The Wreck of USS Hornet - Doolittle Raider Rediscovered, Remarkably Preserved
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- Опубликовано: 22 ноя 2024
- The second of the South Pacific carrier wrecks I have looked at, USS Hornet is in far better shape than Lexington. Hornet is also split into more than one piece, admittedly, but she isn't broken into three pieces. Moreover, her main hull is far more intact than Lexington's, albeit buried deeply in the mud.
What makes Hornet really interesting, though, is the level of preservation. Such as the various smaller details on her wreck that you don't see on a lot of other contemporary shipwrecks.
The CBS video of her discovery:
www.cbsnews.co...
My father was an SBD pilot assigned to VS-8 on the USS Hornet (CV-8). During the Battle of Santa Cruz, his squadron was attacking the Japanese carrier Shokaku as the Hornet was being bombed and torpedoed. He hit the Shokaku with a 1000 lbs. bomb but unfortunately his squadron was unable to sink it. However, it did put Shokaku out of the war for almost 7 months. During his return to the US fleet, he was attacked by a Zero which severely wounded his rear gunner. He was able to escape but when he sighted the Hornet it was dead in the water, listing, and unable to land planes. Fortunately he was able to find the USS Enterprise. After an initial wave off and with almost empty fuel tanks he was able to land. He rear gunner had lost so much blood that as his plane was being pushed aside, an Enterprise plane handler pointed at his SBD and said "Look that plane is bleeding!" His rear gunner spent 6 months in the hospital but survived and lived until 2007.
Wow.
Your dad's a hero.
@@jimsmith7212 In addition to the Battle of Santa Cruz, he also saw action at the Battle of Midway, the Battle of the Philippine Sea, as well as attacks on Japanese installations at Truk Lagoon, Hollandia, Palau, Wake Island, Wolei, the Marshall Islands, and the Caroline Islands. He was awarded the Navy Cross, the Silver Star, 2 Distinguished Flying Crosses, and 2 Air Medals.
@@BP-1988literally a hero..
Respect to your father and his service 🇺🇸
@@BP-1988 wow, a real hero
@@BP-1988 Now that's what you call a hero. He probably didn't feel like he was though. Most of the men I've talked to or heard speak never would call themselves that. The men that didn't make it back to their families are the real heros. Had several tell me that to. Sounds like he led one heck of a life during the war. To see combat in all the places he went and to make it home is awesome. To your father---- Thank you for your service and sacrifice. It is and always will be appreciated.
My dad who passed in 1996, was in bombing 8 squadron. He was aboard when she went down in the battle of Santa Cruz. He was an aviation ordinanceman in the squadron and was on board the day she was commissioned and the day she sunk. I remember growing up the stories he told me particularly about Doolittle’s raid. Kids today have no idea the sacrifice these brave men paid to get what we have today- freedom! I’m 76 years old and I also enlisted in the Navy and am a Vietnam veteran as was my dad. Thank you for the photos of the Hornet to those responsible. They bring back wonderful memories of my dad. Never expose her location!
Sad now we have open borders.
Thank you for your service to our country. I agree. The final resting place for Hornet and her crew that went down with her should never be revealed.
@@jaysmith179 Excuse me? What's wrong with having culture mingling? I sense racism
I pray they havent. Its graveyard. Needs respected as such. Lets praytheyre moral people, not just greedy ones
@@jaysmith179Yes, its pretty sad. Mexico and America now i guess are one country
That tractor still being in place and in such excellent condition is an incredibly evocative image
My Grandfather worked for IH during the War. He would be very proud his product was still in shape.
@illeyez505it’s an international harvester airport tug. Similar to the letter series farm tractors of the time period like H and M
What I find more intriguing is how gas cylinders have imploded, but those (presumably air-filled) tyres are still in pristine shape and condition.
@@affordableplumber4206 The tractor is a model A14 shop mule made by the W. F. Hebard Co. using IH parts. There is a website and FB group for this company and what was made.
Rubber tires hold remarkably well in the salt water after 81 years.
