USS ''Wright'' (CVL-49/AVT-7) was a

light aircraft carrier A light aircraft carrier, or light fleet carrier, is an aircraft carrier that is smaller than the standard carriers of a navy. The precise definition of the type varies by country; light carriers typically have a complement of aircraft only one-h ...

of the U.S. Navy, later converted to the

command ship Command ships serve as the flagships of the commander of a fleet. They provide communications, office space, and accommodations for a fleet commander and their staff, and serve to coordinate fleet activities. An auxiliary command ship features ...

CC-2. It is the second ship named "Wright". The first was named for Orville Wright; the second honored both Wright brothers: Orville and Wilbur.

Construction

''Wright'' was laid down on 21 August 1944, at

Camden, New Jersey Camden is a city in and the county seat of Camden County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Camden is part of the Delaware Valley metropolitan area and is located directly across the Delaware River from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. At the 2020 ...

, by the New York Shipbuilding Corporation, launched on 1 September 1945, sponsored by Mrs. Harold S. Miller, a niece of the Wright brothers, and commissioned at the

Philadelphia Naval Shipyard The Philadelphia Naval Shipyard was an important naval shipyard of the United States for almost two centuries. Philadelphia's original navy yard, begun in 1776 on Front Street and Federal Street in what is now the Pennsport section of the cit ...

on 9 February 1947, with Captain Frank T. Ward in command.

Service history

''Wright'' departed Philadelphia on 18 March 1947 and stopped briefly at

Norfolk, Virginia Norfolk ( ) is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. Incorporated in 1705, it had a population of 238,005 at the 2020 census, making it the third-most populous city in Virginia after neighboring Virginia Be ...

, en route to the Naval Air Training Base at

Pensacola, Florida Pensacola () is the westernmost city in the Florida Panhandle, and the county seat and only incorporated city of Escambia County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 54,312. Pensacola is the principal ...

. After her arrival there on 31 March, ''Wright'' soon commenced a rigorous schedule of air defense drills and gunnery practice while acting as a qualification carrier for hundreds of student pilots at the Naval Air Training Base, relieving ''Saipan''. ''Wright'' would embark on 40 operational cruises—each of between one and four days' duration off the Florida coast. In addition, the carrier embarked a total of 1,081 naval reservists and trained them in a series of three two-week duty tours. On 3 September 1947, ''Wright'' embarked 48

Midshipmen A midshipman is an officer of the lowest rank, in the Royal Navy, United States Navy, and many Commonwealth navies. Commonwealth countries which use the rank include Canada (Naval Cadet), Australia, Bangladesh, Namibia, New Zealand, South Afr ...

for temporary training duty and later welcomed 62 Army officers when she stood out to sea on 15 October, in company with to let her guests observe flight operations in the Pensacola area. The exercises included the catapulting of Grumman F6F Hellcats for rocket-firing operations. That exercise was her last prior to her departure from Pensacola on 24 October, to return north. She arrived at the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard soon thereafter and from 1 November to 17 December, underwent post-shakedown repairs and alterations before she returned to Pensacola two days before Christmas, where she resumed her regular schedule of pilot qualification training under the operational control of the Chief of Naval Air Training, Commander Air Atlantic. ''Wright'' spent the year 1948 engaged in those pilot carrier qualification operations, before she put into the

Norfolk Naval Shipyard The Norfolk Naval Shipyard, often called the Norfolk Navy Yard and abbreviated as NNSY, is a U.S. Navy facility in Portsmouth, Virginia, for building, remodeling and repairing the Navy's ships. It is the oldest and largest industrial facility tha ...

on 26 January 1949, to commence a four-month overhaul. She was relieved as training carrier by . Following refresher training in Cuban waters, ''Wright'' returned to Norfolk on 1 August 1949, and four days later shifted to Newport, Rhode Island, for two weeks of

antisubmarine warfare Anti-submarine warfare (ASW, or in older form A/S) is a branch of underwater warfare that uses surface warships, aircraft, submarines, or other platforms, to find, track, and deter, damage, or destroy enemy submarines. Such operations are typic ...

