USS Hornet (CV-8) at Newport News, 1941

This a photograph of Aircraft Carrier Number 8, Hornet, at Newport News Shipbuilding shortly after her launch in late 1941.  Hornet was the last of the three aircraft carriers built by Newport News under the National Industrial Recovery Act authorization.  Enterprise and Yorktown were the first two.   At the time this photograph was taken, the shipyard's 17,500 man force was working on several other ships, including the battleship Indiana (BB-58), the aircraft carrier Essex (CV-9), and the light cruisers Mobile (CL-62) and Birmingham (CL-63). 

Life magazine published this photo of Hornet returning to
Newport News after builders' trials.

A lone Newport News worker paints landing guides on Hornet's flight deck.