USS Essex

The Essex class was a class of aircraft carriers of the United States Navy. The 20th century's most numerous class of capital ship, the class consisted of 24 vessels, which came in "short-hull" and "long-hull" versions. Thirty-two ships were ordered, but as World War II wound down, six were canceled before construction, and two were canceled after construction had begun. Fourteen ships of the class engaged in combat operations during World War II. No Essex-class ships were lost to enemy action even though several sustained crippling damage. The Essex-class carriers were the backbone of the U. S. Navy's combat strength during World War II from mid-1943 on, and, along with the three Midway-class carriers added just after the war, continued to be the heart of U. S. naval strength until the supercarriers came into the fleet in numbers during the 1960s and 1970s.