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USS Langley (CV-1)
Encyclopedia
USS Langley (CV-1/AV-3) was the United States Navy
's first aircraft carrier
, converted in 1920 from the collier
USS Jupiter (AC-3), and also the U.S. Navy's first electrically propelled ship. Conversion of another collier was planned but canceled when the Washington Naval Treaty
required the cancellation of the partially built battlecruiser
s Lexington and Saratoga, freeing up their hulls for conversion to the aircraft carriers and . Langley was named after Samuel Pierpont Langley
, an American aviation pioneer. Following another conversion, to a seaplane tender
, Langley fought in World War II
. On 27 February 1942, she was attacked by dive bomber
sof the Japanese
21st and 23rd Naval Air Flotillas and so badly damaged that she had to be scuttled
by her escorts.
of Vallejo, California
. She was launched
on 14 August 1912 sponsored by Mrs. Thomas F. Ruhm; and commissioned
on 7 April 1913 under Commander
Joseph M. Reeves
. Her sister ships were , which disappeared without a trace during World War I, , and , which disappeared on the same route as Cyclops in World War II.
After successfully passing her trials, Jupiter embarked a United States Marine Corps
detachment at San Francisco, California
, and reported to the Pacific Fleet
at Mazatlán
Mexico
on 27 April 1914, bolstering U.S. naval strength on the Mexican Pacific coast during the tense days of the Veracruz crisis. She remained on the Pacific coast until she departed for Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
on 10 October. En route, the collier steamed through the Panama Canal
on Columbus Day
, the first vessel to transit it from west to east.
Prior to America's entry into World War I
, she cruised the Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico
attached to the Atlantic Fleet
Auxiliary Division. The ship arrived Norfolk, Virginia
on 6 April 1917, and, assigned to NOTS, interrupted her coaling operations by two cargo voyages to France
in June 1917 and November 1918. The first voyage transported a naval aviation detachment of 7 officers and 122 men to England. It was the first U.S. aviation detachment to arrive in Europe and was commanded by Lieutenant
Kenneth Whiting, who became Langley′s first executive officer five years later. Jupiter was back in Norfolk on 23 January 1919 whence she sailed for Brest
, France
on 8 March for coaling duty in European waters to expedite the return of victorious veterans to the United States. Upon reaching Norfolk on 17 August, the ship was transferred to the West Coast. Her conversion to an aircraft carrier
was authorized on 11 July 1919, and she sailed to Hampton Roads
, Virginia
on 12 December, where she decommissioned on 24 March 1920.
at the Navy Yard, Norfolk, Virginia
, for the purpose of conducting experiments in the new idea of seaborne aviation. On 11 April 1920, she was renamed Langley in honor of Samuel Pierpont Langley
, an American astronomer, physicist, aeronautics pioneer and aircraft engineer, and she was given hull classification symbol
CV-1. She recommissioned on 20 March 1922 with Commander Kenneth Whiting in command. The naming of Langley was one of many shots in a long feud between Orville Wright
and the U.S. Government.
As the first American aircraft carrier, Langley was the scene of numerous momentous events. On 17 October 1922, Lt. Virgil C. Griffin piloted the first plane—a Vought VE-7
—launched from her decks. Though this was not the first time an airplane had taken off from a ship, and though Langley was not the first ship with an installed flight deck, this one launching was of monumental importance to the modern U.S. Navy. The era of the aircraft carrier was born introducing into the Navy what was to become the vanguard of its forces in the future. With Langley underway nine days later, Lieutenant Commander
Godfrey de Courcelles Chevalier made the first landing in an Aeromarine 39B
. On 18 November, Cdr. Whiting—at the controls of a PT—was the first aviator to be catapulted from a carrier's deck.