My Uncle was on the Uss Hornet CV8,when she was sunk. My Father was on the USS Pensacola in the same Battle and saw her go down. Survivors were oicked up by Destroyers and transferred to the larger ships,some to Pensacola where my Dad was able to see his brother on the Holeworth awaiting transfer to another Ship of the Line. Wonderful Vider. My uncle said the were told they were only 7 miles from land,straight down.
They were quite the generation of men and women weren't they
Wow crazy. My grandfather was on the USS Hornet when it went down too. His name was Henry Martin.
My uncle was on the Pensacola and had pictures of the hornet at sea in bad shape.
"If you find my locker you can have the $44 I've left in it." That gave me a good laugh.
That is so funny. HaHa. RIP the crew members. TD Atlanta
@@mrtomdorn😊
That was a sizable sum in 1942.
Dad remembered the roll of quarters left in his locker as well as his shoes he left on the deck of the USS Helena CL-51 in Kula Gulf before he stepped off into the water in July 1943.
My father had lost his Northwestern Championship ring for winning the Big 10 Conference for football in 1936. It was in his locker as his squadron of SBD diver bombers from the Hornet were attacking the IJN carrier Shokaku. He regretted its loss but was thankful to live and fight another day.
My friend Ed Knoebel who passed away some years ago was a Boilerman On the USS Hornet and was wounded during the attack on her.I did get a few stories out of him and I cherish the memory of my time with him and his Family at his home in Glennallen, Alaska.
Rest in peace ship and Crew !
the Hornet did not want to be forgotten, so kept spiffed up for future generations..to remind these gens what sacrifice and community togetherness..to launch Doolittle's brave band to make a statement..knowing it was their last flight..so much i want to say..but you folks know..thanks again for such an iconic ship to be viewed again..great job
The fact that the tractor is still parked in the same spot is fascinating. Thank you for the share.
That tells me that the aviation deck crew did their jobs right, nothing slipshod about the way the tractor was chained in place as often happens when everyone is in a hurry to get ready for a fight. Props to those guys. By this point in the war they knew if the ship was attacked they would be in the fight of their lives.
bet it still starts
@@thebluntrappa ...after a rebuild. I would say the rings are seized to the cylinder walls at minimum.
would the tractor be able to mow my yard. Sure it will. It was made in the USA
its chained down
I remember as an eleven year old kid attending the opening ceremonies for the 1968 USA Olympic trials in Eugene, Oregon. Jimmy Dolittle was a speaker. I was amazed, as everyone in the stadium automatically rose to their feet in respect. Today, not even the President, if anyone, would get that level of respect.
As it should be.
Got to have some huge ones to sign up for that mission let alone try to get airborne off a carrier like they did!
The current fool in the White House should be in a retirement home or prison...
Long Live the Republic! 🇺🇸
Our president doesn’t deserve any respect
That must have been interesting to see!
One thing about her and Yorktown’s wrecks are that they’re in great condition. In someways they’re like Enterprise in that they won’t die.
Yep that's the yorktown class for ya.
Big E should've never been scrapped.
@@jakurdadov6375 Very sad but yes she was
A new U.S.S. Enterprise is being built CVN 80. That name goes a long way in the navy. 🙂
Well thats one benefit of them being so deep at over 5000m its a tough environment for life
My dad was on the way to join the USS Hornet as a Wildcat pilot when she was sunk. He instead was sent to train in the Hellcat. He did end up on the replacement Hornet.
your father should visit california were his second hornet still lives im sure he was on the ship when the japs kamikaze it luckily it survived
My Great Uncle, Peter A. Duffy, was an officer and engineer aboard USS Hornet during 1942. He was wounded at the Battle of Santa Cruz and survived the war.
Thanks for posting this. My dad was a Hornet crew member from the day she was launched until the day she went down.
Awesome video! Thanks for sharing it. My uncle, Roy Pippin was a port side gunners mate and was tasked with cleaning and function testing the 1911's that were issued to the Dolittle flight crews. The Captain told him "make sure they are clean and work right, l think they are going to need them. He was manning the guns all day the Hornet went down. I guess the guns never stopped all day. Way cool to see it now!
