Renown Class Battlecruiser

The Renown class battlecruiser was one of two British, heavily-armed capital ships used by the Royal Navy during the First and Second World War. Laid down in 1915, they both joined the Fleet in 1916, after the Battle of Jutland had raised serious doubts about the role of the battlecruiser. Nevertheless, HMS Renown and HMS Repulse were retained in service after the Great War mainly because of their speed and the fact that they had proved to be a reliable and steady gun platform. Thus, in the interwar period, their armor protection was increased. Aside from their six 381-mm (15-in) main guns, they were equipped with seventeen 102-mm (4-in) guns as secondary armament.

The British Admiralty decision to build two more battlecruisers had been made after the Royal Navy's battlecruisers HMS Invincible and Inflexible had defeated a German flotilla during the Battle of the Falkland Islands in the South Atlantic on December 8, 1914, sinking three German armored cruisers. As a result, the War Cabinet ordered the construction of two more battlecruisers; these were HMS Renown (72) and Repulse (34). Despite their complexity, the two capital ships were built with remarkable speed by the firm John Brown & Company on the north bank of the River Clyde as they had both been laid down on January 25, 1915, and commissioned in August and September 1916.

Having survived the First World War, the Renown class battlecruisers were given additional armor in the early 1920s. Between 1936 and 1939, they were rebuilt for their new role as fast aircraft carrier's escorts as they were fitted with new turbines and boilers. At the beginning of the Second World War, HMS Repulse was assigned to the Far East, where she would be sunk, along with HMS Prince of Wales battleship, by Japanese dive-bombers on December 10, 1941. Meanwhile, HMS Renown served in the Atlantic and Mediterranean Theater. She was decommissioned after the war and struck in 1948.

Specifications

Type: Battlecruiser

Displacement: 27,650 metric tons (standard); 30,835 tons (full load)

Length: 242 m (794 feet)

Beam: 27.4 m (90 feet)

Draft: 7.8 m (25 feet)

Propulsion System: Brown-Curtis steam turbines, with 4 shafts, and 42 boilers, delivering a total of 112,000 SHP.

Maximum Speed: 30 knots

Range: 9,000 nautical miles (16,677 km)

Armament: six 381-mm (15 inches) and seventeen 102-mm (4 inches) guns.

Compliment: 1,260 sailors and officers

Above, HMS Renown (72) sailing off the English coast at the end of the war.

HMS Repulse (34) in 1927.

USS Hornet (CV-8)

The USS Hornet (CV-8) belonged to the Yorktown class, which was composed of three aircraft carriers. She and her two sisters, the USS Enterprise (CV-6) and USS Yorktown (CV-5), took part in the Battle of Midway in early June 1942. Although she survived this naval engagement, the Hornet would be sunk by the Japanese on October 27, 1942, during the Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands. However, she had already become famous as she carried the sixteen B-25 Mitchell bombers that carried out the first air raid on Tokyo in April 1942; this operation was known as the Doolittle Raid.

The USS Hornet had been laid down on September 25, 1939, and launched on December 14, 1940. After almost one year of sea trials, she would be commissioned on October 20, 1941, seven weeks before the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. In January 1942, this aircraft carrier embarked the first North American B-25 Mitchell bombers for the Doolittle Raid, which would take place on April 18, 1942. On June 6, 1942, she was damaged during the Battle of Midway and later repaired. In August, that year, she, along with US Wasp and Saratoga, provided air cover to the US Marines that landed on Guadalcanal. On October 26, 1942, the Hornet was attacked and hit by Japanese dive-bombers and torpedo-bombers (Aichi D3A 'Val' and Nakajima B5N respectively). Being severely damaged, and with a list to starboard, she was abandoned. Finally, on October 27, she was given the coup de grace by a Japanese destroyer that struck her with several torpedoes.

