World War II Atlantic Following commissioning,
Wake Island received supplies, ammunition, and gasoline at
Astoria, Oregon, and got underway on 27 November 1943 for
Puget Sound and anchored the following day at
Bremerton, Washington, where she continued to load supplies and ammunition. The carrier operated in the Puget Sound area conducting structural firing tests and making stops at
Port Townsend,
Sinclair Inlet, and
Seattle before sailing south on 6 December. She arrived at
San Francisco, California on 10 December, took on fuel, and, two days later, headed for
San Diego, arriving there on 14 December for shakedown and availability. Before departing, the carrier took on board the personnel and planes of Composite Squadron 69 (
VC-69). On 11 January 1944,
Wake Island got underway and steamed, via the
Panama Canal, to
Hampton Roads, Virginia, arriving at
Norfolk, Virginia on 26 January. Following availability, the carrier sailed on 14 February for
New York City in company with , , and . On 16 February, after loading supplies and embarking Army and Navy officers for transportation,
Wake Island set course for
Recife,
Brazil, the first stop on her voyage to
Karachi, India. She arrived at Recife on 1 March and made stops at
Cape Town,
South Africa, and
Diego Suarez Harbor,
Madagascar, before arriving at Karachi on 29 March. The carrier began her return trip on 3 April and arrived back at Norfolk on 12 May. She spent the remainder of May and part of June undergoing alterations and an overhaul. She then took on board the planes and personnel of
VC-58 and, on 15 June, set course toward
Bermuda for duty as the nucleus of Task Group 22.6 (TG 22.6), a combined, air-and-surface, anti-submarine, hunter-killer group. The highlight of her cruise came on 2 July, when one of her
Grumman TBM Avengers intercepted the off the coast of
Africa between the
Canary and
Cape Verde Islands, making its way home after an unsuccessful patrol in the
Gulf of Guinea. The pilot,
Ensign Frederick L. Moore, braved heavy
anti-aircraft fire from
U-543, while making two bombing attacks which sank the U-boat. However, no evidence appeared to confirm the kill, so the carrier and her escorts spent the next two weeks hunting the already-destroyed submarine. TG 22.6 began her next serious encounter with the enemy two minutes before noon on 2 August, when sighted a U-boat's
conning tower some away. She and were detached to investigate, while all planes in the area were recalled. An Avenger, armed with depth bombs, was catapulted at 1209. At 1235, a torpedo, apparently fired by a second submarine, hit
Fiske midships and broke her in two. The ships of the group managed to maneuver clear of two more torpedoes which were fired at the force. The first report of casualties listed 4 dead, 26 missing, and 55 seriously injured. was detached to support
Howard and later to pick up survivors. As the group was preparing to avenge the loss of
Fiske, heavy fog and rain stopped all operations. On 4 August, TG 22.6 was dissolved, and four days later,
Wake Island made rendezvous with Convoy UC-32 as it steamed westward. She left the convoy on the 11th and headed for
Hampton Roads. She arrived at Norfolk on the 15th for alterations and repairs which lasted through the 25th. Following post-repair trials and a brief availability, the escort carrier sailed on 29 August for
Quonset Point, Rhode Island, to relieve on carrier aircraft qualification operation duty which lasted until 30 October. The next day, the carrier sailed for Norfolk with and as escorts, and arrived on 1 November for a period of availability.
Pacific Philippines On the 11th, she stood out of Norfolk in company with and escorts bound via the Panama Canal for the west coast. The carrier entered
San Francisco Bay on 28 November, and moored at the
Naval Air Station Alameda, California, where she embarked two new aircraft squadrons before heading for Hawaii the following day. She moored at
Ford Island, Pearl Harbor on 5 December, detached squadrons
VC-9 and
VPB-149, and disembarked personnel, planes, and equipment. Ten days later,
Wake Island, her flight deck laden with cargo and unable to launch or receive planes, got underway for the
Admiralty Islands with escorts and . She arrived at
Manus Island on 27 December, discharged all cargo and passengers, sailed for the
Palau Islands, and arrived at
Kossol Roads on
New Year's Day 1945. Late that evening, she loaded
ammunition from a
barge and got underway at 0642, bound for the
Philippines and the forthcoming invasion of
Luzon, in company with a tremendous fleet which had gathered for the operation. Two days later,
Wake Island passed through
Surigao Strait and launched both SNAP (anti-snooper air patrol) and LCAP (local combat air patrol) aircraft. On 4 January 1945, she was operating in the
Sulu Sea and launched a three-hour SNAP. The American planes sighted a single-engine Japanese
float plane on the water off the southeastern tip of
Panay Island. It appeared to be in the hands of a
salvage crew. Two of the scout planes made two strafing runs each and left the plane riddled and the salvage crew dispersed. The Fleet entered
Panay Gulf about southeast of
Manila. ''Wake Island's'' surface search
radar was jammed by enemy transmission, and the escort carrier went to general quarters at 1714. One minute later, a Japanese single-engine plane appeared overhead in a steep diving attack on , some away. Fire immediately flared from that carrier's flight and
hangar decks, and after 20 minutes, her crew abandoned
Ommaney Bay under a dense cloud of black smoke. She burned with explosions of ammunition and was finally scuttled astern of the fleet by a
torpedo from an American destroyer. On 5 January,
Wake Island received 19 survivors of