The resolution of sonar side scans compared to twenty years ago are simply amazing.
Props to petrel for not only finding the wrecks but also keeping their locations hidden to protect them. Hopefully they haven't gone selling that info privately.
Question, have we found Shokaku and/or Zuikaku at all?
As of yet, no. If Caladan (the ones who found Johnston’s main wreck and Sammy B) head back…maybe. But for now, no one’s found either of the Shoukaku sisters.
@@skyneahistory2306 what I would give to help find them.
They have secured a special place in me.
I wonder what state they could be in.
I’m glad someone thought of them. We hear so much about US wrecks, although they were enemy combatants, they are still an important part of history.
Hiding the location is probably a good idea considering China is going after war Graves like Prince of Whales.
Both Shokaku Class have not been found. Hopefully somebody goes and find them since Petrel is no longer going out to find shipwrecks
My admiration goes to the Sailor who tied (chained) down that IH tractor.
Like its waiting to resume its duty.
I thought the very same thing...
The tug is pretty cool. It probably was used to get Doolittle's Raiders in position to launch their attack on Japan. It still has it's heavy weights attached to the rear wheels for pulling heavier aircraft around. I agree that the location of our great shipwrecks should never be divulged considering what the breakers are doing in other parts of the world.
I cannot believe how pristine this wreck looks after 80 years it's almost as if it just sunk it's amazing
I am Latino from Puerto Rico 🇵🇷 is a pity that these new generations do not appreciate the sacrifices that these heroes of the past did for our freedom 🎉 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸
Let´s say it like it is: the wreck is much safer from Chinese wreck thieves than the wrecks in Indonesian waters.
That was amazing love and respect to fellow brave sailors of all conflicts but the preservation on this beautiful ship is amazing I'm so glad I found this channel ...respect from darvel Ayrshire Scotland my friend
my grandfather was on the USS South Dakota during the battle of Santa Cruz. He watched the hornet sink. he was behind one of the big guns when a zero flew into it. he had shrapnel down one side of his body (numerous pieces all the way down) and was put in the hospital in New Caledonia to get patched up.
It's just amazing to see the ship as she was in 1942, untouched and seemingly frozen in time where she lies.
What's just as amazing is the stunning resolution of the sonar images. Also worthy of mention at 12:35 is the high pressure gas cylinder collapsed by the enormous pressure. Normally these tanks are filled to around 2200psi, but that is no match for 7500psi at that depth.
My great uncle was a gunners mate aboard the hornet. He survived and lived to be in his 90s as well.
It is impressive. It amazes me to see how well intact the tractor, jacket and F4F are on the ocean floor.
Another fine ship and crew going "in harms way." Thanks to all who fought for us in the last great war. Rest in peace.
Those are incredible pictures. Sharp and shows how not disturbing the wrecks with constant tourism leads to their preservation, unlike the Titanic.
The coat in the door and the tractor was very fascinating. I would really would love to see images of the battle ship Yamato! Love your videos!
My best friends dad served on the USS Hornet when she was sunk. He survived and went on to serve in the Navy until the war ended, but I don't remember where he was stationed after the Hornet. Back in the mid 60's he gave me his old WW2 peacoat which I wore until I went in the Navy in 1969 and was issued my own.
Back in 1964/65 while working as an apprentice Shipwright at Hunters Point Naval Shipyard in San Francisco, I worked on USS Hornet CV12. Part of the work we did during its yard period was to replace worn wooden planking on the flight deck. All of the older carriers had wooden flight decks, including CV8. I noticed in the part of your video that showed the flight deck damage you said the flight deck was largely intact. This may be true of the steel deck that was under the planking, there is no sign of the wood planking that had probably rotted away after all this time.
I was on USS Cook ( FF-1083) in1978. Hunter's Point.
@@thomashunt413 That must have been shortly before they closed it down. What type of vessel was the USS Cook?
