sanfranman59 Photo)

California, Alameda, USS Hornet Museum, PO Box 460, 707 W Hornet Ave, Pier 3, Alameda CA 94501.  (510) 521-8448.

The USS Hornet (CV-12) aircraft carrier is a museum ship with exhibits from the NASA Apollo moon exploration missions, (the Hornet recovered the Apollo 11 and Apollo 12 space capsules), and several retired aircraft from the Second World War and the transonic and early supersonic jet propulsion period.  A number of compartments contain exhibits concerning contemporary carriers that are supported by related associations.  The flight deck, hangar deck, and first deck below are open for self-guided tours.  Docent-led tours are available into the ship’s navigation and flight deck control areas of the island and down into one of the engineering spaces containing two of the four ship’s propulsion turbines.  It is located on the southernmost pier of the former Naval Air Station Alameda.  Open daily 10 AM to 4 PM.

USS Hornet (CV/CVA/CVS-12) is an Essex-class aircraft carrier built for the United States Navy (USN) during World War II. Completed in late 1943, the ship was assigned to the Fast Carrier Task Force (variously designated as Task Force 38 or 58) in the Pacific Ocean, the navy's primary offensive force during the Pacific War.In early 1944, she participated in attacks on Japanese installations in New Guinea, Palau and Truk among others. Hornet then took part in the Mariana and Palau Islands campaign and most of the subsidiary operations, most notably the Battle of the Philippine Sea in June that was nicknamed the "Great Marianas Turkey Shoot" for the disproportionate losses inflicted upon the Japanese. The ship then participated in the Philippines Campaign in late 1944, and the Volcano and Ryukyu Islands campaign in the first half of 1945. She was badly damaged by a typhoon in June and had to return to the United States for repairs.After the war she took part in Operation Magic Carpet, returning troops to the U.S. and was then placed in reserve in 1946. Hornet was reactivated during the Korean War of 1950–1953, but spent the rest of the war being modernized to allow her to operate jet-propelled aircraft. The ship was modernized again in the late 1950s for service as an anti-submarine carrier. She played a minor role in the Vietnam War during the 1960s and in the Apollo program, recovering the Apollo 11 and Apollo 12 astronauts when they returned from the Moon.Hornet was decommissioned in 1970. She was eventually designated as both a National Historic Landmark and a California Historical Landmark, and she opened to the public as the USS Hornet Museum in Alameda, California, in 1998. (Wikipedia)

USS Intrepid (CV/CVA/CVS-11)

(Autopilot Photo)

New York, New York, Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum

USS Intrepid (CV/CVA/CVS-11), also known as The Fighting I, is one of 24 Essex-class aircraft carriers built during the Second World War for the United States Navy.  She is the fourth US Navy ship to bear the name.  Commissioned in August 1943, Intrepid participated in several campaigns in the Pacific Theater of Operations, most notably the Battle of Leyte Gulf.  Decommissioned shortly after the end of the war, she was modernized and recommissioned in the early 1950s as an attack carrier (CVA), and then eventually became an antisubmarine carrier (CVS).  In her second career, she served mainly in the Atlantic, but also participated in the Vietnam War.  Her notable achievements include being the recovery ship for a Mercury and a Gemini space mission.  Because of her prominent role in battle, she was nicknamed "the Fighting I", while her often ill-luck and the time spent in dry dock for repairs earned her the nickname "the Dry I".  Decommissioned in 1974, in 1982 Intrepid became the foundation of the Intrepid Sea-Air-Space Museum in New York City.

USS Intrepid (CV/CVA/CVS-11), also known as The Fighting "I", is one of 24 Essex-class aircraft carriers built during World War II for the United States Navy. She is the fourth US Navy ship to bear the name. Commissioned in August 1943, Intrepid participated in several campaigns in the Pacific Theater of Operations, including the Battle of Leyte Gulf.Decommissioned shortly after the end of the war, she was modernized and recommissioned in the early 1950s as an attack carrier (CVA), and then eventually became an antisubmarine carrier (CVS). In her second career, she served mainly in the Atlantic, but also participated in the Vietnam War. She was the recovery ship for a Mercury and a Gemini space mission. Because of her prominent role in battle, she was nicknamed "the Fighting I", while her frequent bad luck and time spent in dry dock for repairs—she was torpedoed once and hit in separate attacks by four Japanese kamikaze aircraft—earned her the nicknames "Decrepit" and "the Dry I".Decommissioned for the second time in 1974, she was put into service as a museum ship in 1982 as the foundation of the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum Complex in New York City. (Wikipedia)

USS Lexington (CV/CVA/CVS/CVT/AVT-16)

(Author Photo)

Corpus Christi, USS Lexington Museum, 2914 Shoreline Drive.  PO Box 23076, 78402-1116.  There are 20 aircraft aboard, all on loan from the National Museum of Naval Aviation (NMNA).

