Yorktown’s damage report

Author

US Navy Bureau of Ships

Date

Wartime analysis of damage, 4–7 June 1942

Passage

Paragraphs 1–12 · PDF pp.4–5 / printed pp.1–2; later loss summary in paragraph 1; PDF p.6 / printed p.3, paragraphs 13–16

What has been checked

PDF pages 4 and 17 visually inspected; other text selectively examined. PDF pp.4–5 rendered and visually rechecked on 18 October 2026 for Hiryū Fights Back. PDF p.6 / printed p.3 visually inspected for towing, salvage, the submarine attack and final loss. Supporting-ship update: PDF p.6 visually rechecked for Vireo’s tow and Hammann’s salvage assistance.

How to read it

Relies on officers’ reconstructed recollections after records were lost. Cover publication date and complete plate set are absent from the retained extract. Draws on the captain’s submissions, so is not independent corroboration of M04. Its 1645 torpedo-hit time differs from M04’s approximately 1620, and its 23-degree abandonment list differs from M04’s 26 degrees. The paragraph 10 elapsed-time arithmetic is inconsistent; no exact repair duration is inferred from it. The post-Hammann underwater explosion is tentatively attributed to depth charges, whereas M44 leaves the cause unresolved. The smaller list after the later attack did not mean improved overall buoyancy.