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A very popular camera by Agfa from the late 70s and a little marvel of industrial design. The "Optima Sensor" name had been used by Agfa for a series of simple electronic consumer cameras since the late 60s denoting the presence of a big, red, feather-touch shutter button (sensor) that adorned the top of the camera and was considered very hi-tech at the time.
This last series of the Agfa Optimas were marketed during the late 70s and production continued well into the 80's being hugely successful in the european market. At least 5 different models exist, including a rangefinder (Agfa Optima 1535) and one equipped with an electronic flash, aptly named "Agfa Optima Flash". The best online source of information regarding these cameras can be found here:
www.edition-oldenburg.de/agfa_optima.html
The Optima 1035 pictured here sits second from the top of the line-up feature-wise. It is a zone-focus camera with a fully automatic exposure system based on the Agfa Paratronic electronic shutter. Despite its introduction at a time when plastic was already being used extensively in camera manufacture, the littke Agfa is mostly made of metal with a very durable black coating. Some parts are made of plastic (like the film advance lever or the focusing ring) but the overall feel is that of a solid, durable camera.
The most prominent feature of the camera is the HUGE and extremely bright viewfinder which is a small revelation for first-time users. It is very close in size and brightness to the viewfinders found in premium rangefinders and makes using the camera a real joy. In the 1035 the VF features three distance symbols and a red needle that moves between them according to the chosen focus distance, the minimum being 0.9m. The frame line is illuminated and there are parallax correction marks for close subjects.
Another unique feature of the Optima is the lack of a rewind crank. With the help of (rather flimsy) toggle switch on the top plate, the film advance lever doubles as a rewind crank, a clever design that made the installation of such a bright finder on such a small camera possible.
Upon opening the film door, another clever feature makes its apperance: When loading the camera, the film is passed under a small shield on the winding side which protects film that has already been exposed from accidental opening of the film door.
The lens is a fast f2.8, 40mm four-element Solitar-S ("S" denoting multi-coating) which is quite sharp under good lighting conditions with good contrast and resistance to flare.
Shutter speeds go up to 1/1000s and in low light the Paratronic can stay open for at least one full second. The high top shutter speed combined with the minimum diaphragm opening of f22 ensure proper exposure of fast film even under the brightest conditions. The shutter is completely battery-dependent, it doesn't open at all if batteries are not installed. The feather-touch shutter release ensures minimum shake when taking the shot, reducing the chance of a blurry shot in relatively slow speeds.
Agfa engineers were clever enough to put the CdS cells of the metering system at the six o'clock position of the lens beauty ring, a fact that prevents shadowing of the sensors when a lens hood is used.
Not everything is good on the little Agfa though. For starters, the ASA setting stops at 400 which can be quite limiting if one wants to push fast film. Also, there is no backlight compensation provision, one has to change the ASA setting to deal with backlit subjects.
Additionally (and most annoyingly) the shutter produces an awful screeching sound when fired, probably the worst-sounding shutter I've ever come across, regardless of camera type.
Another ill-conceived feature of the camera (perhaps imposed by the necessity for small size) is the fact that the battery department is accessible only after opening the film door, so in case the batteries die mid-roll, the film must be rewound in order to change them. To make things worse, there doesn't seeem to be any means of knowing if the batteries are weak. The camera uses an uncommon arrangement of three 625 button cells, but at least its exposure system is designed for the common alkaline ones, not the obsolete mercury cells.
For some reason, Agfa deemed it necessary to equip the camera with a red LED lamp that sits above the lens barrel and lights up momentarily every time the shutter is fired, letting everyone know that you've taken their picture. It also blinks during countdown when the (mechanical) self-timer is activated.
As you can see from the picture, the Optima has no strap lugs, as Agfa chose to equip the camera with a proprietary screw-on neck strap that attaches on the left side, a solution that is a complete failure in my opinion. First of all, if you lose the strap there is no way you can replace it with a generic one. Also, the choice of a long neck strap is very poor for such a small, light camera which would benefit most from a short wrist strap, although a pair of scissors and a couple of rivets can easily remedy that. On top of that, placing the wrist strap on the left side is totally counterintuitive, as it virtually precludes secure single-handed operation of the camera with the right hand. According to the manual, the port for the screw-on strap doubles as the tripod mount, although this obviously implies that the camera can be used only in vertical orientation when on a tripod.
Overall, the small size and all-black color, combined with an accurate, fully automatic exposure system, a good semi-wide lens and an unsurpassed viewfinder, make this little Agfa very attractive as a stealthy street shooter. Still, there are a few shortcomings that make it fall short of being the perfect "little black beauty" a title I reserve for the Olympus XA2, my "golden standard" for this particular category of cameras.
With really warm temperatures, our workshop students' cameras were running a little hotter than normal. No, their cameras were not exploding but I did have a little fun with it in this single exposure image captured in Arches National Park.
How I Got The Shot
This is a 20 second single exposure image where I shot for about 15 seconds with the camera locked on the tripod before releasing the camera for the final 5 seconds. During this last 5 seconds, I moved the camera free-hand using the lighted LCD screens to make the smoke.