Technical Description

The USS Hornet (CV-8) was designed to carry an air group of up to 100 aircraft. Her flight deck was part of the superstructure and not integral with the hull. The hangar deck ran the full length of the ship. She was fitted with three centerline elevators and three catapults, two on the flight deck and one on the hangar deck. Her propulsion system was located amidships, with the engine rooms lying behind the boiler rooms. Her three main uptakes were routed to the starboard side, ending in a single large funnel, which was integrated into the island structure. She had a high degree of water-tight integrity, which was obtained by extensive compartmentation of the hull (she had more bulkheads than other warships).

Specifications

Type: Yorktown class carrier

Displacement: 19,875 tons (standard)

Length: 251.4 m (825 feet)

Beam: 34.8 m (109.5 feet)

Draft: 7.9 m (26 feet)

Propulsion: Parsons geared steam turbines, with four shaft, and 9 boilers, generating 120,000 sHP.

Maximum Speed: 32.5 knots

Aircraft: 96

Compliment: 2,175 men

Above, the USS Hornet in late October 1941, after being commissioned and prior to fitting of armament and radar.

Her flight deck on April 18, 1942. A B-25 is about to take off for the Doolittle Raid.

The USS Hornet during the Battle of Midway in early June, 1942. She is under attack by Japanese dive-bombers.

Yorktown Class Carriers

The Yorktown class carriers were the three American aircraft carriers that took part in the Battle of Midway in early June 1942, during World War II. They were the USS Yorktown (CV-5), the lead ship of the class, the USS Enterprise (CV-6), and the USS Hornet (CV-8). The first one was struck and sunk by a Japanese submarine on June 7, 1942, the last day of the Battle of Midway, while Hornet was sunk on October 27, 1942, during the Battle of Santa Cruz Islands. Meanwhile, Enterprise was the only one that survived World War II, being decommissioned in 1947 and scrapped in 1958. This class was succeeded by the Essex class.

Preceded by the USS Ranger (CV-4), which was the only one of its class, the Yorktown class aircraft carriers were the best of the US Navy's pre-war carrier designs. Thus, they were larger and better protected. One curious feature of these new carriers was that the ship was designed to operate almost as fast astern as ahead, and there were sets of arrester wires at both end of the flight deck. The USS Yorktown was commissioned in 1937, followed by Enterprise in 1938, and Hornet in 1941. All three had three catapults, two on the flight deck, and one on the hangar deck. Their flight deck was part of the superstructure rather than integral with the hull, with three centerline elevators. Their armor belt and deck were twice as thick as the Ranger's, with a number of water-tight compartments greatly increased.

Following the construction of Yorktown and Enterprise, the next carrier, the USS Wasp (CV-7),  was constrained by the Washington Naval Treaty tonnage limits. Thus, it was smaller. Then, in 1938, when another carrier was required quickly, it was decided to save time by returning to the five year old Yorktown design to produce a third one, the USS Hornet, which would have a wider flight deck. Their wooden flight deck was a distinct liability against attack by dive-bombers. Nevertheless, all three ships had an exceptionally tight turning circle maneuver, which often enabled them to avoid being hit.

Above, the bow of the USS Enterprise, at Puget Sound Navy Yard.

In April 1942, USS Hornet, which was escorted by USS Enterprise, carried the B-25 bombers for the famed Doolittle Raid that bombed Tokyo. In May 1942, the USS Yorktown was damaged during the Battle of the Coral Sea, but she was repaired and able to take part in the Battle of Midway, during which it was sunk by the Japanese submarine I-168 on June 7, 1942. Meanwhile, the Hornet was so heavily damaged on October 26, 1942, during the Battle of Santa Cruz Islands that she had to be abandoned and she was sunk the following day by the Japanese on October 27. The USS Enterprise took part in most of the major naval actions in the Pacific Theater and survived the war; she would be scrapped in 1958.

Specifications

Type: aircraft carrier

Builder: Newport News Shipbuilding

Displacement: 19,875 tons (standard); 25,484 tons (full load)

Length: 251.4 m (825 feet)

Beam: 33.4 m (109 feet)

Draft: 7.9 m (26 feet)

Propulsion: 4 shafts, Parsons geared turbines, 9 Babcock & Wilcox boilers, generating 120,000 HP.

