About the Ship
Oriskany's keel was laid in Brooklyn on May 1, 1944 and she was launched on October 13th, 1945, shortly after the end of World War II. Construction was suspended until the start of the war in Korea, and then she was rushed to completion and was commissioned on September 25th, 1950.
Oriskany completed her first deployment to the Mediterranean in 1951 in support of Allied efforts to prevent Soviet aggression through Eastern Europe and the near east. A year later, while enroute to her new duty station in San Diego, Oriskany became the first aircraft carrier to sail around Cape Horn on June 29th, 1952.
Oriskany left her home port of San Diego and Completed One combat cruise to Korea in 1952-53.
Following the Korean War, Oriskany and her crew starred in "The Bridges at Toko Ri" and "Men of the Fighting Lady".
Oriskany underwent modification, which included the addition of a new angled deck, enclosed "hurricane" bow, and new upgraded electronics. These upgrades enabled Oriskant to operate with more modern jet aircraft, and prepared her for her next combat role.
Oriskany sent her first aircraft into combat in Vietnam in 1965. A-4 Skyhawks, F-8 Crusaders, A-7 Corsairs, A-1 Skyraiders, and A-3 Skywarriors, flew the majority of the combat missions, with H-2 Seasprite helicopters flying support.
Off of Vietnam, on the morning of October 26, 1966, tragedy struck when a fire broke out in an ordinance storage area near the officers stateroom area. 44 men were killed, many in their sleep by toxic fumes. Several aircraft were destroyed, and the ship was forced to return to the US for repairs. Oriskany was back in combat less than a year later.
James Stockdale and John McCain were both based on Oriskany when they were shot down over North Vietnam and became Prisoners of War.
Despite being one of the smallest and oldest Aircraft carriers in service at the time, Oriskany launched more aircraft sorties, Oriskany pilots flew more missions, and Oriskany lost more aircraft and men to enemy fire than any other carrier in the Navy during the war in VietNam.
Oriskany was decommissioned on September 30, 1976 and was sent into preservation in Bremerton Washington until she was stricken from the record in 1989.
Ship's Statistics
911' Long
151' High
157' Max Width
Displacement 33,000 Tons / 41,000 Tons Combat Load
Max Draft - 31'
Max Speed: 33 kts
Complement: 3,460
Aircraft: 80
Armament at Decom: 8 - 5"/38 AA guns
4 Steam Powered Engines provided 150,000 bhp.
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