A relatively unique feature of Langley was provision for a carrier pigeon
house on the stern between the 5 in (127 mm)/51 cal guns. Pigeons had been carried aboard seaplane
s for message transport since World War I, and were to be carried on aircraft operated from Langley. The pigeons were trained at the Norfolk Naval Shipyard
while Langley was undergoing conversion. As long as the pigeons were released a few at a time for exercise, they returned to the ship; but when the whole flock was released while Langley was anchored off Tangier Island, the pigeons flew south and roosted in the cranes of the Norfolk shipyard. The pigeons never went to sea again and the former pigeon house became the executive officer's quarters; but the early plans for conversion of Lexington and Saratoga included a compartment for pigeons.
By 15 January 1923, Langley had begun flight operations and tests in the Caribbean Sea
for carrier landings. In June, she steamed to Washington, DC, to give a demonstration at a flying exhibition before civil and military dignitaries. She arrived at Norfolk on 13 June, and commenced training along the Atlantic coast and Caribbean which carried her through the end of the year. In 1924, Langley participated in more maneuvers and exhibitions, and spent the summer at Norfolk for repairs and alterations, she departed for the west coast late in the year and arrived San Diego, California
on 29 November to join the Pacific Battle Fleet. For the next 12 years, she operated off the California coast and Hawaii
engaged in training fleet units, experimentation, pilot training, and tactical-fleet problems.
On 25 October 1936, she put into Mare Island Navy Yard, California
for overhaul and conversion to a seaplane tender
. Though her career as a carrier had ended, her well-trained pilots had proved invaluable to the next two carriers, and (commissioned on 14 December and 16 November 1927, respectively).
Langley completed conversion on 26 February 1937 and was assigned hull classification symbol
AV-3 on 11 April. She was assigned to Aircraft Scouting Force and commenced her tending operations out of Seattle, Washington
, Sitka, Alaska, Pearl Harbor
, and San Diego, California
. She departed for a brief deployment with the Atlantic Fleet from 1 February-10 July 1939, and then steamed to assume her duties with the Pacific Fleet at Manila
arriving on 24 September.
On the entry of the U.S. into World War II
, Langley was anchored off Cavite
, Philippines
. On 8 December, following the invasion of the Philippines by Japan, she departed Cavite for Balikpapan
, in the Dutch East Indies
. As Japanese advances continued, Langley departed for Australia
, arriving in Darwin
on 1 January 1942. She then became part of the American-British-Dutch-Australian Command
(ABDACOM) naval forces. Until 11 January, Langley assisted the Royal Australian Air Force
in running anti-submarine patrol
s out of Darwin.
Langley went to Fremantle, Australia
to pick up Allied aircraft and transport them to Southeast Asia. Carrying 32 P-40 fighter
s belonging to the Far East Air Force's 13th Pursuit Squadron (Provisional), she and a convoy departed Fremantle on 22 February. Langley left the convoy five days later to deliver the planes to Tjilatjap (Cilacap), Java.
In the early hours of 27 February, Langley rendezvoused with her anti-submarine screen, the destroyer
s and . At 11:40, about 75 mi (120.7 km) south of Tjilatjap, nine Aichi D3A
1 "Val" dive bomber
s of the Japanese 21st and 23rd Naval Air Flotillas attacked her. The first and second Japanese strikes were unsuccessful, but during the third, Langley took five hits and 16 crewmen were killed. The topside burst into flames, steering was impaired, and the ship developed a 10° list to port. Unable to negotiate the narrow mouth of Tjilatjap harbor, Langley went dead in the water, as her engine room flooded. At 13:32, the order to abandon ship was passed. The escorting destroyers fired nine 4 in (101.6 mm) shells and two torpedo
es into Langley, to ensure she didn't fall into enemy hands, and she sank. Many of her crew and passengers—including 31 of the 33 pilots of the 13th PS—were lost when USS Edsall (DD-219)
was later sunk with all hands.
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
's first aircraft carrier
Aircraft carrier
An aircraft carrier is a warship designed with a primary mission of deploying and recovering aircraft, acting as a seagoing airbase. Aircraft carriers thus allow a naval force to project air power worldwide without having to depend on local bases for staging aircraft operations...
