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NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive

Lost to enemy action, 27 February 1942

USS Langley (AV-3)
ex
 USS Langley (CV-1) (1922 - 1937)
 USS Jupiter (Collier #3) (1913 - 1922)


International Radio Call Signs,

1912 - USS Jupiter
NIF
Nan - Item - Fox
1924 - USS Langley (CV-1)
NNC
Nan - Nan - Cast
1931 - USS Langley (AV-3)
NEQC
Negative - Easy - Quack - Cast
Awards, Citations and Campaign Ribbons



Precedence of awards is from top to bottom, left to right
Top Row - Combat Action Ribbon (retroactive, 27 February 1942)
Second Row - Mexican Service Medal - World War I Victory Medal (with Transport clasp) - American Defense Service Medal (with bronze star in lieu of Fleet clasp)
Third Row - American Campaign Medal - Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal (1) - World War II Victory Medal
Individual Awards

Purple Heart (16 KIA 27 February 1942)
  • Laid down, 18 October 1911, at Mare Island Navy Yard, Vallejo, CA.
  • Launched, 14 August 1912
  • Commissioned USS Jupiter (Collier #3), 7 April 1913, CDR. Joseph M. Reeves in command
  • Decommissioned, 24 March 1920, for conversion to an Aircraft Carrier at Norfolk Navy Yard, Portsmouth, VA.
  • Recommissioned USS Langley (CV-1), 20 March 1922
  • Modified and reclassified Seaplane Tender USS Langley (AV-3), 11 April 1937
  • Lost to enemy action, 27 February 1942, 75 miles south off Tjilatjap, Java. (Select this link to see a newspaper article that reported the sinking of USS Langley, USS Pecos (AO-6) and USS Peary (DD-226)
  • Langley earned one battle star for World War II service
    (Collier) Specifications:
    Displacement 19,360 t.
    Length 542'
    Beam 65'
    Draft 27' 8"
    Speed 15 kts.
    Complement 163
    Armament four 4"guns
    Propulsion steam, twin screws
    (CV and AV) Specifications:
    Displacement 11,500 t.
    Length 542'
    Beam 65'
    Speed 15 kts.
    Complement 468
    Armament four 5" guns
    Aircraft 55 (max)
    Propulsion steam, twin screws

    U.S. Naval History and Heritage Command photo # NH 92474
    Click On Image
    For Full Size Image    		 Size Image Description Contributed
    By
    USS Jupiter (Collier #3)
    Jupiter 130k
    Namesake
    Jupiter is the god of the sky and thunder and king of the gods in Ancient Roman religion and mythology. Jupiter was the chief deity of Roman state religion throughout the Republican and Imperial eras, until Christianity became the dominant religion of the Empire. In Roman mythology, he negotiates with Numa Pompilius, the second king of Rome, to establish principles of Roman religion such as offering, or sacrifice. Jupiter is usually thought to have originated as an aerial god. His identifying implement is the thunderbolt and his primary sacred animal is the eagle, which held precedence over other birds in the taking of auspices and became one of the most common symbols of the Roman army. The two emblems were often combined to represent the god in the form of an eagle holding in its claws a thunderbolt, frequently seen on Greek and Roman coins. As the sky-god, he was a divine witness to oaths, the sacred trust on which justice and good government depend. Many of his functions were focused on the Capitoline Hill, where the citadel was located. In the Capitoline Triad, he was the central guardian of the state with Juno and Minerva. His sacred tree was the oak. (Wikipedia)    		 Tommy Trampp
    Jupiter 145k Jupiter ceremonial keel laying (driving the first rivet) by Naval officers at Navy Yard Mare Island, 18 October 1911.
    Navy Yard Mare Island photo # AC3 001-10-11    		 Darryl Baker
    Jupiter 160k Navy Yard Mare Island civilian workers finish riveting the keel of Jupiter after the ceremonial keel laying is completed, 18 October 1911.
