CVB-41 was the third U.S. warship to bear the name Midway:

1. The first Midway, a general auxiliary, was named for the westernmost atoll in the Hawaiian chain. Was later renamed Panay.
2. The second Midway, an escort carrier, was named after the Battle of Midway. Was later renamed St. Lo.
3. The third Midway, a large aircraft carrier, was also named after the Battle of Midway.

In 1942, a strong Japanese thrust to occupy Midway Island was led by a four-carrier Striking Force, supported by heavy units and destroyers. At the same time, another carrier raid was launched against Dutch Harbor in the Aleutian Islands. The Japanese attack on Midway was met by a three-carrier U.S. force: Task Force 17—RADM Fletcher—with USS Yorktown (CV-5) and Task Force 16—RADM Spruance—with USS Enterprise (CV-6) and USS Hornet (CV-8). In the ensuing battle, the four large Japanese carriers (Akagi, Hiryu, Kaga and Soryu) were sunk, carrying with them 250+ planes along with a high number of Japan's most highly trained and battle-experienced pilots and ground crews, a blow to Japan from which she could not recover. Midway was a crucial point of the war in the Pacific.

NS024196: SBD Dauntless dive bombers from Hornet approaching the burning Japanese heavy cruiser Mikuma to make the third set of attacks on her, during the early afternoon of 6 June 1942. Mikuma had been hit earlier by strikes from Hornet and Enterprise, leaving her dead in the water and fatally damaged. Photo was enlarged from a 16mm color motion picture film. Note bombs hung beneath these planes. (Official U.S. Navy Photograph, now in the collections of the National Archives and Records Administration, #80-G-17054).

(Maps NS0306312a and NS0306312d courtesy of Google Maps.)

"The Battle of Midway," directed by John Ford and narrated by Henry Fonda, is comprised mostly of authentic footage from the battle. This documentary, produced in 1942, won an Academy Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Award (Oscar). Then Commander (later Rear Admiral) John Ford, USNR, in civil life wrote, directed or produced more than 130 films in a career spanning four decades.

Format: MP4 (.mp4)  Duration: 18' 7"  Size: 320 x 240

Download a free MP4 player.

Midway under construction, March 1945.

The future USS Midway (CVB-41) under construction at the Newport News Shipbuilding and Drydock Company, in March 1945, preparing for her 20 March 1945 launching.

LIFE magazine, Tom Mcavoy photographer.

Ship's sponsor, Mrs. Bradford W. Ripley, II, of Dayton, Ohio, poses with the christening bottle, at launching ceremonies at the Newport News Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company, Newport News, Virginia, 20 March 1945. Mrs. Ripley is accompanied by Lieutenant George Gay, USNR, the only survivor of the Battle of Midway attack by Torpedo Squadron Eight (VT-8) from USS Hornet (CV-8).

USS Midway (CVB-41) ready for christening at the Newport News Shipbuilding and Drydock Company, Newport News, Va., 20 Mar. 1945.

With a large crowd gathering, USS Midway (CVB-41) is commissioned, Monday, 10 September 1945.

National Naval Aviation Museum photo, # 1996.488.116.017.

"Large Aircraft Carrier Midway." (From a Russian publication).

This drawing shows Midway as built.

(Digitally enhanced by Tom Kermen.)

USS Midway (CVB-41) in Hampton Roads, Virginia, 10 September 1945.

Official U.S. Navy Photograph, from the collections of the Naval Historical Center (# NH 97631).

Aerial oblique bow quarter view of USS Midway (CVB-41), leaving Hampton Roads for her first tour 10 September 1945. National Archives photo # 80-G-701433.

From Warship International magazine.

"THE MIDWAY, 45,000-ton aircraft carrier and the mightiest warship afloat, passing the battle-torn carrier Sangamon as she nears the end of her maiden voyage yesterday from the Newport News Shipyard to the Norfolk Navy Yard at Portsmouth. This picture, looking downstream, was taken from the top of the giant crane in the Navy Yard by Jim Taylor."