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Storm Kathleen hitting the beautiful seaside village of St. Monans in Fife, Scotland. Here, I used the Nikon D200 and it's wonderful CCD sensor to capture the moment in timeless beauty whilst my Z 8 took me a long exposure. I love shooting with the Nikon D200.
The black object is a device (i believe) that indicates the change in position of the road surface relative to the bridge pylon. As long as the indicator is within the area of the plate, then by visual inspection the bridge is safe.
Nikon FG-20
Nikon Series E Lens 50mm f/1.8
ExtraFilm.com 200-36, expired 11/2010
Digibase C-41, 3.15 min @ 37.8℃
Canon CanoScan 9000F Mark II
Adobe Photoshop Elements 2019
18_20190808_034-2
The dedication of the Tennessee Woman Suffrage Monument is being held on the 100th anniversary of Women’s Right to Vote. The Tennessee General Assembly passed the law ratifying the 19th amendment to the United States Constitution, August 18, 1920. ~ tntribune.com/dedication-of-tennessee-woman-suffrage-monu...
Vacation Day, 03/16//2022, Nashville, TN
Leica Camera AG M Monochrom
Canon 35mm f2.0 LTM
ƒ/5.7 1/1000 800
Agfa Optima Sensor Fujifilm C200 Developed with AG film lab, scanned on Epson V850
I know it's cheap stuff but C200 is my favourite emulsion.
Combined photos of a white reflector before and after sensor cleaning.
I found this Adorama video helpful: youtu.be/qbJaR0xE1YY
Nikon D200
AF-S DX Nikkor 35mm f/1.8 G
ISO 100 f/22 6sec
Images combined with Photoscape
I've spent the last couple weeks enjoying every aspect of shooting Nikon's D600. Critics have raved since its launch and the time seemed right to make the leap to a full frame. Recently, however, people have started seeing dark spots on the sensor, specifically in the upper left corner of the image in the first month of use. Last night I imported my most recent set and guess what caught my eye. Yep, look closely and you can see them...all over. Unfortunately, these are not just dust spots that can be easily cleaned. These seem to be darker and stuck to the sensor. Many have speculated that the substance is actually oil from shutter mechanism. Nikon has not publicly commented on the issue and the rep I spoke with hadn't heard of any reports like this. I'm at a loss.
It was an amazing two weeks we had, I thought it was something special, but in the end, it just wasn't meant to be.
I truly believe there is another D600 out there, waiting to be taken to North Point. Some day.
For the person who can't have too much electronic gear.
Part of an ongoing series on Boxes ... making useful or decorative containers out of LEGO.
This detects motion in the front yard and there is one in the backyard. The receiver's eyes light up and a selected chime goes off. Each sensor can have its own chime. So cool.
Bristling with sensors and aerials, Royal Air Force No.51 Squadron's Boeing RC-135 Rivet Joint ZZ664 heads out across the South Coast at FL330 as 'Ascot 7246'
Known officially as the 'Airseeker', the Squadron has three on strength, sharing the same equipment suite as their USAF 55RW counterparts
Look close and you can just make out a 'smudge' on her fin which is 51's 'Goose Volant' motif. For more see:
www.rafht.co.uk/index.php/2016/06/09/51-sqn/
276A6367
The Agfamatic 200 Sensor uses 126 cartridge film introduced by Agfa in 1972. The exposure is controlled using four "weather" icons above the lens barrel, the shutter release button is bright orange/red and has a solid "click" when pushed.
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Testing out an infrared sensor I picked off of the auction site, works pretty good. I put a 3.5 mm plug on it and hooked it to the camera axe. Model number is E18-D50NK.
Selasphorus rufus
🔴🔭 Lens: Helios 44-2 58mm f2
Because it's APSC sensor (x1,5) the field of view is about 87mm.
This is a Biotar design lens. Also is a soviet copy of Carl Zeiss Jena Biotar 58mm f2. Swirly bokeh and portrait beast!
📝 edited.jpg:
- Sharpness + Shadows 🔺
- Rest unedited.
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🔍 Proudly owning more than 20 vintage and manual lenses! If you want to see more photos just follow me and search into my albums! Lot of quality pics are comming weekly.
I’m only uploading my real world quality photos, no boring test shots are allowed in this profile. 🚫😴
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⚠️©️ Credits of the photo belong only to me, Miguel Matador and you can’t use this pic without asking me before! Thank you! 😄
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📩 email: miguel123mp@yahoo.es
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⬇️ Any question?
Feel free to ask something and contact me for anything over photography and vintage or manual lenses! I will enjoy talking of this with you all. 😁
Sensor X3foveon, cámara sd1 Merrill y lente sigma 15-30 ya veterana.
