The Enterprise (CV-6) was one of the carriers which fortuitously escaped destruction at Pearl Harbor, but her planes took part in the defence of the base. Fifteen SBD Dauntless dive-bombers of Scouting Squadron Six (VS-6) arrived at Ford Island airfield between the first and second Japanese strikes.
With the Lexington (CV-2) she launched strikes against the Marshall islands early in 1942, and against Rabaul, Wake and Marcus - expensive pin-pricks, but invaluable training for the future.
In mid-April 1942 she escorted her sister Hornet when the latter launched the Doolittle Raid on Tokyo, and her aircraft sank a number of Japanese vessels serving as pickets. Both carriers returned too late for the Battle of the Coral Sea but played a vital role at Midway a month later. Her first strike against the Japanese carriers was heavilty punished, but finally she and the Yorktown managed to cripple the Japanese flagship Akagi and then sank the Kaga and Soryu. The Enterprise and Hornet clinched the battle by scoring hits on the fourth carrier, Hiryu.
The Enterprise flew the flag of Rear Amiral Thomas C. Kinkaid at the invasion of Guadalcanal in August 1942 when her air group was responsible for defending the invasion area on 7-8 August. In the Battle of the Eastern Solomons on 24 August 1942 she was badly damaged by bombs from Japanese aircraft, which set her on fire. Fortunately the US Navy had designed its ships well, and early next morning the fires were extinguished, but the ship needed two months of repairs.
She returned in time for the Battle of Santa Cruz on 26 October 1942 when she again wore the flag of Rear Admiral Kinkaid, now in overall command of Task Forces 16 and 17, known collectively as Task Force 61. Once again she was hit by bombs, and only extraordinary ship-handling saved her from being torpedoed by Japanese carrier planes. She effected emergency repairs at Noumea [the forward base in New Caledonia] but could not be made fully battleworthy without going to a dockyard.
Before the Enterprise could leave the area she was recalled hastily to help repel a Japanese attack on Guadalcanal on the night of 11 November. Although her forward elevator was still out of action and the whole forepart of the ship was damaged by blast and fire, she was the only US carrier left [in the Pacific - Wasp had been torpedoed and sunk by a Japanese submarine, Saratoga had also been torpedoed by a submarine and was under repair on the US West coast, and Hornet had been sunk at the Battle of Santa Cruz].
Despite her injuries she continued to fly off searches as she hurried north through the Coral Sea, and although her aircraft could do nothing to help the surface forces engaged in the Battle of Guadalcanal on the night of 12-13 November, they sank the damaged battleship Hiei next day.
The strikes against the Japanese bombardment group played a vital part in fending off the Japanese attempt to relieve their ground forces on Guadalcanal, but the aircraft of Enterprise were yet to play a part in the conclusion of the battle.
Apart from 18 fighters left on board for self-defence, the entire air group was left ashore to operate from Henderson Field, and on 14 November they inflicted severe damage on the Japanese transport convoy, which had been able to get within 100 miles of tis destination.
The Enterprise and her aircraft took part in the "island-hopping" campaign, and they were involved in the operations against the Gilbert Islands, Kwajalein, Truk, Hollandia, Palau, Iwo Jima and Saipan.
In June 1944 they fought in the Battle of the Philippine Sea, and in October they fought in the Battle for Leyte Gulf.
During the assault on Okinawa in April 1945
she was hit twice by kamikazes and badly damaged. She then returned
to the United States for repairs and saw no further service [before the
ceasefire].
Acknowledgments
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