"USS Midway's Maiden Voyage—Newport News to Portsmouth"

"World's Greatest Warship Handles Easily Crossing Historic Waters"

USS Midway (CVB-41), New York, 27 October 1945.

"On Navy Day in 1945, a seven-mile line of U.S. Navy warships anchored in the Hudson River and some 1,200 Navy planes flew overhead in commemoration of the event."

Tugboats and U.S. Navy warships pictured in the Hudson River with the New York City skyline in the background on the occasion of Navy Day on 27 October 1945. Visible in the foreground are the anchored heavy cruisers Augusta (CA-31), Helena (CA-75), and Macon (CA-132); carriers Midway (CVB-41) and Enterprise (CV-6); and battleships Missouri (BB-63) and New York (BB-34).

"MANEUVERS OF THE ACTIVE POSTWAR FLEET FOR THE TRAINING OF REGULAR AND RESERVE PERSONNEL WHO WILL MAN THE 'ZIPPER-FLEET' SHOULD AN EMERGENCY ARISE."

"EIGHTH FLEET—GUANTANAMO BAY, CUBA—Midway, left; Princeton, left rear; F. D. Roosevelt, center; Cruisers Macon, Dayton, Little Rock, center foreground; hospital ship Consolation, right rear; auxiliaries, left and right foreground."

An Administrative History of the Bureau of Ships During World War II, 1952. Photo taken circa 1945–1946.

Vought F4U-4 Corsairs of Fighter-Bomber Squadron (VBF) 74 about to launch from the newly commissioned U.S. aircraft carrier USS Midway (CVB-41). The carrier was on her shakedown cruise with Carrier Air Goup (CVBG) 74 to the Caribbean from 7 November 1945 to 2 January 1946. U.S. Navy Naval Aviation News, February 1946.

USS Midway (CVB-41) noses through scattered sea ice in March 1946, during her Arctic experimental cruise. Photographed looking forward from the carrier's island, with SB2C "Helldiver" and F4U "Corsair" planes parked on her flight deck. A "Gearing" class destroyer is steaming past in the background.

Official U.S. Navy Photograph, now in the collections of the National Archives (photo # 80-G-K-10001).

Note: Original caption incorrectly identifies the ship as "USS Midway (CVB-42)". CVB-42 was USS Franklin D. Roosevelt. In March 1946, Midway (not Franklin D. Roosevelt) made a cruise to Arctic waters for experimental cold weather operations.

Starboard view of USS Midway (CVB-41) 12 May 1947. National Archives photo # 80-G-371931.

From Warship International magazine.

Aerial oblique view of starboard broadside of USS Midway (CVB-41) 12 May 1947. National Archives photo # 80-G-371921.

From Warship International magazine.

Operation Sandy, aboard USS Midway (CVB-41) in the Atlantic Ocean, 7 September 1947.

National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) photo, # 80-GK-8184, ARC Identifier 178141348.

Three-photo sequence of an unidentified submarine surfacing near USS Midway, late 1940s-early 1950s.

Note: This submarine has a topside rudder aft and a so-called Portsmouth sail. Three boats featured a topside rudder: USS Cobbler (SS-344), USS Halfbeak (SS-352), and USS Amberjack (SS-522). Of these, Cobbler and Halfbeak had an Electric Boat sail. Therefore, this submarine is, most likely, Amberjack. (Thanks to Edwin Page, Mike Keating and Michael Mohl.)

A Vought F4U-4 Corsair of Fighter Squadron VF-1B, assigned to Battle Carrier Air Group One (CVBG-1), aboard USS Midway (CVB-41). The aircraft carrier was on her first deployment, 29 October 1947–11 March 1948, to the Mediterranean Sea. VF-1B was redesignated VF-21 on 1 September 1948. Photo by Charles J. Beggy, Jr., Electronics Technician Second Class, USN (Ret.).

Good image of Midway as designed/completed. She would look nothing like this at the end of her career, modified into a totally different ship. (Looks like Navy Day parade image.) Battle Carrier Air Group (CVBG) 1 on deck.

