An international harvester aircraft tug on USS Hornet. Photo courtesy of Paul G. Allen’s Vulcan Inc.

Ship Launched Doolittle Raid, Helped Win the Battle of Midway

Discovery Made by Expedition Team aboard Paul G. Allen’s R/V Petrel

Wreckage of the World War II aircraft carrier USS Hornet was discovered in late January 2019 by the expedition crew of Paul G. Allen’s Research Vessel (R/V) Petrel. Hornet was found 5,400 meters (nearly 17,500 feet) below the surface, resting on the floor of the South Pacific Ocean around the Solomon Islands.

Hornet was best known for its part in the fateful Doolittle Raid that was launched in April of 1942, which was the first air-𝐛𝐨𝐫𝐧e attack of Japanese homeland targets including Tokyo.

The U.S. Navy aircraft carrier USS Hornet (CV-8) photographed circa late 1941, soon after completion, probably at a U.S. East Coast port

Led by U.S. Army Lt. Col. James Doolittle, all the 16 B-25 planes that were launched from Hornet were unable to land at their designated airᵴtriƥ in China, but the raid provided a boost to American morale and put Japan on alert about our covert air capabilities.

In June, Hornet was one of three American carriers that surprised and sunk four Japanese carriers at Midway, turning the tide of war in the Pacific.

Orders in hand, Navy Capt. Marc A. Mitscher, skipper of the USS Hornet (CV-8) chats with Lt. Col. James Doolittle, leader of the Army Air Forces attack group. (U.S.Navy photo)

The ship was sunk during the exceptionally vicious Battle of Santa Cruz Island that started on October 25, 1943. Hornet proved an especially determined ship over the next 24 hours. Enduring a relentless, coordinated attack by Japanese dive-bombers and torpedo planes, her crew was ultimately forced to abandon ship due to damage and resulting fires.

A Mitchell lines up as it prepares to take off to bomb the Japanese home islands, 18 April 1942. (U.S. Navy Photograph NH 53420, Naval History and Heritage Command)

She then defied American efforts to scuttle her with 16 torpedoes and 369 rounds of 5” shells. When Japanese forces approached shortly thereafter and fired four torpedoes from two Japanese destroyers late in the evening on October 26, Hornet finally succumbed and slipped beneath the surface. She lost 111 sailors from her crew of nearly 2,200.

 

“With the loss of Hornet and serious damage to Enterprise, the Battle of Santa Cruz was a Japanese victory, but at an extremely high cost,” said Rear Admiral (Ret.) Samuel Cox, director of Naval History and Heritage Command. “About half the Japanese aircraft engaged were shot down by greatly improved U.S. Navy anti-aircraft defenses. As a result, the Japanese carriers did not engage again in battle for almost another two years.”

Japanese planes swamp Hornet’s defenses at the Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands, 26 October 1942. (U.S. Navy Photograph 80-G-33947, National Archives and Records Administration, Still Pictures Division, College Park, Md.)

The discovery of Hornet was made during R/V Petrel’s first mission of 2019 after relocating from the Philippine Sea to the Solomon Islands to spend winter months in this arena. Operating out of Guadalcanal, the area is rich in history and prominence in terms of naval engagements.

“We had Hornet on our list of WWII warships that we wanted to locate because of its place in history as an aircraft carrier that saw many pivotal moments in naval battles,” said Robert Kraft, director of subsea operations for Vulcan. “Paul Allen was particularly interested in historically significant and capital ships, so this mission and discovery honor his legacy.”

Director of Subsea Operations, Robert Kraft, inspecting a sonar image. Photo courtesy of Paul G. Allen’s Vulcan Inc.

 

A five-inch gun director on USS Hornet. Photo courtesy of Paul G. Allen’s Vulcan Inc.

The 10-person expedition team on the 250-foot R/V Petrel was able to locate Hornet’s position by piecing together data from national and naval archives that included official deck logs and action reports from other ships engaged in the battle. Positions and sightings from nine other U.S. warships in the area were plotted on a chart to generate the starting point for the search grid.

The AUV Hydroid Remus 6000 is deployed from the R/V Petrel. The autonomous underwater vehicle is capable of operations in up to 6,000 meters of water. Photo courtesy of Paul G. Allen’s Vulcan Inc.

In the case of Hornet, she was discovered on the first dive mission of Petrel’s autonomous underwater vehicle and confirmed by video footage from the remotely operated vehicle, both pieces of equipment rated to dive down to 6,000 meters.

The underwater hull of USS Hornetvisible on the screenin the online room. Photo courtesy of Paul G. Allen’s Vulcan Inc.

 

Signal horn atop the tower of the USS Hornet. Photo courtesy of Paul G. Allen’s Vulcan Inc.

 

F4F-4 Wildcat with its wings folded. Photo courtesy of Paul G. Allen’s Vulcan Inc.

 

An international harvester aircraft tug on USS Hornet. Photo courtesy of Paul G. Allen’s Vulcan Inc.

 

A five-inch gun on USS Hornet. Photo courtesy of Paul G. Allen’s Vulcan Inc.

USS HORNET (CV-8)

Commissioned October 20, 1941, USS Hornet (CV8) was a Yorktown-Class aircraft carrier that operated with an air-wing of approximately 90 planes that included fighters, dive bombers and torpedo bombers. With a range of 12,500 nautical miles, it was serviced by a crew of more than 2,200 sailors during peak wartime activities.

Hornet moors alongside Pier 7, NOB Norfolk, February 1942. The planes parked on the forward end of her flight deck (visible in the foreground) are Grumman F4F-4 Wildcats of VF-8 and Curtiss SBC-4s from either VB-8 or VS-8. (U.S. Navy Photograph 19-N-28429, National Archives and Records Administration, Still Pictures Division, College Park, Md.)

Hornet was the launch platform for the famed Doolittle raid, planned and led by U.S. Army Lt. Col. James Doolittle, and conducted on April 18, 1942. Sixteen Army B-25s took off on the mission to bomb Tokyo and other strategic targets with the understanding that they would not be able to return to Hornet.

B-25B Mitchell bomber takes off from the aircraft carrier USS Hornet (CV-8) during the “Doolittle Raid”.

When they feared their secret force had been spotted by a Japanese ship, the Americans decided to launch early, more than 650 miles off the coast of Japan. After their missions, the 16 aircraft were known to have ditched either at sea, in China or in Russia. This was the first air-operation to strike Japan and proved an important American morale boost since the devastating Pearl Harbor attack.

The U.S. Navy aircraft carrier USS Hornet (CV-8), severely listing, is abandoned by her crew at about 17-00 hrs during the Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands on 26 October 1942.

The ship also participated in the pivotal Battle of Midway and ultimately earned four battle stars for her service before she was sunk in the Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands the evening of October 26, 1942. Her eventual sinking came after an initial hit from a coordinated attack by dive bombers and torpedo planes.

 

The crew was forced to abandon ship, before unsuccessful efforts from the Americans to first tow and scuttle her. Hornet was finally finished off by torpedoes from Japanese destroyers Makigumo and Akigumo. The ship lost 111 of her sailors and was the last US fleet carrier sunk in WWII.