USS ENTERPRISE - Ship Of The Week #23 5/23/2015

[Admiral2]

UNITED STATES SHIP ENTERPRISE (CV-6)​

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From cv6.org:


Enterprise entered World War II on the morning of December 7, 1941, when her scout planes encountered the Japanese squadrons attacking Pearl Harbor. Not until May 14, 1945, when a Kamikaze attack off Kyushu, Japan, left a gaping hole in her flight deck, was she forced to leave the war.


Of the more than twenty major actions of the Pacific War, Enterprise engaged in all but two. Her planes and guns downed 911 enemy planes; her bombers sank 71 ships, and damaged or destroyed 192 more. Her presence inspired both pride and fear: pride in her still unmatched combat record, and fear in the knowledge that Enterprise and hard fighting were never far apart.


The most decorated ship of the Second World War, Enterprise changed the very course of a war she seemed to have been expressly created for.


Enterprise CV-6 was the second of the three Yorktown-class carriers. One of the most successful warship designs in history, the Yorktown-class carriers were built with the experience gained from earlier carrier designs: Lexington CV-2 and Saratoga CV-3, which were built on converted battle-cruiser hulls, and Ranger CV-4, the first US carrier specifically designed as a carrier.


Enterprise, and her sister ships Yorktown CV-5 and Hornet CV-8, while of a third smaller displacement than Lexington and Saratoga, could carry practically the same number of aircraft, and 30% more aviation fuel. In other words, they could deliver the same offensive punch more times, and more efficiently. The Yorktown-class carriers were exceptionally seaworthy, and more maneuverable than their predecessors. In keeping with American carrier doctrine, they sacrificed armor and guns to maximize the number of attack planes carried. Yet, with hundreds of watertight internal compartments, they were also capable of surviving terrific battle damage.


Perhaps their primary weakness as designed was vulnerability to torpedo attack. Both Yorktown (at Midway) and Hornet (at Santa Cruz) were severely damaged by Japanese torpedoes, though it's worth noting that both ships put up considerable resistance to actually sinking afterwards. It is also noteworthy that of the all the US fleet carriers to serve in the Pacific in the first year of the war, Enterprise was the only one not to be struck by an enemy torpedo ... and near the end of that first year, she was also the only battle-ready US fleet carrier. As part of her 1943 refit at Bremerton, Washington, Enterprise acquired a torpedo blister along three quarters of her hull, above and below waterline.


Her war-time modifications also reflected the nature of the Pacific war. After the tremendous carrier battles of 1942, it was clear that anti-aircraft protection was a vital component of any surface ship's armament. By the end of 1943, Enterprise and most other combatants in the US fleet bristled with 20mm and Bofors 40mm anti-aircraft guns, two of the most effective anti-aircraft weapons of the war. Radar-controlled fire directors for both the 5" and 40mm guns - added in 1943 - gave Enterprise the ability to beat back attacking aircraft in all weather, day or night.

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MIDWAY​

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The 1976 Walter Mirisch-produced film starring Henry Fonda, Charlton Heston and Hal Holbrook tells the story of the Battle of Midway, the turning point in the Pacific War. In this battle, the USS Enterprise served as the flagship of the US Carrier Task Force commanded by Admiral Raymond Spruance.

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“A-F is having trouble with its fresh water condenser.”​

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[yt]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iwLyIMqfbf0[/yt]​

 

[RunawayStarShip]

It's a shame the Enterprise was scrapped rather than saved as a museum ship. I think I remember a quote somewhere that goes along the lines of 'the story of the Enterprise is the story of the war in the Pacific'. Of 22 available battle stars, the Enterprise had 20. If I recall correctly, she was also the first carrier to engage in night operations, earning her a new designation of CV(N)-6.

 

[CorporalCaptain]

Awe, some!

 

[Ar-Pharazon]

It's a shame the Enterprise was scrapped rather than saved as a museum ship. I think I remember a quote somewhere that goes along the lines of 'the story of the Enterprise is the story of the war in the Pacific'. Of 22 available battle stars, the Enterprise had 20. If I recall correctly, she was also the first carrier to engage in night operations, earning her a new designation of CV(N)-6.

Were they actually using the "N" for "night" back then? It stands for "nuclear" in the CVN designation since the second Enterprise.

Agreed that the first Enterprise should have been saved. Hell, a lot of ships could have been saved as museums, not just carriers.

 

[J.T.B.]

Who could not vote "awesome"?!

It's a shame the Enterprise was scrapped rather than saved as a museum ship. I think I remember a quote somewhere that goes along the lines of 'the story of the Enterprise is the story of the war in the Pacific'.

Indeed. It's heresy, but Saratoga would actually be ahead of Big E on my list of carriers to save, because of her even greater history in the early days of carrier aviation, battlecruiser origin etc. But she didn't have near the war record of Enterprise.

