USS Yorktown (CV-10): "The Fighting Lady"

December 30, 2023 9:19am

The aircraft carrier USS Yorktown (CV-10) is the centerpiece of the Patriots Point Naval & Maritime Museum in Charleston, South Carolina. She has been here since 1975, five years after being decommissioned.

Her keel was laid down one week before Pearl Harbor was attacked. Newport News Shipbuilding completed construction very quickly, as she was commissioned just 16 1/2 months later on April 15, 1943. She is one of five ships named "Yorktown" that have served in the United States Navy over the years. This "Yorktown" was named for the USS Yorktown (CV-5) that sunk at the Battle of Midway.

During her 22 years of active service in the U.S. Navy, which spanned from World War II to Vietnam, Yorktown engaged in numerous battles. Among her more notable engagements were the Battle of the Philippine Sea (better known as the "Marianas Turkey Shoot"), Iwo Jima, and Okinawa. In 1968, a Sikorsky Sea King helicopter from the USS Yorktown recovered Apollo 8 astronauts Frank Borman, James Lovell and William Anders after they splashed down in the Pacific following their orbit around the moon.

While on board the USS Yorktown, I sat down with the Director of Collections and Curatorial Affairs and the Exhibits Manager to discuss the history of the ship. That interview aired on WPNN Radio this morning and is now archived online as a podcast at www.TheMikeBatesShow.com/podcasts/231230