(ASW) training in the Narragansett Bay area with

submarine A submarine (or sub) is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability. The term is also sometimes used historically or colloquially to refer to remotely op ...

s and

destroyer In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast, manoeuvrable, long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against powerful short range attackers. They were originally developed in ...

s. She also visited New York City before taking up a steady schedule of carrier qualifications, air defense tactics, and exercises out of

Quonset Point, Rhode Island Quonset Point (), also known simply as Quonset, is a small peninsula in Narragansett Bay in the town of North Kingstown, Rhode Island. Its name is widely known from the Quonset hut, which was first manufactured there. ''Quonset'' is an Algonq ...

Key West Key West ( es, Cayo Hueso) is an island in the Straits of Florida, within the U.S. state of Florida. Together with all or parts of the separate islands of Dredgers Key, Fleming Key, Sunset Key, and the northern part of Stock Island, it cons ...

, and Pensacola. But for 10 days of maneuvers with the 2d Task Fleet from 21 to 31 October 1949, she continued that duty until 7 January 1951, when she embarked the last increment of personnel from Fighter Squadron 14 ( VF-14) for temporary duty.

Service with 6th Fleet

''Wright'' sailed from Norfolk, on 11 January 1951, with a fast carrier task group and reached

Gibraltar ) , anthem = " God Save the King" , song = " Gibraltar Anthem" , image_map = Gibraltar location in Europe.svg , map_alt = Location of Gibraltar in Europe , map_caption = United Kingdom shown in pale green , mapsize = , image_map2 = Gib ...

on 21 January, for her first tour of duty with the 6th Fleet in the Mediterranean. ''Wright's'' first Mediterranean deployment took her from Gibraltar to

Oran Oran ( ar, وَهران, Wahrān) is a major coastal city located in the north-west of Algeria. It is considered the second most important city of Algeria after the capital Algiers, due to its population and commercial, industrial, and cultural ...

, Algeria. She proceeded thence to Augusta Bay, Sicily; Suda Bay, Crete; Beirut, Lebanon; and Golfe Juan, France—her replenishment and liberty ports during the never-ending cycle of fleet training and readiness exercises with the 6th Fleet. Departing Golfe Juan on 19 March, ''Wright'' made port at Newport on 31 March 1951. The carrier later entered the Norfolk Naval Shipyard and underwent an overhaul there before she took part in Atlantic Fleet maneuvers out of Guantanamo Bay, Cuba; engaged in ASW tactics and carrier operations in Narragansett Bay, received further repairs at the

Boston Naval Shipyard The Boston Navy Yard, originally called the Charlestown Navy Yard and later Boston Naval Shipyard, was one of the oldest shipbuilding facilities in the United States Navy. It was established in 1801 as part of the recent establishment of t ...

, and participated in a convoy exercise that ran from 25 February to 21 March 1952; and ranged from Newport to waters of the

Panama Canal Zone The Panama Canal Zone ( es, Zona del Canal de Panamá), also simply known as the Canal Zone, was an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the Isthmus of Panama, that existed from 1903 to 1979. It was located within the terr ...

and Trinidad in the British West Indies. As

flagship A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of naval ships, characteristically a flag officer entitled by custom to fly a distinguishing flag. Used more loosely, it is the lead ship in a fleet of vessels, typically the fi ...

for

Carrier Division 14 Carrier may refer to: Entertainment * ''Carrier'' (album), a 2013 album by The Dodos * ''Carrier'' (board game), a South Pacific World War II board game * ''Carrier'' (TV series), a ten-part documentary miniseries that aired on PBS in April 20 ...

, ''Wright'' sailed on 9 June 1952, in company with four destroyers forming Task Group (TG) 81.4 for ASW operations along the Atlantic seaboard until 27 June, when the ships arrived at New York City. Returning to Quonset Point on 1 July, ''Wright'' trained units of the organized Naval Reserve concurrently with hunter–killer tactics and pilot training in operations out of Narragansett Bay until 26 August. On that day, she set course from Quonset Point and later rendezvoused with Vice Admiral

Felix Stump Felix Budwell Stump (December 15, 1894 – June 13, 1972) was an admiral in the United States Navy and Commander, United States Pacific Fleet from July 10, 1953 until July 31, 1958. Early life and career Stump was born in Parkersburg, West Virgini ...