Of 22 available battle stars, the Enterprise had 20. If I recall correctly, she was also the first carrier to engage in night operations, earning her a new designation of CV(N)-6.

There wasn't a change of designation for night carriers. You might be thinking of the designation of the night air group and squadrons: CVG(N)-90, VF(N)-90, VT(N)-90, or the night Hellcat designation F6F-5N.

 

[MANT!]

Nevertheless, the powers that be at the time scrapped one of the most if not the most decorated ship in the US Navy..

but we did get a nifty new nuclear carrier with the name..and a fictional starship to boot..If the flagship of the US Navy during the sixties wasn't the Enterprise, we could have ended up with the USS Yorktown..and those fans from Virginia would never let us hear the end of it.

 

[Marc]

Nevertheless, the powers that be at the time scrapped one of the most if not the most decorated ship in the US Navy..

but we did get a nifty new nuclear carrier with the name..and a fictional starship to boot..If the flagship of the US Navy during the sixties wasn't the Enterprise, we could have ended up with the USS Yorktown..and those fans from Virginia would never let us hear the end of it.

unfortunately the nuclear Enterprise is following her predecessor the scrappers

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_En...prise_(CVN-65)_Dismantling,_December_2014.png

But the next Nuclear Carrier (CVN-80) will carry the name.

 

[Ar-Pharazon]

The amount of destruction to CVN-65 to remove her reactors, plus the potential leftover radiation, made the 2nd Enterprise a bad choice for a museum.

Probably the same with Nimitz class ships.

The CV-6 would have been a better option for a museum, just due to her record.

 

[Marc]

The amount of destruction to CVN-65 to remove her reactors, plus the potential leftover radiation, made the 2nd Enterprise a bad choice for a museum.

Probably the same with Nimitz class ships.

The CV-6 would have been a better option for a museum, just due to her record.

But I guess in 1958 the navy wanted every last dime they could out of her instead of donating her for presevation.

bastards.

 

[Ar-Pharazon]

The amount of destruction to CVN-65 to remove her reactors, plus the potential leftover radiation, made the 2nd Enterprise a bad choice for a museum.

Probably the same with Nimitz class ships.

The CV-6 would have been a better option for a museum, just due to her record.

But I guess in 1958 the navy wanted every last dime they could out of her instead of donating her for presevation.

bastards.

Probably. I mean, I can understand during the war the dire need for the metal.

Plus there's a massive cost to rehab an old ship for safety purposes as a museum, then the upkeep, etc.

 

[Marc]

The amount of destruction to CVN-65 to remove her reactors, plus the potential leftover radiation, made the 2nd Enterprise a bad choice for a museum.

Probably the same with Nimitz class ships.

The CV-6 would have been a better option for a museum, just due to her record.

But I guess in 1958 the navy wanted every last dime they could out of her instead of donating her for presevation.

bastards.

Probably. I mean, I can understand during the war the dire need for the metal.

Plus there's a massive cost to rehab an old ship for safety purposes as a museum, then the upkeep, etc.

Which the preservation organisation has responsility but it becomes financially easier if they can simply devote their money totally to that side of things rather than trying to outbid a scrapper

I can understand their might be some costs to the navy for decomissioing an old ship such as the removal of classified equipment but don't know if the scrap value they recieve for a ship (such as the CV-6 Enterprise) comes into play there.

 

[J.T.B.]

The navy's main concern was budget cuts. It cost money to maintain a ship in the reserve fleet, and with the increasing size of aircraft it didn't make sense to keep Big E in mothballs as an ASW carrier when there was an abundance of larger Essexes to choose from. The Enterprise veterans association was given the option of keeping her as a museum, but would have to cover the entire cost and only had six months to raise $2 million to move her from NJ to the DC area and convert her to suitability for use as a museum. They didn't make it, so she went to the scrappers.

 

[Marc]

The navy's main concern was budget cuts. It cost money to maintain a ship in the reserve fleet, and with the increasing size of aircraft it didn't make sense to keep Big E in mothballs as an ASW carrier when there was an abundance of larger Essexes to choose from. The Enterprise veterans association was given the option of keeping her as a museum, but would have to cover the entire cost and only had six months to raise $2 million to move her from NJ to the DC area and convert her to suitability for use as a museum. They didn't make it, so she went to the scrappers.

Given the amount and the time frame it's also like there was no interest to the point of wanting her to go for scrap especiallly as she had sat decommssion for 12 years before disposal.

According to the wiki entry (reference is the a book on U.S Carriers), Enterprise was going to be handed over to New York as a permenant memorial in 1949 but the plans were put on put

 

[publiusr]

The new Enterprise
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Enterprise_(CVN-80)

 

[Starborn Dragon]

I've always wanted to see deck plans for the ship to see the interior layout.

 

[The Old Mixer]

Are we ever going to get around to building that damned ringship?

 

[Keith1701]

Awe, some!

Awesome, it set the way of the future for great ship of the starship U.S.S. Enterprise NCC 1701