Maximum Speed: 32.5 knots

Range: 12,500 nautical miles (23,200 km)

Armament: eight 127-mm and sixteen 28-mm AA guns.

Compliment: 2,175 sailors and officers.

Above, the USS Yorktown at Naval Air Station (NAS), San Diego, California, on March 29, 1940.

This photo was taken from the rear seat of a SBD Dauntless dive-bomber as it took off the flight deck of the Enterprise.

The flight deck of the Enterprise in August 1944. You can see Grumman F6F Hellcat fighters.

The USS Yorktown (CV-5) in late July 1937, prior to being commissioned, moored at Newport News Shipbuilding & Dry Dock.

The Yorktown just after bombs hit the flight deck, during the Battle of the Coral Sea in May 1942. She would be repaired, but she would be sunk the following month during the Battle of Midway on June 7.

Air view of the Enterprise in 1945, at the end of the war.

USS Enterprise (CV-6)

The USS Enterprise (CV-6) was an iconic aircraft carrier used by the US Navy in the Pacific Theater of World War II. She belonged to the Yorktown class of three carriers, and she was the only one that survived the war, as USS Yorktown (CV-5) and Hornet (CV-8) were hit and sunk by a Japanese submarine and dive-bombers respectively. The Enterprise was the most decorated warship in naval history, with a Navy Unit Commendation, twenty battle stars for her World War II service, and a Presidential Unit Citation.

The USS Enterprise (CV-6) was laid down on July 16, 1934, launched on October 3, 1936, and commissioned on May 12, 1938. As soon as she entered service with the US Navy, she was assigned to the Pacific Fleet. When the Japanese launched the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, she was returning to port after delivering fighter aircraft to the Wake Island. She saw combat action for the first time on February 1, 1942, when she scrambled her aircraft, launching a full deck strike of 67 aircraft against Japanese facilities on Kwajalein Island in the Marshals.

Above, the USS Enterprise CV-6 in the foreground, with Lexington CV-16, an Essex-class carrier, in the background.

The Enterprise took part in the Battle of Midway in early June 1942, when her air group played a key role in the most decisive naval engagement of the war in the Pacific Theater. Several of her dive-bombers (SBD Dauntless) sank the Japanese carriers Akagi and Kaga, and contributed to the destruction of Hiryu. The Enterprise also participated in the Battle of the Eastern Solomons in August 1942, during the invasion of Guadalcanal. In this military engagement as well as in the Battle of Santa Cruz, she sustained damage inflicted by Japanese dive-bombers. On June 19, 1944, she took part in the Battle of the Philippine Sea, during which the Japanese Fleet was severely mauled and defeated. She would be decommissioned from service after the war in 1947 and scrapped in 1958.

Technical Characteristics

The USS Enterprise was a modern carrier for the time, with 20,000 tons displacement and she had enough size to allow a real degree of protection against torpedo attacks, with a 4-inch (102-mm) thick armor belt over the machinery spaces, magazines, and gasoline storage tanks. However, her flight deck had no armor protection. Like her sisters of her class, she was fitted with three catapults and sets of arrester wires at both ends of flight deck, which was much longer than the Wasp (CV-7) 222-m length, with 252 m (827 feet). She was powered by four Parsons steam turbines fed by 9 boilers.

Specifications

Type: aircraft carrier

Displacement: 19,875 tons; 25,484 tons with full load.

Length: 252 m (827 feet)

Beam: 33.4 m (109 feet)

Draft: 7.9 m (26 feet)

Propulsion: 4 Parsons geared turbines, with four shafts, and 9 boilers, delivering 120,000 sHP.

Maximum Speed: 32.5 knots

Range: 12,500 nautical miles (23,200 km = 14,400 miles)

Aircraft: 96

Armament: eight 127-mm (5-inch) and sixteen 28-mm (1.1-inch) AA guns.

Compliments: 2,175 sailors and officers.

The Enterprise sailing in the Pacific in early 1941.

The Enterprise at Noumea, near Guadalcanal in November 1942.

The USS aircraft carrier in March 1944, during raids against the Palau islands.

Below, the USS Enterprise during flight operations in WW2 (footage)