USS Langley (CV-1)

USS Langley (CV-1/AV-3) was the United States Navy's first aircraft carrier, converted in 1920 from the collier USS Jupiter (Navy Fleet Collier No. 3), and also the US Navy's first turbo-electric-powered ship. Langley was named after Samuel Langley, an American aviation pioneer. She was the sole member of her class to be rebuilt as a carrier. Conversion of another collier was planned but canceled when the Washington Naval Treaty required the cancellation of the partially built Lexington-class battlecruisers Lexington and Saratoga, freeing up their hulls for conversion into aircraft carriers. Following another conversion to a seaplane tender, Langley saw service in World War II. On 27 February 1942, while ferrying a cargo of USAAF P-40s to Java, she was attacked by nine twin-engine Japanese bombers of the Japanese 21st and 23rd naval air flotillas and so badly damaged that she had to be scuttled by her escorts.

Infobox

Name

Jupiter (1912–1920) Langley (1920–1942)

Namesake

Jupiter Samuel Pierpont Langley

Builder

Mare Island Naval Shipyard

Laid down

18 October 1911

Launched

24 August 1912

Commissioned

7 April 1913

Decommissioned

25 October 1936

Recommissioned

21 April 1937

Renamed

Langley, 21 April 1920

Reclassified

Fleet carrier CV-1, 17 July 1920 Seaplane tender AV-3, 21 April 1937

Stricken

8 May 1942

Identification

AC-3 AV-1, 17 July 1920 AV-3, 21 April 1937

Nickname(s)

"Covered Wagon"

Honors andawards

As Jupiter: Mexican Service Medal World War I Victory Medal ("Transport" clasp) As Langley: American Defense Service Medal ("Fleet" clasp) Asiatic–Pacific Campaign Medal World War II Victory Medal

Fate

Scuttled after Japanese air attack off Java coast, 27 February 1942; 8°51′4″S 109°2′3″E / 8.85111°S 109.03417°E / -8.85111; 109.03417

Preceded by

N/A

Succeeded by

Lexington class

Planned

Completed

Class & type

Proteus-class collier Langley-class aircraft carrier

Displacement

19,360 long tons (19,671 t) (as Jupiter) 12,700 long tons (12,904 t) (standard, as Langley) 13,900 long tons (14,123 t) (full load, as Langley)

Length

542 ft (165.2 m)

Beam

65 ft 5 in (19.9 m)

Draft

27 ft 8 in (8.4 m) (as Jupiter) 24 ft (7.3 m) (as Langley)

Installed power

3 × boilers 7,200 shp (5,400 kW)

Propulsion

2 × shafts turbo-electric transmission

Speed

15.5 knots (28.7 km/h; 17.8 mph)

Range

3,500 nmi (6,500 km; 4,000 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph)

Complement

163 officers and men (as Jupiter) 468 officers and men (as Langley)

Armament

4 × 4 in (102 mm)/50 cal guns (as Jupiter) 4 × 5 in (127 mm)/51 cal guns (as Langley) 4 × 5 in (127 mm)/51 cal guns, 4 x 3-inch AA at corners of flight deck, 4 x machine guns (as sunk)

Aircraft carried

None (as Jupiter) 36 (as Langley)

Aviation facilities

1 × elevator 1 × catapult

Tables

· Awards and decorations

Mexican Service Medal

World War I Victory Medalwith "Transport" clasp

· Awards and decorations

American Defense Service Medalwith "Fleet" clasp

Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medalwith 2 stars

World War II Victory Medal

References

Some English language sources rely on Roscoe which incorrectly attributes the attack to nine Aichi D3A1 "Val" dive bombe
Langley
https://www.history.navy.mil/about-us/leadership/director/directors-corner/h-grams/h-gram-069/h-069-1.html#:~:text=A%20second%20collier%20was%20planned,3)%20becoming%20available%20for%20conversion.
Ford et al. 2001, p. 330
Messimer, Dwight (1983). Pawns of War: The Loss of the USS Langley and the USS Pecos. Annapolis, MD: United States Naval
USN 2009.
Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships
http://www.history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/l/langley-i.html
JASNE 1912, p. 1093.
Tate 1978, p. 62
Langley
Warfare history network
https://warfarehistorynetwork.com/article/uss-langley-the-u-s-navys-covered-wagon/
"First of Many: The Aircraft Carrier USS Langley"
https://portsmouthnavalshipyardmuseum.com/online-learning-archive/first-of-many-the-aircraft-carrier-uss-langley/
Tate 1978, p. 66
Tate 1978, p. 67
Though catapults had already been used for launching aircraft from ships – e.g. Henry C. Mustin in 1915 from the cruiser
Tate 1978, p. 65
Pride 1979, p. 89
Proceedings
collections.naval.aviation.museum
https://web.archive.org/web/20151117015306/http://collections.naval.aviation.museum/emuwebdoncoms/pages/common/imagedisplay.php?irn=9066&reftable=ecatalogue&refirn=4912
Naval Air: Celebrating a Century of Naval Flying
https://books.google.com/books?id=s5TwAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA67
www.adf-serials.com
http://www.adf-serials.com.au/research/Part5-P40.pdf
The National Museum of the Pacific War
https://www.pacificwarmuseum.org/about/news/laundry-shooting-at-venus-and-surviving-two-back-to-back-ship-sinkings-part
Kehn, In the Highest Degree Tragic, p. 208.
Gill 1957, pp. 601–602.
Kehn, In the Highest Degree Tragic, p. 211.
Kehn, In the Highest Degree Tragic, pp. 214-216.
Java Sea 1943.
Messimer 1983.
Roscoe 1984, p. 102
Kehn, In the Highest Degree Tragic, p. 233.
"H-003-3: The Valor of the Asiatic Fleet"
https://www.history.navy.mil/about-us/leadership/director/directors-corner/h-grams/h-gram-003/h-003-3.html
"Pecos I (AO-6)"
https://www.history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/p/pecos-i.html
https://www.naval-history.net/WW2UScasaaDB-USNBPbyDate1941-42.htm Archived 25 August 2023 at the Wayback Machine . Retri
https://www.naval-history.net/WW2UScasaaDB-USNBPbyDate1941-42.htm
NavSource 2016.