Essex (CVA 9) - Naval Cruise Book

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Looking forward to six days of rest, ESSEX ar- rived at Naples on 2 August. But she was underway again on the 25th and a fortnight later was operating in support of the Seventh Fleet off Formosa. In early October ESSEX departed West Pac for home via Singa- pore, Colombo, Capetown and Rio de Janeiro. She cov- ered 78,000 engine miles in nine and one half months, nearly one third of the distance she covered in World War II, in what was believed to be the longest naval cruise in modern peacetime history. I IN FULL ARRAY ESSEX was again overhauled in Norfolk Naval Shipyard from January to the last week in April 1959. She rejoined the Second Fleet, without the usual underway training period in order to bolster our Sea Power during the Berlin crises. On 7 August 1959 ESSEX once again steamed from Mayport, Florida to assume guard in the Mediter- ranean with the Sixth Fleet. During Operation Mon- soon as escort to the President during his historic Good-will Tour, she played hostess to the members of the Presidential Press Party. Among them were radio and TV broadcasters who beamed their stories directly to the States from her powerful transmitters. The cruise was completed as she returned home 26 February 1960. Her return marked the end of the glorious career of the. seventeen year old lady's role as an attack car- rier. ESSEX will be redesignated a support aircraft carrier and fly the flag of ComCarDiv Eighteen as she assumes an important role in our anti-submarine de- fense. BATTLE STARS AND SERVICE RIBBONS WORLD wAR ii I starfPacific Raids I945 Marcus Island-3I August Wake Island Raid-5-6 October I starfTreasurer-Bougainville Operation I943 Rabaul Strike-II November I starfGiIbert Islands Operation I943 I3 November-8 December I starfMarshall Islands Operation I944 Occupation of Kwaialein and Majuro Atolls-29 January- 8 February I starfAsiatic-Pacific Raids I944 Truk A-ttack-I6-I7 February Marianas Attack-2I-22 February I starfMarianas Operation I944 Capture and Occupation of Saipan-II June-I0 August First Bonins Raid-I5-I6 June Battle ot Philippine Sea-I9-20 June 1 Capture and Occupation ot Guam-I2 July-I5 August I starfTinian Capture and Occupation I944 24 July-I August I starfWestern Caroline Islands Operation I944 Capture and Occupation of southern Palau Islands- 6 September-I4 October Assaults on the Philippine Islands-9-24 September I starfLeyte Operation I944 Third Fleet supporting Operations Okinawa Attack- IO October Northern Luzon and Formosa Attacks-II-I4 October Visayas Attacks-20-2I October-II November Battle ot Surigao Strait-24-26 October I starfLuzon Operation-Third Fleet Support Operations I945 Formosa Attacks-3-4, 9, I5, 2I January China Coast Attacks-I2, I6 January Nansei Shoto Attack-22 January I starflwo Jima Operation I945 Assault and Occupation of Iwo Jima-I5 January-I0 March Fitth Fleet Raids against Honshu and the Nansei Shoto- I5 February-I6 March I starfOkinawa Gunto Operation I945 Fifth and Third Fleet Raids in support of Okinawa Gunto Operation-I7 March-I I June I starffhird Fleet Operations against Japan I945 I0 July-I5 August KOREA I starfU. N. Summer-Fall Offensive- 22 August-I9 September I95Ip I4-2I November 'I95I ' I starfSecond Korean Winter-22 November-201 December I95Ii 28 December I95I-I February I952p 20 February-5 March I952 I starfKorea Defense, Summer-Fall, I952-I August-4 Septemberp 20-23 September I952p 28 September-2 Nove-mber I952 I starfThird Korean Winter-8 December I952-I0 January I953 Navy Occupation Service Medal CAsiaj-2'-3 September I945 China Service Medal-I9-24 July I952 Korean Service Medal U.N. Service Medal-I5 August I95I-II March I952p 26 July I952-26 January I953p I January-I4 February I954p 26 April-9 May I954p 26-28 June I954 Presidential Unit Citation-3I August I943-I5 August I945 Korean Presidential Unit Citation-I5 August I95I-II March I952p 8 July I952-26 January I953

