Article Summary and Key Points: The USS Wasp (CV-7) was an aircraft carrier built under the constraints of the Washington Naval Treaty, which limited its size, armor, and survivability. Commissioned in 1940, Wasp served in the Atlantic, ferrying aircraft to Malta, before being sent to the Pacific.
Key Point #1 – Supporting U.S. operations at Guadalcanal, the carrier was struck by three torpedoes from Japanese submarine I-19 on September 15, 1942. Fires spread uncontrollably, leading to her abandonment and eventual scuttling.
Key Point #2 – While Wasp was not poorly designed, treaty restrictions made her less resilient than larger carriers, sealing her fate in one of the war’s most brutal naval engagements.
How the USS Wasp Met Its Tragic Fate in World War II
The USS Wasp (CV-7) was a U.S. Navy aircraft carrier built at the wrong time. In fact, some experts say it was the worst aircraft carrier ever. Its construction under the terms of the Washington Naval Treaty limited its size and capabilities, ultimately causing its doom.
Due to treaty limitations, she was smaller than Essex-class aircraft carriers. She carried much less armor and had fewer firefighting capabilities, leaving her vulnerable against the Japanese Imperial Navy in the early days of World War II.
She was slammed with three torpedoes from a Japanese submarine off Guadalcanal in 1942. Resultant fires burned out of control, ultimately sinking the ship, with the loss of 25 officers and 150 crewmen.
The Treaty
A few years after World War I, the Wilson administration sought to stop an arms race among the world’s top navies that would have ignited another war.
The Washington Naval Treaty was signed in early February 1922. It sought to limit the construction of battleships, battle cruisers, and aircraft carriers. The treaty did not limit the number of cruisers, destroyers, or submarines a navy could build, but it restricted their displacement and a fleet’s total tonnage.
With the U.S. Navy almost at the tonnage allowed by the treaty, the service tried to squeeze in a smaller carrier (the Wasp) that was crammed with as much Essex-class equipment as possible. So, armor was reduced, and firefighting equipment was lacking on the new ship.
USS Wasp CV-7
The USS Wasp was laid down in April 1936 at the Quincy shipyard in Boston. It was launched in April 1939, and commissioned in April 1940, when unemployment was still high from the Great Depression.
The Wasp was 714 feet long, with a beam of 80.8 feet. She could make 29.5 knots at top speed and carried 16 5-inch guns, 11 1.1-inch guns, and 16 .50-caliber machine guns for air defense. She carried 80 planes and had a crew complement of 2,367 officers and sailors.
After she was commissioned, she ran shake-down cruises to Cuba. In 1941, the Wasp escorted merchant vessels headed to the UK in convoy duty to protect them from German U-boats, which were already attacking American merchant ships or warships—before the U.S. entered the war.
She ferried U.S. Army Air Corps P-40 Warhawks to Iceland as the U.S. sought to use the country as a base against the U-boats.
Collision With a Destroyer
On patrol from Maine to Virginia on St. Patrick’s Day 1942, just a few months after Pearl Harbor, the Wasp collided with the destroyer USS Stack (DD-406) in thick fog, with visibility at less than 100 yards.
The ships had been in radio contact, and the Wasp gave the Stack course corrections. Nevertheless, somehow the carrier hit the smaller destroyer broadside. About 10 minutes later, the Wasp backed up, and the Stack became clear. She was heavily damaged and attempted to sail back to Norfolk, Virginia, but had to pull into the Philadelphia shipyard for emergency repairs.
The report from the Commander in Chief, Atlantic Fleet, blamed the Wasp:
“The record is clear that a report of collision was received on the Bridge almost at the moment of collision but that its import was not appreciated by the navigator. Prompt and corrective action was not taken.
“Time was wasted in trying to ‘verify’ the fact that there had been a collision. The collision occurred at 0542, and the engines were not ordered stopped until 0548. At this time, they were ordered ahead 15 knots immediately. The engines were not backed until 0553 and then only at two-thirds speed, instead of emergency. It is a wonder that the Stack was not broken in two or capsized by being pushed sideways by the Wasp.”
World War II Service
In April 1942, the USS Wasp was tasked with ferrying British Spitfires to Malta. The garrison there was being pounded by Axis aircraft, and they needed fighters to protect them. Forty-seven Mark V Spitfires were loaded on deck, and they departed Scotland.
Shortly after, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill asked if the Wasp and the British carrier HMS Eagle could deliver another ferry of Mark V Spitfires to the British garrison at Malta. They delivered them all without incident. Churchill sent a message to the Wasp: “Many thanks to you all for the timely help. Who said a Wasp couldn’t sting twice?”
USS Wasp Heads To the Pacific
Shortly after the Malta runs, the Wasp learned of the Battles of the Coral Sea and Midway. The Americans slowed Japanese expansion to Australia in the first battle and then decimated their attempts to take Midway, sinking four Japanese carriers.
But the price had been heavy; the U.S. lost the carrier USS Lexington (CV-2) in the Coral Sea and the USS Yorktown (CV-5) at Midway. The Wasp sped through the Panama Canal and joined the USS Enterprise (CV-6) and the USS Hornet (CV-8).
USS Wasp was hit by one Japan’s Long Lance Torpedo.
The carriers supported the first offensive landing of the war, as Marines landed on Guadalcanal on Aug. 7, 1942. The carriers’ aircraft pounded enemy positions and took on Japanese aircraft that attempted to bomb Henderson Field and the landing ships.
Death of the Wasp
On Sept. 15, 1942, the Wasp supported the landing of Marine reinforcements on Guadalcanal. With refueling of aircraft on the flight and hangar decks taking place after earlier combat patrols, at 1444 a lookout reported “three torpedoes . . . three points forward of the starboard beam!”
The Japanese submarine I-19 had fired a spread of four torpedoes at the Wasp. She turned sharply to starboard, but too late. The torpedoes struck in quick succession. Her armor belt was not as thick as larger carriers, and the explosions rocked the ship and ignited gasoline fires that proved to be too great to put out.
At 1520, the captain ordered the crew to abandon ship. She burned into the night while explosions of gasoline and ammunition continued. Later that evening, the destroyer USS Landsdowne (DD-486) fired three torpedoes into the burning wreck. She sank at 2100 by the bow.
The Wasp was not a bad aircraft carrier, it was an unlucky one that was forced to be less survivable by circumstances beyond her control.
About the Author: Steve Balestrieri
Steve Balestrieri is a 19FortyFive National Security Columnist. He served as a US Army Special Forces NCO and Warrant Officer. In addition to writing for 19FortyFive, he covers the NFL for PatsFans.com and is a member of the Pro Football Writers of America (PFWA). His work was regularly featured in many military publications.
