Battle of the Coral Sea

battle_name=Battle of the Coral Sea

The battle

Lexington arrived to join Yorktown on May 1st. The Japanese occupied Tulagi without incident on May 3rd, and construction of a seaplane base began. After fuelling, Yorktown closed on Tulagi and, on May 4, launched three successful strikes against Japanese shipping and aircraft there — revealing the presence of an American carrier to the enemy, but sinking the destroyer Kikuzuki, crippling the island's seaplane reconnaissance capability, and damaging other vessels, before retiring to the south to rendezvous with the Lexington and the newly-arrived cruisers. Meanwhile, the two large Japanese carriers were approaching from south of the Solomons — neatly placing the Allied fleet between the two Japanese fleets.

Related Topics:
May 1 - May 4 - ''Kikuzuki'' - Seaplane

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Land-based B-17's attacked the gradually-approaching Port Moresby invasion fleet on May 6, with the usual lack of success. Almost another year would pass before air forces realized that high-level bombing raids upon moving naval targets were pointless. Although both carrier fleets flew extensive searches on the 6th, cloudy weather kept them hidden from each other, and the two fleets spent the night only 70 miles apart. Other allied aircraft joined the battle, from airbases at Cooktown and Iron Range on Cape York Peninsula, Australia.

Related Topics:
B-17 - May 6 - Cooktown - Cape York Peninsula

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That night Fletcher, mindful that his primary role was to protect Port Moresby, took the difficult decision to detach the Allies' main surface fleet, under the Australian Rear Admiral John Crace, to block the probable course of an invasion fleet. Crace's force consisted of the cruisers HMAS Australia, USS Chicago, HMAS Hobart, and the destroyers USS Perkins, USS Walke and USS Farragut. Fletcher and Crace knew that exposing surface ships to attack by land-based aircraft, without air cover was to risk a repeat of the sinking of HMS Prince of Wales and HMS Repulse five months before. Their fears were realised when the cruisers were located by a squadron of Japanese torpedo bombers, and came under intense air attack, on the afternoon of May 7. Whether as a result of luck or skill, the Allied ships escaped with few casualties and little damage. Only a matter of minutes after the Japanese raid, Crace's force was inadvertently attacked by friendly B-17s, and Farragut and Perkins once again survived narrow misses.

Related Topics:
John Crace - HMAS ''Australia'' - USS ''Chicago'' - HMAS ''Hobart'' - USS ''Perkins'' - USS ''Walke'' - USS ''Farragut'' - Sinking of HMS ''Prince of Wales'' and HMS ''Repulse'' - Torpedo bomber - May 7

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On the 7th, both fleets flew off all available aircraft, but neither found the main body of the other, and both mistakenly attacked subsidiary forces. Japanese aircraft found and attacked the US fleet oiler USS Neosho (AO-23) and the escorting destroyer USS Sims (DD-409), mistaking them for a carrier and a cruiser. Sims was sunk, while Neosho was crippled. Meanwhile, the US aircraft had missed Shokaku and Zuikaku but found the invasion fleet, in company with the small carrier Shoho, which was soon sunk. In the previous five months, the Allies had lost a dozen battleships and carriers, and had been unable to sink a single major Japanese unit in return. Shoho was small by carrier standards, but the laconic "scratch one flattop", radioed back to the Lexington, brought news of the first Allied naval success of the Pacific war.

Related Topics:
USS ''Neosho'' (AO-23) - USS ''Sims'' (DD-409)

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Finally, with dawn searches on May 8, the main carrier forces located one another, and launched maximum effort raids, which passed each other in the air. Hidden by rain, Zuikaku escaped detection, but Shokaku was hit three times by bombs. Listing, and on fire, Shokaku was unable to land her aircraft, and effectively, was put out of action.

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Both American carriers were hit by the Japanese strike: Yorktown by a bomb; the larger, less maneuverable Lexington, by both bombs and torpedoes. Although she survived the immediate damage, and was thought to be repairable, leaking aviation fuel exploded a little over an hour later. The Lexington had to be abandoned and torpedoed, to prevent her capture.

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Crace's force continued to stand between the invasion force, and Port Moresby. Inoue was misled by returning fliers' reports, as to the strength of the Allied cruiser-destroyer force, and ordered the invasion fleet to return. With Shokaku damaged and Zuikaku short of aircraft, neither was able to take part in the crucial Battle of Midway a month later. The damaged Yorktown returned to Pearl Harbor.

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