My father was a signal man on the second Hornet (CV 12) and he would always make sure people knew he sailed on the USS Hornet, "the second one."
My mom's oldest brother went into the USN in 1939. He was a plank owner. He was part of the deck crew. That meant he watched the Doolittle bombers take off. He also watched Torpedo 8 take of and not come back. He was still in the ships company at the time of loss. Served in sub chasers after that.
it's pretty cool to see the historic event you usually read about in books represented in the real world, the anchor chain still stretching out is like a moment frozen in time
When you look at the impact forces with the sea floor and the trauma to the ship whoever strapped down that tractor deserves special recognition.
Curious that the aircraft tug sits there looking so pristine. Given the way she hit bottom and slid, you'd expect the tug to be bashed against a bulkhead in the open, and on some sort of angle. It's almost like the tug was chained down.
chain everything can move in Ship, they very dangerous when wave coming
She’s so beautifully preserved, holy shit.
The hanger deck probably has well preserved airplanes, in similar condition to the tractor. The potential spares from the ceiling could have avoided movement, though I suspect most things on the hanger deck were tied down and still rest where they were tied.
yeah but sadly to do that whelll have to send a drone and carfully dig the inside of the hornet to see any fine aircrafts if theres any in there
These Ladies did their job and survive in great shape due to the construction, maintenance, and respect of the crew. These memorials serve as a testament to the Men who fought for their mates, ship, and nation. Semper Fi my fellow Warriors. May God bless you and see you in Heaven.
This was quite fascinating. I would never have expected such preservation. Great video. 👍
Wow... The amount of preservation on the wreck of Hornet is truly something amazing, the camouflage paint on the ships hull is so well preserved, that it looks the exact same as when she was sunk, almost 82 years ago. Not to mention, the ships Island and signal bridge that are also incredibly intact, especially her stern section, which I initially thought ended up like Bismark's stern, but thankfully I was wrong. You know, there is an Ironic Irony in the fact that Hornet is so well preserved, after having been hit by 6 Bombs, 3 Torpedoes, and 2 Val Dive bombers, and spent over 8 decades sitting on the sea floor, the fact that she is so well preserved, just stands to show how well she held up, and to essentially give the Japanese one last middle finger that they were not going to be able to bring down "Happy Hornet" without a fight.
Glad they decided to keep the location a secret! It is a terrible crime what is going on with the repulse and Prince of Wales?
Agreed. While it would 'contaminate' the gravesite, one could wish for a torpedo to end the career of those 'salvagers.'
Pity some unidentified sub doesn't fallow the salvage ship into mid ocean and "accidentally" sink her.
Sooner or later, all of these Grand Old Ladies will fall victim to these thugs. Nothing is sacred if a Yuan can be dredged up.
These boys would dig their own grandmothers up.
Do to how far down they are they are harder to salvage, I heard but I'm not positive.
These videos are so entertaining. Thank you.
The gas bottle ( acetylene ? ) lying squashed absolutely flat on the deck is an incredible sight and testiment to natures force down there.
12:34 is a testament to the massive pressure such depths impart. The cylinder was likely for welding or other compressed gasses at anywhere from 2,000 to 5,000 psi. At some point, the cylinder's wall or valve weakened to the point the outside pressure collapsed it like the crush depth on a submarine. Think about that battle between the interior and exterior forces at work.
Amazing. The tires on the tractor even look as though they are holding air. Plus rubber on hoses still in good shape.
That coat hanging in the wall. Oh my goodness.
I’m glad Davey Jones is looking after her.
12:35 You can see an Acetylene tank that has imploded on to its self. Thank you, Great video!
Thanks so much for these. My Naval history knowledge of World War II is abysmal for the amount I've studied the War, but these are excellent Sir.
That is one of the best looking wrecks i’ve ever seen. She’s in such great condition.
The crushed tank at 12:45 just shows you the pressures at that depth. Wonder if the sturn imploded and thats how it was broke off
The fact that it is unrestrained and still on the deck says something about the trip down, as well.