Todas las fotografías del volcán y su laguna realizadas con está cámara, con archivos que van desde los 45 mb hasta 58 mb.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
USS Enterprise (CV-6)
History
United States
Name: USS Enterprise
Ordered: 1933
Builder: Newport News Shipbuilding
Laid down: 16 July 1934
Launched: 3 October 1936
Commissioned: 12 May 1938
Decommissioned: 17 February 1947
Identification: Hull number: CV-6
Nickname(s):
The Big E
Lucky E
The Grey Ghost
The Galloping Ghost
Honors and
awards:
Bronze-service-star-3d.png 20 Battle Stars
United States Navy Presidential Unit Citation ribbon.svg Presidential Unit Citation
Navy Unit Commendation ribbon.svg Navy Unit Commendation
American Defense Service ribbon.svg American Defense Service Medal
American Campaign Medal ribbon.svg American Campaign Medal
Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal ribbon.svg Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal
World War II Victory Medal ribbon.svg World War II Victory Medal
Task Force 16 Citation
British Admiralty Pennant
Presidential Unit Citation (Philippines).svg Philippine Presidential Unit Citation
Phliber rib.png Philippine Liberation Medal
Fate: Scrapped 1958–1960
General characteristics (as built)
Class and type: Yorktown-class aircraft carrier
Displacement:
19,800 tons standard
25,500 tons full load
From October 1943:
21,000 tons standard
32,060 tons full load
Length:
770 ft (234.7 m) waterline
824 ft 9 in (251.4 m) overall
From July 1942:
827 ft 5 in (252.2 m) overall length
Beam:
83 ft 3 in (25.4 m)
109 ft 6 in (33.4 m) overall
From October 1942:
114 ft 5 in (34.9 m) overall width
From October 1943:
95 ft 5 in (29.1 m) waterline
Draft: 25 ft 11.5 in (7.9 m)
Installed power:
120,000 shp (89,484 kW)
9 × Babcock & Wilcox boilers
Propulsion: 4 × shafts; 4 × Parsons geared steam turbines
Speed: 32.5 knots (60.2 km/h; 37.4 mph)
Range: 12,500 nmi (23,200 km; 14,400 mi) at 15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph)
Complement: 2,217 officers and men (1941)
Sensors and
processing systems: CXAM-1 RADAR[1]
Armament:
8 × single 5 in/38 cal guns
4 × quad 1.1 in/75 cal guns
24 × .50 caliber machine guns
From April 1942:
8 × 5 in/38 cal
4 × quad 1.1 in/75 cal
30 × 20 mm Oerlikon cannons
From mid-June 1942 to mid-September 1942:
8 × 5 in/38 cal
5 × quad 1.1 in/75 cal
32 × 20 mm Oerlikons
From mid-September 1942:
8 × 5 in/38 cal
4 × quad 40 mm Bofors guns
1 × quad 1.1 in/75 cal
44 × 20 mm Oerlikons(46 from 11/42)
From October 1943:
8 × 5 in/38 cal
40 × 40 mm Bofors (8×2, 6×4)
50 × 20 mm Oerlikon
From September 1945:
8 × 5 in/38 cal
54 × 40 mm Bofors (5×2, 11×4)
32 × 20 mm Oerlikons (16×2)
Armor:
2.5–4 in belt
60 lb protective decks
4 in bulkheads
4 in side and 2 in top round conning tower
4 in side over steering gear
Aircraft carried: 90 aircraft
Aviation facilities:
3 × elevators
2 × flight deck hydraulic catapults
1 × hangar deck hydraulic catapults
USS Enterprise (CV-6), was the seventh U.S. Navy vessel to bear the name. Colloquially called "the Big E", she was the sixth aircraft carrier of the United States Navy. A Yorktown-class carrier, she was launched in 1936 and was one of only three American carriers commissioned before World War II to survive the war (the others being Saratoga and Ranger). She participated in more major actions of the war against Japan than any other United States ship. These actions included the Attack on Pearl Harbor (18 dive bombers of VS-6 were over the harbor, 6 were shot down with a loss of eleven men, making her the only American Aircraft carrier with men at Pearl Harbor during the Attack and the first to receive casualties during the Pacific War), the Battle of Midway, the Battle of the Eastern Solomons, the Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands, various other air-sea engagements during the Guadalcanal Campaign, the Battle of the Philippine Sea, and the Battle of Leyte Gulf. Enterprise earned 20 battle stars, the most for any U.S. warship in World War II, and was the most decorated U.S. ship of World War II, She is also the first American ship to sink an enemy vessel during the Pacific War, the sole surviving pilot of the six planes shot down over Pearl Harbor sank Japanese submarine I-70 on 10 December 1941. On three occasions during the Pacific War, the Japanese announced that she had been sunk in battle, resulting in her being named "The Grey Ghost".