    Navy Yard Mare Island photo # AC3 002-10-11    		 Darryl Baker
    Jupiter 167k Jupiter ready for launching, Mare Island Navy Yard, Vallejo, CA., 14 August 1912
    Navy Yard Mare Island photo # AC 3 001-8-12    		 Darryl Baker
    Jupiter 111k Jupiter ready for launching, Mare Island Navy Yard, Vallejo, CA., 14 August 1912
    US Navy photo # NH 94958 from the collections of the US Naval History and Heritage Command .    		 US Naval History and Heritage Command
    Jupiter 208k Jupiter half way down the launching ways at Navy Yard Mare Island, Vallejo, CA., 14 August 1912
    Navy Yard Mare Island photo # AC 3 002-8-12    		 Darryl Baker
    Jupiter 125k Jupiter launching, 14 August 1912, Mare Island Navy Yard, Vallejo, CA.
    US Navy photo # NH 85940 from the collections of the US Naval History and Heritage Command .    		 US Naval History and Heritage Command
    Jupiter 83k Jupiter immediately after her launching at Mare Island Navy Yard, 14 August 1912. The tug to the right is Unadilla and the boat aft of Unadilla is a commercial Vallejo to Mare Island ferry.
    Navy Yard Mare Island photo # AC 3 005-8-12    		 Darryl Baker
    Jupiter 92k Broadside view of Jupiter in the Mare Island Channel after launching, 14 August 1912. The tug alongside is Unadilla.
    Navy Yard Mare Island photo # AC 3 007-8-12    		 Darryl Baker
    Jupiter 119k Jupiter fitting out at Navy Yard Mare Island, 14 August 1912. The armored cruiser USS California is forward of Jupiter
    Navy Yard Mare Island photo # AC 3 008-8-12    		 Darryl Baker
    Jupiter 141k One of Jupiter's boilers being lifted aboard for installation while fitting out at Navy Yard Mare Island, circa 1912-13.
    Navy Yard Mare Island photo    		 Darryl Baker
    Jupiter 479k Jupiter fitting out at Mare Island Navy Yard, 3 December 1912.
    US Navy photo courtesy Jim Milloholland via Alan Cole.    		 Michael Mohl
    Jupiter 95k Jupiter fitting out at Mare Island Navy Yard, 1 January 1913
    US Navy photo # NH 69825 from the collections of the US Naval History and Heritage Command     		US Naval History and Heritage Command
    Courtesy Donald M McPherson, 1969
    Jupiter 71k Jupiter fitting out at Mare Island Navy Yard, with Marblehead (C-11) alongside, circa 16-17 March 1913.
    Photo from "U.S. Warships of World War One", with permission of the author Paul H. Silverstone    		 Robert Hurst
    Jupiter 145k USS Jupiter in the Mare Island Channel, 7 April 1913 (Commissioning Day). The collier USS Saturn is aft of Jupiter
    Navy Yard Mare Island photo # AC 3 001-4-13    		 Darryl Baker
    Jupiter 112k USS Jupiter entering Mare Island Navy Yard on 17 May 1913
    Vallejo Naval & Historical Museum File AC 3 May 17 1913 a US Navy photo now in the collections of the Vallejo Naval & Historical Museum.    		 Darryl Baker
    Jupiter 157k USS Jupiter dry docked in Dry Dock # 2 at Navy Yard Mare Island in May 1913. The tug visible aft and the right of Jupiter is possibly Unadilla.
    Navy Yard Mare Island photo # AC 3 002-09-13    		 Darryl Baker
    Jupiter 137k USS Jupiter dry docked in Dry Dock # 2 at Navy Yard Mare Island, 17 May 1913, about a month after commissioning.
    US National Archives, RG-19-A-1, Photo No. 19-N-32-25-15, courtesy Shipscribe.com.    		 Mike Green
    Jupiter 289k USS Jupiter coal handling winches, Mare Island, 30 July 1913.
