| Originally
USS Jupiter
1913-1920
Length
542 feet
Beam
65'
Draft
18' 11"
Speed
15 knots
Tons
11,500
Crew
468
Armament
4 x 5" Guns
55 (max) aircraft
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Ship History
Seaplane tender Langley, the ship that had once
been the U.S. Navy's first aircraft carrier (converted to a seaplane
tender
in 1936)
Wartime History
At the outbreak of World War II, Langley
was anchored off Cavite,
in the Philippines. She departed 8 December and proceeded
to Balikpapan, Borneo, and Darwin, Australia, where she arrived
January 1, 1942. Until 11 January Langley assisted the Royal Australian
Air Force (RAAF) in running antisubmarine patrols out of Darwin.
She was then assigned to American-British-Dutch-Australian forces
assembling in Indonesia to challenge the Japanese thrust in that
direction.
Convoy Duty & Sinking
She departed Fremantle, Australia,
February 22, 1942 in convoy, and left the convoy 5 days later to deliver
32
P-40s to
Tjilatjap,
Java carrying 32 USAAF P-40s earmarked for the defense of Java. She
was bombed by Japanese Naval land attack planes, 75 miles south of
Tjilatjap and 16 crewmembers were killed. Irreparably damaged, the
Langley was scuttled by destroyer Whipple (DD-217) on February 27, 1942.
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