, converted in 1920 from the collier
Collier (ship type)
Collier is a historical term used to describe a bulk cargo ship designed to carry coal, especially for naval use by coal-fired warships. In the late 18th century a number of wooden-hulled sailing colliers gained fame after being adapted for use in voyages of exploration in the South Pacific, for...
USS Jupiter (AC-3), and also the U.S. Navy's first electrically propelled ship. Conversion of another collier was planned but canceled when the Washington Naval Treaty
Washington Naval Treaty
The Washington Naval Treaty, also known as the Five-Power Treaty, was an attempt to cap and limit, and "prevent 'further' costly escalation" of the naval arms race that had begun after World War I between various International powers, each of which had significant naval fleets. The treaty was...
required the cancellation of the partially built battlecruiser
Battlecruiser
Battlecruisers were large capital ships built in the first half of the 20th century. They were developed in the first decade of the century as the successor to the armoured cruiser, but their evolution was more closely linked to that of the dreadnought battleship...
s Lexington and Saratoga, freeing up their hulls for conversion to the aircraft carriers and . Langley was named after Samuel Pierpont Langley
Samuel Pierpont Langley
Samuel Pierpont Langley was an American astronomer, physicist, inventor of the bolometer and pioneer of aviation...
, an American aviation pioneer. Following another conversion, to a seaplane tender
Seaplane tender
A seaplane tender is a ship that provides facilities for operating seaplanes. These ships were the first aircraft carriers and appeared just before the First World War.-History:...
, Langley fought in World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. On 27 February 1942, she was attacked by dive bomber
Dive bomber
A dive bomber is a bomber aircraft that dives directly at its targets in order to provide greater accuracy for the bomb it drops. Diving towards the target reduces the distance the bomb has to fall, which is the primary factor in determining the accuracy of the drop...
sof the Japanese
Empire of Japan
The Empire of Japan is the name of the state of Japan that existed from the Meiji Restoration on 3 January 1868 to the enactment of the post-World War II Constitution of...
21st and 23rd Naval Air Flotillas and so badly damaged that she had to be scuttled
Scuttling
Scuttling is the act of deliberately sinking a ship by allowing water to flow into the hull.This can be achieved in several ways—valves or hatches can be opened to the sea, or holes may be ripped into the hull with brute force or with explosives...
by her escorts.
Collier
President William H. Taft attended the ceremony when Jupiter′s keel was laid down on 18 October 1911 at the Mare Island Naval ShipyardMare Island Naval Shipyard
The Mare Island Naval Shipyard was the first United States Navy base established on the Pacific Ocean. It is located 25 miles northeast of San Francisco in Vallejo, California. The Napa River goes through the Mare Island Strait and separates the peninsula shipyard from the main portion of the...
of Vallejo, California
Vallejo, California
Vallejo is the largest city in Solano County, California, United States. The population was 115,942 at the 2010 census. It is located in the San Francisco Bay Area on the northeastern shore of San Pablo Bay...
. She was launched
Ship naming and launching
The ceremonies involved in naming and launching naval ships are based in traditions thousands of years old.-Methods of launch:There are three principal methods of conveying a new ship from building site to water, only two of which are called "launching." The oldest, most familiar, and most widely...
on 14 August 1912 sponsored by Mrs. Thomas F. Ruhm; and commissioned
Ship commissioning
Ship commissioning is the act or ceremony of placing a ship in active service, and may be regarded as a particular application of the general concepts and practices of project commissioning. The term is most commonly applied to the placing of a warship in active duty with its country's military...
on 7 April 1913 under Commander
Commander (United States)
In the United States, commander is a military rank that is also sometimes used as a military title, depending on the branch of service. It is also used as a rank or title in some organizations outside of the military, particularly in police and law enforcement.-Naval rank:In the United States...
Joseph M. Reeves
Joseph M. Reeves
Joseph Mason "Bull" Reeves was an admiral in the United States Navy, who was an early and important supporter of U.S. Naval Aviation...