I think that's yellow paint on that tank, meaning it was probably containing acetylene either for welding or cutting metal.
That's an interesting thought about the stern. With the ship at General Quarters maximum watertight integrity would be set with watertight doors and hatches closed and secured EXCEPT where men trying to escape the ship might have left them open.
@@robertf3479 imagine being the last person on that ship. Looking for wounded/ stragglers/ bodies. Would’ve been surreal.
@@robertf3479 boilers and pipes full of hot steam don't react well to cold sea water either. These ships go through hell on the way down. Imploding any part of the ship not flooded hot boilers exploding heavy engines and equipment braking loose from there mounts crashing through bulkheads. The fact these wrecks look like ships at all is crazy.
If only the paint on my car lasted that long. Incredible.
Don’t forget about James garder who survived and was picked up by the uss Juneau and was offered a bunk by one of the five Sullivan brothers!
Could you also please cover the Medd Battleship wrecks? Roma and Danton are exceptionally worth talking about!
Thank you covering all these wrecks. You are making very important videos!
Great vid Skynea, thank you for these wreck vids. Sad to see Hornet in sections.
Please leave the ship alone many men who have been lost, and that's their resting place. Much respect for the brave men who served, and slow Salute
I'm glad they did not disclose her location..
Dang, he lost $678 dollars (or so) in equivalent value if he left $40 in the locket. That sucks. 11:44 They just don't make em like they used to
My uncle (VADM Levering Smith) was onboard during the battle. He told a story (laughing) about how Kinkaid was climbing up a stairwell and a bomb hit and back down he went.
Thanks for covering this in such great detail
The lettering on the side of the tractor isn't paint. It is a water transfer decal. A second decal can be seen on the side of the air cleaner (service instructions). The tractor is a "Shop Mule" built by W.F. Hebard using mostly International Harvester components.
Assuming that the F4F Wildcat had nobody in the cockpit when it sank with Hornet, I'd like to see some effort to have it raised and sent to a museum for preservation. Even if a restoration is impossible, having it displayed in its current state as part of a diorama with these amazing pictures of Hornet would be both amazing and sobering imo.
Thanks for sharing this with us. Enjoyable to say the least.
I wish they could locate the wreck of the U.S.S. Oklahoma. I am pretty sure she's one of the longest missing battleship wrecks still unlocated.
I don’t know what it is, but seeing these ships so well preserved all those years later just stirs the desire inside me to somehow raise these heroic ships and give them a new life.
If it was physically possible and if the wrecks weren’t war graves
I'm fairly certain that isn't a jacket stuck in one of the door hatches but part of the black-out curtains used to prevent light from exiting the ship at night and giving its position away. light can be seen for miles on a dark sea. But I don't know why they would clamp the door over it unless they were in a hurry.
My mother was a "Rosie the Riveter" and she built B24 Liberator bombers at Willow Run, Michigan. Truely the GREATEST generation. Thanks Mom.
Who ever strapped that tractor should get an award! That is just amazing.
Sad to see that we USED to build quality stuff. Those days are LOOOONNNNG GONE.
At 12:36 that’s a high pressure gas cylinder. Huge amount of force or underwater pressure to crush that.
The fact she was nearly a brand new ship when sunk probably didn't hurt the state of preservation.
The photo of the crushed gas cylinder gives a good indication of the pressure at that depth especially if it was not empty at the time of the sinking.
The tractor is a model A14 shop mule made by the W. F. Hebard Co. using IH parts. There is a website and FB group for this company and what was made.
You think the water pressure would have done something to the tractor tires... solid rubber?
Thanks for this. I had a Revell model of the USS Hornet with its B-25 planes for the Doolittle Raid👍✈️
Mine is from Tamiya, with the B-25s as well. 😀 Must have assembled it around 1980.
