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USS Yorktown (CV 10 / CVA 10 / CVS 10):
USS
Yorktown (CV/CVA/CVS-10) is one of 24 Essex-class aircraft carriers built
during World War II for the United States Navy. She is named after the Battle
of Yorktown of the American Revolutionary War, and is the fourth U.S. Navy
ship to bear the name. Initially to have been named Bon Homme Richard, she
was renamed Yorktown while under construction to commemorate USS Yorktown
(CV-5), lost at the Battle of Midway in June 1942. 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 the early 1950s as an attack carrier (CVA), and then
eventually became an antisubmarine carrier (CVS). She was recommissioned too
late to participate in the Korean War but served for many years in the
Pacific, including duty in the Vietnam War, in which she earned five battle
stars. Late in her career, she served as a recovery ship for the Apollo 8
space mission, and was used in the movie Tora! Tora! Tora! which recreated
the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor and in the science fiction film The
Philadelphia Experiment.
Yorktown was decommissioned in 1970 and in 1975 became a museum ship at
Patriot's Point, Mount Pleasant, South Carolina. She is a National Historic
Landmark.
History:
Work was begun on Bon Homme Richard when her keel was laid down on 1 December
1941 at Newport News, Virginia, by the Newport News Shipbuilding &
Drydock Company, 6 days before the Attack on Pearl Harbor. She was renamed on
26 September 1942 USS Yorktown CV10, and launched on 21 January 1943,
sponsored by Eleanor Roosevelt. Yorktown was commissioned on 15 April 1943,
with Captain Joseph J. Clark in command.
World War II
1943
Yorktown remained in the Naval Station Norfolk area until 21 May, when she
got underway for shakedown training in the vicinity of Trinidad. She returned
to Norfolk on 17 June and began post-shakedown availability. The aircraft
carrier completed repairs on 1 July and began air operations out of Norfolk
until 6 July, when she exited Chesapeake Bay on her way to the Pacific Ocean.
She transited the Panama Canal on 11 July and departed Balboa, Panama, on 12
July. The warship arrived in Pearl Harbor on 24 July and began a month of
exercises in the Hawaiian Islands. On 22 August, she stood out of Pearl
Harbor, bound for her first combat of the war. Her task force, TF 15, arrived
at the launching point about 128 miles (206 km) from Marcus Island early on
the morning of 31 August. She spent most of that day launching fighter and
bomber strikes on Marcus Island before beginning the retirement to Hawaii
that evening. The aircraft carrier reentered Pearl Harbor on 7 September and
remained there for two days.
On 9 September, she stood out to sea, bound for the West Coast of the United
States. She arrived in San Francisco on 13 September, loaded aircraft and
supplies, and returned to sea on 15 September. Four days later, the aircraft
carrier reentered Pearl Harbor. Yorktown returned to sea to conduct combat
operations on 29 September. Early on the morning of 5 October, she began two
days of air strikes on Japanese installations on Wake Island. After retiring
to the east for the night, she resumed those air raids early on the morning
of 6 October and continued them through most of the day. That evening, the
task group began its retirement to Hawaii. Yorktown arrived at Oahu on 11
October and, for the next month, conducted air training operations out of
Pearl Harbor.
On 10 November, Yorktown departed Pearl Harbor in company with Task Force 50
- the Fast Carrier Task Force, Pacific Fleet - to participate in her first
major assault operation, the occupation of the Gilbert Islands. On 19 November,
she arrived at the launch point near Jaluit and Mili Atoll and, early that
morning, launched the first of a series of raids to suppress enemy airpower
during the amphibious assaults on Tarawa, Abemama, and Makin. The next day,
she sent raids back to the airfield at Jaluit; some of her planes also
supported the troops wresting Makin from the Japanese. On 22 November, her
air group concentrated upon installations and planes at Mili once again.
Before returning to Pearl Harbor, the aircraft carrier made passing raids on
the installations at Wotje and Kwajalein Atolls on 4 December. The warship
reentered Pearl Harbor on 9 December and began a month of air training
operations in the Hawaiian Islands.
1944
On 16 January 1944, the warship exited Pearl Harbor once again to support an
amphibious assault Operation Flintlock, the Marshall Islands invasion. Her
task group, Task Group 58.1, arrived at its launching point early on the
morning of 29 January, and its carriers Yorktown, Lexington, and Cowpens
began sending air strikes aloft at about 05:20 for attacks on Taroa airfield
located on Maloelap Atoll. Throughout the day, her aircraft hit Maloelap in
preparation for the assaults on Majuro and Kwajalein scheduled for 31
January. On 30 January, Yorktown and her sister carriers shifted targets to
Kwajalein to begin softening up one of the targets. When the troops stormed
ashore on 31 January, Yorktown aviators continued their strikes on Kwajalein
in support of the troops attacking that atoll. The same employment occupied
the Yorktown air group during the first three days in February. On 4
February, however, the task group retired to the fleet anchorage at recently
secured Majuro Atoll.
Over the next four months, Yorktown participated in a series of raids in
which she ranged from the Marianas in the north to New Guinea in the south.
After eight days at Majuro, she sortied with her task group on 12 February to
conduct air strikes on the main Japanese anchorage at Truk Atoll. Those
highly successful raids occurred on 1617 February. On 18 February, the
carrier set a course for the Marianas, and on 22 February, conducted a single
day of raids on enemy airfields and installations on Saipan. That same day,
she cleared the area on her way back to Majuro. The warship arrived in Majuro
lagoon on 26 February and remained there. On 8 March, the carrier stood out
of Majuro, rendezvoused with the rest of TF 58, and shaped a course for
Espiritu Santo in the New Hebrides. She reached her destination on 13 March
and remained there for 10 days before getting underway for another series of
raids on the Japanese middle defense line. On 3031 March, she launched air
strikes on Japanese installations located in the Palau Islands; and on 1
April, her aviators went after the island of Woleai. Five days later, she
returned to her base at Majuro for a week of replenishment and recreation.
On 13 April, Yorktown returned to sea once more. On this occasion however,
she laid in a course for the northern coast of New Guinea. On 21 April, she
began launching raids in support of General Douglas MacArthur's assault on
the Hollandia (currently known as Jayapura) area. That day, her aviators
attacked installations in the Wakde-Sarmi area of northern New Guinea. On
2223 April, they shifted to the landing areas at Hollandia themselves and
began providing direct support for the assault troops. After those attacks,
she retired from the New Guinea coast for another raid on Truk lagoon, which
her aircraft carried out on 29 and 30 April. The aircraft carrier returned to
Majuro on 4 May; however, two days later she got underway again, bound for
Oahu. The warship entered Pearl Harbor on 11 May, and for the next 18 days,
conducted training operations in the Hawaiian Islands. On 29 May, she headed
back to the Central Pacific. Yorktown entered Majuro lagoon again on 3 June
and began preparations for her next major amphibious support operation - the
assault on the Marianas.
On 6 June, the aircraft carrier stood out of Majuro with TF 58 and set a
course for the Mariana Islands. After five days steaming, she reached the
launch point and began sending planes aloft for the preliminary softening up
of targets in preparation for the invasion of Saipan. Yorktown aircrews
concentrated primarily upon airfields located on Guam. Those raids continued
until 13 June, when Yorktown, with two of the task groups of TF 58, steamed
north to hit targets in the Bonin Islands. That movement resulted in a
one-day raid on 16 June before the two task groups headed back to the Marianas
to join in the Battle of the Philippine Sea. TF 58 reunited on 18 June and
began a short wait for the approaching Japanese Fleet and its aircraft.
On the morning of 19 June, Yorktown aircraft began strikes on Japanese air
bases on Guam in order to deny them to their approaching carrier-based air
and to keep the land-based planes out of the fray. Duels with Guam-based
aircraft continued until mid-morning. At about 10:17, however, she got her
first indication of the carrier plane attacks when a large bogey appeared on
her radar screen. At that point she divided her attention, sending part of
her air group back to Guam and another portion of it out to meet the raid
closing from the west. Throughout the battle, Yorktown 's
planes continued to strike the Guam airfields and intercept the carrier
raids. During the first day of the Battle of the Philippine Sea, Yorktown
aircraft claimed 37 enemy planes destroyed and dropped 21 tons of bombs on
the Guam air bases.