    Vallejo History and Naval Museum photo # AC3 19527-5-7-13, a US Navy photo now in the collections of the Vallejo History and Naval Museum    		 Darryl Baker
    Jupiter 222k USS Jupiter at Mare Island Navy Yard between 18 and 31 July 1913. USS Prometheus is aft of Jupiter: undergoing conversion to a repair ship. When completed in December 1914 Ontario would be renamed USS Prometheus. Note the bow of YW-16 visible forward of Jupiter.
    Navy Yard Mare Island photo # BK 622 10, Navy Photo 5351, 18-31 July 1913.    		 Darryl Baker
    Jupiter 76k Broadside view of USS Jupiter with the tug Active alongside in the Mare Island Channel, 16 October 1913.
    Navy Yard Mare Island photo # AC 3 002-10-13    		 Darryl Baker
    Jupiter 85k USS Jupiter dry docked at Navy Yard Mare Island in Dry Dock # 2, 18 October 1913. YC-296 and YC-297 are under construction to the left of the dry dock.
    Navy Yard Mare Island photo # AC 3 002-9-13    		 Darryl Baker
    Jupiter 125k View of the coal handling equipment aboard USS Jupiter at Mare Island on 18 October 1913. The collier USS Prometheus is inboard of Jupiter.
    Navy Yard Mare Island photo    		 Darryl Baker
    Jupiter 112k USS Jupiter off Mare Island Navy Yard, 18 December 1913
    US Navy photo # NH 52365 from the collections of the US Naval History and Heritage Command .    		 US Naval History and Heritage Command
    Jupiter
    09020364    		 32k USS Jupiter crewmembers making fenders on the well deck, circa 1916.
    US Navy photo from a post card    		 Tommy Trampp
    Jupiter 183k USS Jupiter off Mare Island Navy Yard, 1913-1914 with tug USS Iroquois alongside. David Wright
    Jupiter 110k USS Jupiter anchored off Mare Island, 13 April 1914
    US Navy photo # NH 52366 from the collections of the US Naval History and Heritage Command .    		 US Naval History and Heritage Command
    Jupiter 69k USS Jupiter departing Mare Island on 27 July 1914 with the tug Active on her port side. Note the gunboat USS Yorktown on the right, she was the Receiving Ship at Mare Island in 1914.
    Navy Yard Mare Island photo # AC3 002-7-14    		 Darryl Baker
    Jupiter 75k USS Jupiter with booms rigged for coaling at Mare Island, circa 1913-1914.
    Navy Yard Mare Island photo    		 Darryl Baker
    Jupiter 84k USS Jupiter fore and aft trolley rigged for coaling, circa 1913-1914.
    Navy Yard Mare Island photo    		 Darryl Baker
    Jupiter 97k USS Jupiter coaling operating platform, circa 1913-1914.
    Navy Yard Mare Island photo    		 Darryl Baker
    Jupiter 149k Post card of USS Jupiter moored pierside, probably at Mare Island Navy Yard, sometime about the time of her completion in 1913. Robert M. Cieri
    Jupiter 312k USS Jupiter going down the Mare Island channel on 27 July 1914.
    Vallejo Naval & Historical Museum File AC 3 1582-7-14 a US Navy photo now in the collections of the Vallejo Naval & Historical Museum.    		 Darryl Baker
    Jupiter 106k USS Jupiter crew members on deck, examining damage received in collision with an Italian barque. Photo is labeled "Lynnhaven Rhodes, Virginia, Oct. 17, 1916". The original image is printed on post card ("AZO") stock.
    US Naval History and Heritage Command Photo # NH 10638    		 Robert Hurst
    Jupiter 64k Sailors on the main deck of USS Jupiter as the ship steams through heavy seas, circa the later 1910s. Note the inscription "seasick" near the image's lower middle right edge.
    US Naval History and Heritage Command Photo # NH 10702. Donation of Charles R. Haberlein Jr., 2009    		 Robert Hurst
    Jupiter 76k USS Jupiter circa 1916-17 prior to WWI
    US Naval History and Heritage Command Photo # NH 92199, courtesy Thomas P. Naughton, 1973.    		 US Naval History and Heritage Command
    Jupiter 311k Officers and men of USS Jupiter 1917, location unknown.
