History

The History of USS Hornet

The might of an aircraft carrier lies in its ability to quickly move about the world’s oceans, projecting power whenever and wherever it is needed. The heart of a carrier’s combat strength is its aircraft; her Air Groups provided Hornet’s lethal sting. Hornet’s success was dependent on the capabilities of highly trained pilots and aircrews and the specialized aircraft that operated from her flight deck.

In World War II, her air groups consisted of a fighter (VF) squadron, a bombing (VB) squadron and a torpedo (VT) squadron. During the 1950s as naval warfare technology evolved, so too did the complexity and specialty of carrier-based aircraft. Joining the classic fighter and attack aircraft were electronic/early warning, photo-reconnaissance, and anti-submarine warfare aircraft. Dual-role aircraft also provided aerial tanking and limited cargo capabilities and helicopters proved essential to carrier operations which included search and rescue missions.

World War II Combat Record Awards

USS Hornet (CV-12) was awarded nine Battle Stars for Pacific service in World War II:

One Star — Asiatic-Pacific Raids – 1944
One Star — Hollandia Operation – 1944
One Star — Marianas Operation – 1944
One Star — Western Caroline Islands Operation – 1944
One Star — Western New Guinea Operation – 1944
One Star — Leyte Operation – 1944
One Star — Luzon Operation – 1944-1945
One Star — Iwo Jima Operation – 1945
One Star — Okinawa Gunto Operation – 1945

USS Hornet (CV-12) was awarded a Presidential Unit Citation for the following operations:

Air Group 2 (VF-2, VB-2, VT-2, and part of VFN-76)
March 29 – May 1, 1944 — Palau, Hollandia, Truk.
June 11 – August 5, 1944 — Marianas, Bonins, Yap.
September 6 – September 24, 1944 — Philippines, Palau.
Air Group 11 (VF-11, VB-11, and VT-11)
October 10 – Nov. 22, 1944 — Ryukyus, Formosa, Philippines, Luzon.
December 14 – Dec. 16, 1944 — Luzon.
January 3 – January 22, 1945 — Philippines, Formosa, China Sea, Ryukyus.
Air Group 17 (VF-17, VBF-17, VB-17, and VT-17)
February 16 – June 10, 1945 — Japan, Bonins, Ryukyus.

World War II Combat Record Statistics

In 18 months of combat operations, USS Hornet CV-12 achieved the following combat record:

668 Japanese planes shot down
742 Japanese planes destroyed on the ground
1,269,710 tons of enemy ships sunk or heavily damaged: 73 ships sunk, 37 probable, 413 damaged
Ship’s engines burned 28,437,630 gallons of fuel oil
Ship’s evaporators distilled 41,231,453 gallons of fresh water
Ship steamed 155,000 miles (equal to six trips around world)

Air Wings:

Aircraft burned 5,644,800 gallons of aviation gasoline
Aircraft fired 4,878,748 rounds of machine gun bullets
Aircraft delivered 17,793 bombs, 5,842 rockets, and 116 torpedoes
Aircraft flew 18,569 combat sorties
Aircraft logged over 23,000 arrested landings

Ship’s Guns:

Fired 7,275 rounds of 5″ ammo
Fired 115,179 rounds of 40 mm ammo
Fired 409,580 rounds of 20 mm ammo

1 carrier sunk, 1 cruiser sunk, 10 destroyers sunk, 42 cargo ships sunk, and assisted in the sinking of the IJN super battleship Yamato.

World War II Statistics

USS Hornet CV-8

Displacement (standard) – 19,800 tons
Displacement (full load) – 25,500 tons
Deck length – 824 feet (251 m)
Deck width – 114 feet (34 m)
Draft – 24 feet (7 m)

USS Hornet CV-12

Displacement (standard) – 27,100 tons
Displacement (full load) – 36,380 tons
Length – 872 feet (266 m)
Width – Flight Deck 147 feet (45 m) Waterline Beam 93 feet (28 m)
Draft – 28 feet (8 m)

USS Hornet CV-8 was a Yorktown-class aircraft carrier. She launched the famed Doolittle Raid on Tokyo in 1942 in response to the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor.

USS Hornet CV-12 is one of the 24 legendary Essex-class aircraft carriers constructed during and after World War II. Built at Newport News, Virginia, she is the eighth ship to be named “Hornet.” She is one of the most decorated ships of the US Navy, having rounded out her service as the prime recovery ship for Apollo 11 and 12, the historic first manned lunar landing missions.

For 16 continuous months Hornet was in action in the forward areas of the Pacific combat zone, sometimes within 40 miles of the Japanese home islands.

Under air attack 59 times, she was never seriously damaged.
Her aircraft destroyed 1,410 Japanese aircraft, only Essex exceeded this record.
Her air groups destroyed or damaged 1,269,710 tons of enemy shipping.
72 enemy aircraft shot down in one day during the famous “Great Marianas Turkey Shoot.”
10 Hornet pilots attained “Ace in a Day” status.
255 aircraft shot down in a month.
30 of 42 VF-2 Hellcat pilots were aces.
Supported nearly every Pacific amphibious landing after March 1944.
Scored the critical first hits in sinking the super battleship Yamato.
Launched the first carrier aircraft strikes in support of the liberation of the Philippine Islands.
In 1945 launched the first strikes against Tokyo since the 1942 Doolittle Raid.