Construction and commissioning
The second carrier of the Yorktown-class, Enterprise was launched on 3 October 1936 at Newport News Shipbuilding, sponsored by Lulie Swanson, wife of Secretary of the Navy Claude A. Swanson, and commissioned on 12 May 1938 with Captain Newton H. White in command. Enterprise sailed south on a shakedown cruise which took her to Rio de Janeiro. After her return, she operated along the east coast and in the Caribbean until April 1939, when she was ordered to duty in the Pacific.[2]
Service history
Enterprise was one of fourteen ships to receive the early RCA CXAM-1 Radar.[1] Based first at San Diego (where she was used in the filming of Dive Bomber, starring Errol Flynn and Fred MacMurray) and then at Pearl Harbor after President Roosevelt ordered the Fleet to be "forward based," the carrier and her aircraft squadrons trained intensively and transported aircraft among the island bases of the Pacific. Enterprise was completing one such mission when she left Pearl Harbor on 28 November 1941. It was while returning to Hawaii after delivering Marine Fighter Squadron 211 (VMF-211) to Wake Island, when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor on December 7.[2]
World War II
Enterprise was at sea on the morning of 7 December 1941[3] and received a radio message from Pearl Harbor, reporting that the base was under attack. The next evening, Enterprise, screened by six of her Grumman F4F Wildcat fighters, put into Pearl Harbor for fuel and supplies (VADM Halsey ordered every able bodied man on board to help rearm and refuel the Enterprise, the entire 24 hour process took only 7 hours)[4]. The aircraft were fired on by anti-aircraft defenses, and one pilot radioed in, reporting that his aircraft was an American aircraft.[5] She sailed early the next morning to patrol against possible additional attacks in the Hawaiian Islands. Although the group encountered no surface ships, Enterprise aircraft sank Japanese submarine I-70 at 23°45′N 155°35′W on 10 December 1941.
During the last two weeks of December 1941, Enterprise and her group steamed west of Hawaii to cover the islands while two other carrier groups made a belated attempt to relieve Wake Island. After a brief layover at Pearl Harbor, the Enterprise group sailed on 11 January, protecting convoys reinforcing Samoa.[2]
On 16 January 1942, one of her TBD Devastators of Torpedo Squadron 6 (VT-6),[6] piloted by Chief Harold F. Dixon, got lost on patrol, ran out of fuel, and ditched. Dixon and his two crewmates, bombardier Anthony J. Pastula and gunner Gene Aldrich, survived for 34 days in a small rubber raft that had no stored food or water, before drifting ashore on Pukapuka atoll. Dixon was awarded the Navy Cross for "extraordinary heroism, exceptional determination, resourcefulness, skilled seamanship, excellent judgment and highest quality of leadership."[7][8]
On 1 February, Enterprise's Task Force 8 raided Kwajalein, Wotje, and Maloelap in the Marshall Islands, sinking three ships, damaging eight, and destroying numerous airplanes and ground facilities. Enterprise received only minor damage in the Japanese counterattack, as her group retired to Pearl Harbor.
The next month, the Enterprise group swept the central Pacific, attacking enemy installations on Wake and Marcus Islands.
After minor alterations and repairs at Pearl Harbor, Enterprise departed on 8 April 1942 to rendezvous with her sister ship Hornet and sail west, escorting Hornet on the mission to launch 16 Army B-25 Mitchells in the "Doolittle Raid" on Tokyo. While fighters from Enterprise flew combat air patrol, the B-25s launched on 18 April, and flew undetected the remaining 600 miles (1,000 km) to the target. The task force, its presence known to the enemy after a sighting by small vessels, reversed course and returned to Pearl Harbor on 25 April.[2]
The Battle of Midway
Five days later, Enterprise sortied toward the South Pacific to reinforce U.S. carriers operating in the Coral Sea. However, the Battle of the Coral Sea was over before Enterprise arrived. After executing, with Hornet, a feint towards Nauru and Banaba (Ocean) islands which caused the Japanese to delay Operation RY to seize the two islands, Enterprise returned to Pearl Harbor on 26 May, and began intensive preparation to meet the expected Japanese thrust at Midway Island.
VT-6 TBDs on USS Enterprise during the Battle of Midway
On 28 May, Enterprise sortied as Rear Admiral Raymond A. Spruance's flagship with orders "to hold Midway and inflict maximum damage on the enemy by strong attrition tactics". With Enterprise in CTF 16 were Hornet, six cruisers, and 10 destroyers. On 30 May, Task Force 17 (TF17), with Rear Admiral Frank J. Fletcher in Yorktown, left Pearl with two cruisers and six destroyers as CTF-17; as senior officer present, Rear Admiral Fletcher became "Officer in Tactical Command."[2] The usual commander of the Enterprise task force, Vice Admiral William F. "Bull" Halsey, was kept in hospital at Pearl with a stress-related skin condition.
