USS Princeton ( CVL - 23 ) The fourth USS " Princeton " ( CVL - 23 ) was a United States Navy active in the Pacific Ocean during World War II . It was launched in 1941 and lost at the Battle of Leyte Gulf in 1944 . Construction and deployment . The ship was laid down as the " Tallahassee " ( CL - 61 ) by the New York Shipbuilding Corporation , Camden , New Jersey , 2 June 1941 . She was reclassified as the " Independence " - class light carrier CVL - 23 on 16 February 1942 , renamed " Princeton " 31 March 1942 , launched 18 October 1942 , sponsored by Margaret Dodds ( wife of Princeton University president Harold Dodds ) , and commissioned at Philadelphia 25 February 1943 , Capt . George R . Henderson in command . Following shakedown in the Caribbean , and reclassification to CVL - 23 on 15 July 1943 , " Princeton " , with Air Group 23 embarked , got underway for the Pacific . Arriving at Pearl Harbor 9 August , she sortied with TF 11 on the 25th and headed for Baker Island . There she served as flagship , TG 11 . 2 and provided air cover during the occupation of the island and the construction of an airfield there , 1 – 14 September . During that time her planes downed Japanese Emily reconnaissance plane s and , more importantly , furnished the fleet with photographs of them . Completing that mission , " Princeton " rendezvoused with TF 15 , conducted strikes against enemy installations on Makin and Tarawa , then headed back to Pearl Harbor . In mid - October , she sailed for Espiritu Santo where she joined USS " Saratoga " to form TF 38 on the 20th . With that force , she sent her planes against airfields at Buka and Bonis on Bougainville ( 1 – 2 November ) to diminish Japanese aerial resistance during the landings at Empress Augusta Bay . On the 5th and 11th her planes along with those from " Saratoga " undertook a risky air raid to neutralize a squadron of Japanese heavy cruisers while raided Rabaul and on the 19th , with TF 50 , helped neutralize the airfield at Nauru . " Princeton " then steamed northeast , covered the garrison groups en route to Makin and Tarawa and , after exchanging operational aircraft for damaged planes from other carriers , got underway for Pearl Harbor and the west coast . Availability at Bremerton , Washington followed and on 3 January 1944 , " Princeton " steamed west . At Pearl Harbor , she rejoined the fast carriers of TF 50 , now designated TF 58 . On the 19th , she sortied with TG 58 . 4 for strikes at Wotje and Taroa ( 29 – 31 January ) to support amphibious operations against Kwajalein and Majuro . Her planes photographed the next assault target , Eniwetok , 2 February and on the 3rd returned on a more destructive assignment – the demolition of the airfield on Engebi . For 3 days the atoll was bombed and strafed . On the 7th , " Princeton " retired to Kwajalein only to return to Eniwetok on the 10th – 13th and 16th – 28th , when her planes softened the beaches for the invasion force , then provided air cover during the assault and ensuing fight . From Eniwetok , " Princeton " retired to Majuro , thence to Espiritu Santo for replenishment . On 23 March , she got underway for strikes against enemy installation and shipping in the Carolines . After striking the Palaus , Woleai and Yap , the force replenished at Majuro and sortied again 13 April . Steaming to New Guinea , the carriers provided air cover for the Hollandia operation ( 21 – 29 April ) , then crossed back over the International Date Line to raid Truk ( 29 – 30 April ) and Ponape ( 1 May ) . On 11 May , " Princeton " returned to Pearl Harbor only to depart again on the 29th for Majuro . There she rejoined the fast carriers and pointed her bow toward the Marianas to support the assault on Saipan . From 11 to 18 June , she sent her planes against targets on Guam , Rota , Tinian , Pagan , and Saipan , then steamed west to intercept a Japanese fleet reported to be en route from the Philippines to the Marianas . In the ensuing Battle of the Philippine Sea , " Princeton ' s " planes contributed 30 kills and her guns another 3 , plus 1 assist , to the devastating toll inflicted on Japan ' s naval air arm . Returning to the Marianas , " Princeton " again struck Pagan , Rota and Guam , then replenished at Eniwetok . On 14 July , she got underway again as the fast carriers returned their squadrons to the Marianas to furnish air cover for the assault and occupation of Guam and Tinian . On 2 August , the force returned