On the morning of 20 June, Yorktown steamed generally west with TF 58 while
search planes groped for the fleeing enemy task force. Contact was made with
the enemy at about 15:40 when a pilot from Hornet spotted the retiring
Combined Fleet units. Yorktown launched a 40-plane strike between 16:23 and
16:43. Her planes found Admiral Jisaburō Ozawa's force at about 18:40
and began a 20-minute attack during which they went after Zuikaku on which
they succeeded in scoring some hits. They, however, failed to sink that
carrier. They also attacked several other ships in the Japanese force, though
no records show a confirmed sinking to the credit of the Yorktown air group.
On 21 June, the carrier joined in the futile stern chase on the enemy carried
out by TF 58 but gave up that evening when air searches failed to contact the
Japanese. Yorktown returned to the Marianas area and resumed air strikes on
Pagan Island on 2223 June. On 24 June, she launched a series of raids on Iwo
Jima. On 25 June, she laid in a course for Eniwetok and arrived there two
days later. On 30 June, the aircraft carrier headed back to the Marianas and
the Bonins. She renewed combat operations on 34 July with a series of
attacks on Iwo Jima and Chichi Jima. On 6 July, the warship resumed strikes
in the Marianas and continued them for the next 17 days. On 23 July, she
headed off to the west for a series of raids on Yap, Ulithi, and the Palaus.
She carried out those attacks on 25 July and arrived back in the Marianas on
29 July.
On 31 July, she cleared the Mariana Islands and headed - via Eniwetok and
Pearl Harbor - back to the United States. Yorktown arrived in the Puget Sound
Navy Yard on 17 August and began a two-month overhaul. She completed repairs
on 6 October and departed Puget Sound on 9 October. She stopped at the
Alameda Naval Air Station from 1113 October to load planes and supplies and
then set a course back to the western Pacific. After a stop at Pearl Harbor
from 1824 October, Yorktown arrived back in Eniwetok on 31 October. She
departed the lagoon on 1 November and arrived at Ulithi on 3 November. There,
she reported for duty with TG 38.4. The task group left Ulithi on 6 November.
On 7 November, the aircraft carrier changed operational control to TG 38.1
and, for the next two weeks, launched air strikes on targets in the Philippines
in support of the Leyte invasion. Detached from the task force on 23
November, Yorktown arrived back in Ulithi on 24 November. She remained there
until 10 December, at which time she put to sea to rejoin TF 38. She
rendezvoused with the other carriers on 13 December and began launching air
strikes on targets on the island of Luzon in preparation for the invasion of
that island scheduled for the second week in January. On 17 December, the
task force began its retirement from the Luzon strikes. During that
retirement, TF 38 steamed through the center of the famous typhoon of
December 1944. That storm sank three destroyers Spence, Hull, and Monaghan
and Yorktown participated in some of the rescue operations for the
survivors of those three destroyers. The warship arrived back in Ulithi on 24
December.
1945
Yorktown fueled and provisioned at Ulithi until 30 December 1944, at which
time she returned to sea to join TF 38 on strikes at targets in Formosa and
the Philippines in support of the landings at Lingayen. The carriers began
with raids on airfields on 3 January on the island of Formosa and continued
with various targets for the next week. On 10 January, Yorktown and the rest
of TF 38 entered the South China Sea via Bashi Channel to begin a series of raids
on Japan's inner defenses. On 12 January, her planes visited the vicinity of
Saigon and Tourane (now named Da Nang) Bay, Indochina, in hopes of catching
major units of the Japanese fleet. Though foiled in their primary desire, TF
38 aviators still managed to rack up an exceptional score 44 enemy ships,
of which 15 were combatants. On 15 January, raids were launched on Formosa
and Canton in China. The following day, her aviators struck at Canton again
and also went to Hong Kong. On 20 January, she exited the South China Sea
with TF 38 via Balintang Channel. She participated in a raid on Formosa on 21
January and another on Okinawa on 22 January before clearing the area for
Ulithi. On the morning of 26 January, she re-entered Ulithi lagoon with TF 38.
Yorktown remained at Ulithi arming, provisioning, and conducting upkeep until
10 February. At that time, she sortied with TF 58, the 3rd Fleet becoming the
5th Fleet when Raymond A. Spruance relieved William Halsey, Jr., on a series
of raids on the Japanese and thence to support the assault on and occupation
of Iwo Jima. On the morning of 16 February, the carrier began launching
strikes on the Tokyo area of Honshū. On 17 February, she repeated those
strikes before heading toward the Bonins. Her aviators bombed and strafed
installations on Chichi Jima on 18 February. The landings on Iwo Jima went
forward on 19 February, and Yorktown aircraft began support missions over the
island on 20 February. Those missions continued until 23 February at which
time Yorktown cleared the Bonins to resume strikes on Japan proper. She
arrived at the launch point on 25 February and sent two raids aloft to bomb
and strafe airfields in the vicinity of Tokyo. On 26 February, Yorktown
aircrewmen conducted a single sweep of installations on Kyūshū
before TG 58.4 began its retirement to Ulithi. Yorktown re-entered the
anchorage at Ulithi on 1 March.
She remained in the anchorage for about two weeks. On 14 March, the carrier
departed the lagoon on her way to resume raids on Japan and to begin
preliminary support work for the Okinawa operations scheduled for 1 April. On
18 March, she arrived in the operating area off Japan and began launching
strikes on airfields on Kyūshū, Honshū, and Shikoku.
The task group came under air attack almost as soon as operations began. At
about 08:00, a twin-engine bomber, probably a Yokosuka P1Y
"Frances", attacked from her port side. The ship opened fire almost
immediately and began scoring hits quickly. The plane began to burn but
continued his run passing over Yorktown 's bow and
splashing in the water on her starboard side. Just seven minutes later,
another Frances tried but also went down, a victim of the combined fire of
the formation. No further attacks developed until that afternoon; and, in the
meantime, Yorktown continued air operations. That afternoon, three Yokosuka
D4Y "Judy" dive-bombers launched attacks on the carrier. The first
two failed in their attacks and were shot in their attempts. The third
succeeded in planting his bomb on the signal bridge. It passed through the
first deck and exploded near the ship's hull. It punched two large holes
through her side, killed five men, and wounded another 26. Yorktown, however,
remained fully operational, and her anti-aircraft gunners brought the attacker
down. She continued air operations against the three southernmost islands of
Japan and retired for fueling operations on 20 March.
On 21 March, she headed for Okinawa, on which she began softening-up strikes
on 23 March. Those attacks continued until 28 March when she started back to
Japanese waters for an additional strike on the home islands. On 29 March,
the carrier put two raids and one photographic reconnaissance mission into
the air over Kyūshū. That afternoon, at about 14:10, a single
"Judy" made an apparent suicide dive on Yorktown. The anti-aircraft
guns scored numerous hits. The plane passed over the ship and crashed about
60 ft (18 m) from her portside.
On 30 March, Yorktown and the other carriers of her task group began to
concentrate solely on the island of Okinawa and its surrounding islets. For
two days, they pounded the island in softening-up strikes. On 1 April, the
assault troops stormed ashore; and, for almost six weeks, she sent her planes
to the island to provide direct support for the troops operating ashore.
About every three days, she retired to the east to conduct fueling rendezvous
or to rearm and re-provision. The only exception to that routine came on 7
April when it was discovered that a Japanese task force built around the
elusive battleship Yamato was steaming south for one last, desperate,
offensive. Yorktown and the other carriers quickly launched strikes to attack
that valued target. Air Group 9 aviators claimed several torpedo hits on
Yamato just before the battleship exploded and sank. At least three 500 lb
(230 kg) bomb hits on the light cruiser Yahagi sank it also. The pilots also
made strafing runs on the escorting destroyers and claimed to have left one
afire in a sinking condition. At the conclusion of that action, Yorktown and
her planes resumed their support for the troops on Okinawa. On 11 April, she
came under air attack again when a single-engine plane sped in on her.
