The wounded Wasp, Survivor of a Great Sea Disaster, Limps Into New York With a Battered Bow and 61 Survivors of the Hobson

The battered bow of the mighty aircraft carrier Wasp was an awsome sight as the war-
ship headed into New York Harbor this morning, the survivor of a collision 700 mile off
the Azores. The ship with which it collided, the minesweeper-destroyer Hobson, rests
on the bottom of the ocean, having sunk within 4 minutes with a loss of 176 lives. The
Wasp today brought home 61 survivors of the Hobson. The accident occurred April 26
during manuevers. The Wasp will be taken to Brooklyn Navy Yard. (A.P. Wirephoto)

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Wasp, Hobson, and the rest of the carrier group were steaming in formation 700 miles west of the Azores on the night of 26 April 1952. While the ships turned into the wind so Wasp could recover aircraft from her night operations, Hobson crossed the carrier's bow from starboard to port and was struck amidships. The force of the collision rolled the destroyer-minesweeper over, breaking her in two. Rodman DD456 and Wasp rescued many survivors, but the ship and 176 of her crew were lost, including her Commanding Officer, Lt. Comdr. W. J. Tierney. Thus ended in tragedy the long career of a gallant ship .

This information was donated and presented by Charlie Wolfrum and Steve Roberts of the USS Wasp Association. We thank them for making this material available.
Please visit the USS Wasp website at: www.cv18.com

Hobson I - The story breaks on Monday morning in the Buffalo Courier Express

Hobson II - Hobson's senior surviving officer testifies at an inquiry in Bayonne, New Jersey

Hobson III - Wasp's Captain McCaffree testifies at the inquiry

Hobson IV - A few news photos and accompanying captions