's 2d Task Fleet en route to northern Europe for combined defense exercises and maneuvers with naval units of other North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) navies. En route, ''Wright'', escorted by ''Forrest Royal'', was detached to ferry men and gear of Marine Night Fighter Squadron (VMF(N)) 114 to

Port Lyautey Kenitra ( ar, القُنَيْطَرَة, , , ; ber, ⵇⵏⵉⵟⵔⴰ, Qniṭra; french: Kénitra) is a city in north western Morocco, formerly known as Port Lyautey from 1932 to 1956. It is a port on the Sebou river, has a population in 201 ...

, Morocco, an operation she completed on 4 September. Two days later, ''Wright'' and her escort rejoined the task force; and they reached the Firth of Clyde, Scotland, on 10 September. Three days later, ''Wright'' put to sea with two British destroyers acting as her plane guard for NATO

Operation Mainbrace Exercise Mainbrace was the first large-scale naval exercise undertaken by the newly established Allied Command Atlantic (ACLANT), one of the two principal military commands of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). It was part of a serie ...

. She conducted air defense maneuvers and tactics evolutions with the British carriers and en route to Rotterdam, Netherlands, where the force arrived on 25 September. On 29 September, ''Wright'' departed Rotterdam, bound for the United States, and arrived at Newport on 9 October. That day, she embarked Rear Admiral W. L. Erdman, Commander,

Carrier Division 4 Carrier may refer to: Entertainment * ''Carrier'' (album), a 2013 album by The Dodos * ''Carrier'' (board game), a South Pacific World War II board game * ''Carrier'' (TV series), a ten-part documentary miniseries that aired on PBS in April 20 ...

, and spent the next few months engaged in carrier qualification duties in waters ranging from Newport to the Virginia Capes, before she began her second deployment to the Mediterranean. She reached Golfe Juan on 21 February 1953, and operated with the 6th Fleet until 31 March, when she sailed for home, via the Azores. ''Wright'' returned to Newport, and after a rigorous schedule of training in Narragansett Bay, sailed on 5 May, for the Gulf of Mexico. During that training cruise, she visited Houston, Texas, where she hosted some 14,000 visitors on 16 and 17 May. Returning to Quonset Point on 28 May, ''Wright'' operated locally for another month before shifting south for a stint of operations out of

Mayport, Florida Mayport is a small community located between Naval Station Mayport and the St. Johns River in Jacksonville, Florida. It is part of the Jacksonville Beaches communities. The only public road to Mayport is State Road A1A, which crosses the St. Johns ...

Service with 7th Fleet

''Wright'' was overhauled at the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard from 31 July to 21 November 1953, and then conducted refresher training in Cuban waters from 4 January to 16 February 1954. Next, after departing

, on 5 April, ''Wright'' sailed for Norfolk, Virginia where she took on necessary stores and supplies in preparation for her transfer to the Pacific Fleet. On 20 April, ''Wright'' set sail for the Western Pacific via the Panama Canal; San Diego, California; and Pearl Harbor—and reached United States Fleet Activities Yokosuka, Japan, on 28 May. The carrier, with Marine Attack Squadron 211 embarked, operated with the 7th Fleet off both coasts of Korea and also off Okinawa before she visited Hong Kong from 24 to 30 September. Departing Yokosuka on 15 October, ''Wright'' arrived at San Diego on the last day of October and entered the

Long Beach Naval Shipyard The Long Beach Naval Shipyard (Long Beach NSY or LBNSY), which closed in 1997, was located on Terminal Island between the city of Long Beach and the San Pedro district of Los Angeles, approximately 23 miles south of the Los Angeles International ...

, where she remained until 23 February 1955. At that point, ''Wright'' was attached to CarDiv 17, Pacific Fleet, and operated locally out of San Diego until 3 May, when she put to sea as part of TG 7.3—formed around the flagship —for the atomic test,

Operation Wigwam Operation Wigwam involved a single test of the Mark 90 "Betty" nuclear bomb. It was conducted between ''Operation Teapot'' and '' Project 56'' on May 14, 1955, about 500 miles (800 km) southwest of San Diego, California. 6,800 personnel ...