General Ship Statistics, Dimensions, & Specifications

LENGTH, overall:

1943: 876 feet
1956: 893 feet

BEAM, extreme width:

1943: 147 feet
1956: 192 feet

DRAFT (under load): 29 feet

DISPLACEMENT, Standard:

1943: 27,100 tons
1953: 33,100 tons

DISPLACEMENT, Full Load:

1943: 33,900 tons
1956: 40,300 tons

HEIGHT ABOVE WATERLINE (top of mast): 190 feet

KEEL TO TOP OF MAST: 229 feet

COST (Original): $69 million

Engineering Plant and Mechanical

ENGINES: 4 Westinghouse Geared Turbine Engines

BOILERS: 8 Babcock & Wilcox M-Type

PROPELLERS: 4 four-bladed propellers of solid manganese bronze; 15 foot diameter, 27,190 lbs each

LENGTH OF SHAFTS:

No. 1 and 4: 258 feet
No. 2 and 3: 186 feet

SHAFT DIAMETER: 2 feet

PROPULSION: 150,000 horsepower

RUDDER: 430 sq. ft. in surface area

ANCHOR CHAINS: 2 chains — 1,100 feet long, 108,000 lbs

USS HORNET CV-12 Specifications

KEEL LAID: 3 August 1942

LAUNCHED: 30 August 1943

COMMISSIONED:

CV-12: 29 November 1943
CVA-12: 11 September 1953
CVS-12: 18 December 1958

DECOMMISSIONED (Final): 26 June 1970

CREW COMPLEMENT:

WWII: 3,600 – 4,000 including Air Wing
Post-WWII: 3,000 – 3,500 including Air Wing

NUMBER OF AIRCRAFT:

WWII: 92 – 101
1953 – 1958: 86
1958 – 1970: 44

Armament

WWII:
(12) 5-in. 38-cal. (4 twin mounts, 4 single)
(10) 40 mm quad mounts
(59) 20 mm single mounts

1953:
(8) 5-in. 38-cal. single mounts
(14) 3-in. 50-cal. twin mounts

1956:
(7) 5-in. 38-cal. single mounts
(4) 3-in. 50-cal. twin mounts

1965:
(4) 5-in. 38-cal. single mounts

The Legacy of Ships Named Hornet

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1775

The first Hornet is christened. Hornet would become one of the most distinguished names in American naval history with her performance in the Revolutionary War. The first two ships in the new Continental Navy were Hornet and Wasp.

1805

In a one hour gun battle, the second Hornet, along with another sloop, battered the canons at the citadel at Djerna, damaging one of the walls enough to allow the Marines to rush over it and capture the citadel, thus deciding the war with the Barbary Pirates.

1805-1829

The third Hornet, a large sloop-of-war, was built in Baltimore in 1805 and was the first of its name designed as a warship. During the War of 1812 with Britain, she was victorious in several noted battles. While under the command of James Lawrence in 1813, she defeated the HMS Peacock in a widely acclaimed sea battle. Lawrence was promoted and later awarded the Congressional Gold Medal. Hornet continued carrying out anti-piracy operations in the Caribbean Sea after the war until lost at sea during a heavy gale off Tampico, Mexico in 1829.

1813-1829

The fourth ship to bear the name Hornet was a small five-gun schooner, used principally for inshore patrol work as a dispatch vessel. It did serve concurrently to the third Hornet.

1864

An iron-side wheeler was number five, and the first Hornet to be steam-propelled. She was captured from the Confederates off North Carolina in 1864 and saw service with the U.S. Fleet during the rest of the Civil War.

1898

The sixth Hornet was a converted yacht purchased for use in the Spanish-American War. After participating in operations at Daiquiri and Siboney, this Hornet, in company with two other converted yachts, met a superior force of Spanish ships at Manzanillo. In spite of being outnumbered three to one, the American ships attacked the Spanish group; they succeeded in sinking of disabling the entire enemy squadron while the Hornet suffered no casualties.

1941

The seventh ship named Hornet was an early aircraft carrier. USS Hornet (CV-8) was the third and final member of the Yorktown class, commissioned just weeks before the attack on Pearl Harbor. As a pre-World War II vessel, her size was limited in accordance with naval treaties of the 1930’s. CV-8 was sunk during the Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands in late October 1942.

1943-1970

The eighth Hornet was an Essex-class aircraft carrier. USS Hornet (CV-12) was commissioned in November 1943.

She entered the Pacific War in March 1944 and was part of the famous US Navy Fast Carrier Task Forces that pounded enemy installations in the western Pacific supported numerous island invasions. She was awarded 11 battle stars for her exemplary WWII service. She also served three tours of duty in the Vietnam War and recovered the Apollo 11 and Apollo 12 lunar landing spaceflights in 1969.