USS Essex (CV-9)
_-_May_1943.jpg) The USS Essex in May 1943 |
|
| Overview | |
|---|---|
| Shipyard | |
| Order | 3rd July 1940 |
| Keel laying | April 28, 1941 |
| Launch | July 31, 1942 |
| 1. Period of service |
|
| period of service |
Dec 31, 1942 - Jan 9, 1947 |
| Whereabouts | scrapped |
| Technical specifications | |
| displacement |
27,100 ts |
| length |
265.8 m |
| width |
45 m |
| Draft |
8.8 m |
| crew |
2600 men |
| drive |
4 gear turbines, 4 shafts, total 150,000 hp |
| speed |
33 kn |
| Range |
16,900 NM at 15 kn |
| Planes |
80-100 |
| Radio call sign |
November - Alfa - Golf - Oscar |
The aircraft carrier USS Essex (CV-9) of the US Navy continued operations during the Second World War in the Pacific and was especially known for its attacks on Marcus Island and Wake , the invasion of the Gilbert Islands , as well as through their participation in the Battle of the Marshall Islands , the Battle of the Mariana Islands , the Battle of the Philippine Sea and the Sea Battle of Leyte . Operations continued to take place during the Korean War . The USS Essex was the lead ship of 32 Essex-class carriers , 24 of which were completed.
history
The keel was laid on April 28, 1941 in Newport News , Virginia , at the Newport News Shipbuilding and Drydock Company . The launch took place on July 31, 1942 and the handover to the American Navy was on December 31, 1942. The USS Essex was the first ship in a series of 27,100 ton aircraft carriers. The ship class was named after her Essex class .
_aft_flight_deck.jpg)
Pacific War
After the successful maiden voyage in the Atlantic , the carrier was transferred to the Pacific and took part in US operations during the Pacific War. With Task Force 15, the USS Essex launched attacks on Markus Island on August 31, 1943, and on October 5 and 6 as the flagship of Task Force 14, a successful mission against Wake was carried out. During the operations on the Gilbert Islands , the USS Essex, together with Task Group 50.3, carried out the first amphibious landing operation on Tarawa from November 18 to 23. Shortly thereafter, she was elevated to the flagship of Task Group 50.3 and attacked Kwajalein . The second amphibious landing action then took place together with Task Group 58.2 on the Marshall Islands from January 29 to February 2, 1944.
By merging Task Groups 58.1, 58.2 and 58.3, the US Fleet Command formed the strongest aircraft carrier combat group at the time, the Fast Carrier Task Force , which sank eight Japanese ships during the attack on Truk on February 17 and 18, 1944 . When the fleet reached the Mariana Islands , it was discovered early by the Japanese and was exposed to violent air attacks, which could be repulsed. Saipan , Tinian and Guam could be taken shortly after on February 23rd.
After these operations, the USS Essex went to San Francisco to repair and overhaul the ship . In June 1944 she met again with Task Force 58 at the Mariana Islands, where she participated in the landing operations until August. The Palau Islands were the next target in early September 1944. Shortly afterwards, their planes launched attacks against Mindanao .
_is_hit_by_a_Kamikaze_off_the_Philippines_on_25_November_1944.jpg)
On November 25, 1944, an approaching Tokkotai (Kamikaze) plane hit the ship and severely damaged the USS Essex . However, the crew managed to keep the ship reasonably functional so that the USS Essex could continue to participate in the fighting. She supported the American landing in the Gulf of Lingayen in the Philippines as well as on Iwo Jima and Okinawa . Furthermore, their planes flew attacks in the western Pacific and on the Japanese mainland.
After the end of the war, the order was returned to Bremerton , Washington , where the USS Essex was decommissioned on January 9, 1947 and assigned to the reserve fleet.
Interlude I
While it was part of the reserve fleet, the Essex was modernized. In addition to newer weapon systems and aircraft, it also got a new command tower. On January 15, 1951, the re-commissioning took place and the aircraft carrier ran to Hawaii , where it was subjected to extensive tests.
