USS Wasp World War II CV-7 Aircraft Carrier

USS Wasp World War II CV-7 Aircraft Carrier USS Wasp Overview Nation: United StatesType: Aircraft CarrierShipyard: Fore River ShipyardLaid Down: April 1, 1936Launched: April 4, 1939Commissioned: April 25, 1940Fate: Sunk September 15, 1942 Specifications Displacement: 19,423 tonsLength: 741 ft., 3 in.Beam: 109 ft.Draft: 20 ft.Propulsion: 2 Ãâ€" Parsons steam turbines, 6 Ãâ€" boilers at 565 psi, 2 Ãâ€" shaftsSpeed: 29.5 knotsRange: 14,000 nautical miles at 15 knotsComplement: 2,167 men Armament Guns 8 Ãâ€" 5 in./.38 cal guns16 Ãâ€" 1.1 in./.75 cal anti-aircraft guns 24 Ãâ€" .50 in. machine guns Aircraft up to 100 aircraft Design Construction In the wake of the 1922 Washington Naval Treaty, the worlds leading sea powers were restricted in the size and total tonnage of warships they were permitted to build and deploy. Under the treatys initial terms, the United States was allotted 135,000 for aircraft carriers. With the construction of USS Yorktown (CV-5) and USS Enterprise (CV-6), the US Navy found itself with 15,000 tons remaining in its allowance. Rather than permit this to go unused, they ordered a new carrier built that possessed approximately three-quarters the displacement of Enterprise. Though still a sizable ship, efforts were made to save weight to meet the treatys restrictions. As a result, the new ship, dubbed USS Wasp (CV-7), lacked much of its larger siblings armor and torpedo protection. Wasp also incorporated less powerful machinery which reduced the carriers displacement, but at a cost of around three knots of speed. Laid down at the Fore River Shipyard in Quincy, MA on April 1, 1936, Wasp was launched three years later on April 4, 1939. The first American carrier to possess a deck edge aircraft elevator, Wasp was commissioned on April 25, 1940, with Captain John W. Reeves in command. Prewar Service Departing Boston in June, Wasp conducted testing and carrier qualifications through the summer before finishing its last sea trials in September. Assigned to Carrier Division 3, in October 1940, Wasp embarked US Army Air Corps ,P-40 fighters for flight testing. These efforts showed that land-based fighters could fly from a carrier. Through the remainder of the year and into 1941, Wasp largely operated in the Caribbean where it participated in a variety of training exercises. Returning to Norfolk, VA in March, the carrier aided a sinking lumber schooner en route. While at Norfolk, Wasp was fitted with the new CXAM-1 radar. After a brief return to the Caribbean and service off Rhode Island, the carrier received orders to sail for Bermuda. With World War II raging, Wasp operated from Grassy Bay and conducted neutrality patrols in the western Atlantic Ocean. Returning to Norfolk in July, Wasp embarked US Army Air Forces fighters for delivery to Iceland. Delivering the aircraft on August 6, the carrier remained in the Atlantic conducting flight operations until arriving at Trinidad in early September. USS Wasp   Though the United States remained technically neutral, the US Navy was directed to destroy German and Italian warships that threatened Allied convoys. Aiding in convoy escort duties through the fall, Wasp was at Grassy Bay when news arrived of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7. With the United States formal entry into the conflict, Wasp conducted a patrol into the Caribbean before returning to Norfolk for a refit. Departing the yard on January 14, 1942, the carrier accidently collided with USS Stack forcing it to return to Norfolk. Sailing a week later, Wasp joined Task Force 39 en route to Britain. Arriving at Glasgow, the ship was tasked with ferrying Supermarine Spitfire fighters to the beleaguered island of Malta as part of Operation Calendar. Successfully delivering the aircraft in late April, Wasp carried another load of Spitfires to the island in May during Operation Bowery. For this second mission, it was accompanied by the carrier HMS Eagle. With the loss of USS Lexington at the Battle of the Coral Sea in early May, the US Navy decided to transfer Wasp to the Pacific to aid in combating the Japanese. World War II in the Pacific After a brief refit at Norfolk, Wasp sailed for the Panama Canal on May 31 with Captain Forrest Sherman in command. Pausing at San Diego, the carrier embarked an air group of F4F Wildcat fighters, SBD Dauntless dive bombers, and TBF Avenger torpedo bombers. In the wake of the victory at the Battle of Midway in early June, Allied forces elected to go on the offensive in early August by striking at Guadalcanal in the Solomon Islands. To aid this operation, Wasp sailed with Enterprise and USS Saratoga (CV-3) to provide air support for the invasion forces. As American troops went ashore on August 7, aircraft from Wasp struck targets around the Solomons including Tulagi, Gavutu, and Tanambogo. Attacking the seaplane base at Tanambogo, aviators from Wasp destroyed twenty-two Japanese aircraft. Fighters and bombers from Wasp continued to engage the enemy until late on August 8 when Vice Admiral Frank J. Fletcher ordered the carriers to withdraw. A controversial decision, it effectively stripped the invasion troops of their air cover. Later that month, Fletcher ordered Wasp south to refuel leading the carrier to miss the Battle of the Eastern Solomons. In the fighting, Enterprise was damaged leaving Wasp and USS Hornet (CV-8) as the US Navys only operational carriers in the Pacific. USS Wasp Sinking Mid-September found Wasp sailing with Hornet and the battleship USS North Carolina (BB-55) to provide an escort for transports carrying the 7th