At one point in the war we only had one Aircraft carrier and that was the Enterprise. It's absolutely amazing we won against Japan, not only was we outgunned , but we had inferior technology and then on top of that we couldn't even do night operations. So we had to fight a war on two fronts, rebuild our fleet while making it better tech , strike back at Japan somehow, figure out how to do night operations and because we only had one carrier we had to keep her safe that's why the Hornet went down , because we just couldn't risk losing both the Hornet and the Enterprise, so we left the Hornet behind when she was badly damaged which is Enterprise's sister ship.
outstanding video. very impressive images.....cheers from Florida, Paul
I want that tractor... what a great piece to restore with a fantastic story!
Bismarck is about same depth, and it has been videoed before. I understand the reason for keeping location secret. however, it would be noteworthy if a portion of Hornet could be brought up to honor her and her iconic history and brave men in some kind of memorial. John Deer might help in cost. Don't know if Carriers had bells or if that could be found. Someone mentioned getting an ROV inside the hangar - that would also be fascinating. The anchor looked a bit difficult to try and bring up. There are still about 50 submarines lost along with so many other ships
The replacement USS Hornet was retired in 1970 and is now a museum ship docked in Alameda and does honor the memory of the original.
@@goldenshark3182 thanks, that helps to know, the legacy was honored
The coat stuck in the door is pretty interesting. Would like to know that back story.
Honestly as long as they save some historically significant artifacts, salvaging the Hornet would be a lot less of a travesty than a lot of those other ships as she isn't a war grave.
omg such a sensable comentry sir you have made a great video thank you from the uk
The pancake crushed gas cylinder @ 12:36 certainly gives light to what went wrong lately with Titan. The pressure at these kind of depths is hard to comprehend.
Thanks to the depth and cold for preserving her
I wonder if those tyres still have air in them, from way back then.
My uncle was CAG on the Hornet ,commander Air Group ,he is buried at Arlington National Cemetery, he flew a Corsair!!!!!
The sad thing is, had Hornet, Yorktown, Lexington, Wasp, etc. survived the war, they would have either been scrapped or (as other surviving fleet carriers were) used as targets during Operation Crossroads and similar. They died doing what they were designed for. And having been sunk in such deep waters ensures that they will remain relatively undisturbed and continue on as monuments to the conflict they fought in and graves to the men who fought and died on them.
That should show the sentiment...Doolittle and his guys HAD to know there was a good chance this was going to be a one-way ride..But the idea of being the first Americans to give the sons of the emperor a real preview of coming attractions was a temptation they just couldn't pass up..Those airman and the sailors that got them within range validate Brokaw's "The Greatest Generation".....And there should be Constitutional requirement that the US Navy always has a carrier in the inventory named Hornet.
Very interesting and great images - thanks for sharing!
My Grandpa served on this ship Jessie Milligan . Thanks Grandpa for our freedom. Rip.✌🇺🇸
thanks for the video.
It's such an alien world down there
I love these videos. Thank you 👍
Paul Allen RIP is the one who funded all the Petrel's exploration. Im thankful for allcthe dicoveries they've made.
My Great Uncle Roland was one of the Officers in charge of this ship. He just passed away about 5 years ago now.
Wow this is in much better shape than expected
Will there be an effort to discover IJN Kongo? Or what may be left of her hull, as it's quite possible that she had also become a victim of wreck salvagers.
Not that I’m aware of. However, she exploded as she went down (which means less there to find)…
And she sank in only 350 feet (110 meters) of water. In the Taiwan Strait.
I’ll get into this when I do a video on the Kongou-class wrecks, but I’ll be legitimately amazed if we ever find anything of the nameship’s wreck.
@@skyneahistory2306 I doubt that it would be easy to identify either Hiei's or Kirishima's wreck, as they sank near Ironbottom Sound, a place where *many* shipwrecks can be found(hence the name), so if finding The Fighting Lady was like finding a needle in a haystack, then finding either of them will be like finding a *five*-leaf clover.
The tractor is a surreal sight. I guess the tires must’ve imploded at depth then retook their shape. The whole wreck’s condition is incredible.
...what a MONUMENTAL LACK of marine life on this wreck...