Each side launched air attacks during the day in a decisive battle. Though the forces were in contact until 7 June, by 10:45am on 4 June the outcome had been decided. Three Japanese carriers were burning and it was only a matter of time until a fourth was caught and knocked out. The Battle of Midway began on the morning of 4 June 1942, when four Japanese carriers, unaware of the presence of U.S. naval forces, launched attacks on Midway Island. Shortly after the first bomb fell on Midway, the first wave of planes from Midway Island attacked, unsuccessfully. Several more groups attacked, again failing to damage their targets. Planes from the U.S. carriers attacked next. Enterprise torpedo bombers attacked first, scoring no hits and suffering heavy losses. Soon after, Enterprise dive bombers attacked and disabled the Japanese carriers Kaga and Akagi, leaving them ablaze. Within an hour, the one remaining Japanese carrier, Hiryu, launched air strikes that crippled Yorktown with three bombs and two torpedoes striking home during two separate attacks. In late afternoon, a mixed squadron of Enterprise and Yorktown bombers, flying from Enterprise, disabled Hiryu, leaving her burning. (Aircraft from Yorktown had also disabled the Japanese aircraft carrier Sōryū at the same time as the Enterprise planes were bombing Akagi and Kaga, again leaving it burning and dead in the water). The following day Enterprise dive bombers alone sank cruiser Mikuma. While Yorktown and Hammann were the only American ships sunk, TF 16 and TF 17 lost a total of 113 planes, 61 of them in combat, during the battle. Japanese losses were much larger: four carriers (all scuttled), one cruiser and 272 carrier aircraft.[9] Despite losses to her aircraft squadrons, Enterprise came through undamaged and returned to Pearl Harbor on 13 June 1942.[2]
South Pacific
October 1942.
After a month of rest and overhaul, Enterprise sailed on 15 July 1942 for the South Pacific, where she joined TF 61 to support the amphibious landings in the Solomon Islands on 8 August. For the next two weeks, the carrier and her planes guarded seaborne communication lines southwest of the Solomons. On 24 August, a strong Japanese force was discovered some 200 miles (300 km) north of Guadalcanal, and TF 61 sent planes to the attack.[2] This was the first time that the Grim Reapers of VF-10 deployed from Enterprise under commanding officer James H. Flatley, who became known as "Reaper Leader."[10] In the ensuing Battle of the Eastern Solomons, the light carrier Ryūjō was sunk, and the Japanese troops intended for Guadalcanal were forced back. Enterprise suffered most heavily of the American ships; three direct bomb hits and four near misses killed 74, wounded 95, and inflicted serious damage on the carrier. Quick, hard work by damage control parties patched her up so that she was able to return to Hawaii under her own power.[2]
Repaired at Pearl Harbor from 10 September-16 October 1942, Enterprise departed once more for the South Pacific, where with Hornet she formed TF 61. On 26 October, Enterprise scout planes located a Japanese carrier force and the Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands was under way. Enterprise aircraft struck carriers and cruisers during the struggle, while the Big E herself underwent intensive attack. Hit twice by bombs, Enterprise lost 44 men and had 75 wounded. Despite serious damage, she continued in action and took on board a large number of planes and crewmen from Hornet when that carrier was sunk. Though the American losses of a carrier and a destroyer were more severe than the Japanese loss of one light cruiser, the battle gained time to reinforce Guadalcanal against the next enemy onslaught,[2] and nearby Henderson Field was therefore secure from the Japanese bombardment. The loss of the Hornet meant Enterprise was now the only functioning (albeit damaged) US carrier in the Pacific Theater.[note 1] On the flight deck, the crew posted a sign: "Enterprise vs Japan."[11][12][13][14]
Enterprise reached Nouméa, New Caledonia on 30 October for repairs, but a new Japanese thrust at the Solomons demanded her presence and she sailed on 11 November, with repair crews from Vestal still working on board. Part of the repair crew comprised a 75-man Seabee detachment from Company B of the 3rd Construction Battalion because adequate regular repair forces were lacking.[15][note 2] Underway with orders to engage the enemy, the Seabees continued their repair work even during the forthcoming battle. Ship repairs fell under the round-the-clock supervision of her damage control officer Lieutenant Commander Herschel Albert Smith, USN (USNA- Class 1922, Michigan).[16] "She made the open sea with her decks still shaking and echoing to air hammers, with welders' arcs still sparking, with a big bulge in her right side forward, without water tight integrity and one oil tank still leaking, and with her forward elevator still jammed as it had been since the bomb at Santa Cruz broke in half.".[17]
The commanding officer of Enterprise, Captain Osborne Bennett "Ozzie B" "Oby" Hardison, USN (USNA- Class 1916, North Carolina)[18] notified the Navy Department that "The emergency repairs accomplished by this skillful, well-trained, and enthusiastically energetic force have placed this vessel in condition for further action against the enemy".[19][note 3] This remarkable job later won the praise of Vice Admiral William Halsey, Jr., USN, Commander South Pacific Area and the South Pacific Force, who sent a dispatch to the OIC of the Seabee detachment stating: "Your commander wishes to express to you and the men of the Construction Battalion serving under you his appreciation for the services rendered by you in effecting emergency repairs during action against the enemy. The repairs were completed by these men with speed and efficiency. I hereby commend them for their willingness, zeal, and capability."[20]
On 13 November, aviators from Enterprise helped to sink the Hiei, the first Japanese battleship lost during the war. When the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal ended on 15 November 1942, Enterprise had shared in sinking sixteen ships and damaging eight more. The carrier returned to Nouméa on 16 November to complete her repairs.
