The USS Yorktown was the second Essex class aircraft carrier planned during World War II. She was laid down 1 Dec 1941 and commissioned on 15 April 1943. She was initially named Bon Homme Richard, but renamed to honor CV-5 which was sunk on 7 June 1942. The Essex class ships were built to provide a larger platform from which to launch naval air strikes and to strengthen the diminishing carrier force. Within the course of her WWII service the Yorktown played a major role in destroying several Japanese ships, including the IJN Yamato, the biggest battleship ever built, and several aircraft carriers. The Yorktown was refitted and used in later wars and is now preserved as a museum at Patriot's Point, Charleston, SC.