It was from here that Intrepid launched the propeller-driven planes which helped to defeat Japan, the jets which supported US ground forces in Vietnam, and the helicopters which recovered NASA astronauts in the 1960s. It was here that Japanese Kamikaze suicide planes hit, exacting their terrible toll upon Intrepid’s crew.
Aircraft were launched from two catapults located at the bow (front) of the ship and were recovered at the aft (rear) where their tail-hooks caught on cables laid across the deck. Intrepid’s anti-aircraft defenses were located in “gun tubs” positioned along the edge of the flight deck.
Today, the flight deck holds the majority of the Intrepid’s aircraft collection, including several aircraft such as the A-6F Intruder and the FJ-3 Fury (both on long term loan from the National Museum of Naval Aviation) which once actually flew off of Intrepid as part of her air group.