Yorktown 's anti-aircraft gunners brought down the plane.
Sporadic air attacks continued until her 11 May departure from the
Ryūkyūs, but Yorktown sustained no additional damage and claimed
only one further kill with her anti-aircraft battery. On 11 May, TG 58.4 was
detached to proceed to Ulithi for upkeep, rest, and relaxation.
Yorktown entered the lagoon at Ulithi on 14 May and remained there until 24
May at which time she sortied with TG 58.4 to rejoin the forces off Okinawa.
On 28 May, TG 58.4 became TG 38.4 when Halsey relieved Spruance and 5th Fleet
again became 3rd Fleet. That same day, the carrier resumed air support
missions over Okinawa. That routine lasted until the beginning of June when
she moved off with TF 38 to resume strikes on the Japanese homeland. On 3
June, her aircraft made four different sweeps of airfields. The following
day, she returned to Okinawa for a day of additional support missions before
steaming off to evade a typhoon. On 67 June, she resumed Okinawa strikes.
She sent her aviators back to the Kyūshū airfields and, on 9 June,
launched them on the first of two days of raids on Minami Daito Shima. After
the second day's strikes, Yorktown began retirement with TG 38.4 toward
Leyte. She arrived in San Pedro Bay at Leyte on 13 June and began
replenishment, upkeep, rest, and relaxation.
The warship remained at Leyte until 1 July when she and TG 38.4 got underway
to join the rest of the fast carriers in the final series of raids on the
Japanese home islands. By 10 July, she was off the coast of Japan launching
air strikes on the Tokyo area of Honshū. After a fueling rendezvous on
1112 July, she resumed strikes on Japan, this on the southern portion of the
northernmost island Hokkaidō. Those strikes lasted from 1315 July. A
fueling retirement and heavy weather precluded air operations until 18 July,
at which time her aviators attacked the Japanese naval base at Yokosuka. From
1922 July, she made a fueling and underway replenishment retirement and
then, on 24 July, resumed air attacks on Japan. For two days, planes of her
air group pounded installations around the Kure naval base. Another fueling
retirement came on 26 July, and on 2728 July, her planes were in the air
above Kure again. On 2930 July, she shifted targets back to the Tokyo area
before another fueling retirement and another typhoon took her out of action
until the beginning of the first week in August. On 89 August, the carrier
launched her planes at northern Honshū and southern Hokkaido. On 10
August, she sent them back to Tokyo. On 11 and 12 August, another fueling
retirement and a typhoon evasion was scheduled. On 13 August, her aircraft
hit Tokyo for the last time. On 14 August, she retired to fuel destroyers
again; and on 15 August, Japan agreed to capitulate so that all strikes
planned for that day were canceled.
From 1623 August, Yorktown and the other carriers of TF 58 steamed around
the waters to the east of Japan awaiting instructions while peace
negotiations continued. She then received orders to head for waters east of
Honshū where her aircraft were to provide cover for the forces occupying
Japan. She began providing that air cover on 25 August and continued to do so
until mid-September. After the formal surrender on board battleship Missouri
on 2 September, the aircraft carrier also began air-dropping supplies to
Allied prisoners of war still living in their prison camps. On 16 September,
Yorktown entered Tokyo Bay with TG 38.1. She remained there, engaged in
upkeep and crew recreation through the end of the month. On 1 October, the
carrier stood out of Tokyo Bay on her way to Okinawa. She arrived in Buckner
Bay on 4 October, loaded passengers, and got underway for the United States
on 6 October.
Post war
19451952
After a non-stop voyage, Yorktown entered San Francisco Bay on 20 October,
moored at the Alameda Naval Air Station, and began discharging passengers.
She remained at the air station until 31 October at which time she shifted to
Hunters Point Navy Yard to complete minor repairs. On 2 November, while still
at the navy yard, she reported to the Service Force, Pacific Fleet, for duty
in conjunction with the return of American servicemen to the United States.
That same day, she stood out of San Francisco Bay, bound for Guam on just
such a mission. She arrived in Apra Harbor on 15 November and, two days
later, got underway with a load of passengers. She arrived back in San
Francisco on 30 November. On 8 December, the warship headed back to the Far
East. Initially routed to Samar in the Philippines, she was diverted to
Manila en route. She arrived in Manila on 26 December and departed there on
29 December. She reached San Francisco again on 13 January 1946. Later that
month, she moved north to Bremerton, Washington, where she was placed in
reserve while still in commission, on 21 June. She remained there in that
status through the end of the year. On 9 January 1947, Yorktown was
decommissioned and was berthed with the Bremerton Group, Pacific Reserve
Fleet.
19531955
In June 1952, she was ordered reactivated, and work began on her at Puget
Sound. On 15 December 1952, she was placed in commission, in reserve, at
Bremerton. Her conversion continued into 1953 and she conducted
post-conversion trials late in January. On 20 February 1953, Yorktown was
placed in full commission as an attack carrier (CVA), with Captain William M.
Nation in command. The aircraft carrier conducted normal operations along the
west coast through most of the summer of 1953. On 3 August, she departed San
Francisco on her way to the Far East. She arrived in Pearl Harbor and
remained there until 27 August, at which time she continued her voyage west.
On 5 September, the carrier arrived in Yokosuka, Japan. She put to sea again
on 11 August to join TF 77 in the Sea of Japan. The Korean War armistice had
been signed two months earlier; and, therefore, the carrier conducted training
operations rather than combat missions. She served with TF 77 until 18
February 1954, at which time she stood out of Yokosuka on her way home. She
made a stop at Pearl Harbor along the way and then moored at Alameda once
more on 3 March. After a brief repair period at Hunters Point Naval Shipyard,
Yorktown put to sea to serve as a platform for the filming of the Academy
Award nominated short subject documentary film Jet Carrier. She conducted
further, more routine, operations along the west coast until 1 July, at which
time she headed back to the Orient. She stopped at Pearl Harbor from 828
July before continuing on to Manila, where she arrived on 4 August.
Yorktown operated out of the Manila-Subic Bay area, conducting 7th Fleet
maneuvers, for the duration of the deployment. She did, however, take
periodic breaks from that schedule to make frequent port visits to Yokosuka;
and, during the Christmas holidays, she made a liberty call at Hong Kong on
the Chinese coast. In January 1955, she was called upon to help cover the
evacuation of Nationalist Chinese from the Tachen Islands located near the
communist-controlled mainland. Yorktown entered Yokosuka for the last time on
16 February 1955 but departed again on 18 February to return home. After an
overnight stop at Pearl Harbor on 2324 February, she resumed her voyage east
and arrived in Alameda on 28 February. On 21 March 1955, she was placed in
reserve while still in commission at the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard where she
was to receive extensive modificationsmost significantly, an angled flight
deck to increase her jet aircraft launching capability. She completed her
conversion that fall, and on 14 October was placed back in full commission.
19551957
The carrier resumed normal operations along the west coast soon after
recommissioning. That assignment lasted until mid-March 1956. On 19 March,
she stood out of San Francisco Bay on her way to her third tour of duty with
the 7th Fleet since her reactivation in 1953. Yorktown stopped at Pearl
Harbor from 24 March 9 April and then continued her voyage west. She
arrived in Yokosuka, Japan on 18 April and departed again on 29 April. The
warship operated with the 7th Fleet for the next five months. During that
time, she conducted operations in the Sea of Japan, the East China Sea, and
the South China Sea. She also visited such places as Sasebo, Manila, Subic
Bay, and Buckner Bay at Okinawa. On 7 September, the aircraft carrier stood
out of Yokosuka and pointed her bow to the east. After a non-stop voyage, she
arrived back at Alameda on 13 September. She resumed west coast operations
for about two months. On 13 November, she embarked upon a round-trip to Pearl
Harbor, from which she returned to Alameda on 11 December. Yorktown resumed
normal operations out of Alameda upon her return and remained so employed
until March 1957. On 9 March, she departed Alameda for yet another tour of
duty in the Far East. She made stops at Oahu and Guam along the way and
arrived at Yokosuka on 19 April. She put to sea to join TF 77 on 25 April and
served with that task force for the next three months. On 13 August, the
warship departed Yokosuka for the last time, made a brief pause at Pearl
Harbor, and arrived in Alameda on 25 August.
