Battle of Cape Esperance
At the Battle of Cape Esperance on 11 October 1942, CruDiv 6's cruisers ("Aoba", "Furutaka" and "Kinugasa"), and destroyers ( and ) departed Shortland to provide cover for a troop reinforcement convoy by shelling Henderson Field on Guadalcanal. Two American OS2U Kingfisher reconnaissance aircraft spotted the fleet coming down the "Slot" at .