. Her sister ships were , which disappeared without a trace during World War I, , and , which disappeared on the same route as Cyclops in World War II.
After successfully passing her trials, Jupiter embarked a United States Marine Corps
United States Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...
detachment at San Francisco, California
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
, and reported to the Pacific Fleet
United States Pacific Fleet
The United States Pacific Fleet is a Pacific Ocean theater-level component command of the United States Navy that provides naval resources under the operational control of the United States Pacific Command. Its home port is at Pearl Harbor Naval Base, Hawaii. It is commanded by Admiral Patrick M...
at Mazatlán
Mazatlán
Mazatlán is a city in the Mexican state of Sinaloa; the surrounding municipio for which the city serves as the municipal seat is Mazatlán Municipality. It is located at on the Pacific coast, across from the southernmost tip of the Baja California peninsula.Mazatlán is a Nahuatl word meaning...
Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
on 27 April 1914, bolstering U.S. naval strength on the Mexican Pacific coast during the tense days of the Veracruz crisis. She remained on the Pacific coast until she departed for Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...
on 10 October. En route, the collier steamed through the Panama Canal
Panama Canal
The Panama Canal is a ship canal in Panama that joins the Atlantic Ocean and the Pacific Ocean and is a key conduit for international maritime trade. Built from 1904 to 1914, the canal has seen annual traffic rise from about 1,000 ships early on to 14,702 vessels measuring a total of 309.6...
on Columbus Day
Columbus Day
Many countries in the New World and elsewhere celebrate the anniversary of Christopher Columbus's arrival in the Americas, which occurred on October 12, 1492, as an official holiday...
, the first vessel to transit it from west to east.
Prior to America's entry into World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, she cruised the Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico
Gulf of Mexico
The Gulf of Mexico is a partially landlocked ocean basin largely surrounded by the North American continent and the island of Cuba. It is bounded on the northeast, north and northwest by the Gulf Coast of the United States, on the southwest and south by Mexico, and on the southeast by Cuba. In...
attached to the Atlantic Fleet
United States Fleet Forces Command
The United States Fleet Forces Command is an Atlantic Ocean theater-level component command of the United States Navy that provides naval resources that are under the operational control of the United States Northern Command...
Auxiliary Division. The ship arrived Norfolk, Virginia
Norfolk, Virginia
Norfolk is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. With a population of 242,803 as of the 2010 Census, it is Virginia's second-largest city behind neighboring Virginia Beach....
on 6 April 1917, and, assigned to NOTS, interrupted her coaling operations by two cargo voyages to France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
in June 1917 and November 1918. The first voyage transported a naval aviation detachment of 7 officers and 122 men to England. It was the first U.S. aviation detachment to arrive in Europe and was commanded by Lieutenant
Lieutenant
A lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...
Kenneth Whiting, who became Langley′s first executive officer five years later. Jupiter was back in Norfolk on 23 January 1919 whence she sailed for Brest
Brest, France
Brest is a city in the Finistère department in Brittany in northwestern France. Located in a sheltered position not far from the western tip of the Breton peninsula, and the western extremity of metropolitan France, Brest is an important harbour and the second French military port after Toulon...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
on 8 March for coaling duty in European waters to expedite the return of victorious veterans to the United States. Upon reaching Norfolk on 17 August, the ship was transferred to the West Coast. Her conversion to an aircraft carrier
Aircraft carrier
An aircraft carrier is a warship designed with a primary mission of deploying and recovering aircraft, acting as a seagoing airbase. Aircraft carriers thus allow a naval force to project air power worldwide without having to depend on local bases for staging aircraft operations...
was authorized on 11 July 1919, and she sailed to Hampton Roads
Hampton Roads
Hampton Roads is the name for both a body of water and the Norfolk–Virginia Beach metropolitan area which surrounds it in southeastern Virginia, United States...
, Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
on 12 December, where she decommissioned on 24 March 1920.