19571960
On 1 September 1957, her home port was changed from Alameda to Long Beach,
California, and she was reclassified an antisubmarine warfare (ASW) aircraft
carrier with the new designation CVS-10. On 23 September, she departed
Alameda and, four days later, entered the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard for
overhaul and for modification to an ASW carrier. That yard period lasted
until the beginning of February 1958. She departed the naval ammunition depot
at Bangor, Washington on 7 February and entered Long Beach five days later.
For the next eight months, Yorktown conducted normal operations along the
west coast. On 1 November, she departed San Diego to return to the western
Pacific. After a stop at Pearl Harbor from 817 November, Yorktown continued
her voyage west and arrived in Yokosuka on 25 November. During that
deployment, the aircraft carrier qualified for the Armed Forces Expeditionary
Medal on three occasions. The first time came on 31 December and 1 January
1959, when she participated in an American show of strength in response to
the communist Chinese shelling of the offshore islands, Quemoy and Matsu,
held by Nationalist Chinese forces. During January, she also joined
contingency forces off Vietnam during internal disorders caused by communist
guerrillas in the southern portion of that country. That month she earned the
expeditionary medal for service in the Taiwan Strait. The remainder of the
deployment - save for another visit to Vietnamese waters late in March -
consisted of a normal round of training evolutions and port visits. She concluded
that tour of duty at San Diego on 21 May. The warship resumed normal
operations along the west coast, and that duty consumed the remainder of
1959.
In January 1960, Yorktown headed back to the Far East via Pearl Harbor.
During that deployment, she earned additional stars for her Armed Forces
Expeditionary Medal for duty in Vietnamese waters at various times in March,
April, May, and June. She returned to the west coast late in the summer and,
late in September, began a four-month overhaul at the Puget Sound Naval
Shipyard.
19611964
Yorktown emerged from the shipyard in January 1961 and returned to Long Beach
on 27 January. She conducted refresher training and then resumed normal west
coast operations until late July. On 29 July, the aircraft carrier stood out
of Long Beach, bound once again for the Orient. She made an extended stopover
in the Hawaiian Islands in August and, consequently, did not arrive in
Yokosuka until 4 September. That tour of duty in the Far East consisted of a
normal schedule of anti-air and antisubmarine warfare exercises as well as
the usual round of port visits. She concluded the deployment at Long Beach on
2 March 1962. Normal west coast operations occupied her time through the
summer and into the fall. On 26 October 1962, the warship left Long Beach in
her wake and set a course for Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, then on to Japan,Hong
Kong,and the Philippines in the Far East. During that deployment, she served
as flagship for Carrier Division 19. She participated in several ASW and AAW
exercises, including the SEATO ASW exercise, Operation Sea Serpent. The
deployment lasted until 6 June 1963, at which time the carrier set a course
back to Long Beach.
Yorktown arrived back in her home port on 18 June 1963 and resumed normal
operations until the fall, then went into drydock at the Long Beach Naval
Shipyard facility at Long Beach Ca. The Yorktown came out of yard in the
spring of 1964. Those operations continued throughout most of 1964 as well.
However, on 22 October, she pointed her bow westward again and set out for a
tour of duty with the 7th Fleet. Another period of operations in the Hawaiian
Islands delayed her arrival in Japan until 3 December.
19651968
The 1964 and 1965 deployment brought Yorktown her first real involvement in the
Vietnam War. In February, March, and April, she conducted a series of special
operations in the South China Sea in waters near Vietnam - presumably ASW
services for the fast carriers conducting air strikes against targets in
Vietnam in support of the increased American involvement in the civil war in
that country. She concluded her tour of duty in the Far East on 7 May 1965,
when she departed Yokosuka to return to the United States. The carrier
arrived in Long Beach on 17 May.
For the remainder of her active career, Yorktown 's
involvement in combat operations in Vietnam proved a dominant feature of her
activities. After seven months of normal operations out of Long Beach, she
got underway for the western Pacific again on 5 January 1966. She arrived in
Yokosuka on 17 February and joined TF 77 on Yankee Station later that month.
Over the next five months, the aircraft carrier spent three extended tours of
duty on Yankee Station providing ASW and sea-air rescue services for the
carriers of TF 77. She also participated in several ASW exercises, including
the major SEATO exercise, Operation Sea Imp. The warship concluded her last
tour of duty on Yankee Station early in July and, after a stop at Yokosuka,
headed home on 15 July. She debarked her air group at San Diego on 27 July
and reentered Long Beach that same day. She resumed normal operations
carrier qualifications and ASW exercises for the remainder of the year and
during the first two months of 1967.
On 24 February 1967, Yorktown entered the Long Beach Naval Shipyard for a
seven-month overhaul. She completed repairs early in October and, after
refresher training, resumed normal west coast operations for most of what
remained of 1967. On 28 December, she stood out of Long Beach, bound for her
last tour of duty in the western Pacific. After a stop at Pearl Harbor, she
arrived in the Far East late in January 1968. Instead of putting in at a
Japanese port for turnover Yorktown headed directly to the Sea of Japan to
provide ASW and search and rescue (SAR) support for the contingency force
assembled in the wake of the North Korean capture of Pueblo. She remained on
that assignment for 30 days. On 1 March, she was released from that duty, and
the warship headed for Subic Bay in the Philippines. During the remainder of
the deployment, the aircraft carrier did another three tours of duty with TF
77 on Yankee Station. In each instance, she provided ASW and SAR support for
the fast carriers launching air strikes on targets in Vietnam. She concluded
her last tour of duty in Vietnamese waters on 16 June and set a course for
Sasebo, Japan where she stopped from 1921 June before heading back to the
United States.
19681975
Yorktown arrived back in Long Beach on 5 July and entered the Long Beach
Naval Shipyard that same day for almost three months of repairs. She
completed repairs on 30 September and resumed normal operations. Late in
November and early in December, she served as a platform for the filming of
another movie, Tora! Tora! Tora! which recreated the Japanese attack on Pearl
Harbor. In December 1968, she served as one of the recovery ships for the
Apollo 8 space deployment. The two missions mentioned above were conducted
out of Pearl Harbor. She departed Pearl Harbor on 2 January 1969, and after a
two-week stop in Long Beach, continued her voyage to join the U.S. Atlantic
Fleet. Steaming around South America, the aircraft carrier arrived in her new
home port - Norfolk, Virginia - on 28 February. She conducted operations
along the east coast and in the West Indies until late summer. On 2
September, Yorktown departed Norfolk for a northern European cruise and
participation in the major fleet exercise Operation Peacekeeper. During the
exercise, she provided ASW and SAR support for the task force. The exercise
ended on 23 September, and Yorktown began a series of visits to northern
European ports. After a visit each to Brest, France, and Rotterdam in the
Netherlands, Yorktown put to sea for a series of hunter/killer ASW exercises
from 18 October 11 November. She resumed her itinerary of port visits on 11
November at Kiel, Germany. After that, she stopped at Copenhagen, Denmark,
and at Portsmouth, England, before getting underway for home on 1 December.
She reentered Norfolk on 11 December and began her holiday leave period.
During the first half of 1970, Yorktown operated out of Norfolk and began
preparations for inactivation. On 27 June 1970, Yorktown was decommissioned
at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and was berthed with the Philadelphia Group,
Atlantic Reserve Fleet. She remained there almost three years before her name
was struck from the Navy List on 1 June 1973. During 1974, the Navy
Department approved the donation of Yorktown to the Patriot's Point
Development Authority, Charleston, South Carolina. She was towed from
Bayonne, New Jersey, to Charleston in June 1975. She was formally dedicated
as a memorial on the 200th anniversary of the Navy, 13 October 1975.