to Eniwetok , replenished , then sailed for the Philippines . En route , its planes raided the Palaus , then on 9 – 10 September , struck airfields on northern Mindanao . On the 11th , they pounded the Visayas . At mid - month the force moved back over the Pacific chessboard to support the Palau offensive , then returned to the Philippines to hit Luzon , concentrating on Clark and Nichols fields . The force then retired to Ulithi , and in early October , bombed and strafed enemy airfields , installations and shipping in the Nansei Shoto and Formosa area in preparation for the invasion of the Philippines . Loss . On 20 October , landings were made at Dulag and San Pedro Bay , Leyte . " Princeton " , in Task Group 38 . 3 , cruised off Luzon and sent her planes against airfields there to prevent Japanese land based aircraft attacks on Allied ships massed in Leyte Gulf . On the 24th , however , the task group was found by enemy planes from Clark and Nichols fields . Shortly before 10 : 00 am " Princeton " was attacked by a lone Yokosuka D4Y ' Judy ' . The dive bomber dropped a single bomb , which struck the carrier between the elevators , punching through the flight deck and hangar before exploding . Although structural damage was minor , a fire broke out as a result of the hit ; it quickly spread due to burning gasoline and caused further explosions . Cruisers and destroyers came alongside to provide assistance . approached and attempted to fight the fire in the forward section of the hangar deck . The cruiser , being the largest ship ( and sharing the same light cruiser hull as the " Princeton " ) took the lead role in fire fighting . Ironically " Princeton " ( as CL - 61 " Tallahassee " ) and " Birmingham " had been planned as consecutively numbered sister ships . The rough seas caused the " Princeton " to collide with and damage the assisting ships . At 15 : 24 a second and larger explosion shook the " Princeton " , possibly caused by an explosion of one or more bombs in the magazine . The " Birmingham " suffered extensive damage to its superstructure and considerable casualties . " Irwin " was also damaged , but stayed close and launched boats to rescue survivors from the sea . " Irwin " rescued 646 crewmen from the " Princeton " ; the ship later received a Navy Unit Commendation award for her actions . Efforts to save the carrier continued , but at 16 : 00 the fires were out of control . The remaining personnel were evacuated and at shortly after 17 : 06 " Irwin " commenced firing torpedoes at the burning hulk . However , " Irwin " abandoned this effort due to torpedo malfunctions ( likely her torpedo tubes were damaged in the collision with " Princeton " ) which caused her torpedoes to circle back and almost hit her . at 17 : 46 took over the task of scuttling " Princeton " . Three minutes later an even larger explosion occurred on " Princeton " , destroying the entire forward section and sending flames and debris up to 1000 – 2000 feet into the air . " Princeton " sank at approximately 17 : 50 . Aftermath . Miracuously , only 108 men ( 10 officers and 98 enlisted men ) from the " Princeton " were lost in the attack , while 1 , 361 crewmen were rescued . In addition the assisting ships had also suffered damage and casualties : Captain John M . Hoskins , who had been interim commanding officer of CVL - 23 was also rescued , but lost his right foot . He would later become the new commanding officer of the fifth , launched as a replacement in 1945 . Nineteen - year - old Seabee R . Gallatin remarked : " Many men were lost to sea on the USS " Princeton " , yet no one knows about it . In a way , it was a miracle that so many men could be saved as well as myself . The ship was a burning inferno ! " " Birmingham ' s " CO Thomas Inglis said " I should take the same action - providing the same factors were involved and I had no crystal ball . " By the end of 1945 , he had been promoted to rear admiral and chief of Naval Intelligence . " Birmingham " earned a Navy Unit Commendation for her performance on 24 October 1944 . When the cruiser returned to port for repairs , the civilian workers brought in to clean up the ship before repairs actually refused to do the job , due to the stench of rotting flesh , so naval enlisted men took over the job . Legacy . " Princeton " earned 9 battle star s during World War II . The Princeton University Chapel still displays a service flag that once flew on this " Princeton " .