Chapter 2 - The Great Carrier War

(Part 5)

American Counter Offensive

The American carriers mounted limited counter attacks which, although not militarily successful, did help to tie up the Japanese carrier resources. On February 1, 1942, Task Force F, led by Admiral William Halsey on the USS Enterprise, raided Kwajalein in the Marshalls, sinking three Japanese ships and damaging several smaller craft. On February 21, the USS Lexington launched attacks on Rabaul. During the ensuing air battle with Japanese defenders, Lt. Edward O'Hare shot down five Kate torpedo bombers, thus becoming the Navy's first ace and later winning the Congressional Medal of Honor. Task Force F also launched raids against Wake and Marcus Islands.

These limited engagements led the Americans to discover a weakness of Japanese carrier tactics. Japanese aircraft were not under radio control from their carriers. As a result, once attacks were launched, the attacks often became disorganized. This lack of good communications would prove critical to American victories in upcoming battles between the carrier fleets. The Americans also learned that when Japanese planes were damaged beyond recovery, their pilots did not hesitate to aim their crashing aircraft at the nearest American ships. In the later years of the War, the kamikazes would take a heavy toll in American lives, although no fleet carriers were sunk by kamikaze attacks.

On its first overseas deployment, on April 18, 1942, the USS Hornet rendezvoused with the USS Enterprise north of Hawaii on a secret mission to launch 16 B-25 Mitchell bombers under command of Lt. Colonel Jimmy Doolittle on a raid on Tokyo. Although not militarily significant, the raid had two primary objectives: to provide a morale boost for the homefront by striking back at the Japanese for their attack on Pearl Harbor and to make the Japanese wary enough of future attacks to keep some of its airpower close to the Japanese home islands. From this perspective, the Tokyo raid was a success. Of 80 airmen involved in the Doolittle raid, all but nine survived the War.

The USS Enterprise CV-6 and USS Hornet CV-8, both Yorktown-class carriers, struck the first blow against the Japanese homeland

The next step in Japan's plan of Pacific conquest was to isolate Australia by capturing Port Morseby on New Guinea and Tulagi in the Solomon Islands. However, the United States had broken the Japanese codes and the Pacific Fleet was prepared. The carriers USS Lexington and USS Yorktown sailed, with a total of about 140 aircraft, to meet the Japanese fleet in the Coral Sea. The Japanese invasion force included the carriers Shokaku and Zuikaku at Port Moresby and the Shoho at Tulagi. On May 3, 1942, the Japanese captured Tulagi and set up a seaplane base on the island. The following day, the USS Yorktown launched three attacks on the beachhead at Tulgi, but without much success in repelling the Japanese.

The opposing carrier task forces made contact with each other on May 7, 1942, and the USS Lexington and USS Yorktown launched a 93-plane strike which resulted in the sinking of the Shoho. Upon hearing of the Shoho's fate, the Japanese called off their invasion of Port Moresby and set out to look for the American carriers. The Shokaku and Zuikaku sank the oil tanker USS Neosho and the destroyer USS Sims, mistakingly thinking they had sunk a carrier and a cruiser. The nearby American carriers went unnoticed. Later in the day, the Japanese launched 27 planes. These planes also couldn't find the American task force, and in the approaching darkness, mistook the American carriers for their own. Several even attempted to land on the USS Lexington and USS Yorktown. Only six of the 27 planes returned to their ships.

At dawn on May 8, the two carrier forces again made contact. In the ensuing battle, the Zuikaku escaped into a rain squall, while the Shokaku was hit by American dive bombers which inflicted heavy damage to her flight deck. Meanwhile, the USS Yorktown managed to evade eight torpedoes but was hit by a bomb. The USS Lexington was also hit by Japanese bombs. The damage included ruptures to fuel lines, and the fumes from her aviation fuel became an internal bomb which set off massive explosions aboard the carrier. Most of her crew of 3,000 was saved, but the USS Lexington had to be abandoned and was sunk by her escorting destroyers in order to prevent her capture.

The USS Lexington CV-2 was lost at the Battle of the Coral Sea

The Battle of the Coral Sea was essentially a tactical stand-off. The Americans lost three ships, including the USS Lexington, and 77 aircraft. The Japanese lost the carrier Shoho, several smaller vessels, and 97 aircraft. However, this was a strategic victory for the United States because the invasion of Port Moresby was turned back. Less than a month later, the two great carrier forces would again meet in battle, but with a completely different outcome.

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Last Updated: January 1, 2003