Marine Regiment to Guadalcanal. At 2:44 PM on September 15, Wasp was conducting flight operations when six torpedoes were spotted in the water. Fired by the Japanese submarine I-19, three struck Wasp despite the carrier turning hard to starboard. Lacking sufficient torpedo protection, the carrier took severe damage as all struck fuel tanks and ammunition supplies. Of the other three torpedoes, one hit the destroyer USS OBrien while another struck North Carolina. Aboard Wasp, the crew desperately attempted to control the spreading fires but damage to the ships water mains prevented them from having success. Additional explosions occurred twenty-four minutes after the attack making the situation worse. Seeing no alternative, Sherman ordered Wasp abandoned at 3:20 PM. The survivors were taken off by nearby destroyers and cruisers. In the course of the attack and attempts to fight the fires, 193 men were killed. A burning hulk, Wasp was finished off by torpedoes from the destroyer USS Lansdowne and sunk by the bow at 9:00 PM. Selected Sources DANFS: USS Wasp (CV-7)Military Factory: USS Wasp (CV-7)Hull Number: CV-7

Huck Finn Essay Example

Huck Finn Essay Example Huck Finn Essay Huck Finn Essay Essay Topic: The Adventures Of Huckleberry Finn The adventures Of Tom Sawyer A Journey of Growth The Old Souths way of life deformed the consciences of the people living there, convincing them of the humanity of slavery. Mark Twains Adventures of Huckleberry Finn tells the story of Hack Finn, a young rednecks boy, who finds friendship in a runaway slave named Jim, despite his own racist background. Though Hack and Jim bond throughout their Journey, Hack struggles to overcome the way he was raised and see Jim as a person capable of feelings and emotions. Throughout his Journey down the Mississippi, Hack is faced with challenges where he must decide Jims fate, UT as his bond with Jim grows stronger, he begins to unlearn the racist views he was taught. He begins to mature and follow his heart when he apologizes to Jim, decides not to turn him in, and when he finally has the epiphany that he would rather rot in Hell than turn in his best friend. Hack, who grew up playing tricks on others with Tom Sawyer, realizes for the first time that African-American slaves are capable of feeling pain, and he learns that true friends do not try to hurt each other. After being separated from Jim all night in the fog, Hack finally finds him asleep on the raft, and he decides that it would be funny to lay a trick on the less intelligent man. After making up a story and trying to convince Jim that the entire night was Just a dream, Hack Jokingly comes clean and tells Jim the truth, but he does not expect Jims serious reaction. Jim stares Hack right in the eye and says, When I wake up en fine you back aging, all safe en soon, De tears come en I could a got down on my knees en kiss you foot Xis so thankful. En all you wiz thinking bout wiz how you could make a fool up ole Jim wide a lie, (Twain 95). Jim storms off, leaving Hack to contemplate his decision. For the first time in his life, Hack has it brought to his attention that his actions can cause emotional pain to others, and he sees his first glimpse of how much Jim cares for him. Hack reflects to himself, It made me feel so mean I could almost kissed his foot to get him to take it back. It was fifteen minutes before I could work myself up to go and humble myself too Niger- but I done it, and I warrant ever sorry for it afterwards, neither. I didnt do him no more mean tricks, and I wouldnt done that one if Id owned it would make him feel that way (95). Hack sees the pain he has caused Jim, and he begins to understand that even black slaves have feelings. His friendship with Jim has grown, and though he was taught his whole life that slaves were inferior and incapable of real human emotions, he does something that no young white boy would imagine doing during this time; he apologizes too Niger. This action shows Husks first steps at unlearning the racist ideals he was taught growing up and how he is willing to accept the friendship off black man despite the southern way of life. In his criticism Introduction to Huckleberry Finn, T. S. Eliot writes, What I find still more stubbing, and still more unusual in literature, is the pathos and dignity of the boy, when reminded so humbly and humiliatingly, that his position in the world is not that of other boys, entitled from time to time to a practical Joke; but that he must bear, and bear alone, the responsibility off man (351). T. S. Eliot discusses how this is the event that opens his eyes to the fact that his reason for living is much greater than that of other boys his age. Though Hack learned a valuable lesson about friendship, he has trouble viewing Jim as a human worthy of being free because he is stuck in the mindset that African- Americans are only three fifths a person and that they are property of their white owners. His heart tells him that saving Jim is the right thing, but his conscience continues to convince him that he is breaking the law and committing a horrible sin. Husks conscience pesters him constantly and says, What had poor Miss Watson done to you, that you could see her Niger go off right under your eyes, and never say one single word? What did that poor old woman do to you, that you could treat her so mean (Twain 110)? Husks southern mentality dictates his life, and he honestly lives that Jim is not his own person but Just a piece of property that Hack has helped steal from Miss Watson. He tries to put these feelings out of his mind, but when Jim confides