L. Russell Porter notes: "The photo [...] was taken [...] on arriving in Gibraltar, 47–48 cruise to the Med. I have an original of that photo and I was there, and it was dress ship. I was a printer working in print shop at this time printing the 'Midway Current'."

USS Midway (CVB-41) steams through a gale east of Sicily, 4 February 1949. Photographed from USS Philippine Sea (CV-47), some of whose F4U-4 Corsair fighters are in the foreground.

Official U.S. Navy Photograph, now in the collections of the National Archives (photo # 80-G-706984).

USS Midway (CVB-41) launches a Lockheed P2V-3C Neptune bomber, with a JATO rocket boost, on 7 April 1949.

Official U.S. Navy Photograph, now in the collections of the National Archives (photo # 80-G-707207).

USS Midway (CVB-41) preparing to launch target drones for gunnery exercises, during her cruise to Haiti, 31 May 1949. National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) photo, # 80-G-419156.

Aircraft on deck include Martin AM-1 Maulers from Composite Squadron (VC) 4 "Nightcappers" (tail code "NA," forward) and NAS Dallas Navy Air Reserve (tail code "D"), aft.

NS0241bsa: Official U.S. Navy Photograph, now in the collections of the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), # 80-G-419157.

USS Midway (CVB-41), July 1949, Norfolk, VA.

Correspondents aboard USS Midway (CVB-41), 5 October 1949. Left to right: Mr. C. Murphy; Mr. R. Ratcliff; Lieutenant D.D. Nelson; Mr. T.W. Young; and Mr. D.H. Davis. Front row, left to right: ABAN F.A. Epps; RD3 J.E. Dulaney; SN H.N. Turner; and BM2 J.J. Pratt.

National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) photo, # 80-G-413549.

U.S. Naval Officers and men aboard USS Midway (CVB-41), 5 October 1949. Left to right: Commander T.H. Reilly, ChC; RD3 J.E. Dulaney; BM2 J.J. Pratt; ABAN F.A. Epps; Captain J.H. Flatley; and Lieutenant D.D. Nelson.

National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) photo, # 80-G-413551.

A Grumman F8F-2P Bearcat of Composite Squadron (VC) 62 "Fighting Photos" flying over the aircraft carrier USS Midway (CVB-41), some time around 1949–50. USN photo.

USS Chukawan (AO-100) refueling USS Midway (CVB-41) and USS John R. Pierce (DD-753) in 1950. Grumman F8F-1B Bearcats, Grumman F9F-2 Panthers, Vought F4U-4 Corsairs and Douglas AD-4 Skyraiders of Carrier Air Group (CVG) 7 are visible on Midway's flight deck. US Navy photo.

USS Newport News (CA-148) and USS Midway (CVB-41) during transfer at sea operations, 20 April 1950. Note 3"/50 and 8"/55 guns and wood deck planking on Newport News; 40mm and 5"/54 guns on Midway; radars on both ships. Interesting that the crew on the Newport News are in blues and not dungarees.

National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) photo, #80-G-414452.

Aerial view of USS Midway (CVB-41) underway. Planes on deck are AJ Savages, from squadron VC-6 (tail code "NF"). The squadron never deployed aboard Midway, but there is a plausible date for the photo: May 1951, when VC-6 CarQual'ed aboard CVB-41. This would be consistent with Midway's straight deck and with the fact that the planes appear to be AJ-1's—VC-6 was equipped with AJ-1's while stationed at Patuxent River, Md., and received AJ-2's when relocated to San Diego, Calif. Quite likely, then, the picture was taken off the East Coast in May 1951.

"The famous non-fatal Grumman F9F-5 Panther ramp strike accident occurred as CDR George Chamberlain Duncan attempted to recover aboard USS Midway in BuNo 125228, during carrier suitability tests in the Atlantic Ocean, 23 June 1951. Forward fuselage broke away and rolled down the deck, pilot suffering burns."

