page_title: Santa Cruz Islands order of battle
section_title: Task Force 61
hierarchical_section_title: Santa Cruz Islands order of battle / American order of battle / Task Force 61
caption_attribution_description: Douglas SBD-5 Dauntlesses in tricolor scheme from USS Yorktown (CV-10), ca. 1944. www.ww2incolor.com
context_page_description: The Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands was fought 25–27 October 1942 in the waters northwest of the Santa Cruz Islands by forces of the Imperial Japanese Navy's Combined Fleet and the United States Navy's Pacific Fleet. The battle resulted from a major Japanese offensive with the goal to drive the US forces from Guadalcanal.
  The battle can be viewed as a tactical Japanese victory as they sank the American aircraft carrier USS Hornet and badly damaged another, USS Enterprise, while suffering heavy damage in return to carriers Shōkaku and Zuihō. In strategic terms, however, it was ultimately a victory for the United States, as the Japanese failed in their objective to destroy American forces on and around Guadalcanal and suffered significant losses of experienced air crew.
  Because the Japanese had the tactical initiative, their forces are listed first.
context_section_description: Rear Admiral Thomas C. Kinkaid
caption: Douglas SBD Dauntless dive bomber
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