in him that once he is free he plans to buy his wife out of slavery and together they can steal their children, Hack is again faced with the challenge of deciding between right and wrong. He thinks to himself, Here was this Niger which I had as good as helped to run away, coming right out flat-footed and saying he would steal his children-children that belonged to a man I didnt even know; a man hat hadnt ever done me no harm (1 11). As well as viewing Jim as Miss Watson property, he sees Jims children as the property of their slave-owner. He has trouble handling the idea that Jims children are actually people Just like Hack who deserves to be with their family and live lives free from slavery. As Hack paddles away to meet the two men coming on a boat, Jim says, Xis a free man, en I couldnt ever Ben free fee it had Ben for Hack; Hack done it Yogas De bees free Jims ever had; en Yogas De only free ole Jims got now (1 11). At first, this seems to make Hack feel even guiltier for eloping a runaway slave, but when the two men begin asking about Jim and whether hes a white man or a runaway slave, Hack lies and saves Jim from being captured. Its obvious from this that Hack is starting to accept the fact that he and Jim are friends and that even if society says it is wrong, he will do whatever he needs to in order to protect his companion. When Hack learns that Jim has been captured and is being held at a local farm, he faces his biggest challenge- whether to fight to save Jim or to write a letter to Miss Watson and tell her Jims whereabouts. He honestly believes that if he does not turn Jim in, he is committing a vulgar sin and will be sent to Hell for eternity, so he decides to sit down and pray. He tries and tries, but he believes so strongly that helping Jim is a sin that he is unable to make himself say the words. He says, l endowed very well why they wouldnt come. It was because my heart warrant right; it was because I warrant square; it was because I was playing double (222). His fondness for Jim has grown so much that he knows he is unable to turn him in no matter how wrong he thinks it is. He continues to make an effort to do the right thing, so he writes out the letter to Miss Watson, but then he begins thinking of Jim and their Journey down the Mississippi River. He looks at the letter and says, l was trembling, because Id got to decide, forever, betwixt two things, and I endowed it. I studied a minute, sort of holding my breath, and then says to myself: All right, then, Ill go to hell- and tore it things he had learned about slaves and start living his way even if it meant that he would go to Hell. His chooses to follow his heart rather than let the deformed society dictate his thoughts and actions. Leo B. Levy states in his criticism, The triumph of agency is the shedding of conventional morality; immorality, paradoxically, is the source of virtue (388). This is ironically true because what society sees as right is wrong and what it sees as sinful is moral action. Hack is able to let his decency triumph and ignore society view of him. This final moment of realization ends Husks Journey because at this point he decides Jims and his own fate for good. The Journey down the river symbolizes Husks Journey to maturation, which he ultimately wins. He conquers societys idea of how he should be raised and chooses his own fate. Hack learns to see past the corrupt racist views of the South, and he moves out to the Indian Territory, which has not yet been corrupted with slavery. The maturation that Hack experiences far outreaches that of other people in the South because while Hack was battling to save a runaway slave, many people continued to take part in the practice of slavery. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn shows a young, uneducated Husks Journey because only a boy, still untouched by the taint of the world, could learn what generations of people in the South could not: that even a black man deserves freedom.

Green Infrastructure Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Green Infrastructure - Essay Example Green infrastructure integrates set up green spaces and new places and must string through and enclose the constructed ecology and connect the metropolitan area to its extensive rural surroundings. Thus, it required to be distributed to all spatial scales from sub-regional to local vicinities levels, accepting both available natural green places inside local societies; it must also accommodate larger sites in the metropolitan periphery and wider hinterland. Green infrastructure is specifically pertinent to the housing and economic development, and to the reproduction of metropolitan hinterlands. Here green infrastructure is about expanding going hand in hand with the conservation and improvement of the current ecological assets and the construction of new ones. It is about placing the ecology right at the middle of the planning procedure and creating a tactical and connected multifunctional system of places with benefits for people and the natural world. This includes making it plian t to the impact of climate change and facilitating local authorities to accomplish their role to protect biodiversity while observing the decree of Natural Environment and Rural Communities Act2006. On the other hand, green infrastructure pertains to the rural ecology. In the extensive landscape, green infrastructure is regularly seen at a wider scope, encompassing bigger national or regional parks; wider aspects such as river conduits, and flood fields, and the establishment of wide green channels and environmental systems.