    US National Archives Photo # 165-www-236B-0040    		 Michael Mohl
    Jupiter 218k USS Jupiter loading drill no. 3 gun, circa 1917-18, location unknown. David Wright
    Jupiter
    09020371    		 91k Post card image of USS Jupiter's aft 4" gun, circa 1917-18. The appearance of a camouflage pattern on the gun is an awning shadow.
    U.S. Navy photo.    		 David Wright
    Jupiter 62k USS Jupiter moored at a pier, date and location unknown.. Robert M. Cieri
    Buffalo 75k USS Jupiter moored in the background beyond USS Buffalo in the harbor at Gibraltar with USS Schley (Destroyer # 103), circa December 1918. Note that Schley is still wearing pattern camouflage, while Buffalo has been repainted into overall grey.
    US Naval History and Heritage Command Photo #: NH 56643    		 Robert Hurst
    Jupiter 108k A Liberty Party from USS Jupiter in a boat in a European port, circa 1918-1919.
    US Naval History and Heritage Command Photo # NH 10703.
    Jupiter 168k USS Jupiter underway, date and location unknown.
    US Navy photo.    		 Jim Kurrasch
    Battleship Iowa Pacific Battleship Center
    Jupiter
    09020370    		 146k Post card image of USS Jupiter at anchor, date and location unknown. David Wright
    USS Langley (AV-3)
    68k
    Namesake
    Samuel Pierpont Langley (1834-1906). Born in Roxbury, Mass., he became a distinguished American astronomer, physicist, and pioneer in the development of heavier-than-air craft. In 1865 he was assistant in the Harvard Observatory, and the following year an assistant professor of mathematics at the Naval Academy. In 1887, as director of the Allegheny Observatory, he devised the bolometer and other scientific apparatus. In 1881 he organized a successful expedition to Mount Whitney, Calif. Professor Langley was honored by degrees from Oxford, Cambridge, Princeton, Yale, among other universities. He died in Aiken, S.C.
    Portrait of Samuel Pierpont Langley Smithsonian Institution Archives, Record Unit 95, Box 15, Folder 8,2002-12174.    		  
    Langley 193k USS Langley (AV-3) at anchor in 1937, near NAS Coco Solo Panama. The aircraft over flying Langley are Consolidated PBY-2s from Patrol Squadron Two (VP-2).
    US Navy photo.    		 Arnold Putnam
    Langley 129k USS Langley (AV-3) at anchor following conversion to a seaplane tender in 1937
    US Navy photo # NH 63547 from the collections of the US Naval History and Heritage Command.    		 US Naval History and Heritage Command
    Langley
    09020367    		 306k View from Naval Air Station North Island tower looking toward the city of San Diego, circa late 1930s. USS Ranger (CV-4) is at the air station pier, with a P2Y seaplane on the water just astern. USS Langley (AV-3) is offshore, with a PBY overhead.
    US Naval History and Heritage Command photo # NH 91369 courtesy of BMC R. E. Turpin.    		 Bob Canchola
    Langley
    09020368    		 272k Aerial view of Naval Air Station North Island showing USS Langley (AV-3) moored forward of USS Ranger (CV-4) at the Air Station pier, circa 1930s.
    San Diego Air and Space Museum Repository: San Diego Air and Space Museum Archive NASNI Historical Archive 034     		Bob Canchola
    Jupiter
    09020362    		 271k Aerial view of USS Langley (AV-3) underway, 26 February 1937, location unknown.
    US National Archives Photo # 80-G-187697, a US Navy photo now in the collection of the US National Archives    		 Rick Davis
    Jupiter 294k A 1951 reprint of USS Langley (AV-3) underway shortly after her conversion, circa 1937, location unknown.