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PRESIDENTIAL UNIT CITATION The President of the United States takes pleasure in presenting the PRESIDENTIAL UNIT CITATION To The U.S.S. ESSEX and her attached Air Groups participating in the following operations: August 31, 1943, Marcus, October 5-6, 1943, Wakeg November 11 to December 5, 1943, Gilberts, Rabaul: January 29 to February 23, 1944, Marshalls, Truk, Marianas: AG-9 QVF-9, VB-9, VT-95 May 19 to 23, 1944 Wake, Marcus: June 11 to August 8, 1944, Marianas, Boninsg September 6 to November 14, 1944 Philippines, Palau, Ryukyus, Formosa, Luzon: AG-15 CVF-15, VB-15, VT-15, Part of VFN-771 December 14 to 16, 1944, Luzon: AG-4 CVF-4, VB-4, VT-45 January 3 to 22, 1945, Philippines, Formosa, China Sea, Ryukyusg February 16 to March 1, 1945, Japan, Bonins: . AG-4 CVF-4, VT-4, VMF-124, VMF-2135 March 18 to May 24, 1945, Ryukyus, Japan, July 10 to August 15, 1945, Japan: AG-83 QVF-83, VBF83, VB83, VT-835 for services as set forth in the following CITATION For extraordinary heroism in action against enemy Japanese forces in the air, ashore and afloat in the Pacific War Area from August 51, 1.943 to August 15, 1945. Spearhead- ing the concentrated carrier-warfare in the forward areas, the ESSEX and her air groups struck crushing blows toward annihilating Japanese fighting poiverg they provided air cover for our amphibious forces,' they fiercely encountered the enemy's aerial attacks and destroyed his planesg and they inflicted terrific losses on the Japanese in Fleet and merchant marine units sunk or damaged. Daring and dependable in combat, the ESSEX and her gal- lant officers and men rendered loyal service in achieving the ultimate defeat of the Japa- nese Empire. For the President JAMES FORRESTAL Secretary of the Navy ifitfraftiriffkitiifa K I My flifrll Fffltff Jlfr1f11mf21.hffMc,i1.n lil had chi All-sux' up hcrr. she im .ld lx- imrlla an mvllum lo mv. 'SN- The Okinawa campaign brought the war's end in sight. During it ESSEX was at sea 79 days from 14 March to 1 June 1945. Tokyo became her target as the Japanese Empire crumbled and the war ended August 1945. Home at last, ESSEX had earned her position as the Fightin'est ship in the Fleet. In 1947 she was decommissioned. ESSEX was brought out of retirement in 1949 and was literally rebuilt by the Navy Yard at Bremer- ton, Washington. On 15 January 1951 ESSEX was re- commissioned with a new 887' flight deck, a stream- wiifnifnigitirgaatfiraa lined island structure, and a greater displacement by several thousand tons. The presence of ESSEX was felt by North Korea during her two cruises between June 1951 and January 1953. On her second Korean cruise ESSEX planes participated in co-ordinated strikes all the way from the front lines to the Yalu River. With two peace patrols to the Orient under her keel ESSEX once again returned to the yard for modernization. Leaving the Bremerton Navy Yard in March 1956 ESSEX had a longer deck of 889', an angled deck, hurricane bow, a second deck edge elevator and a larger displacement. Following another cruise to West Pac ESSEX rounded Cape Horn to join the Atlantic Fleet. In Sep- tember 1957 ESSEX participated in NATO exercise STRIKEBACK as a CVS. ESSEX joined the Sixth Fleet in February of 1958. The majority of this cruise was spent in the Eastern Med. on 15 July ESSEX suddenly weighed anchor and departed Athens in the early morning hours to pro- vide air support for Marine landings at Lebanon. ESSEX was first on the scene and remained on the line until 20 August except for a short period at Rhodes, Greece.

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