Sailing again on 4 December, Enterprise trained out of Espiritu Santo, New Hebrides, until 28 January 1943, when she departed for the Solomons area. On 30 January, her fighters flew combat air patrol for a cruiser–destroyer group during the Battle of Rennell Island. Despite the destruction of most of the attacking Japanese bombers by Enterprise planes, the heavy cruiser Chicago was sunk by aerial torpedoes.
Detached after the battle, the carrier arrived at Espiritu Santo on 1 February, and for the next three months operated out of that base, covering U.S. surface forces up to the Solomons. Enterprise then steamed to Pearl Harbor where, on 27 May 1943, Admiral Chester Nimitz presented the ship with the first Presidential Unit citation awarded to an aircraft carrier.
In the summer of 1943, with the new Essex-class and Independence-class carriers joining the American Pacific Fleet, Enterprise was temporarily relieved of duty, and on 20 July, she entered Puget Sound Naval Shipyard for a much-needed overhaul.[2] Over the course of several months, Enterprise received an extensive refit, which included, among other upgrades, new anti-aircraft weapons and an anti-torpedo blister that significantly improved her underwater protection.[note 4]
Return to duty
Back in waters by mid-November, Enterprise joined in providing close air support to the 27th Infantry Division landing on Makin Atoll, during the Battle of Makin, from 19–21 November 1943. On the night of 26 November, Enterprise introduced carrier-based night fighters to the Pacific when a three-plane team from the ship broke up a large group of land-based bombers attacking TG 50.2. Two of the three planes returned to the ship, with LCDR Edward "Butch" O'Hare the only casualty. After a heavy strike by aircraft of TF 50 against Kwajalein on 4 December, Enterprise returned to Pearl Harbor five days later.
The carrier's next operation was with the Fast Carrier Task Force in softening up the Marshall Islands and supporting the landings on Kwajalein, from 29 January-3 February 1944. Then, Enterprise sailed, still with TF 58, to strike the Japanese naval base at Truk Lagoon in the Caroline Islands, on 17 February. Again Enterprise made aviation history, when she launched the first night radar bombing attack from a U.S. carrier. The twelve torpedo bombers in this strike achieved excellent results, accounting for nearly one-third of the 200,000 tons of shipping destroyed by aircraft.
Detached from TF 58 with escorts, Enterprise launched raids on Jaluit Atoll on 20 February, then steamed to Majuro and Espiritu Santo. Sailing on 15 March in TG 36.1, she provided air cover and close support for the landings on Emirau Island (19–25 March). The carrier rejoined TF 58 on 26 March, and for the next 12 days, joined in a series of strikes against the islands of Yap, Ulithi, Woleai, and Palau. After a week's rest and replenishment at Majuro, Enterprise sailed on 14 April to support landings in the Hollandia (currently known as Jayapura) area of New Guinea, and then hit Truk again from 29–30 April.
On 6 June 1944, she and her companions of TG 58.3 sortied from Majuro to join the rest of TF 58 in attacking the Marianas Islands. Striking Saipan, Rota, and Guam from 11–14 June, Enterprise pilots gave direct support to the landings on Saipan on 15 June, and covered the troops ashore for the next two days.
Aware of a major Japanese attempt to break up the invasion of Saipan, Admiral Spruance, now Commander 5th Fleet, positioned TF 58 to meet the threat.[2]
The Battle of the Philippine Sea
On 19 June 1944, Enterprise was one of four carriers of Task Group 58.3 under the command of Rear Admiral John W. Reeves' during the largest carrier aircraft battle in history: the Battle of the Philippine Sea. For over eight hours, airmen of the United States and Imperial Japanese navies fought in the skies over TF 58 and the Marianas. Over the course of two days, a total of six American ships were damaged, and 130 planes and a total of 76 pilots and aircrew were lost. In sharp contrast, American carrier aircraft, with a major assist from U.S. submarines, sank three Japanese carriers (Hiyō, Shōkaku, and Taihō), and destroyed 426 carrier aircraft, losses from which Japanese naval aviation would never recover.
Enterprise participated both in the defense of the fleet and in the subsequent early-evening strike against the Japanese task forces. During the chaotic after-dark recovery of the air strike, a fighter and a bomber came aboard simultaneously, but fortunately did not cause an accident. A planned midnight strike against the Japanese fleet by night-flying Enterprise pilots was cancelled because of the recovery and rescue operations required after the dusk attack. After the battle, Enterprise and her Task Group continued to provide air support for the invasion of Saipan through 5 July. She then sailed for Pearl Harbor and a month of rest and overhaul. Back in action on 24 August, the carrier sailed with TF 38 in that force's aerial assault on the Volcano and Bonin Islands from 31 August – 2 September, and Yap, Ulithi, and the Palaus from 6–8 September.[2]
The Battle of Leyte Gulf
After operating west of the Palau Islands, Enterprise joined other units of TF 38 on 7 October and set course to the north. From 10–20 October, her aviators flew over Okinawa, Formosa, and the Philippines, blasting enemy airfields, shore installations, and shipping in preparation for the assault on Leyte. After supporting the Leyte landings on 20 October, Enterprise headed for Ulithi to replenish, but the approach of the Japanese fleet on 23 October called her back to action.