    Mare Island Naval Shipyard photo # 9105-5-51    		 Darryl Baker
    Jupiter 139k A 1965 reprint of USS Langley (AV-3) underway shortly after her conversion, circa 1937, location unknown.
    Mare Island Naval Shipyard photo # 68780-6-65    		 Darryl Baker
    Jupiter 212k Starboard bow view of USS Langley (AV-3) anchored at French Frigate Shoals in 1937.
    US Navy and Marine Corps Museum/Naval Aviation Museum, Photo No. 1996.488.010.047    		 Mike Green
    Langley 54k USS Langley (AV-3) at Pearl Harbor, 29 July 1938. Following a four-month conversion period, the Navy's first carrier Langley was converted to a seaplane tender and reclassified as AV-3, 21 April 1937. She is seen here laden with aircraft and spares for the US Navy reconnaissance squadrons VP-1 and VP-18.
    US Navy photo # 410067 from the collections of the US Naval History and Heritage Command .    		 US Naval History and Heritage Command
    Jupiter 51k "USS Langley (AV-3) arriving at New York, 29 April 1939 for the opening of the 1939-1940 Worlds Fair.. This appearance at New York was part of Langley's very brief Atlantic duty, running from February to July 1939, interrupting the long stretch of her career in the Pacific from 1924 until sunk in action 27 February 1942 south of Java."
    Text from Warships International No.3, 1986    		 Photo submitted by Robert M. Cieri
    Text submitted by Michael Mohl
    Jupiter 111k USS Langley (AV-3) underway in New York harbor, circa 29 April 1939. Note the Mary Murray Class Staten Island Ferry in the background.. US Navy photo
    Jupiter
    09020372    		 63k USS Langley (AV-3) underway with the assistance of a tug, date and location unknown.
    Photo from www.flickr.com by SDASM Archives (San Diego Air & Space Museum)    		 John Spivey
    Jupiter 93k USS Langley (AV-3) leaving Pearl Harbor for the United States with a deck load of P2Y flying boats and a utility seaplane. Note the disassembled P2Y wings on the aft flight deck
    US Navy photo from "Aircraft Carriers", by Norman Polmar.    		 Robert Hurst
    Jupiter 83k Colorized post card image of USS Langley (AV-3) arriving in port, probably at Pearl Harbor, date unknown. Don Kehn, Jr. via Covered Wagon Association & Henryetta Cokor
    Jupiter
    09020369    		 261k USS Langley (AV-3) at U.S. Naval Station Sangley Point, Philippines, 29 October 1941. Numerous Consolidated PBY Catalina patrol planes are visible at the seaplane ramp (left of Langley).
    U.S. Navy National Museum of Naval Aviation photo No. 1996.488.010.049    		 Robert Hurst
    Langley 57k USS Langley (AV-3) at anchor, date and location unknown.
    US Navy photo from Our Navy magazine, 1 September 1943 issue.    		 Robert M. Cieri
    Langley 72k USS Langley (AV-3) at anchor, date and location unknown.
    US Navy photo from Our Navy magazine, 1 September 1943 issue.    		 Chester O. Morris
    Langley
    09020363    		 193k USS Langley (AV-3) drydocked in USS Dewey (YFD-1) at Naval Station Subic Bay, Philippines, 26 May 1941. Note the PBY's on the ramp and Destroyer Seaplane Tender USS William, B. Preston (AVD-7) moored bottom right of the photo.
    US National Archives Photo # 80-G-1041082, a US Navy photo now in the collections of the US National Archives.    		 Rick Davis
    Langley
    09020365    		 152k USS Langley (AV-3) at Darwin Australia, 11 February 1942, prior to her departure for Fremantle. She has SOC & OS2U floatplanes on her flight deck, remnants of the Asiatic Fleet's Utility Unit.
    USS Houston (CA-30) Survivors Association/Otto Schwarz Collection    		 Don Kehn, Jr.