"Footage of this accident has been used in several films including Men of the Fighting Lady, Midway, and The Hunt For Red October. Commander Duncan's crash was featured in the 1954 film Men of the Fighting Lady as the demise of Keenan Wynn's LCDR Ted Dodson; it was used as an SB2C Helldiver striking the ramp before turning into an F9F Panther jet fighter bomber as it explodes, in the 1976 film Midway; and later in the 1990 film The Hunt for Red October as a damaged F-14 Tomcat."

USS Midway (CVB-41) at sea. Re-arming an F4U Corsair. Photographed by PH3/c J.L. Goss, 6 July 1951.

U.S. Navy Photograph, now in the collections of the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), # 80-G-431460.

USS Midway (CVB-41) at sea. Loading bomb on an F4U Corsair. Left to right: AA Richard F. Allen; AD3/c L.E. Bullard, AM3/c R.D. Lenke; Ensign W.A. Burgass; and AN E. Delvra. Bomb reads, "This is it! Razors". Photographed by PH3/C J.L. Goss, 6 July 1951.

U.S. Navy Photograph, now in the collections of the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), # 80-G-431462.

USS Midway (CVB-41) at sea. AOAN Joseph L. Jones arming an F4U Corsair. Photographed by PH3/c J.L. Goss, 6 July 1951.

U.S. Navy Photograph, now in the collections of the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), # 80-G-431465.

Launch of the first production Vought F7U-1 Cutlass (BuNo 124415) from the aircraft carrier USS Midway (CVB-41) on 23 July 1951. The plane was piloted by LCDR Edward L. Feightner. After tests at the NATC Patuxent River the F7U-1 was used for carrier qualifications. It was the only landing of an F7U-1 on a carrier, as the pilot's visibility was so poor that he could not see the flight deck during the landing. The Landing Signal Officer had to give Feightner the signal to cut the engine, but this method almost led to a ramp strike.

"TEAMWORK by a flight deck crew is shown in this panorama of a catapult launching on board USS Midway (CVB 41)."

All Hands magazine, November 1951 issue.

A Grumman F9F-2 Panther (BuNo 123494, modex C115) of Fighter Squadron (VF) 21 "Mach Busters" on the aircraft carrier USS Midway (CVB-41) circa 1951.

On 11 November 1951 this aircraft missed the arresting wires, went through the barrier and crashed into other jets on the bow of Midway. C115 and two more F9F-2s (BuNo 123080, and 123557?) went overboard. One plane captain was killed and two sailors severely burned. The pilot, LT E. W. Keegan, Jr., survived and was picked up by helicopter.

LCDR Marlin Vincent Egert in the cockpit. USS Midway, 1952.

AD-4 Skyraider, Attack Squadron (VA) 25 "Tigers," Carrier Air Group (CVG) 6. USS Midway, 1952.

Hackett in a crash landing. This plane ended up "in the drink." USS Midway, 1952.

USS Midway, 1952.

LCDR Marlin V. Egert is fourth from left (thanks to Melissa Egert, daughter of LCDR Egert.)

If you can identify any of the men in this photo, please let us know. Thank you.

USS Midway (CVB-41) returns to Norfolk, Va., in May 1952, after a Mediterranean deployment. Arguably, Midway and her sister ships were the most sophisticated and powerful ships in the world at the time, with a crew of more than 4,500.

USS Midway (CVB-41) steaming off the Firth of Clyde, Scotland, prior to Operation Mainbrace exercises, September 1952. Aircraft on her flight deck include AD, F4U and F9F types.

Official U.S. Navy Photograph, now in the collections of the National Archives (photo # 80-G-K-13223).

Launching F4U-4 Corsair, Carrier Air Group (CVG) 6, from USS Midway (CVB-41), during Operation Mainbrace, 17 September 1952.

National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) photo, # 80-GK-13221, ARC Identifier 178141094.

Photo of Composite Squadron (VC) 12, 1952–54, USS Midway, Med Cruise. CWO William J. Gamble, Aviation Electronics, third man sitting from the right.