In the Battle of Leyte Gulf (23–26 October), Enterprise planes struck all three groups of enemy forces, battering battleships and destroyers before the action ended. The carrier remained on patrol east of Samar and Leyte until the end of October, then retired to Ulithi for supplies. During November, her aircraft struck targets in the Manila area, and at the island of Yap. She returned to Pearl Harbor on 6 December 1944.
Sailing on 24 December for the Philippines, Enterprise carried an air group specially trained in night carrier operations; as the only carrier capable of night operations, she left Oahu with her hull code changed from CV to CV(N), the "N" representing "Night".[21][22] She joined TG 38.5 and swept the waters north of Luzon and of the South China Sea during January 1945, striking shore targets and shipping from Formosa to Indo-China including an attack on Macau.[23] After a brief visit to Ulithi, Enterprise joined TG 58.5 on 10 February 1945, and provided day and night combat air patrol for TF 58 as it struck Tokyo on 16–17 February. She then supported the Marines in the Battle of Iwo Jima from 19 February – 9 March, when she sailed for Ulithi. During one part of that period, Enterprise kept aircraft aloft continuously over Iwo Jima for 174 hours.
Departing Ulithi on 15 March, the carrier continued her night work in raids against Kyūshū, Honshū, and shipping in the Inland Sea of Japan. Damaged lightly by an enemy bomb on 18 March, Enterprise entered Ulithi six days later for repairs. Back in action on 5 April, she supported the Okinawa operation until she was damaged on 11 April—this time by a kamikaze—and was forced back to Ulithi.[24] Off Okinawa once more on 6 May, Enterprise flew patrols around the clock as kamikaze attacks increased. On 14 May 1945, she suffered her last wound of World War II when a kamikaze Zero, piloted by Lt. J.G. Shunsuke Tomiyasu, destroyed her forward elevator, killing 14 and wounding 34.
The carrier sailed for and was fully repaired at the Puget Sound Navy Yard. Near ready, with all planes aboard at the degaussing/demagnetizing range off the Strait of Juan de Fuca when the Nagasaki bombing ended the war on August 9, 1945.[2]
Post war
Operation Magic Carpet
Enterprise and Washington in Panama Canal
Enterprise and Washington pass through the Panama Canal en route to New York in October 1945
Enterprise awaiting disposal
Restored to peak condition, Enterprise voyaged to Pearl Harbor, returning to the States with some 1,141 servicemen due for discharge, including hospital patients and former POWs, then sailed on to New York on 25 September 1945 via the Panama Canal arriving on 17 October 1945. Two weeks later, she proceeded to Boston for installation of additional berthing facilities, then began a series of three Operation Magic Carpet voyages to Europe, bringing more than 10,000 veterans home in her final service to her country.[2]
The first European voyage returned 4,668 servicemen from Southampton, England in November 1945.[25] On the second trip to Europe, she was boarded by the British First Lord of the Admiralty, Sir Albert Alexander in Southampton, who presented Enterprise with a British Admiralty pennant that was hoisted when a majority of the Admiralty Board members were present. The pennant was given to the Big E as a token of respect from several high-ranking officers of an ally. She returned to New York on 25 December 1945 with 4,413 servicemen.[25] On this nine-day trip, she encountered four storms, some with winds of 80mph that caused 75 foot waves that swamped the forecastle deck in water up to 10 feet deep. According to damage control officer John U. Monro, the storms smashed sections of walkways and railings, and swept loose objects overboard.[26] Her last voyage was to the Azores, and returned 3,557 personnel, including 212 WACs to New York on 17 January 1946[25]
The end of the "Big E"
With the commissioning of over two dozen larger and more advanced aircraft carriers by end of 1945, Enterprise was deemed surplus for the post-war needs of America's navy. She entered the New York Naval Shipyard on 18 January 1946 for deactivation, and was decommissioned on 17 February 1947. In 1946, she had been scheduled to be handed over to the state of New York as a permanent memorial, but this plan was suspended in 1949.[27] Subsequent attempts were made at preserving the ship as a museum or memorial, but fund-raising efforts failed to raise enough money to buy the vessel from the Navy, and the "Big E" was sold on 1 July 1958 to the Lipsett Corporation of New York City for scrapping at Kearny, New Jersey.
A promise was made to save the distinctive tripod mast for inclusion in the Naval Academy's new football stadium, but was never fulfilled; instead, a memorial plaque was installed at the base of what is still called "Enterprise Tower." Scrapping was complete as of May 1960. In 1984, a permanent "Enterprise Exhibit" was dedicated at the Naval Aviation Museum, Naval Air Station Pensacola, Florida to house artifacts, photos and other items of historical interest.
Jersey.