Yorktown was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1986.
source: Wikipedia
- - -
another history:
The fourth Yorktown (CV-10) was laid down on
1 December 1941 at Newport News, Va., by the Newport News Shipbuilding &
Drydock Co. as Bon Homme Richard; renamed Yorktown on 26 September 1942;
launched on 21 January 1943; sponsored by Mrs. Eleanor Roosevelt; and
commissioned on 15 April 1943 at the Norfolk Navy Yard, Capt. Joseph J.
("Jocko") Clark in command.
Yorktown remained in the Norfolk area until 21 May at which time she got
underway for shakedown training in the vicinity of Trinidad. She returned to Norfolk
on 17 June and began post-shakedown availability. The aircraft carrier
completed repairs on 1 July and began air operations out of Norfolk until the
6th. On the latter day, she exited Chesapeake Bay on her way to the Pacific
Ocean. She transited the Panama Canal on 11 July and departed Balboa on the
12th. The warship arrived in Pearl Harbor on 24 July and began a month of
exercises in the Hawaiian Islands. On 22 August, she stood out of Pearl
Harbor, bound for her first combat of the war. Her task force, TF 15, arrived
at the launching point about 128 miles from Marcus Island early on the
morning of 31 August. She spent most of that day launching fighter and bomber
strikes on Marcus Island before beginning the retirement to Hawaii that
evening. The aircraft carrier reentered Pearl Harbor on 7 September and
remained there for two days.
On the 9th, she stood out to sea, bound for the west coast of the United
States. She arrived in San Francisco on 13 September, loaded aircraft and
supplies, and returned to sea on the 15th. Four days later, the aircraft
carrier reentered Pearl Harbor. After 10 days in the Hawiaian Islands,
Yorktown returned to sea to conduct combat operations on the 29th. Early on
the morning of 5 October, she began two days of air strikes on Japanese
installations on Wake Island. After retiring to the east for the night, she
resumed those air raids early on the morning of the 6th and continued them
through most of the day. That evening, the task group began its retirement to
Hawaii. Yorktown arrived at Oahu on 11 October and, for the next month,
conducted air training operations out of Pearl Harbor.
On 10 November, Yorktown departed Pearl Harbor in company with Task Force
(TF) 50-the Fast Carrier Forces, Pacific Fleet-to participate in her first
major assault operation, the occupation of certain of the Gilbert Islands. On
the 19th, she arrived at the launch point near Jaluit and Mili and, early
that morning, launched the first of a series of raids to suppress enemy
airpower during the amphibious assaults on Tarawa, Abemama, and Makin. On the
20th, she not only sent raids back to the airfield at Jaluit, but some of her
planes also supported the troops wresting Makin from the Japanese. On 22
November, her air group concentrated upon installations and planes at Mili
once again. Before returning to Pearl Harbor, the aircraft carrier made
passing raids on the installations at Wotje and Kwajalein Atolls on 4
December. The warship reentered Pearl Harbor on 9 December and began a month
of air training operations in the Hawaiian Islands.
On 16 January 1944, the warship exited Pearl Harbor once again to support an
amphibious assault--Operation "Flintlock," the Marshall Islands
operation. Her task group, Task Group (TG) 58.1, arrived at its launching point
early on the morning of 29 January, and its carriers-Yorktown, Lexington
(CV-16), and Cowpens (CVL-25)-began sending air strikes aloft at about 0520
for attacks on Taroa airfield located on Maloelap Atoll. Throughout the day,
her aircraft hit Maloelap in preparation for the assaults on Majuro and
Kwajalein scheduled for the 31st. On the 30th, Yorktown and her sister
carriers shifted targets to Kwajalein to begin softening up one of the
targets itself. When the troops stormed ashore on the 31st, Yorktown aviators
continued their strikes on Kwajalein in support of the troops attacking that
atoll. The same employment occupied the Yorktown air group during the first
three days in February. On the 4th, however, the task group retired to the
Fleet anchorage at recently secured Majuro Atoll.
Over the next four months, Yorktown participated in a series of raids in
which she ranged from the Marianas in the north to New Guinea in the south.
After eight days at Majuro, she sortied with her task group on 12 February to
conduct air strikes on the main Japanese anchorage at Truk Atoll. Those
highly suces-sessful raids occurred on 16 and 17 February. On the 18th, the
carrier set a course for the Marianas and, on the 22d, conducted a single day
of raids on enemy airfields and installations on Saipan. That same day, she
cleared the area on her way back to Majuro. The warship arrived in Majuro
lagoon on 26 February and remained there, resting and replenishing until 8
March. On the latter day, the carrier stood out of Majuro, rendezvoused with
the rest of TF 58, and shaped a course for Espiritu Santo in the New
Hebrides. She reached her destination on 13 March and remained there for 10
days before getting underway for another series of raids on the Japanese
middle defense line. On 30 and 31 March, she launched air strikes on enemy
installations located in the Palau Islands; and, on 1 April, her aviators
went after the island of Woleai. Five days later, she returned to her base at
Majuro for a week of replenishment and recreation.
On 13 April, Yorktown returned to sea once more. On this occasion, however,
she laid in a course for the northern coast of New Guinea. On 21 April, she
began launching raids in support of General Douglas Mac-Arthur's assault on
the Hollandia area. That day, her aviators attacked installations in the
Wakde-Sarmi area of northern New Guinea. On the 22d and 23d, they shifted to
the landing areas at Hollandia themselves and began providing direct support
for the assault troops. After those attacks, she retired from the New Guinea
coast for another raid on Truk lagoon, which her aircraft carried out on 29
and 30 April. The aircraft carrier retuned to Majuro on 4 May; however, two
days later she got underway again, bound for Oahu. The warship entered Pearl Harbor
on 11 May and, for the next 18 days, conducted training operations in the
Hawaiian Islands. On 29 May, she headed back to the Central Pacific. Yorktown
entered Majuro lagoon again on 3 June and began preparations for her next
major amphibious support operation-the assault on the Marianas.
On 6 June, the aircraft carrier stood out of Majuro with TF 58 and set a
course for the Mariana Islands. After five days steaming, she reached the
launch point and began sending planes aloft for the preliminary softening up
of targets in preparation for the invasion of Saipan. Yorktown aircrews
concentrated primarily upon airfields located on Guam. Those raids continued
until the 13th when Yorktown, with two of the task groups of TF 58, steamed
north to hit targets in the Bonin Islands. That movement resulted in a
one-day raid on the 16th before the two task groups headed back to the
Marianas to join in the Battle of the Philippine Sea. Task Force 58 reunited
on 18 June and began a short wait for the approaching Japanese Fleet and its
aircraft.
On the morning of 19 June, Yorktown aircraft began strikes on Japanese air
bases on Guam in order to deny them to their approaching carrier-based air
and to keep the land-based planes out of the fray. Duels with Guam-based aircraft
continued until mid-morning. At about 1017, however, she got her first
indication of the carrier plane attacks when a large bogey appeared on her
radar screen. At that point she divided her attention, sending part of her
air group back to Guam and another portion of it out to meet the raid closing
from the west. Throughout the battle, Yorktown's planes continued both to
strike the Guam airfields and intercept the carrier raids. During the first
day of the Battle of the Philippine Sea, Yorktown aircraft claimed 37 enemy
planes destroyed and dropped 21 tons of bombs on the Guam air bases.