Carrier
Jupiter was converted into the first U.S. aircraft carrierAircraft carrier
An aircraft carrier is a warship designed with a primary mission of deploying and recovering aircraft, acting as a seagoing airbase. Aircraft carriers thus allow a naval force to project air power worldwide without having to depend on local bases for staging aircraft operations...
at the Navy Yard, Norfolk, Virginia
Norfolk, Virginia
Norfolk is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. With a population of 242,803 as of the 2010 Census, it is Virginia's second-largest city behind neighboring Virginia Beach....
, for the purpose of conducting experiments in the new idea of seaborne aviation. On 11 April 1920, she was renamed Langley in honor of Samuel Pierpont Langley
Samuel Pierpont Langley
Samuel Pierpont Langley was an American astronomer, physicist, inventor of the bolometer and pioneer of aviation...
, an American astronomer, physicist, aeronautics pioneer and aircraft engineer, and she was given hull classification symbol
Hull classification symbol
The United States Navy, United States Coast Guard, and United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration use hull classification symbols to identify their ship types and each individual ship within each type...
CV-1. She recommissioned on 20 March 1922 with Commander Kenneth Whiting in command. The naming of Langley was one of many shots in a long feud between Orville Wright
Wright brothers
The Wright brothers, Orville and Wilbur , were two Americans credited with inventing and building the world's first successful airplane and making the first controlled, powered and sustained heavier-than-air human flight, on December 17, 1903...
and the U.S. Government.
Vought VE-7
|-References:*; accessed 13 May 2007-External links:*...
—launched from her decks. Though this was not the first time an airplane had taken off from a ship, and though Langley was not the first ship with an installed flight deck, this one launching was of monumental importance to the modern U.S. Navy. The era of the aircraft carrier was born introducing into the Navy what was to become the vanguard of its forces in the future. With Langley underway nine days later, Lieutenant Commander
Lieutenant commander (United States)
Lieutenant commander is a mid-ranking officer rank in the United States Navy, the United States Coast Guard, the United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Corps, with the pay grade of O-4 and NATO rank code OF-3...
Godfrey de Courcelles Chevalier made the first landing in an Aeromarine 39B
Aeromarine 39B
|-References:...
. On 18 November, Cdr. Whiting—at the controls of a PT—was the first aviator to be catapulted from a carrier's deck.
A relatively unique feature of Langley was provision for a carrier pigeon
Carrier pigeon
A carrier pigeon is a homing pigeon that is used to carry messages. Using pigeons to carry messages is generally called "pigeon post". Most homing or racing type varieties are used to carry messages. There is no specific breed actually called "carrier pigeon"...
house on the stern between the 5 in (127 mm)/51 cal guns. Pigeons had been carried aboard seaplane
Seaplane
A seaplane is a fixed-wing aircraft capable of taking off and landing on water. Seaplanes that can also take off and land on airfields are a subclass called amphibian aircraft...
s for message transport since World War I, and were to be carried on aircraft operated from Langley. The pigeons were trained at the Norfolk Naval Shipyard
Norfolk Naval Shipyard
The Norfolk Naval Shipyard, often called the Norfolk Navy Yard and abbreviated as NNSY, is a U.S. Navy facility in Portsmouth, Virginia, for building, remodeling, and repairing the Navy's ships. It's the oldest and largest industrial facility that belongs to the U.S. Navy as well as the most...
while Langley was undergoing conversion. As long as the pigeons were released a few at a time for exercise, they returned to the ship; but when the whole flock was released while Langley was anchored off Tangier Island, the pigeons flew south and roosted in the cranes of the Norfolk shipyard. The pigeons never went to sea again and the former pigeon house became the executive officer's quarters; but the early plans for conversion of Lexington and Saratoga included a compartment for pigeons.