Ommaney Bay who had been rescued by . The ship went to general quarters with bogies on the radar screen, but three threatened raids failed to develop. At 1502, eight LCAP fighters from
Wake Island pounced upon a division of Japanese Army fighters. When the melee was over, the Americans claimed three certain kills and a probable without suffering any loss themselves. In all,
Wake Island launched three LCAP's during daylight. At 1655, the ship again went to general quarters to repel an air attack and for the next hour was under severe attack. At one time, six single-engine planes were simultaneously diving on carriers off
Wake Islands port side. Five were knocked down by anti-aircraft fire, narrowly missing their targets, but one managed a hit on . She caught fire and dropped behind, but her efficient damage control efforts enabled her to resume her position in the formation in only 51 minutes, with her flight deck out of commission. During the attack, at least 10 enemy planes splashed within of
Wake Island, and her own anti-aircraft gunners claimed three. On 13 January, two enemy planes attacked , cruising about astern of
Wake Island. One of the attackers was shot down, but the other scored a hit which briefly slowed that carrier. She soon regained speed and controlled a fire on her hangar deck without losing her position in the formation. Four days later,
Wake Island was detached and left
Lingayen Gulf in TG 77.14, a force consisting of eight escort carriers and their screen to retire to
Ulithi,
Caroline Islands. She anchored at Ulithi's southern anchorage from 23 to 31 January, undergoing availability and preparing for further operations. During this period, her home port was changed from Norfolk to
Puget Sound,
Bremerton, Washington.
Iwo Jima On 10 February 1945, the carrier got underway to join TG 52.2, which had been established to provide air cover and support while escorting major units to the
Volcano Islands and then to furnish naval gunfire, spotting, and direct air support for landing forces. The following day, she steamed to an area off
Saipan-
Tinian where rehearsals for the invasion took place. On 13 February,
Wake Islands commanding officer, Capt. Austen V. Magly, was designated OTC of Task Unit 52.2.1 (TU 52.2.1). On 14 February, the carrier set course for
Iwo Jima and, two days later, arrived at her operating area from the southwestern tip of Iwo Jima. Shortly after daylight, the heavy bombardment group began shelling shore installations on the island. Planes from
Wake Island flew spotting
sorties, attacked defensive works with rocket fire, and flew local antisubmarine patrols and hydrographic observation flights over the beaches. D-day for the invasion of Iwo Jima was 19 February; and on that day,
Wake Island operated as before, flying 56 spotting sorties and firing 87 rockets. , a carrier in her group, was sunk by a
kamikaze attack on 21 February. The next day,
Wake Island was detached and ordered to proceed to a rendezvous point east of Iwo Jima. There, she refueled on 23 February and set course to return to the operating area east of Iwo Jima. The following day, she took station some from the southern tip of Iwo Jima and flew 55 spotting sorties, expending 205 rockets. In the ensuing weeks,
Wake Island continued her operations supporting the
Marines. On 5 March, she received a message of special interest from Commander, TU 52.2.1,
Rear Admiral Clifton Sprague: "If your ship is as good as your Air Department and Squadron, it is a standout. I have seen nearly all the combat CVEs' work and I must say the Wake tops them all for efficiency, smoothness and good judgement. I hope we are together again." After 24 consecutive days of operations,
Wake Island retired on 8 March from her station off Iwo Jima and rendezvoused with west of the island. The next day, they headed for Ulithi and arrived there on 14 March.
Okinawa The carrier spent the next five days at anchor, preparing for another operation. She got underway on 21 March to supply air support for forces about to invade
Okinawa. On 25 March, she arrived in the operating area roughly south of Okinawa Jima and began sending flights over
Kerama Retto beaches and Okinawa.
Wake Island continued her support of the campaign through the initial landings at Okinawa on 1 April. On the 3rd, the carrier was operating southeast of Okinawa. At 1722, she completed the landing of her fifth spotting sortie, and all her planes were back on board. Eight minutes later, she went to general quarters, and enemy bogies were reported. At 1742, a violent wave hit the ship while planes were being moved for spotting on the flight deck. Two
General Motors FM-2 Wildcats were thrown off the flight deck into the water. Two fighters were flipped over on their backs, and two others received severe damage when tossed about. At the same instant, two Wildcats broke loose from their lashings on the hangar deck and collided, with major damage to both. At 1744, a Japanese single-engine aircraft plunged at the ship from a high angle and missed the port forward corner of the flight deck, exploding in the water abreast the
forecastle. Thirty seconds later, a second similar aircraft whistled down on the starboard side at tremendous speed, narrowly missing the bridge structure and plunging into the water about from the hull. The aircraft exploded after impact, ripping a hole in the ship's side below the waterline, about long and about from top to bottom, and making many shrapnel holes. In 1946,
Wake Island prepared for inactivation. She was decommissioned on 5 April; struck from the
Naval Vessel Register on the 17th; and subsequently sold for scrap to the
Boston Metals Company,
Baltimore, Maryland, on 19 April 1946. ==Awards==