USS Lexington (CV-2) and her sister USS Saratoga (CV-3) played a critical role in the development of the modern naval aviation and the way the US Navy wields air power. Built on the hulls of battlecruisers cancelled in the 1920s under the terms of the Washington Naval Treaty, Lexington and Saratoga were far more different and innovative than the first US aircraft carrier, USS Langley CV-1, and any foreign contemporaries. They were the largest US carriers built until the Midway Class CVB. Both ships were quickly integrated into the battle fleet and participated in every major exercise in the 1930s and early 1940s. It was on these ships that the Navy envisioned, developed, and put in to practice the doctrine and procedures that would define an American way of Naval warfare and lead to victory at sea. Key components of that doctrine included: rapid preparation, launch, assembly, and projection of aerial strike forces while maintaining airspace control around the carrier and the battle group. Other innovations included flight deck duties identified by colored jerseys, aircraft pre-flight inspections, and aircraft handling and spotting. Unfortunately, the beloved Lex would meet her demise at Coral Sea, a battle that put that air doctrine into practice with opposing strike groups fighting at long range. USS Saratoga served throughout the war, demonstrating the ruggedness, adaptability, and versatility of the class.

This latest naval publication by Squadron covers the career of USS Lexington in 104 pages and contains 235 b&w photos, 14 color renderings, and line drawings. Like previous Squadron Signal publications, it is aimed at the modeler and armchair sailor alike, but while preferring to the tell the story of the ship in pictures/illustration and captions, there is occasionally a little narrative. Also, there are no chapters. The pictures, as would be expected, are black and white and are clear and well reproduced. They are in a large format and show a lot more detail. The color illustrations are of aircraft that served on the ship and their respective markings for that period.

I have collected a lot of references on Lexington and what I like about this latest portfolio is that it covers new ground, presenting images of Lexington not seen in the other volumes. The book begins with the conversion of Lexington from a Battle Cruiser to Aircraft Carrier and gives good insight the buildup of the ship deck by deck and frame by frame. As part of this series, there are nice clear photos of the underwater hull, including the rudder and propulsion systems. I particularly like the image of the craneship Kearsarge alongside amidst the ice of Boston Harbor. There are also a nice series of images from the Boston Public Library of the ship in the South Boston Navy Yard Annex, including clear shots of the portside boat pockets. All told, there are 40 pages covering the construction and fitting out of the ship.

The remainder of the book focuses on the ship’s swing to the west coast, operations, and yard periods. Again, there are some photos I don’t recall seeing before. The pictures that are pretty common, such as the period when Lexington provided power to Seattle, are clear and in a format that shows more detail – they draw you in. The details continue with close-ups of the underwater hull, the island, armament, the secondary battery rangefinder, the hangar, and aviation operations. The overall images of the ship and the flight deck are compellingly crisp. The aircraft profiles give a sense of the aircraft that made up the air group composition over 15 years and add color. The drawings are nice and convey the configuration changes that occurred in the late 1930s. The final images of the demise of Lexington are always hard to review and, unfortunately, are as blurry as the originals.

In summary, this book provides comprehensive coverage of an important ship in the history of the US Navy and the development of modern airpower. The book is dense with information in just 100 pages. This is a must-have volume for modelers and armchair sailors alike who have any kind of interest in USS Lexington (CV-2). Strongly recommended!

I would like to thank Squadron for this review copy and I applaud their efforts to expand their catalog of naval subjects. I would also like to thank IPMS-USA for allowing me the opportunity to read and review it.