Coral Sea: The Battle That Bought Midway

The Battle of the Coral Sea, fought May 4–8, 1942, was the first naval battle in history where opposing fleets never saw each other — carriers duking it out entirely through scout planes and radio reports. A Japanese strike force burns its morning hunting the oiler USS Neosho and destroyer USS Sims, mistaken for carriers, while an American strike sinks the light carrier Shōhō in twenty minutes flat. USS Lexington goes down after a delayed gasoline explosion; USS Yorktown limps home to a three-day emergency repair under Nimitz's orders. Tactically inconclusive. Strategically, it's the battle that made Midway winnable a month later.