page_title: Guadalcanal naval order of battle
section_title: South Pacific Amphibious Force (Task Force 62)
hierarchical_section_title: Guadalcanal naval order of battle / Forces afloat / South Pacific Amphibious Force (Task Force 62)
caption_attribution_description: English: The Australian heavy cruiser HMAS Canberra (D33) off Tulagi, 7-8 August 1942.
context_page_description: On 7 August 1942, US and Australian naval forces undertook the invasion of the Japanese-held islands of Guadalcanal and Tulagi in the lower Solomon Islands chain, the first Allied offensive in the Pacific Theatre. The landing of the US 1st Marine Division on the beaches of Savo Sound began the unexpectedly long and extremely arduous Guadalcanal Campaign, lasting officially until 9 February 1943.
  The naval forces dedicated to Operation Watchtower were minuscule compared to those deployed for later Allied offensives such as the invasion of the Gilberts and the capture of Okinawa. This is owing to the commitment the United States had made to Great Britain to undertake the invasion of North Africa in the fall of 1942, a commitment which essentially left the Guadalcanal operation with the naval leftovers. For this reason, American sailors and Marines referred to the invasion as "Operation Shoestring".
  US Navy combat ships:
  3 fleet carriers, 1 fast battleship, 9 heavy cruisers, 2 anti-aircraft light cruisers, 31 destroyers
  Amphibious assault vessels:
  13 transports, 6 attack cargo ships, 4 destroyer transports
  Auxiliaries:
  5 fast minesweepers, 5 oilers
  Australian Navy combat ships:
context_section_description: Rear Admiral Richmond Kelly Turner in transport McCawley
  Convoy (Task Group 62.1)
  Captain Lawrence F. Reifsnider in transport Hunter Liggett
  Embarking 1st Marine Division (Maj. Gen. Alexander A. Vandegrift, USMC, Commander ground forces)
  Transport Group "X-Ray" – Guadalcanal Landings
  Capt. Reifsnider
  Transport Division A (Capt. Paul S. Theiss)
  Embarking 5th Marines less 2nd Battalion (Col. LeRoy P. Hunt, USMC)
  2 transports: Fuller, American Legion
  1 attack cargo ship: Bellatrix
  Transport Division B (Capt. Charlie P. McFeaters)
  Embarking Division HQ and 1st Marines (Col. Clifton B. Cates, USMC)
  3 transports: McCawley, Barnett, George F. Elliott
  1 attack cargo ship: Libra
  Transport Division C (Capt. Lawrence F. Reifsnider)
  Embarking part of Support Group, Special Weapons Battalion, 5th Battalion / 11th Marines, part of 3rd Defense Battalion
  1 transport: Hunter Liggett
  3 attack cargo ships: Alchiba, Fomalhaut, Betelgeuse
  Transport Division D (Capt. Ingolf N. Kiland)
  Embarking 2nd Marines less 1st Battalion (Col. John M. Arthur, USMC)
  3 transports: Crescent City, President Adams, President Hayes
  1 attack cargo ship: Alhena
  Transport Group "Yoke" – Tulagi Landings
  Capt. George B. Ashe
  Transport Division E (Capt. Ashe)
  Embarking 2nd Battalion / 5th Marines, 1st Battalion / 2nd Marines, 1st Parachute Battalion, Co. E / 1st Raider Battalion (Brig. Gen. William H. Rupertus, USMC)
  4 transports: Neville, Zeilin, Heywood, President Jackson
  Transport Division 12 (Capt. Hugh W. Hadley)
  Embarking 1st Raider Battalion less Co. E (Lt. Col. Merritt A. Edson, USMC)
  4 destroyer transports: Colhoun, Little, McKean, Gregory
  Escort (Task Group 62.2)
  Rear Admiral Victor A.C. Crutchley, RN
  3 heavy cruisers
  HMAS Australia (Capt. H.B. Farncomb, RAN)
  HMAS Canberra (Capt. F.E. Getting, RAN)
  Chicago (Capt. Howard D. Bode)
  1 light cruiser
  HMAS Hobart (Capt. H.A. Showers, RAN)
  Screen (Capt. Cornelius W. Flynn)
  9 destroyers
  1 Porter-class (8 x 5-in. main battery): Selfridge
  8 Bagley-class (4 x 5-in. main battery): Bagley, Blue, Helm, Mugford, Ralph Talbot, Henley, Patterson, Jarvis
  Fire Support Group L (Task Group 62.3)
  Captain Frederick Riefkohl
  3 heavy cruisers
  2 New Orleans-class: Vincennes (Capt. Frederick Riefkohl), Quincy  (Capt. Samuel N. Moore)
  1 Astoria-class: Astoria  (Capt. William G. Greenman)
  4 destroyers
  2 Benham-class (4 x 5-in. main battery): Ellet, Wilson
  2 Farragut-class (4 x 5-in. main battery): Hull, Dewey (Lt. Cmdr. Charles F. Chillingworth, Jr.)
  Fire Support Group M (Task Group 62.4)
  Rear Admiral Norman Scott
  1 anti-aircraft light cruiser (Atlanta-class)
  San Juan (Capt. James E. Maher)
  2 destroyers (both Gleaves-class)
  Monssen, Buchanan
  Minesweeper Group (Task Group 62.5)
  5 fast minesweepers (ex-destroyers)
  Hopkins, Trever, Zane, Southard, Hovey
caption: HMAS Canberra off Tulagi the day before her sinking at the Battle of Savo Island
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