Wreck of USS Yorktown (CV-5)

 Second World War 1939-1945, military, aircraft, shipwreck, aircraft carrier, United States Navy

USS Yorktown was the lead ship of her Class of Aircraft Carriers built for the United States Navy, laid down at the Newport News Shipbuilding and Drydock Co. in May 1934 and commissioned into service with the US Atlantic Fleet in September 1937. After spending several years operating with the Atlantic Fleet in concert with her sistership USS Enterprise (CV-6), the Yorktown was assigned to the US Pacific Fleet in April 1939 homeported at San Diego.

After participating in full-scale fleet exercises called "Fleet Problems" with the Pacific Fleet, the Yorktown found herself again sailing for Atlantic Waters as the situation in Europe grew increasingly dire and German U-boats began devastating British and Allied merchant shipping. Beginning in May 1941, the Yorktown and her crew conducted Neutrality Patrols in the increasingly hostile North Atlantic waters, steaming over 13,000 nautical miles in seven months before the Attack on Pearl Harbor brought the United States into the Second World War. Docked in Norfolk when news of the attack came, the Yorktown and her crew immediately prepared for war in the Pacific and departed for the Panama Canal on December 17th and began operations as part of Rear Admiral Fletcher's Task Force 17 on December 30th, 1941.

After screening a troopship convoy to American Samoa, the Yorktown joined with her sister and launched the first American offensive strikes on the Marshall and Gilbert Islands in late January before calling at Pearl Harbor to reprovision. Departing Pearl on February 14th the Yorktown sailed for the Coral Sea where she began operations as part of an American Defensive line aimed at checking the Japanese advance towards Australia. After conducting airstrikes around New Guinea, Rabaul and the Bismarck Archipelago to disrupt Japanese activities, the Yorktown withdrew to Tonga for voyage repairs in early April and was alongside a tender when word came of a large Japanese force heading Southwest to invade Port Moresby.

Standing out for sea on April 27th, 1942 the Yorktown and the ships of Task Force 17 didn’t have to wait long before she came into contact with elements of the Japanese Fleet, having come across a Japanese picket Submarine the following day. Detached to conduct air raids on Tulagi in the Solomons, Yorktown's aircraft sank a Destroyer and several craft in the harbor before she rejoined the main US Fleet, now heading West to intercept the Japanese Carriers. On the morning on May 6th, the Battle of the Coral Sea opened with Japanese bombers attacking and sinking the USS Neosho (AO-23) and her escort the USS Sims (DD-409) as they withdrew from the area, alerting the Americans to the proximity of Japanese Carriers. That night, aircraft from the Yorktown and USS Lexington (CV-3) sank the HIJMS Shōhō, Japans first Carrier loss in WWII. During the tense night that followed crews on both sides expected counter attacks, but action held off until the following morning when Yorktown and Lady Lex's aircraft again found and pounded the Japanese Carrier HIJMS Shōkaku, damaging the carrier heavily. Japanese aircrews located the American ships shortly thereafter and exacted a heavy toll on the USS Lexington, torpedoing her twice and hitting her with several bombs, causing an onboard fire which would eventually claim the ship. Though the Yorktown's managed to outmaneuver eight plane-launched torpedoes, an attack by dive bombers proved too great to repulse and she was struck on her flight deck by a single 500lb bomb which penetrated into her hull and detonated, killing or seriously injuring 66 men and causing heavy damage. As darkness fell on May 8th, the Battle of the Coral Sea had ended with both sides drawing blood, but none emerging victorious. Yorktown's crew effected a large damage control effort which kept the ship seaworthy enough to make the return trip to Pearl Harbor, where she entered drydock on May 27th for extensive repairs which were originally deemed severe enough to require three months work. The decryption of Japanese Naval codes however, pointed to the repairs needing to be completed in a much shorter time, as a large Japanese Invasion force set sail the same day headed for Midway Atoll.

Such was the need for Carriers to repel the Japanese force that workers at the Pearl Harbor Navy Yard worked around the clock and completed enough repairs to get the battle-damaged Carrier back to fighting trim in three days. Departing Pearl Harbor on May 30th with shipyard workers still aboard completing repairs, the Yorktown rejoined Task Force 17 Northeast of Midway Atoll and waited for the arrival of the Japanese Naval Force. Near-constant recon patrols by PBY's from Midway eventually sighted the Japanese Strike Force, comprised of four Carriers, eleven Battleships, thirteen Cruisers, forty five Destroyers and other auxiliaries making their way towards the Atoll. Launching her first strike at dawn on June 4th which returned at 0830hrs after finding no targets, the Yorktown's crew hastily sent up a second wave when reports flooded in that the Japanese Carriers had been spotted. Sending up 17 Dive-Bombers and 12 Torpedo Bombers, the Yorktowns crew awaited the arrival of the Japanese planes while her airwing along with those of the USS Enterprise and USS Hornet (CV-7) met combined tragedy and victory against the Japanese. Combining their efforts to destroy three of the four Japanese Carriers while losing 35 of 41 Torpedo Bombers and their crews, Yorktown’s wing claimed the Japanese Carrier HIJMS Sōryū destroyed by their bombs by the end of the fight.

