21 February 1945 A.D. Japanese Kamikazes Sink USS BISMARCK SEA (CVE-95) Off Iwo Jima—318 Sailors Lost; Last WWII US Aircraft Carrier to be Sunk
21 February 1945 A.D. Japanese Kamikazes Sink USS BISMARCK SEA (CVE-95) Off Iwo Jima—318
Sailors Lost; Last WWII US Aircraft Carrier to be Sunk
1942 - USS Triton (SS 201)
sinks Japanese merchant cargo vessel Shokyu Maru in the East China Sea, 60
miles south of Quelpart Island.
1945 - Japanese kamikazes sink escort carrier USS Bismarck Sea (CVE 95) while off Iwo Jima with the loss of 318 men. USS Saratoga (CV-3) is struck by five kamikazes but survives, although 123 men are killed.
1952 - During the Korean War, USS Symbol (AM 123), is conducting a routine check sweep in the vicinity of Mayang-do in company with USS Murrelet (AM 372), when she observes four splashes from an estimated 75 mm shore battery. The ships return fire, which silences the enemy guns.
1987 - Guided Missile Cruiser USS Mobile Bay (CG 53) is commissioned.
1991 - During Operation Desert Storm, AV-8B aircraft from Marine Attack Squadron 331 conduct the first of 243 sorties off the deck of USS Nassau (LHA-4).
1945 - Japanese kamikazes sink escort carrier USS Bismarck Sea (CVE 95) while off Iwo Jima with the loss of 318 men. USS Saratoga (CV-3) is struck by five kamikazes but survives, although 123 men are killed.
1952 - During the Korean War, USS Symbol (AM 123), is conducting a routine check sweep in the vicinity of Mayang-do in company with USS Murrelet (AM 372), when she observes four splashes from an estimated 75 mm shore battery. The ships return fire, which silences the enemy guns.
1987 - Guided Missile Cruiser USS Mobile Bay (CG 53) is commissioned.
1991 - During Operation Desert Storm, AV-8B aircraft from Marine Attack Squadron 331 conduct the first of 243 sorties off the deck of USS Nassau (LHA-4).
21 February 1945 A.D. USS BISMARCK SEA (CVE-95) Last
Aircraft Carrier to be Sunk in WWII
Editors. “1945 – The Bismarck Sea was the last U.S. Navy aircraft carrier to be sunk in
combat during World War II.” This Day in U.S.
Military History. N.d. https://thisdayinusmilhist.wordpress.com/2014/02/21/february-21/. Accessed 20 Feb 2015.
1945 – The
Bismarck Sea was the last U.S. Navy aircraft carrier to be sunk in combat
during World War II. The escort carrier Bismarck Sea was supporting the
invasion of Iwo Jima, when about 50 kamikazes attacked the U.S. Navy Task
Groups 58.2 and 58.3. Fleet carrier Saratoga was struck by three suicide planes
and so badly damaged that the war ended before she returned to service. At 6:45
p.m., two Mitsubishi A6M5 Zeros approached Bismarck Sea, which opened fire with
her anti-aircraft guns. One Zero was set on fire, but its suicidal pilot
pressed home his attack and crashed into the carrier abreast of the aft
elevator, which fell into the hangar deck below. Two minutes later, an internal
explosion devastated the ship, and at 7:05 p.m., Captain J.L. Pratt ordered
Abandon Ship. Ravaged by further explosions over the next three hours, Bismarck
Sea sank at 10 p.m., the last U.S. Navy carrier to go down as a result of enemy
action during World War II. Of her crew of 943, 218 officers and men lost their
lives.
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