USS Randolph (CV-15)

Randolph was commissioned in October of 1944 and was built at Newport News, Virginia. The ship was a 27,000-ton aircraft carrier in the Ticonderoga class. The ship began combat in February of 1945. The mission supported the invasion of Iwo Jima and was to attack targets in Japanese islands and the Bonins.

On March 11, 1944, the ship was hit by a suicide plane and lost 25 crewmembers. The ship was repaired and back on duty by April, and remained active until May of 1945 during the Okinawa campaign. During this time, it served as the Task Force 58 flagship.

During the rest of that summer and the Pacific War, Randolph was responsible for launching attacks against enemy islands. In September, the ship returned and became part of the Atlantic Fleet. For the rest of 1945, she was responsible for two trips to bring servicemen home from the Mediterranean.

During 1946 and 1947, the ship was used for training purposes and was decommissioned in February of 1948. The ship was modernized in 1955-56 and put back into commission for anti-submarine support, training, space shuttle support, and for the Cuban missile crisis. The ship was again decommissioned in 1969, removed from the Naval Vessel Register in 1973, and then sold for scrapping in May of 1975.