By 15 January 1923, Langley had begun flight operations and tests in the Caribbean Sea
Caribbean Sea
The Caribbean Sea is a sea of the Atlantic Ocean located in the tropics of the Western hemisphere. It is bounded by Mexico and Central America to the west and southwest, to the north by the Greater Antilles, and to the east by the Lesser Antilles....
for carrier landings. In June, she steamed to Washington, DC, to give a demonstration at a flying exhibition before civil and military dignitaries. She arrived at Norfolk on 13 June, and commenced training along the Atlantic coast and Caribbean which carried her through the end of the year. In 1924, Langley participated in more maneuvers and exhibitions, and spent the summer at Norfolk for repairs and alterations, she departed for the west coast late in the year and arrived San Diego, California
San Diego, California
San Diego is the eighth-largest city in the United States and second-largest city in California. The city is located on the coast of the Pacific Ocean in Southern California, immediately adjacent to the Mexican border. The birthplace of California, San Diego is known for its mild year-round...
on 29 November to join the Pacific Battle Fleet. For the next 12 years, she operated off the California coast and Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
engaged in training fleet units, experimentation, pilot training, and tactical-fleet problems.
Seaplane tender
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
for overhaul and conversion to a seaplane tender
Seaplane tender
A seaplane tender is a ship that provides facilities for operating seaplanes. These ships were the first aircraft carriers and appeared just before the First World War.-History:...
. Though her career as a carrier had ended, her well-trained pilots had proved invaluable to the next two carriers, and (commissioned on 14 December and 16 November 1927, respectively).
Langley completed conversion on 26 February 1937 and was assigned hull classification symbol
Hull classification symbol
The United States Navy, United States Coast Guard, and United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration use hull classification symbols to identify their ship types and each individual ship within each type...
AV-3 on 11 April. She was assigned to Aircraft Scouting Force and commenced her tending operations out of Seattle, Washington
Seattle, Washington
Seattle is the county seat of King County, Washington. With 608,660 residents as of the 2010 Census, Seattle is the largest city in the Northwestern United States. The Seattle metropolitan area of about 3.4 million inhabitants is the 15th largest metropolitan area in the country...
, Sitka, Alaska, Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor, known to Hawaiians as Puuloa, is a lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. Much of the harbor and surrounding lands is a United States Navy deep-water naval base. It is also the headquarters of the U.S. Pacific Fleet...
, and San Diego, California
San Diego, California
San Diego is the eighth-largest city in the United States and second-largest city in California. The city is located on the coast of the Pacific Ocean in Southern California, immediately adjacent to the Mexican border. The birthplace of California, San Diego is known for its mild year-round...
. She departed for a brief deployment with the Atlantic Fleet from 1 February-10 July 1939, and then steamed to assume her duties with the Pacific Fleet at Manila
Manila
Manila is the capital of the Philippines. It is one of the sixteen cities forming Metro Manila.Manila is located on the eastern shores of Manila Bay and is bordered by Navotas and Caloocan to the north, Quezon City to the northeast, San Juan and Mandaluyong to the east, Makati on the southeast,...
arriving on 24 September.
On the entry of the U.S. into World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, Langley was anchored off Cavite
Cavite City
The City of Cavite is a fourth class city in the province of Cavite, Philippines. The city occupies a hook shaped peninsula jutting out into Manila Bay. Cavite City used to be the capital of the province...
, Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
. On 8 December, following the invasion of the Philippines by Japan, she departed Cavite for Balikpapan
Balikpapan
Balikpapan is a seaport city on the eastern coast of the island of Borneo, Indonesia, in the East Kalimantan province, a resource-rich region well known for its timber, mining, and petroleum export products. Two harbors, Semayang and Kariangau , and the Sepinggan International Airport are the main...
, in the Dutch East Indies
Dutch East Indies
The Dutch East Indies was a Dutch colony that became modern Indonesia following World War II. It was formed from the nationalised colonies of the Dutch East India Company, which came under the administration of the Netherlands government in 1800....