On the morning of the 20th Yorktown steamed generally west with TF 58 while
search planes groped for the fleeing enemy task force. Contact was not made
with the enemy until about 1540 that afternoon when a Hornet (CV-12) pilot
spotted the retiring Combined Fleet units. Yorktown launched a 40-plane
strike between 1623 and 1643 and sent it winging after the Japanese. Her
planes found Admiral Ozawa's force at about 1840 and began a 20-minute attack
during which they went after Zuikaku on whom they succeeded in scoring some
hits. They, however, failed to sink that carrier. They also attacked several
other ships in the Japanese force though no records show a confirmed sinking
to the credit of the Yorktown air group. On 21 June, the carrier joined in
the futile stern chase on the enemy carried out by TF 58 but gave up that
evening when air searches failed to contact the Japanese. York-town returned
to the Marianas area and resumed air strikes on Pagan on the 22d and 23d. On
the 24th, she launched another series of raids on Iwo Jima. On 25 June, she
laid in a course for Eniwetok and arrived there two days later. On the 30th,
the aircraft carrier headed back to the Marianas and the Bonins. She renewed
combat operations on 3 and 4 July with a series of attacks on Iwo Jima and
Chichi Jima. On the 6th, the warship resumed strikes in the Marianas and
continued them for the next 17 days. On 23 July, she headed off to the west
for a series of raids on Yap, Ulithi, and the Palaus. She carried out those
attacks on 25 July and arrived back in the Marianas on the 29th.
On the 31st, she cleared the Mariana Islands and headed-via Eniwetok and
Pearl Harbor-back to the United States. Yorktown arrived in the Puget Sound
Navy Yard on 17 August and began a two-month overhaul. She completed repairs
on 6 October and departed Puget Sound on the 9th. She stopped at the Alameda
Naval Air Station from 11 to 13 October to load planes and supplies and then set
a course back to the western Pacific. After a stop at Pearl Harbor from the
18th to the 24th, Yorktown arrived back in Eniwetok on 31 October. She
departed the lagoon on 1 November and arrived at Ulithi on the 3d. There, she
reported for duty with TG 38.4. That task group left Ulithi on 5 November,
and Yorktown departed with it.
On 7 November, the aircraft carrier changed operational control to TG 38.1
and, for the next two weeks, launched air strikes on targets in the
Philippines in support of the Leyte invasion. Detached from the task force on
23 November, Yorktown arrived back in Ulithi on the 24th. She remained there
until 10 December at which time she put to sea to rejoin TP 38. She
rendezvoused with the other carriers on 13 December and began launching air
strikes on targets on the island of Luzon in preparation for the invasion of
that island scheduled for the second week in January. On the 17th, the task
force began its retirement from the Luzon strikes. During that retirement, TF
38 steamed through the center of the famous typhoon of December 1944. That
storm sank three destroyers-Spence (DD-512), Hull (DD-350), and Monaghan
(DD-354)-and York-town participated in some of the rescue operations for the
survivors of those three destroyers. She did not finally clear the vicinity
of Luzon until the 23d. The warship arrived back in Ulithi on 24 December.
The aircraft carrier fueled and provisioned at Ulithi until 30 December at
which time she returned to sea to join TF 38 on strikes at targets in the Philippines
in support of the landings at Lingayen. The carriers opened the show on 3
January 1945 with raids on airfields on the island of Formosa. Those raids
continued on the 4th, but a fueling rendezvous occupied York-town's time on
the 5th. She sent her planes against Luzon targets and on antishipping
strikes on the 6th and 7th. The 8th brought another fueling rendezvous; and,
on the 9th, she conducted her last attack-on Formosa-in direct support of the
Lingayen operation. On 10 January, Yorktown and the rest of TF 38 entered the
South China Sea via Bashi Channel to begin a series of raids on Japan's inner
defenses. On 12 January, her planes visited the vicinity of Saigon and
Tourane Bay, Indochina, in hopes of catching major units of the Japanese fleet.
Though foiled in their primary desire, TF 38 aviators still managed to rack
up a stupendous score-44 enemy ships of which 15 were combatants. She fueled
on the 13th and, on the 15th, launched raids on Formosa and Canton in China.
The following day, her aviators struck at Canton again and paid a visit to
Hong Kong. Fueling took up her time on 17, 18, and 19 January; and, on the
20th, she exited the South China Sea with TF 38 via Balintang Channel. She
participated in a raid on Formosa on the 21st and another on Okinawa on the
22d before clearing the area for Ulithi. On the morning of 26 January, she
reentered Ulithi lagoon with TF 38.
Yorktown remained at Ulithi arming, provisioning, and conducting upkeep until
10 February. At that time, she sortied with TF 58, the 3d Fleet becoming the
5th Fleet when Spruance relieved Halsey, on a series of raids on the Japanese
and thence to support the assault on and occupation of Iwo Jima. On the
morning of 16 February, the aircraft carrier began launching strikes on the
Tokyo area of Honshu. On the 17th, she repeated those strikes before heading
toward the Bonins. Her aviators bombed and strafed installations on Chichi
Jima on the 18th. The landings on Iwo Jima went forward on 19 February, and
Yorktown aircraft began support missions over the island on the 20th. Those
missions continued until the 23d at which time Yorktown cleared the Bonins to
resume strikes on Japan proper. She arrived at the launch point on the 25th
and sent two raids aloft to bomb and strife airfields in the vicinity of
Tokyo. On the 26th, Yorktown aircrewmen conducted a single sweep of
installations on Kyushu before TG 58.4 began its retirement to Ulithi.
Yorktown reentered the anchorage at Ulithi on 1 March.
She remained in the anchorage for about two weeks. On 14 March, the aircraft
carrier departed the lagoon on her way to resume raids on Japan and to begin
preliminary support work for the Okinawa operations scheduled for 1 April. On
18 March, she arrived in the operating area off Japan and began launching
strikes on airfields on Kyushu, Honshu, and Shikoku. The task group came
under air attack almost as soon as operations began. At about 0800, a
twin-engine bomber, probably a "Frances," attacked from her port
side. The ship opened fire almost immediately and began scoring hits quickly.
The plane began to burn but continued his run passing over Yorktown's bow and
splashing in the water on her starboard side. Just seven minutes later,
another "Frances" tried his luck; but he, too, went down, a victim of
the combined fire of the formation. No further attacks developed until that
afternoon; and, in the meantime, Yorktown continued air operations. That
afternoon, three "Judy's" launched attacks on the carrier. The
first two failed in their attacks and were shot down for their trouble. The
third succeeded in planting his bomb on the signal bridge. It passed through
the first deck and exploded near the ship's hull. It punched two large holes
through her side, killed five men, and wounded another 26. Yorktown, however,
remained fully operational, and her antiaircraft gunners brought the offender
down. She continued air operations against the three southernmost islands of
Japan on the 19th but retired for fueling operations on the 20th.
On the 21st, she headed for Okinawa, on which island she began softening-up
strikes on the 23d. Those attacks continued until the 28th when she started
back to Japanese waters for an additional strike on the home islands. On the
29th, the carrier put two raids and one photographic reconnaissance mission
into the air over Kyushu. That afternoon, at about 1410, a single
"Judy" made an apparent suicide dive on Yorktown. Her antiaircraft
gunners opened up on him and scored numerous hits. He passed over the ship,
very near to her "island," and splashed about 60 feet from her
portside.
On 30 March, Yorktown and the other carriers of her task group began to
concentrate solely on the island of Okinawa and its surrounding islets. For
two days, the 30th and 31st, they pounded the island in softening-up strikes.
On 1 April, the assault troops stormed ashore; and, for almost six weeks, she
sent her planes to the island to provide direct support for the troops
operating ashore. About every three days, she retired to the east to conduct
fueling rendezvous or to rearm and reprovision. The only exception to that
routine came on 7 April when it was discovered that a Japanese task force
built around the elusive battleship, Yamato, was steaming south for one last,
desperate, offensive. Yorktown and the other carriers quickly launched
strikes to attack that valued target. Air Group 9 aviators claimed several
torpedo hits on Yamato herself just before the battleship exploded and sank
as well as at least three 500-pound bomb hits on light cruiser Yahagi before
that warship followed her big sister to the bottom. The pilots also made
strafing runs on the escorting destroyers and claimed to have left one afire
in a sinking condition. At the conclusion of that action, Yorktown and her
planes resumed their support for the troops on Okinawa. On 11 April, she came
under air attack again when a single-engine plane sped in on her. Yorktown's
antiaircraft gunners proved equal to the test, however, and splashed him just
inside 2,000 yards' range. Sporadic air attacks continued until her 11 May
departure from the Ruykyus, but Yorktown sustained no additional damage and
claimed only one further kill with her antiaircraft battery. On 11 May, TG
58.4 was detached to proceed to Ulithi for upkeep, rest, and relaxation.