"Navy tug, YTB-222 [Kasota], helps nose USS Midway (CVA-41) into pier after return of flattop from Mediterranean cruise." All Hands magazine, July 1953 issue.

(This might be Midway's 6th Med deployment, 1 December 1952–19 May 1953.)

"Official Navy Photo. Released by Dept. of Defense"
"Aircraft carriers of the fleet: USS Antietam (CVA-36) with new canted flight deck, upper left; USS Coral Sea (CVA-43) upper right; USS Midway (CVA‑41), lower left; USS Bon Homme Richard (CVA-31), lower right; center, artist conception of the USS Forrestal (CVA-59). The Forrestal's keel was laid at Newport News (7-14-52) and is scheduled for launching in 1954."

USN Official Photo, # 484875, dated 15 Jul 1953.

David comments: "[P]erhaps unknowingly, the people of Navy Public Affairs or whoever put this montage together, certainly did a great job of assembling a 'past, present and future' of carrier aviation, including the airship, first canted (angled) deck, first large carriers, first supercarrier, and a link to World War II in the form of the as-yet unmodified CVA 31."

Twelve-photo sequence of a McDonnell F2H-3 Banshee (BuNo 126427, modex K106) of VF-31 "Tomcatters" that crashed while landing on the flight deck of USS Midway (CVA-41) in the Mediterranean Sea.

Other planes damaged were: F2H-3's BuNos 126407, 126423 and 126440, F9F-6 Cougars BuNos 128212 and 128257, and F9F-7 Cougars BuNos 130985 and 131004.

The date of the accident is given as 31 March 1954, but the handwritten note reads "June 54".

Aircraft carrier USS Midway (CVA-41) and destroyer USS Twining (DD-540) during an underway replenishment with USS Polaris (AF-11). Midway, with assigned Carrier Air Group (CVG) 1, circumnavigated the globe between 27 December 1954 and 14 July 1955.

US Navy photo from the Midway 1955 Cruise Book.

USS Midway (CVA-41) underway. Given the presence (flight deck, forward) of a group of F3H-2 Demons from the "Evaluators" of Air Development Squadron 4 (VX-4), the photo might have been taken in late 1957, when VX-4 tested the new Sparrow III air-to-air missile.

(Digitally enhanced by Tom Kermen.)

F3H-2 Demon, BuNo 143428, assigned to Air Development Squadron (VX) 4 "Evaluators," with Sparrow III missiles, aboard USS Midway (CVA-41). Believed to have been taken in late 1957.

USS Midway (CVA-41) at the entrance to San Francisco Bay. Official USN photo, probably taken sometime between 30 September 1957 (Midway recommissioned after her SCB-110 modernization) and 16 August 1958 (Midway departed on her first WestPac cruise).

USS Midway (CVA-41) underway, December 1957.

Photo from the files of the Vallejo Naval & Historical Museum, # CVA 41 236(L)-12-57 TH.

USS Hancock (CVA-19), USS Midway (CVA-41), and USS Bon Homme Richard (CVA-31) berthed at Naval Air Station Alameda, California, 10 January 1958. Note the Convair R3Y-2 Tradewind seaplane on the water.

National Naval Aviation Museum, photo # 1996.488.054.048.

USS Midway (CVA-41) at anchor off Coronado, California, following her SCB-110 modernization. Date given is 27 January 1958.

National Naval Aviation Museum photo, # 1996.488.116.024.

USS Midway (CVA-41) departs Alameda en route to WestPac, 16 August 1958. Carrier Air Group (CVG) 2 was aboard. Visible on deck are F3H-2 Demons of Fighter Squadron (VF) 64 "Free Lancers;" A3D-2 Skywarriors (tail code "ZD") of Heavy Attack Squadron (VAH) 8 "Fireballers;" FJ-4B Furies of Attack Squadron (VA) 63 "Fighting Redcocks;" AD-5, -6, -5W, and -5N Skyraider variants of VA-65 "Fist of the Fleet," Carrier Airborne Early Warning Squadron (VAW) 11 "Early Eleven" Det. A, and All-Weather Attack Squadron (VA(AW)) 35 "Night Hecklers" Det. A; and F8U-1 Crusaders of VF-211 "Red Checkertails" (redesignated VF-24 on 9 March 1959, three days before Midway returned home).

