page_title: USS North Carolina (BB-55)
section_title: Later operations
hierarchical_section_title: USS North Carolina (BB-55) / Service history / Later operations
caption_attribution_description: English: The U.S. Navy battleship USS&#160;North Carolina&#160;(BB-55) at sea off New York City (USA), 3 June 1946. Photographed from a Naval Air Station, New York, aircraft.
context_page_description: USS North Carolina (BB-55) is the lead ship of the North Carolina class of fast battleships, the first vessel of the type built for the United States Navy. Built under the Washington Treaty system, North Carolina's design was limited in displacement and armament, though the United States used a clause in the Second London Naval Treaty to increase the main battery from the original armament of twelve 14-inch guns to nine 16 in guns. The ship was laid down in 1937 and completed in April 1941, while the United States was still neutral during World War II. During this period, she operated off the eastern coast of the United States.
  Following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in December, North Carolina mobilized for war and was initially sent to Iceland to counter a possible sortie by the German battleship Tirpitz, though this did not materialize and North Carolina was promptly transferred to the Pacific to strengthen Allied forces during the Guadalcanal campaign. There, she screened aircraft carriers engaged in the campaign and took part in the Battle of the Eastern Solomons on 24–25 August 1942, where she shot down several Japanese aircraft.
context_section_description: Repairs lasted through October, keeping North Carolina from participating in much of the Philippines campaign, and she rejoined the fleet at its new forward base at Ulithi on 7 November. There, she joined TG 38.3, the fast carrier task force having passed from Fifth Fleet to Third Fleet command and accordingly being renumbered from 50-series to 30-series designations. The carriers then embarked on a series of strikes on Japanese positions on Leyte, Luzon, and the Visayas to support Army operations ashore. During these operations, North Carolina shot down a kamikaze suicide aircraft. The attacks continued into mid-December and intensified during the invasion of Mindoro on 15 December. Three days later, the fleet was cruising off the Philippines when it was hit by Typhoon Cobra. North Carolina was not seriously damaged, but three destroyers were sunk in the storm.
  After returning to Ulithi, the fast carrier task force began a series of strikes on targets on Formosa, the coast of French Indochina, occupied China, and the Ryuku Islands in January 1945. North Carolina remained in TG 38.3 for the operation, and her carrier group struck northern Formosa on 3–4 January, but poor weather hampered flight operations. Further attacks struck targets on Luzon on 6 and 7 January to destroy reserves of kamikazes there. On 10 January, the carrier groups entered the South China Sea to strike targets in French Indochina on the assumption that significant Japanese naval forces were present, but only merchant ships and a number of minor warships were caught and sunk there. During these raids, other elements of the Allied fleet invaded Lingayen Gulf on Luzon.
  In February, she escorted carriers during attacks on the Japanese island of Honshu to disrupt Japanese air forces that might interfere with the planned invasion of Iwo Jima in the Bonin Islands. Fifth Fleet had re-assumed command of the fast carrier task force by this point, and North Carolina was now part of TG 58.4. The fleet sortied from Ulithi on 10 February, and after conducting training exercises off Tinian on the 12th, refueled at sea on 14 February and continued on north to launch strikes on the Tokyo area two days later. The raids continued through 17 February and the next day, the fleet withdrew to refuel and TG 58.4 was sent to hit other islands in the Bonin chain to further isolate Iwo Jima. During the preparatory bombardment for that attack, North Carolina, Washington, and the heavy cruiser Indianapolis were detached from the task group to reinforce TF 54, the assault force for the invasion; she remained on station during the marine assault and provided fire support as they fought their way across the island through 22 February. The next day, the carrier groups reassembled and refueled on 24 February for further operations against the Japanese mainland.
  After leaving Iwo Jima, the fleet resumed air attacks on the Home Islands to prepare for the next amphibious assault on Okinawa in the Ryukus. The first of these, on 25 and 26 February, hit targets in the Tokyo area, followed by another attack on Iwo Jima the next day. The fleet refueled on 28 February and on 1 March raided Okinawa, thereafter returning to Ulithi on 4 March. While in Ulithi, the fleet was reorganized and North Carolina was transferred to TG 58.3. The fleet sortied on 14 March for additional attacks on Japan; the ships refueled on 16 March on the way and they launched their aircraft two days later to hit targets on Kyushu. The attacks continued into the next day, causing significant damage to Japanese facilities on the island and sinking or damaging numerous warships. The task groups withdrew to refuel and reorganize on 22 March, as several carriers had been damaged by kamikaze and air attacks. The carriers Wasp and Franklin were badly damaged by bombs, and North Carolina was assigned to the group of ships tasked with escorting them back to Ulithi for repairs.
  Carrier raids on the Home Islands and the Ryukus continued after the landing on Okinawa on 1 April. When North Carolina returned to the fleet, she was a
caption: North Carolina off New York in June 1946
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