, carried out in Pacific waters. Returning to the West Coast on 20 May, ''Wright'' subsequently cruised to Pearl Harbor briefly before she entered the

Mare Island Naval Shipyard The Mare Island Naval Shipyard (MINSY) was the first United States Navy base established on the Pacific Ocean. It is located northeast of San Francisco in Vallejo, California. The Napa River goes through the Mare Island Strait and separates th ...

on 14 July to commence preparation for inactivation. After shifting to the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, Bremerton, Washington, on 17 October, for the final phase of preservation for inactivation, ''Wright'' was decommissioned at Puget Sound on 15 March 1956, and assigned to the Bremerton group of the

Pacific Reserve Fleet The United States Navy maintains a number of its ships as part of a reserve fleet, often called the "Mothball Fleet". While the details of the maintenance activity have changed several times, the basics are constant: keep the ships afloat and ...

Reclassification

During her time in reserve, ''Wright'' was reclassified on 15 May 1959, an auxiliary aircraft transport, AVT-7. However, she never served in that role but remained inactive until 15 March 1962, when she was taken to the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard for conversion to a command ship and reclassified as CC-2. The conversion—which lasted a year—included extensive alterations to enable the ship to function as a fully equipped mobile command post afloat for top-echelon commands and staff for strategic direction of area or worldwide military operations. Facilities were built into the ship for worldwide communications and rapid automatic exchange, processing, storage, and display of command data. A portion of the former hangar deck space was utilized for special command spaces and the extensive electronics equipment required, while a major portion of the flight deck was utilized for specially designed communications antenna arrays. In addition, facilities were provided to enable the ship to operate three helicopters. Recommissioned at Puget Sound on 11 May 1963, Capt. John L. Arrington II, in command, ''Wright'' (CC-2) operated locally on trials and training evolutions in the waters off the Pacific Northwest until 3 September, when she departed Seattle and proceeded to San Diego, which she reached three days later. For the next three weeks, the ship trained in nearby waters before she returned to Puget Sound on 30 September to commence her post-shakedown availability. Following those repairs and alterations—which took up all of the month of October and most of November—''Wright'' prepared to shift to her new home port, Norfolk. She departed Seattle on 26 November, stopped briefly at San Diego three days later to embark civilian engineers and personnel who were to conduct surveys of communications and-air conditioning equipment, and was steaming south off the coast of northern Mexico when she picked up a distress message from the Israeli

merchantman A merchant ship, merchant vessel, trading vessel, or merchantman is a watercraft that transports cargo or carries passengers for hire. This is in contrast to pleasure craft, which are used for personal recreation, and naval ships, which are u ...

, on 1 December. ''Wright'' altered course and rendezvoused with ''Velos'' later that same day. The command ship's medical officer was flown across to the Israeli ship and treated a seaman suffering from kidney stones. The medical officer was then flown back to ''Wright''. Upon completion of that mission of mercy, ''Wright'' resumed her voyage to Balboa. Transiting the Panama Canal on 7 and 8 December, ''Wright'' steamed via St. Thomas, Virgin Islands, and moored at the Hampton Roads Army Terminal on 18 December. After a subsequent brief operational period off the Virginia Capes, ''Wright'' entered port on 21 December, and remained there through Christmas and New Year's.

NECPA duties

For the next six years, ''Wright'' operated out of Norfolk, training to perform her assigned mission as the National Emergency Command Post Afloat. Regular overhauls performed at the Norfolk Naval Shipyard saw the ship receiving the repairs and alterations that continually improved her capabilities to carry out her task. She operated primarily off the Virginia Capes, but ranged as far north as Bar Harbor, Maine, and as far south as Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and Punta del Este, Uruguay. Her other ports of call included Newport, Quonset Point, Jacksonville, Mayport, Fort Lauderdale and Port Everglades, Florida; Boston; Portsmouth; New York City; Atlantic City; Annapolis; Philadelphia; Little Creek; Norfolk; and Guantánamo Bay. As part of NECPA duties, she alternated on alert status with .USAF Historical Division: "The Air Force and the Worldwide Military Command and Control System 1961–1965
/ref> There were highlights and breaks from the cycle of periods in port and at sea. From 11 to 14 April 1967, ''Wright'' lay at anchor off the coast of Uruguay, providing a worldwide communications capability in support of President Lyndon B. Johnson as he attended the Latin American summit conference at Punta del Este. On 8 May 1968, ''Wright'' went to the aid of after that amphibious assault ship had suffered a machinery failure and had gone dead in the water, south of Norfolk. ''Wright'' towed the helpless assault ship before other ships arrived on the scene to help out. Later that same year, ''Wright'' received the coveted Captain Edward F. Ney Memorial Award in the large mess afloat category. That award is given annually to the ship that maintains the highest food standards. During the ''Pueblo'' crisis in February 1969, ''Wright'', while en route to