. As Japanese advances continued, Langley departed for Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, arriving in Darwin
Darwin, Northern Territory
Darwin is the capital city of the Northern Territory, Australia. Situated on the Timor Sea, Darwin has a population of 127,500, making it by far the largest and most populated city in the sparsely populated Northern Territory, but the least populous of all Australia's capital cities...
on 1 January 1942. She then became part of the American-British-Dutch-Australian Command
American-British-Dutch-Australian Command
The American-British-Dutch-Australian Command, or ABDACOM, was a short-lived, supreme command for all Allied forces in South East Asia, in early 1942, during the Pacific War in World War II...
(ABDACOM) naval forces. Until 11 January, Langley assisted the Royal Australian Air Force
Royal Australian Air Force
The Royal Australian Air Force is the air force branch of the Australian Defence Force. The RAAF was formed in March 1921. It continues the traditions of the Australian Flying Corps , which was formed on 22 October 1912. The RAAF has taken part in many of the 20th century's major conflicts...
in running anti-submarine patrol
Anti-submarine warfare
Anti-submarine warfare is a branch of naval warfare that uses surface warships, aircraft, or other submarines to find, track and deter, damage or destroy enemy submarines....
s out of Darwin.
Fremantle, Western Australia
Fremantle is a city in Western Australia, located at the mouth of the Swan River. Fremantle Harbour serves as the port of Perth, the state capital. Fremantle was the first area settled by the Swan River colonists in 1829...
to pick up Allied aircraft and transport them to Southeast Asia. Carrying 32 P-40 fighter
Fighter aircraft
A fighter aircraft is a military aircraft designed primarily for air-to-air combat with other aircraft, as opposed to a bomber, which is designed primarily to attack ground targets...
s belonging to the Far East Air Force's 13th Pursuit Squadron (Provisional), she and a convoy departed Fremantle on 22 February. Langley left the convoy five days later to deliver the planes to Tjilatjap (Cilacap), Java.
In the early hours of 27 February, Langley rendezvoused with her anti-submarine screen, the destroyer
Destroyer
In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast and maneuverable yet long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against smaller, powerful, short-range attackers. Destroyers, originally called torpedo-boat destroyers in 1892, evolved from...
s and . At 11:40, about 75 mi (120.7 km) south of Tjilatjap, nine Aichi D3A
Aichi D3A
The , Allied reporting name "Val") was a World War II carrier-borne dive bomber of the Imperial Japanese Navy . It was the primary dive bomber in the Imperial Japanese Navy, and participated in almost all actions, including Pearl Harbor....
1 "Val" dive bomber
Dive bomber
A dive bomber is a bomber aircraft that dives directly at its targets in order to provide greater accuracy for the bomb it drops. Diving towards the target reduces the distance the bomb has to fall, which is the primary factor in determining the accuracy of the drop...
s of the Japanese 21st and 23rd Naval Air Flotillas attacked her. The first and second Japanese strikes were unsuccessful, but during the third, Langley took five hits and 16 crewmen were killed. The topside burst into flames, steering was impaired, and the ship developed a 10° list to port. Unable to negotiate the narrow mouth of Tjilatjap harbor, Langley went dead in the water, as her engine room flooded. At 13:32, the order to abandon ship was passed. The escorting destroyers fired nine 4 in (101.6 mm) shells and two torpedo
Torpedo
The modern torpedo is a self-propelled missile weapon with an explosive warhead, launched above or below the water surface, propelled underwater towards a target, and designed to detonate either on contact with it or in proximity to it.The term torpedo was originally employed for...
es into Langley, to ensure she didn't fall into enemy hands, and she sank. Many of her crew and passengers—including 31 of the 33 pilots of the 13th PS—were lost when USS Edsall (DD-219)
USS Edsall (DD-219)
USS Edsall , named for Seaman Norman Eckley Edsall , was a Clemson-class destroyer of the United States Navy....
was later sunk with all hands.
See also
External links
- Images on Naval Historical Center page
- Image archive at San Diego Air & Space Museum Archives
- Langley at NavSource.org