The USS Hornet (CV-8) was badly damaged by the forces of the Imperial Japanese navy during the Battle of Santa Cruz, near Guadalcanal, on October 26th, 1942. Abandoned, American destroyers were unable to sink the vessel, leaving it to the Japanese fleet who finished the job at 1:35 am the next day.
The last fleet carrier sunk in wartime, the Hornet was found last month in 17,000 feet of water off the Solomon Islands. This discover is but the latest from Paul Allen’s funded research vessel, the Petrel, which has been identify and plotting the resting places for a number of famous war wrecks. More
They’ve found the Lexington, Yorktown and now Hornet. All that’s left is the Wasp (CV-7) and they’ll have located all of our fleet carriers sunk during WWII. Given the Wasp also went down in the same region of ocean, it shouldn’t be long before they announce the finding of this wreck as well. List of sunk carriers Here
Another project initiated by the late Paul Allen. Not including the eyesore that is the Experience Music Project, that guy did a lot of good work.
I had a very good friend who flew F4F Wildcats off the Hornet back then with his buddy Eddie “Butch” O’Hare.
On one of his missions when he returned to the ship they had counted 172 bullet holes in his aircraft, and he said “Well I’ve been shot up…but never shot down!” LCDR Allen Fairbanks USN
AND NOW WE HAVE THE USS HARVEY MILK!!
THANKS, YOU JUG-EARED, 8 YEAR DISASTER!!
$$$@!!#(*&##!!@#
Jeepers Doc, how old are you? 1942 was almost 80 years ago.
Tim, Doc was a sailor when Moby Dick was a minnow.
@joe6pak.
While EMP is an eyesore. t
The museum itself is awesome. YMMV
DOC
You are clearly older than I. My dad had an aviator friend who (because as the NY Times said many time in ’43 + ’44 he was a white nationalist) fought the Jap – CMDR. Bill Carmichael. But by the time I was old enough to swap punches with him Korea had been over for 4 years!
And I am old!