I’ve long been a fan of the cruiser-hulled light carrier USS Independence (CVL-22) and her class on the blog. She was rushed into service when the Pacific Fleet was whittled down to almost a single operational flattop in 1943 then cast out after a pair of A-bomb tests left her wrecked after the War. Scuttled off California in 1951, her estimated position has long been known.
Light aircraft carrier USS Independence, after the Bikini Atoll nuclear bomb test.
Well NOAA in conjunction with private industry partners, has confirmed the location and condition of the USS Independence. Resting upright in 2,600 feet of water off California’s Farallon Islands, the aircraft carrier’s hull and flight deck are clearly visible in sonar images, with what appears to be a plane in the carrier’s hangar bay.
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