USS Midway (CVA-41) underway with Carrier Air Group 2 (CVG-2) aboard, circa 1958–1959.

This picture appears to have been taken on the same occasion as photo NS0241ad, above.

Another view of USS Midway (CVA-41) at sea with Carrier Air Group 2 (CVG-2) aboard, circa 1958–1959, soon after SCB-110 modernization. Official U.S. Navy photo, USN #1074521.

The attack aircraft carrier USS Midway (CVA-41) underway after SCB-110 modernization, with enclosed bow and angled flight deck. Circa 1959, location unknown.

Jane's Fighting Ships, 1961–1962 edition.

USS Midway (CVA-41) leads USS Kearsarge (CVS-33), USS Hancock (CVA-19), cruisers and destroyers of the First Fleet under the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge, 17 July 1959, as they pass in review 500 yards abeam of USS Helena (CA-75). Reviewing Officer was COMFIRSTFLT VADM W.D. Libby.

CAPT J.T. Blackburn, Chief of Staff to COMCARDIV 5 (RADM D.J. Welsh) and one of the ship's Chaplains, 1959.

A3D-2 Skywarriors of Heavy Attack Squadron (VAH) 8 "Fireballers" launch from USS Midway (CVA-41), sometime in 1959–62 (13 March 1960?).

USS Midway (CVA-41) with Carrier Air Group (CAG) 2, sometime in 1959–1962.

Stamped on the back of the photo:
"Photographer: Dumond"
"No. 1115404"
"Date: Aug. 61"
"Description: A-3B aircraft No. 602, BuNo 142403, AAR in water beside U.S.S. Midway (CVA-41). Pilot is Haak of Squadron VAH-8."

Underway off Southern California, early 1960s.

USS Coral Sea (CVA-43), closer to camera, USS Midway (CVA-41), two unidentified auxiliaries and a modernized Essex-class carrier. Naval Air Station Alameda, California, first half of the 1960s.

Hunters Point NSY, 1962.

Hunters Point NSY, 1962.

Main Control Engine Room, 1962.

USS Midway (CVA-41) refueling USS Rupertus (DD-851), left, and USS Henry W. Tucker (DD-875), 25 June 1962.

USS Midway (CVA-41) preparing to launch a pair of F-8 Crusader fighters, during carrier qualifications, circa 1963.

Official U.S. Navy Photograph, from the collections of the Naval History & Heritage Command (# NH 97634).

Robert Hurst comments: "The plane on the left seems to be an F-8D Crusader of Marine Fighter Squadron VMF-232 "Red Devils" (tailcode "WT"), whereas the F‑8E Crusader to the right belongs to VF-24 "Red Checkertails" of Carrier Air Wing Two (CVW-2) (tailcode "NE"), which was stationed aboard the USS Midway from 1958 to 1964. The latter aircraft also seems to be the personal plane of the Commander Air Group (CAG) of CVW-2."

USS Midway (CVA-41) underway on 20 June 1963, with F-3 Demon, F-4B Phantom II and F-8 Crusader jet fighters on her flight deck. The two Crusaders parked furthest forward are from Fighter Squadron 24 (VF-24). Photographed by PH1 J.D. Osborne.

Official U.S. Navy Photograph, from the collections of the Naval Historical Center (# NH 97632).

USS Pollux (AKS-4) and USS Midway (CVA-41) conducting an underway replenishment (UNREP) in 1964, location unknown.

USS Midway (CVA-41), 1965.

Photo taken by EM2 Henry C. Lehtola, USS John R. Craig (DD-885).

Three more photos taken by EM2 Henry C. Lehtola from USS John R. Craig (DD-885), second quarter of 1965.