Yorktown entered the lagoon at Ulithi on 14 May and remained there until 24
May at which time she sortied with TG 58.4 to rejoin the forces off Okinawa.
On 28 May, TG 58.4 became TG 38.4 when Halsey relieved Spruance and 5th Fleet
again became 3d Fleet. That same day, the carrier resumed air support
missions over Okinawa. That routine lasted until the beginning of June when
she moved off with TF 38 to resume strikes on the Japanese homeland. On 3
June, her aircraft made four different sweeps of airfields. The following
day, she returned to Okinawa for a day of additional support missions before
steaming off to envade a typhoon. On the 6th and 7th, she resumed Okinawa
strikes. She sent her aviators back to the Kyushu airfields and, on the 9th,
launched them on the first of two days of raids on Minami Daito Shima. After
the second day's strikes on the 10th, Yorktown began retirement with TG 38.4
toward Leyte. She arrived in San Pedro Bay at Leyte on 13 June and began
replenishment, upkeep, rest, and relaxation.
The warship remained at Leyte until 1 July when she and TG 38.4 got underway
to join the rest of the fast carriers in the final series of raids on the
Japanese home islands. By 10 July, she was off the coast of Japan launching
air strikes on the Tokyo area of Honshu. After a fueling rendezvous on the
11th and 12th, she resumed strikes on Japan, this on the southern portion of
the northernmost island-Hokkaido. Those strikes lasted from the 13th to the
15th. A fueling retirement and heavy weather precluded air operations until
the 18th at which time her aviators returned to the Tokyo area. From the 19th
to the 22d, she made a fueling and underway replenishment retirement and
then, on the 24th, resumed air attacks on Japan. For two days, planes of her
air group pounded installations around the Kure naval base. Another fueling
retirement came on the 26th, but the 27th and 28th found her planes in the
air above Kure again. On the 29th and 30th, she shifted targets back to the
Tokyo area before another fueling retirement and another typhoon took her out
of action until the beginning of the first week in August. On 8 and 9 August,
the carrier launched her planes at northern Honshu and southern Hokkaido. On
the 10th, she sent them back to Tokyo. The 11th and 12th brought another
fueling retirement and a typhoon evasion; but, on the 13th, her aircraft hit
Tokyo for the last time. On the 14th, she retired to fuel destroyers again;
and, on the 15th, Japan agreed to capitulate so that all strikes planned for
that day were cancelled.
From 16 to 23 August, Yorktown and the other carriers of TF 58 steamed around
more or less aimlessly in waters to the east of Japan awaiting instructions
while peace negotiations continued. Then, on the 23d, she received orders to
head for waters east of Honshu where her aircraft were to provide cover for
the forces occupying Japan. She began providing that air cover on the 25th
and continued to do so until mid-September. After the formal surrender on
board Missouri (BB-63) on 2 September, the aircraft carrier also began
air-dropping supplies to Allied prisoners of war still living in their prison
camps. On 16 September, Yorktown entered Tokyo Bay with TG 38.1. She remained
there, engaged in upkeep and crew recreation, through the end of the month.
On 1 October, the carrier stood out of Tokyo Bay on her way to Okinawa. She
arrived in Buckner Bay on 4 October, loaded passengers on the 5th, and got
underway for the United States on the 6th.
After a non-stop voyage, Yorktown entered San Francisco Bay on 20 October,
moored at the Alameda Naval Air Station, and began discharging passengers.
She remained at the air station until 31 October at which time she shifted to
Hunters Point Navy Yard to complete minor repairs. On 2 November, while still
at the navy yard, she reported to the Service Force, Pacific Fleet, for duty
in conjunction with the return of American servicemen to the United States.
That same day, she stood out of San Francisco Bay, bound for Guam on just
such a mission. She arrived in Apra Harbor on 15 November and, two days
later, got underway with a load of passengers. She arrived back in San
Francisco on 30 November and remained there until 8 December. On the latter
day, the warship headed back to the Far East. Initially routed to Samar in the
Philippines, she was diverted to Manila en route. She arrived in Manila on 26
December and departed there on the 29th. She reached San Francisco again on
13 January 1946. Later that month, she moved north to Bremerton, Wash., where
she was placed in commission, in reserve, on 21 June. She remained there in
that status through the end of the year. On 9 January 1947, Yorktown was
placed out of commission and was berthed with the Bremerton Group, Pacific
Reserve Fleet.
Yorktown remained in reserve for almost five years. In June of 1952, she was
ordered reactivated, and work began on her at Puget Sound. On 15 December
1952, she was placed in commission, in reserve, at Bremerton. Her conversion
continued into 1953 and she conducted post-conversion trials late in January.
On 20 February 1953, Yorktown was placed in full commission, Capt. William M.
Nation in command. The aircraft carrier conducted normal operations along the
west coast through most of the summer of 1953. On 3 August, she departed San
Francisco on her way to the Far East. She arrived in Pearl Harbor and
remained there until the 27th at which time she continued her voyage west. On
5 September, the carrier arrived in Yokosuka, Japan. She put to sea again on
the 11th to join TF 77 in the Sea of Japan. The Korean War armistice had been
signed two months earlier; and, therefore, the carrier conducted training
operations rather than combat missions. She served with TF 77 until 18
February 1954 at which time she stood out of Yokosuka on her way home. She
made a stop at Pearl Harbor along the way and then moored at Alameda once
more on 3 March. After a brief repair period at Hunters Point Naval Shipyard,
Yorktown put to sea to serve as a platform for the filming of the movie
"Jet Carrier." She conducted further, more routine, operations
along the west coast until 1 July at which time she headed back to the
Orient. She stopped at Pearl Harbor from 8 to 28 July before continuing on to
Manila, where she arrived on 4 August.
Yorktown operated out of the Manila-Subic Bay area, conducting 7th Fleet
maneuvers, for the duration of the deployment. She did, however, take
periodic breaks from that schedule to make frequent port visits to Yokosuka;
and, during the Christmas holidays, she made a liberty call at Hong Kong on
the Chinese coast. In January of 1955, she was called upon to help cover the
evacuation of Nationalist Chinese from the Tachen Islands located near the
communist-controlled mainland. Yorktown entered Yokosuka for the last time on
16 February 1955 but departed again on the 18th to return home. After an
overnight stop at Pearl Harbor on 23 and 24 February, she resumed her voyage
east and arrived in Alameda on 28 February. On 21 March 1955, she was placed
in commission, in reserve, at the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard where she was to
receive extensive modifications-most significantly, an angled flight deck to
increase her jet aircraft launching capability. She completed her conversion
that fall and, on 14 October, was placed back in full commission.
The aircraft carrier resumed normal operations along the west coast soon
after recommissioning. That assignment lasted until mid-March 1956. On the
19th, she stood out of San Francisco Bay on her way to her third tour of duty
with the 7th Fleet since her reactivation in 1953. Yorktown stopped at Pearl
Harbor from 24 March to 9 April and then continued her voyage west. She
arrived in Yokosuka, Japan, on 18 April and departed again on the 29th. The
warship operated with the 7th Fleet for the next five months. During that
time, she conducted operations in the Sea of Japan, the East China Sea, and
the South China Sea. She also visited such places as Sasebo, Manila, Subic
Bay, and Buckner Bay at Okinawa. On 7 September, the aircraft carrier stood
out of Yokosuka and pointed her bow to the east. After a non-stop voyage, she
arrived back at Alameda on 13 September. She resumed west coast operations
for about two months. On 13 November, she embarked upon a round-trip to Pearl
Harbor, from which she returned to Alameda on 11 December. Yorktown resumed
normal operations out of Alameda upon her return and remained so employed
until March of 1957. On 9 March, she departed Alameda for yet another tour of
duty in the Far East. She made stops at Oahu and Guam along the way and arrived
at Yokosuka on 19 April. She put to sea to join TF 77 on 25 April and served
with that task force for the next three months. On 13 August, the warship
departed Yokosuka for the last time, made a brief pause at Pearl Harbor, and
arrived in Alameda on the 25th.