Surviving Enterprise artifacts include the ship's bell, which resides at the U.S. Naval Academy,[28] where it is traditionally rung only after Midshipmen victories over West Point; and the sixteen-foot, one-ton nameplate from the ship's stern, which sits near a Little League park in River Vale, New Jersey.[29] Her commissioning plaque and one of her anchors are on display at the Washington Navy Yard in Washington, D.C.
Successors to the "Big E"
The name was revived in February 1958 when the world's first nuclear-powered aircraft carrier was laid down as the eighth Enterprise; this ship was commissioned in November 1961. Also nicknamed the "Big E", various artifacts and mementos were kept aboard from her predecessor. The port holes in the captain's in-port cabin and conference room are only one example. She was inactivated and removed from service on 1 December 2012 after being in the fleet for 51 years. Due to needs involving reactor removal, she cannot be turned into a memorial. At her inactivation, it was announced that the ninth ship to bear the name Enterprise would be the planned Gerald R. Ford-class aircraft carrier, CVN-80.[30] It has not been confirmed what, if any, artifacts from USS Enterprise (CV-6) will be incorporated into this next generation aircraft carrier, although a time capsule containing mementos from both CV-6 and CVN-65 will be presented to the first captain of the new Enterprise. The aforementioned port holes aboard the CVN-65 will be removed and returned to the Boston Navy Yard Museum.
Awards and commendations
The ship's insignia of Enterprise
Bronze star
Silver star
Silver star
Silver star
Silver star
Presidential Unit Citation Navy Unit Commendation
American Defense Service Medal
with "Fleet" clasp American Campaign Medal Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal
with twenty stars
World War II Victory Medal Philippine Presidential Unit Citation Philippine Liberation Medal
British Admiralty Pennant
Enterprise was awarded a Presidential Unit Citation for her service during World War II.[31] The citation states:
“ For consistently outstanding performance and distinguished achievement during repeated action against enemy Japanese forces in the Pacific war area, 7 December 1941, to 15 November 1942. Participating in nearly every major carrier engagement in the first year of the war, the Enterprise and her air group, exclusive of far-flung destruction of hostile shore installations throughout the battle area, did sink or damage on her own a total of 35 Japanese vessels and shot down a total of 185 Japanese aircraft. Her aggressive spirit and superb combat efficiency are fitting tribute to the officers and men who so gallantly established her as an ahead bulwark in the defense of the American nation. ”
In addition to her Presidential Unit Citation, Enterprise received the Navy Unit Commendation and 20 battle stars for World War II service, making her the highest decorated US ship ever.
Finally, she was presented with a British Admiralty pennant that was hoisted when a majority of the Admiralty Board members were present. The pennant was given to the "Big E" as an unofficial token of respect from an ally.
List of Commanding Officers
Commanding Officer[32] Dates of Command Notable Events
Captain Newton H. White, Jr., USN 12 May 1938 - 21 Dec. 1938 Commissioning, Shakedown Cruise
Captain Charles A. Pownall, USN 21 Dec. 1938 - 21 March 1941 Winter Maneuvers, Pacific Fleet Exercises and Patrols
Captain George D. Murray, USN 21 March 1941 - 30 June 1942 Pearl Harbor, Marshall Islands Raid, Wake and Marcus Island Raids, Doolittle Raid, Midway
Captain Arthur C. Davis, USN 30 June 1942 - 21 Oct. 1942 Guadalcanal Landings, Eastern Solomons
Captain Osborne B. Hardison, USN 21 Oct. 1942 - 7 April 1943 Santa Cruz, Naval Battle of Guadalcanal, Rennell Island
Captain Carlos W. Wieber, USN 7 April 1943 - 16 April 1943
Captain Samuel P. Ginder, USN 16 April 1943 - 7 Nov. 1943 Pearl Harbor Repairs, Bremerton Refit
Captain Matthias B. Gardner, USN 7 Nov. 1943 - 10 July 1944 Gilberts Landings, Marshall and Truk Islands Raids, Marianas Landings, Philippine Sea
Commander Thomas J. Hamilton, USN 10 July 1944 - 29 July 1944 Pearl Harbor Repairs
Captain Cato D. Glover, USN 29 July 1944 - 14 Dec. 1944 Bonin Islands Raids, Leyte Landings, Leyte Gulf
Captain Grover B. H. Hall, USN 14 Dec. 1944 - 25 Sep. 1945 Luzon Invasion, South China Raids, Tokyo Raids, Iwo Jima, Kyushu Raids, Okinawa, Bremerton Repairs
Captain William A. Rees, USN 25 Sep. 1945 - 20 Feb. 1946 Navy Day Celebrations, Operation Magic Carpet
Captain Francis E. Bardwell, USN 20 Feb. 1946 - 10 June 1946 Docked in Bayonne, New Jersey
Commander Conrad W. Craven, USN 10 June 1946 - 31 Jan. 1947
Commander Lewis F. Davis, USN 31 Jan. 1947 - 17 Feb. 1947 Decommissioning