USS Lexington (CV/CVA/CVS/CVT/AVT-16) is an Essex-class aircraft carrier built during World War II for the United States Navy. Originally intended to be named Cabot, the new aircraft carrier was renamed while under construction to commemorate the recently-lost USS Lexington (CV-2), becoming the sixth U.S. Navy ship to bear the name in honor of the Battle of Lexington.Lexington was commissioned in February 1943 and saw extensive service through the Pacific War. For much of her service, she acted as the flagship for Admiral Marc Mitscher, and led the Fast Carrier Task Force through their battles across the Pacific. She was the recipient of 11 battle stars and the Presidential Unit Citation. Following the war, Lexington was decommissioned, but was modernized and reactivated in the early 1950s, being reclassified as an attack carrier (CVA). Later, she was reclassified as an antisubmarine carrier (CVS). In her second career, she operated both in the Atlantic/Mediterranean and the Pacific, but spent most of her time, nearly 30 years, in Pensacola, Florida, as a training carrier (CVT).Lexington was decommissioned in 1991, with an active service life longer than any other Essex-class ship. Following her decommissioning, she was donated for use as a museum ship in Corpus Christi, Texas. In 2003, Lexington was designated a National Historic Landmark. Though her surviving sister ships Yorktown, Intrepid, and Hornet carry lower hull numbers, Lexington was laid down and commissioned earlier, making Lexington the oldest remaining fleet carrier in the world. (Wikipedia)

USS Midway (CVB/CVA/CV-41)

(Photographer’s Mate 1st Class David Levy, USN Photo, 5 Jan 2004)

California, San Diego, USS Midway Museum.

The USS Midway was the United States' longest-serving aircraft carrier of the 20th century, from 1945 to 1992.  Approximately 200,000 sailors served aboard the carrier, known for several naval aviation breakthroughs as well as several humanitarian missions.  It was the only carrier to serve the entire length of the Cold War and beyond.  Since 7 June 2004 it has served as a museum ship in San Diego, California.

USS Midway (CVB/CVA/CV-41) is an aircraft carrier, formerly of the United States Navy, the lead ship of her class. Commissioned eight days after the end of World War II, Midway was the largest warship in the world until 1955, as well as the first U.S. aircraft carrier too big to transit the Panama Canal. She operated for 47 years, during which time she saw action in the Vietnam War and served as the Persian Gulf flagship in 1991's Operation Desert Storm. Decommissioned in 1992, she is now a museum ship at the USS Midway Museum, in San Diego, California, and is the only remaining inactive U.S. aircraft carrier that is not an Essex-class aircraft carrier. (Wikipedia)

USS Yorktown (CV/CVA/CVS-10)

(Michael Forman Photo)

USS Yorktown (CVS-10), Patriots Point, Charleston Harbour, South Carolina.

South Carolina, Mount Pleasant, Patriots Point Naval and Maritime Museum, 40 Patriots Point Road, 29464-4377.  The USS Laffey (DD-724) and the USS Clagamore (SS-343) are also preserved here.

USS Yorktown (CV/CVA/CVS-10) is one of 24 Essex-class aircraft carriers built during World War II for the United States Navy. Initially to have been named Bonhomme Richard, she was renamed Yorktown while still under construction, after the Yorktown-class aircraft carrier USS Yorktown (CV-5), which was sunk at the Battle of Midway. She is the fourth U.S. Navy ship to bear the name, though the previous ships were named for the 1781 Battle of Yorktown. Yorktown was commissioned in April 1943, and participated in several campaigns in the Pacific Theater of Operations, earning 11 battle stars and the Presidential Unit Citation.Decommissioned shortly after the end of the war, she was modernized and recommissioned in February 1953 as an attack carrier (CVA), and served with distinction during the Korean War. The ship was later modernized again with a canted deck, eventually becoming an anti-submarine carrier (CVS) and served for many years in the Pacific, including duty in the Vietnam War, during which she earned five battle stars. The carrier served as a recovery ship for the December, 1968, Apollo 8 space mission, the first crewed ship to reach and orbit the Moon, and was used in the 1970 film Tora! Tora! Tora!, which recreated the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, and in the 1984 science fiction film The Philadelphia Experiment.Yorktown was decommissioned in 1970 and in 1975 became a museum ship at Patriots Point, Mount Pleasant, South Carolina, where she was designated a National Historic Landmark. (Wikipedia)