On 1 September, her home port was changed from Alameda to Long Beach, and she
was reclassified an antisubmarine warfare (ASW) aircraft carrier with the new
designation CVS-10. On the 23d, she departed Alameda and, four days later,
entered the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard for overhaul and for modification to
an ASW carrier. That yard period lasted until the beginning of February 1958.
She departed the naval ammunition depot at Bangor, Wash., on 7 February and
entered Long Beach five days later. For the next eight months, Yorktown
conducted normal operations along the west coast. On 1 November, she departed
San Diego to return to the western Pacific. After a stop at Pearl Harbor from
the 8th to the 17th, Yorktown continued her voyage west and arrived in
Yokosuka on the 25th. During that deployment, the aircraft carrier qualified
for the Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal on three occasions. The first time
came on 31 December and 1 January 1959 when she participated in an American
show of strength in response to the communist Chinese shelling of the
offshore islands, Quemoy and Matsu, held by Nationalist Chinese forces.
During January, she also joined contingency forces off Vietnam during
internal disorders caused by communist guerrillas in the southern portion of
that country. That month also saw her earn the expeditionary medal for
service in the Taiwan Strait. The remainder of the deployment-save for
another visit to Vietnamese waters late in March-consisted of a normal round
of training evolutions and port visits. She concluded that tour of duty at
San Diego on 21 May. The warship resumed normal operations along the west
coast, and that duty consumed the remainder of 1959.
In January of 1960, Yorktown headed back to the Far East via Pearl Harbor.
During that deployment, she earned additional stars for her Armed Forces
Expeditionary Medal for duty in Vietnamese waters at various times in March,
April, May, and June. She returned to the west coast late in the summer and,
late in September, bee-an a four-month overhaul at the Puget Sound Naval
Shipyard.
Yorktown emerged from the shipyard in January 1961 and returned to Long Beach
on the 27th. She conducted refresher training and then resumed normal west
coast operations until late July. On 29 July, the aircraft carrier stood out
of Long Beach, bound once again for the Orient. She made an extended stopover
in the Hawaiian Islands in August and, consequently, did not arrive in
Yokosuka until 4 September. That tour of duty in the Far East consisted of a
normal schedule of antiair and antisubmarine warfare exercises as well as the
usual round of port visits. She concluded the deployment at Long Beach on 2
March 1962. Normal west coast operations occupied her time through the summer
and into the fall. On 26 October, the warship left Long Beach in her wake and
set a course for the Far East. During that deployment, she served as flagship
for Carrier Division (CarDiv) 19. She participated in a number of ASW and AAW
exercises, including the SEATO ASW exercise, Operation "Sea
Serpent." The deployment lasted until 6 June 1963 at which time the
carrier set a course back to Long Beach.
Yorktown arrived back in her home port on 18 June and resumed normal
operations for the remainder of the year. Those operations continued throughout
most of 1964 as well. However, on 22 October, she pointed her bow westward
again and set out for a tour of duty with the 7th Fleet. Another period of
operations in the Hawaiian Islands delayed her arrival in Japan until 3
December. The 1964 and 1965 deployment brought Yorktown her first real
involvement in the Vietnamese civil war. In February, March, and April, she
conducted a series of special operations in the South China Sea in waters
near Vietnam-presumably ASW services for the fast carriers conducting air
strikes against targets in Vietnam in support of the increased American
involvement in the civil war in that country. She concluded her tour of duty
in the Far East on 7 May 1965 when she departed Yokosuka to return to the
United States. The carrier arrived in Long Beach on 17 May.
For the remainder of her active career, Yorktown's involvement in combat
operations in Vietnam proved a dominant feature of her activities. After
seven months of normal operations out of Long Beach, she got underway for the
western Pacific again on 5 January 1966. She arrived in Yokosuka on 17
February and joined TF 77 on Yankee Station later that month. Over the next
five months, the aircraft carrier spent three extended tours of duty on
Yankee Station providing ASW and sea-air rescue services for the carriers of
TF 77. She also participated in several ASW exercises, including the major
SEATO exercise, Operation "Sea Imp." The warship concluded her last
tour of duty on Yankee Station early in July and, after a stop at Yokosuka,
headed home on the 15th. She disembarked her air group at San Diego on 27
July and reentered Long Beach that same day. She resumed normal
operations-carrier qualifications and ASW exercises-for the remainder of the
year and during the first two months of 1967.
On 24 February 1967, Yorktown entered the Long Beach Naval Shipyard for a
seven-month overhaul. She completed repairs early in October and, after
refresher training, resumed normal west coast operations for most of what
remained of 1967. On 28 December, she stood out of Long Beach, bound for her
last tour of duty in the western Pacific. After a stop at Pearl Harbor, she
arrived in the Far East late in January. Instead of putting in at a Japanese
port for turnover, Yorktown headed directly to the Sea of Japan to provide
ASW and search and rescue (SAR) support for the contingency force assembled
in the wake of the North Korean capture of Pueblo (AGER-2). She remained on
that assignment for 30 days. On 1 March, she was released from that duty, and
the warship headed for Subic Bay in the Philippines. During the remainder of
the deployment, the aircraft carrier did another three tours of duty with TF
77 on Yankee Station. In each instance, she provided ASW and SAR support for
the fast carriers launching air strikes on targets in Vietnam. She concluded
her last tour of duty in Vietnamese waters on 16 June and set a course for
Yokosuka where she stopped from 19 to 21 June before heading back to the
United States.
Yorktown arrived back in Long Beach on 5 July and entered the Long Beach
Naval Shipyard that same day for almost three months of repairs. She
completed repairs on 30 September and resumed normal operations. Late in
November and early in December, she served as a platform for the filming of
another movie, "Tora! Tora! Tora!," which recreated the Japanese
attack on Pearl Harbor. In December, she served as one of the recovery ships
for the Apollo 8 space shot. The two unique missions mentioned above were
conducted out of Pearl Harbor. She departed Pearl Harbor of 2 January 1969
and, after a two-week stop in Long Beach, continued her voyage to join the
Atlantic Fleet. Steaming all the way around South America, the aircraft
carrier arrived in her new home port-Norfolk, Va.-on 28 February. She conducted
operations along the east coast and in the West Indies until late summer. On
2 September, Yorktown departed Norfolk for a northern European cruise and
participation in the major fleet exercise Operation "Peacekeeper."
During the exercise, she provided ASW and SAR support for the task force. The
exercise ended on 23 September, and Yorktown began a series of visits to
northern European ports. After a visit each to Brest, France, and Rotterdam
in the Netherlands, Yorktown put to sea for a series of hunter/killer ASW
exercises between 18 October and 11 November. She resumed her itinerary of
port visits on 11 November at Kiel, Germany. After that, she stopped at
Copenhagen, Denmark, and at Portsmouth, England, before getting underway for
home on 1 December. She reentered Norfolk on 11 December and began her
holiday leave period.
During the first half of 1970, Yorktown operated out of Norfolk and began
preparations for inactivation. On 27 June 1970, Yorktown was decommissioned
at Philadelphia, Pa., and was berthed with the Philadelphia Group, Atlantic
Reserve Fleet. She remained there almost three years before her name was
struck from the Navy list on 1 June 1973. During 1974, the Navy Department
approved the donation of Yorktown to the Patriot's Point Development
Authority, Charleston, S.C. She was towed from Bayonne, N.J., to Charleston,
S.C., in June of 1975. She was formally dedicated as a memorial on the 200th
anniversary of the Navy, 13 October 1975.
Yorktown (CV-10) earned 11 battle stars and the Presidential Unit Citation
during World War II and five battle stars for Vietnam service.
source: US Naval History &
Heritage Command
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