Korean War
As the flagship of Carrier Division 1 and Task Force 77, the USS Essex undertook the first of three mission tours to Asia in mid-1951 to take part in operations in the Korean War. The first combat missions of the two jet engines equipped F2H Banshee found on board the September 16, USS Essex instead. On her return one of the machines fell on the forward flight deck because the catch hook was not working correctly. The aircraft could not brake immediately and hit parked aircraft and a barrier. This caused a large explosion and seven crew members died in the fire that broke out. At this time the future was suddenly in his biography Apollo 11 - Astronaut Neil Armstrong as a pilot during the use of command on board. Since he was assigned to work below deck at the time of the accident, he was not in the immediate danger area. The ship then called at Yokosuka in Japan, where it was repaired. After their return in early October, their planes flew on the Yalu River in Korea to support the UN troops.
Along with the 7th Fleet crossed the USS Essex in the East China Sea , participated in exercises and 1955 was also in the evacuation of Nationalist Chinese involved, from the island of Tachen close to the communist-controlled mainland were brought to Taiwan.
Interlude II
_and_USS_Robinson_(DD-562)_underway_off_Rotterdam_in_December_1961.jpg)
At the naval yard in Puget Sound , the USS Essex was modernized from March or July 1955 to March 1956 as part of the SCB-125 program. This docking time brought the USS Essex an angled deck, a closed bow ("hurricane bow"), new flight facilities (improved double brake cable system Mk 7 and others), air conditioning for parts of the ship, reinforced emergency barriers, a new flight control station, a new starboard -Aircraft elevator and other conversions. The hangar deck could now be separated into three compartments with fireproof bulkheads and the substructure of the flight deck was reinforced so that the new, much heavier, aircraft types could land without causing structural damage. The front brake cable system had been removed so that it was no longer possible to land against the direction of travel of the ship. A curiosity was an escalator that was installed under the bridge structure and connected the ready rooms of the aircraft crews with the flight deck. In the event of an alarm, the crews should get to their machines more quickly.
The Essex was one of the eight ships of the class that were rebuilt according to this modernization program and had previously gone through the SCB-27A modernization .
The 1960s
_-_January_1960.jpg)
At the end of the 1950s she was assigned to the Atlantic Fleet , to which the USS Essex belonged until it was decommissioned , with the exception of a brief mission in the Pacific . Their main area of application was the Mediterranean . There the ship supported US operations in the Middle East .
In November 1966, American naval exercises took place in the North Atlantic. A torpedo school shooting was scheduled for November 10, in which the Essex and the first nuclear-powered submarine USS Nautilus (SSN-571) participated. Several destroyers were involved in securing the aircraft carrier . When the Nautilus was approaching the mock attack, there was a collision between the submarine and the aircraft carrier. After the Nautilus had reduced its diving depth in the immediate vicinity of the aircraft carrier to just below the surface of the water, it came under the forecastle. As a result of the collision, the front paneling of the extendable equipment and systems located on the tower of the submarine was destroyed. The Essex leaked below the waterline. At that time, the ships were about 360 nautical miles off the coast of the US state of North Carolina . Immediately after the collision, the Nautilus appeared and ran to New London, accompanied by a destroyer, to repair the damage. The damage on the Nautilus was repaired within a very short time on special instructions. The aircraft carrier, on the other hand, was in the shipyard for a few months to repair its damage.
The Essex was also the NASA - Space Program assigned as a salvage ship. They were used on October 22, 1968, when the landing capsule of the first manned Apollo flight , Apollo 7 , was recovered from the Atlantic. The astronauts Walter Schirra , Donn Eisele and Walter Cunningham was with a helicopter aboard the USS Essex brought.
On June 30, 1969, the Essex was finally decommissioned . The ship was removed from the Navy list on June 1, 1973 and sold for scrapping in mid-1975.
literature
- Richard W. Streb: Life and Death Aboard the USS Essex . Dorrance Publishing Co., Philadelphia 1999. ISBN 0-8059-4605-5
- James R. Hansen: Departure to the Moon. Neil Armstrong. The authorized biography. Wilhelm Heyne, Munich 2018, ISBN 978-3-453-60463-6 . (German first edition with 95 historical black and white photos)
Web links
- Official site of the USS Essex Association (English)
- NAVY history page about the USS Essex (English)
- Detailed history of the USS Essex (English)
- USS Essex (English)