Aircraft in photo NS0241atb are, left to right: one A-4C Skyhawk, VA-22 "Fighting Redcocks;" and two A-4E Skyhawks, VA-23 "Black Knights."

The destroyer seen on the right, in photo NS0241atc, is possibly USS Perkins (DD-877).

NS024126: Lieutenant (Junior Grade) Charles W. Hartman III (left, in camouflaged flight suit), and Lieutenant Commander Edwin A. Greathouse show Rear Admiral William F. Bringle (seated) how a MiG-17 jet fighter was shot down over North Vietnam by propeller-driven A-1 Skyraiders of Attack Squadron 25 (VA-25), 20 June 1965. LT(JG) Hartman and Lieutenant Clinton B. Johnson were awarded Silver Stars and shared the MiG kill, with half a credit given to each of them. LCDR Greathouse was the mission leader. Photographed on board USS Midway (CVA-41). Note .38 caliber revolvers worn by several of those present.

Official U.S. Navy Photograph (# USN 1113736-A).

NS024126a: A painting of LT(JG) Hartman and LT Johnson shooting down the MiG-17.

(See "Skyraider vs. MiG-17," on the Midway Sailor.com website, for a detailed account of the downing of the MiG-17).

Two A-4C Skyhawks from VA-22 "Fighting Redcocks" share deck space with an F-4B Phantom II from VF-21 "Free Lancers" during Midway's first Vietnam Cruise, March 6–November 23, 1965.

Skyhawk NE227 and Phantom II NE101 had totally different fates: NE101, BuNo 150646, was lost in an operational accident on July 28, 1965 not long after this photo was taken; the plane suffered engine and electrical power failure, but fortunately both crewmen ejected and were rescued. On the other hand NE227, BuNo 149532, was noted in March 2006 at the National Museum of Naval Aviation, Pensacola, FL.

Three VPAF MiG-17's were shot down by Midway/CVW-2 aircraft during this deployment: two by VF-21 F-4B's on June 17, 1965 and one by a VA-25 A-1H (see NS024126, above.) A fourth MiG was credited to one of the VF-21 crews more than 30 years later.

"The USS Midway VA-25's Toilet Bomb."

"In October 1965, CDR Clarence J. Stoddard, Executive Officer of VA-25 'Fist of the Fleet,' flying an A-1H Skyraider, NE572 'Paper Tiger II' from Carrier Air Wing Two aboard USS Midway carried a special bomb to the North Vietnamese in commemoration of the 6-millionth pound of ordnance dropped."

"This bomb was unique because of the type... it was a toilet!"

"The following is an account of this event, courtesy of Clint Johnson, Captain, USNR Ret. Captain Johnson was one of the two VA-25 A-1 Skyraider pilots credited with shooting down a MiG-17 on June 20, 1965 [see NS024126, above]."

Whether known or not to those involved, a somewhat similar "special weapons test" had occurred 13 years earlier, during the Korean War — in August 1952 another Skyraider, assigned to VA-195 "Dambusters," off USS Princeton (CV-37) dropped a kitchen sink attached to a 2,000 pound bomb on a target near Pyongyang.

A U.S. Navy Douglas A-1J Skyraider (BuNo 142048, modex NE570) from Attack Squadron (VA) 25 "Fist of the Fleet," piloted by the squadron CO, CDR Harry E. Ettinger, dropping Mk-81 113-kg (250 lbs) bombs over Vietnam.

VA-25 was assigned to Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 2 aboard the aircraft carrier USS Midway (CVA-41) for a deployment to Vietnam from 6 March to 23 November 1965.

National Naval Aviation Museum photo, # 1996.253.2377.

(BuNo 142048 was later transferred to the USAF as 52-142048. Flying with the 6th Air Commando Squadron (ACS) it was shot down over Laos on 25 April 1968. Pilot, Lt. Col. Harold D. Shultz, "Spad 31," ejected and was rescued.)

USS Coral Sea (CVA-43) standing out, USS Midway (CVA-41) standing in, San Francisco, sometime in the 1960s.