    Langley 61k USS Langley (AV-3) preparing to leave Darwin, Australia, 19 February 1942, outbound to Fremantle, Australia. At Fremantle Langley loaded Army P-40s for delivery at Java. Japanese forces attacked Darwin sometime after Langley had departed that day. While at Darwin, Langley served as station ship for Patrol Wing TEN from 1 January to 11 February 1942. Note several Patrol Wing TEN PBY Catalina's anchored near the tender. Ron Reeves
    Langley 77k USS Langley (AV-3) being abandoned after receiving crippling damage from Japanese bombs, south of Java, 27 February 1942. USS Edsall (DD-219) is standing by off Langley's port side. Photographed from USS Whipple (DD-217).
    US Navy photo # NH 92472 courtesy Captain Lawrence E. Divoll, USN Ret, 1981.    		 US Naval History and Heritage Command
    Langley 278k A torpedo from the USS Whipple (DD-217) explodes against the side of USS Langley (AV-3) on 27 February 1942. Badly damaged by five bomb hits, the ship was scuttled to prevent her from falling into enemy hands.
    US Navy and Marine Corps Museum, Photo No. 1998.409.075    		 Mike Green
    Langley 169k Starboard side close-up view of USS Langley (AV-3) with torpedo exploding, fired by USS Whipple (DD-217), after being abandoned, south of Java, 27 February 1942. Photograph from USS Whipple (DD-217).
    US Naval History and Heritage Command, Photo # NH 92476    		 Mike Green and Robert Hurst
    Langley
    09020366-    		 204k USS Langley (AV-3) sinking after the Japanese bombers attack, 27 February 1942, as seen from USS Whipple (DD-217) Robert Hurst
    USS Jupiter / Langley (AC-3/ CV-1/ AV-3)
    Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships (DANFS)
    Commanding Officers
    01CDR. Reeves, Joseph Mason (Bull), USN (USNA 1894)7 April 1913 - April 1914Collier #3
    02CAPT. Robison, Samuel Shelburne, USN (1890) :RADMApril 1914 - 8 August 1914Collier #3
    03CDR. Kempff, Clarence Selby, USN (USNA 1897) :RADM12 May 1917 - 20 July 1917Collier #3
    04CDR. Menner, Robert Tryon (Duke), USN (USNA 1900)20 July 1917 - 30September 1917Collier #3
    05CDR. Kelton, William John, NAS (Naval Auxiliary Service)30 September 1917 - 17 November 1917Collier #3
    06LT. Becker, Joseph Francis, USN17 November 1917 - 19 November 1919Collier #3
    07LCDR. Bostwick, Harry Martin, USNRF19 November 1919 - 24 March 1920Collier #3
     Decommissioned24 March 1920 - 20 March 1922 
    16CDR. Murray, George Dominic, USN30 May 1937 - 15 June 1939AV-3
    17CAPT. Davis, Arthur Cayley, USN :ADM15 June 1939 - 18 June 1940AV-3
    18CAPT. Wagner, Frank Dechant, USN18 June 1940 - 16 July 1941AV-3
    19CDR. McConnell, Robert Perche, USN :RADM16 July 1941 - 20 September 1941AV-3
    20CDR. Stump, Felix Budwell, USN :ADM20 September 1941 - 13 January 1942AV-3
    21CDR. McConnell, Robert P, USN :RADM13 January 1942 - 27 February 1942AV-3
    Courtesy Wolfgang Hechler and Ron Reeves
    Additional Resources and Web Sites of Interest
    USS Jupiter General Plans from the San Francisco Maritime National Park Association
    US Navy Patrol Squadrons - USS Langley (AV-3)
    Newspaper Account of the Sinking of Aircraft Tender AV-3 Langley Fleet Oiler AO-6 Pecos and Destroyer DD-226 Peary
    Back To The Navsource Photo Archives Main Page Back To The Service Ship Photo Index Back To The Collier (AC) Photo Index Back To The Seaplane Tender (AV) Photo Index Back To The Aircraft Carriers (CV) Photo Index
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    Last Updated 13 September 2024