127 AMERYKAŃSKI LOTNISKOWIEC USS YORKTOWN

USS Yorktown II (CV-10) was an American aircraft carrier laid down in 1941, launched in January 1943, and commissioned with the US Navy in April 1943. The length of the ship - at the time of launching - was 250 m, width 33 m, and full displacement - 41,000 tons. The maximum speed of the USS Yorktown II aircraft carrier was up to 33 knots, and its main armament was from 80 to 100 on-board planes. USS Yorktown II was the second Essex-class aircraft carrier. Ships of this type were the main American aircraft carriers during the Pacific War of 1943-1945. This type included as many as 24 aircraft carriers that entered the line until Japan signed the surrender in September 1945! Their construction was based on the experience gained from the operation of Lexington and Yorktown units, as well as not having to comply with any tonnage restrictions. The emphasis was primarily on the number of planes taken and the maximum speed at the expense of the armor of the landing deck. Interestingly, the Essex-class aircraft carriers were built in such a way that the hangar was not an integral part of the fuselage, but a structure suspended under the flight deck. Such a solution made the ships of this type relatively easy to damage, but much more difficult to sink as a result of an air attack. In the course of the war in the Pacific, anti-aircraft weapons were systematically strengthened on ships of this type. The USS Yorktown II (CV-10) aircraft carrier began its service in World War II by participating in the fighting in the area of Marcus Island in August 1943. In November of the same year, the carrier took part in the battles for the Gilbert Islands, and in January 1944 it supported American operations in the Marshall Islands area. In June 1944, he took part in the Battle of the Philippine Sea, in which his deck planes sank the Japanese carrier Zuikaku. In November of the same year, he took a limited part in the Battle of Leyte Bay. In January 1945, the USS Yorktown II operated in the region of Taiwan and Saigon, and in April of the same year it supported the Okinawa landing, among others, contributing significantly to the sinking of the battleship Yamato. After the end of World War II, the USS Yorktown II was placed in reserve, but was returned to service in 1953, and in 1955 it was subjected to extensive modernization and adapted to operations with jet aircraft. In 1970 she was decommissioned and in 1975 she became a museum ship based in the Charleston City area.