As her strike group returned to the carrier and were reprovisioned for further action, radars aboard the Yorktown started picking up inbound Japanese planes, launched from the only surviving Japanese Carrier, HIJMS Hiryū. Yorktown's crew, already seasoned by combat tactics and damage prevention and control, put her aircraft up and drained fuel lines on deck to reduce the potential for fire, sealed compartments and readied her anti-aircraft batteries. Japanese aircraft were engaged by Yorktown's combat air patrol 20 miles out of her position but despite losses continued to their target and shortly before 1345 Yorktown opened fire on her attackers and began evasive maneuvering. Though her gunners downed many of the planes attacking her, the Yorktown was struck by three bombs and one aircraft; the first landing aft of her island and amidships where it was followed by the 'Val' that dropped it, another piercing her stack and blowing out two of her boilers and a third punching into her hull and starting a fire in a rag storage locker forward. As the Japanese planes withdrew, Yorktown's damage control teams set to work and had quickly repaired much of her topside damage and had the ship ready to recover aircraft within 30 minutes. Damage to the Yorktown's boilers proved more difficult to repair and by 1440 Yorktown's engine crews were forced to stop her engines, leaving her dead in the water.

Japanese pilots that managed to return to the Hiryū reported the sinking of the Yorktown, which they left heavily smoking and no longer moving. While the Japanese prepared another strike on the American Fleet, crews aboard Yorktown working in smoke-filled compartments deep in the ship managed to restore propulsion and by 1600hrs the Yorktown was steaming at 20knots and recovering aircraft. No sooner had the Carrier begun sending fresh planes aloft that more Japanese aircraft appeared on her radar screens and prompted the rest of her wing to be sent up with nearly empty tanks. Again returning to battle stations and allowing her planes to intercept the Japanese as they steadily approached, the Yorktown's AA batteries opened up on the inbound Torpedo Bombers at 1615hrs as she began radical maneuvering. Despite the best efforts of her Captain and her gun crews, four of the Japanese planes weaved through the barrage and dropped their torpedoes, two of which struck the Yorktown on her Port side in nearly the same location, causing major hull damage and flooding her engine rooms. Quickly losing power and slowing to a stop, the Yorktown's crew again took up massive damage control efforts to save their ship.

Without engine power crews were unable to operate the Yorktown's onboard pumps and the Carrier was soon listing at 26 degrees to Port, prompting the order to abandon ship which had been completed by sundown on June 4th. As her crew abandoned her, Yorktown's aircraft exacted her revenge on their attacker by bombing the HIJMS Hiryū and causing devastating fires which eventually claimed the ship. Yorktown herself remained defiantly afloat throughout the night and by dawn she was re-boarded by a volunteer crew in an attempt to save her from sinking. Five Destroyers formed a anti-submarine screen around Yorktown as she was placed under tow but by 1500hrs little forward progress had been made with the water-laden ship proving difficult to make headway in the open sea. Unbeknownst to the American ships protecting Yorktown, the Japanese Submarine I-168 had used the copious amount of floating debris and the battle-weariness of American crews to clandestinely approach the Yorktown and at 1536hrs she sent a spread of four torpedoes at the stricken Carrier and the USS Hammann (DD-412), which was alongside providing electrical power. Though all four torpedoes were sighted, there was little any of the crews could do aside from firing small arms at the inbound torpedoes before one struck the Hammann, breaking her in two and sending her down in minutes with her screws turning and most of her crew onboard. Yorktown absorbed two more torpedoes, this time in her Starboard side, but likely incurred fatal damage from Hammann's depth charges detonating almost directly beneath her keel as the Destroyer went down.

The salvage operation was immediately called off as all ships not hunting the Japanese Submarine began rescuing survivors from the Hammann and pulling the crew off Yorktown. Despite having taken four torpedoes, three bombs and an aircraft into her already damaged hull, the Yorktown remained stubbornly afloat through the night of June 6th and into the morning of June 7th, when crews were again readied to board the ship and get her back under tow. Yorktown however, had taken enough. Escort ships noted that for the first time in two days the Yorktown's list was increasing at dawn on June 7th and by 0645 the Carriers flight deck was touching the water’s surface. Finally at 0701hrs on June 7th, 1942 USS Yorktown gave out and rolled to her Starboard side and sank at this location in 3,000 fathoms.

For her service during the opening months of the Second World War, USS Yorktown received 3 Battle Stars.

Rediscovered intact, upright and still wearing her wartime paint in May 1998 by Robert Ballard, the USS Yorktown is now considered a war grave for the remaining crewmen still on duty aboard her.

www.navsource.org/archives/02/05.htm