Port Everglades, Florida Port Everglades is a seaport in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, located in Broward County. Port Everglades is one of South Florida's foremost economic engines, as it is the gateway for both international trade and cruise vacations. In 2019, Port Eve ...

, was hurriedly recalled to Norfolk and, upon her arrival there, stood by, on alert.

Decommissioning

Ultimately decommissioned on 27 May 1970, ''Wright'' was placed in reserve at the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard. The ship was stricken from the Navy List on 1 December 1977, and sold by the Defense Reutilization and Marketing Service (DRMS) for scrapping on 1 August 1980.

Awards

USS Wright (CVL-49)

Navy Occupation Service Medal The Navy Occupation Service Medal is a military award of the United States Navy which was "Awarded to commemorate the services of Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard personnel in the occupation of certain territories of the enemies of the U.S. durin ...

with "Europe" clasp * National Defense Service Medal * Korean Service Medal *

United Nations Korean Medal The United Nations Service Medal Korea (UNSMK) is an international military decoration established by the United Nations on December 12, 1950 as the United Nations Service Medal. The decoration was the first international award ever created by the ...

* Republic of Korea War Medal (retroactive)

USS Wright (CC-2)

* National Defense Service Medal with star (2 awards)

Gallery

File:F4U-5 Corsair of VF-23 on USS Wright (CVL-49), in November 1948.jpg, F4U-5 Corsair of

VF-23 Strike Fighter Squadron One Five One (VFA-151) nicknamed the ''Vigilantes'' are a United States Navy F/A-18E Super Hornet fighter squadron stationed at Naval Air Station Lemoore, California. The squadron is a part of Carrier Air Wing 9 (CVW-9) ...

on USS ''Wright'' in November 1948 File:USS Wright (CVL-49) underway at sea with trainig aircraft (NH 97618).jpg, USS ''Wright'' underway at sea with North American T-6 Texans on board somewhere between the late 1940s and the early 1950s File:Vought F4U-4 Corsair of VF-14 aboard USS Wright (CVL-49), in early 1951.jpg, F4U-4 Corsairs of VF-14 aboard USS ''Wright'' in early 1951 File:Vought F4U-4 Corsairs of VF-14 aboard USS Wright (CVL-49), in early 1951.jpg, F4U-4 Corsairs of VF-14 on USS ''Wright'' in early 1951 File:USS Wright (CVL-49), HMS Illustrious (R87) and HMS Eagle (R05) underway in the North Sea in September 1952 (IWM A32288).jpg, USS ''Wright'', HMS ''Illustrious'' (R87) and underway in the North Sea in September 1952 File:USS Wright (CC-2) underway on 17 June 1963 (NH 97620).jpg, USS ''Wright'' as (CC-2) underway on 17 June 1963 File:USS Wright (CC-2) underway at sea in September 1963 (NH 97623).jpg, USS ''Wright'' underway at sea in September 1963 File:UH-2B of HC-4 on USS Wright (CC-2) c1966.jpg, UH-2B of

HC-4 Helicopter Combat Support Squadron FOUR (HC-4) was a United States Navy helicopter squadron based at Naval Air Station Norfolk, Virginia. Nicknamed the "Black Stallions", they flew the Sikorsky CH-53E Super Stallion and MH-53E Sea Dragon helicop ...

on board USS ''Wright'' in c. 1966 File:USS Wright (CC-2) at sea c1967.jpg, USS ''Wright'' at sea in c. 1967