USS Hornet (CV-8)

A Japanese Type 99 Aichi D3A1 Val trails smoke as it drives toward the USS Hornet (CV-8) on the morning of October 26, 1942, during the Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands. Seconds later, this plane struck the ship's stack and then her flight deck, killing seven men and spreading burning aviation gasoline over the deck. A Type 97 Nakajima B5N2 Kate is flying over Hornet after dropping its torpedo and another Val is off her bow. Note the anti-aircraft shell bursts between Hornet and the camera, with fragments striking the water nearby. U.S. Navy photo NH 80-G-33947.