USS Enterprise CV-6
The Most Decorated Ship of the Second World War

History: Prewar - 1941 - 1942 - 1943 - 1944 - 1945 - Postwar
The Ship - All Hands - Decorations - Remembrance

The Ship: Camouflage and Radar

Camouflage and radar were two primary defenses of any fighting ship. Camouflage was applied with one of two aims. Low-visibility camouflage schemes served to make the ship difficult to pick out at a distance, or from specific vantages. Some schemes, for example, were most effective viewed from low angles - that is, from a submarine - others strove to foil observers in the air. Measure 1, Measure 11, and Measure 21 were all low-visibility schemes which Enterprise carried at various times in her career.

On the other hand, disruptive or "dazzle" schemes were intended to mislead the observer as to the ship's size, speed and direction of travel. A few such schemes - US and Japanese - attempted disguise a vessel as an entirely different class of ship: the Japanese carrier Zuiho, for example, had battleship turrets painted on her flight deck at the October 1944 Battle of Leyte Gulf, where she was sunk. The Measure 33/4ab scheme the Big E "wore" in 1944 was a disruptive scheme.

Camouflage and radar are complex subjects of study, radar particularly as it is a dynamic system that depends on a skillful operator and appreciative commander for maximum effect. Several useful references on these subjects are listed at the end of this page.

Camouflage

Information on Enterprise's camouflage schemes comes primarily from Snyder & Short's Ship Camouflage Website and Steve Wiper's Warship Pictorial #9: Yorktown Class Carriers. David William's Naval Camouflage 1914-1945: A Complete Visual Reference is an excellent introduction to camouflage theory and application. Color "chips" below are approximations of the actual colors, but are not completely accurate. Snyder and Short offer very accurate paint chip sets for model builders, available through The Floating Drydock.

	Purpose	Description
Measure 1 1941 to late March 1942	General low-visibility scheme, which also deceived as to course when viewed from the surface.	Vertical Surfaces Dark Gray 5-D paint applied without pattern to all vertical surfaces. Mast and funnel tops painted in Light Gray 5-L. Horizontal Surfaces Painted in Dark Gray 5-D, except wood decks. Wood Decks Unpainted, except for submarines.
Dark Gray 5-D Light Gray 5-L
Measure 11 March/April 1942 to Fall 1943	Very low visibility to aerial observers, but readily visible to observers at the surface. Deceived as to course when viewed from the surface.	Vertical Surfaces Sea Blue 5-S paint applied without pattern to all vertical surfaces including mast and funnel tops. Horizontal Surfaces Deck Blue 20-B paint. On submarines and aircraft carriers, wooden decks were stained to a color corresponding to Deck Blue 20-B. Canvas Covers Stained to a color corresponding to Deck Blue 20-B.
Sea Blue 5-S Deck Blue 20-B
Measure 21 Fall 1943 to Summer 1944 & December 1944 to Summer 1945	Very low visibility to aerial observers, but readily visible to surface observers. Like Measure 11, deceived as to course when viewed from the surface.	Vertical Surfaces Navy Blue 5-N paint applied without pattern to all vertical surfaces including mast and funnel tops. Horizontal Surfaces Deck Blue 20-B paint. On submarines and aircraft carriers, wooden decks were stained to a color corresponding to Deck Blue 20-B. Canvas Covers Stained to a color corresponding to Deck Blue 20-B.
Navy Blue 5-N Deck Blue 20-B
Measure 33 (Variant 4AB) Summer 1944 to December 1944	Anti-Submarine "dazzle" pattern. Note: all 34 variants of Measure 33 used the same basic color selection, but differed by pattern applied. Enterprise was the only ship painted in variant 4AB: port side view, starboard view.	Vertical Surfaces A pattern of Haze Gray 5-H, Pale Gray 5-P and Ocean Gray 5-O paint. Horizontal Surfaces Deck Blue 20-B (Enterprise) or Deck Green 20-G paint. Flight decks were stained with Deck Blue Stain 21. Canvas Covers Stained to a color corresponding to Deck Blue 20-B.
Haze Gray 5-H Pale Gray 5-P Ocean Gray 5-O

Radar Installations

Radar ("Radio Detection And Ranging") was a revolutionary development that eventually altered nearly every aspect of naval combat. Aircraft carriers generally employed air search and fire control radars. Air search radar probed for aircraft. While maximum range varied with the target's altitude and size, naval air search radar of the time was capable of detecting aircraft 60-100 statute miles away: sometimes more. Air search radar was often augmented with height finder radar - to determine a target's altitude - and IFF (Identification Friend or Foe) systems, an automated mechanism for distinguishing friendly aircraft from those of the enemy.

CXAM-1 Search Radar Description: A large mattress-like antenna, the CXAM-1 was an improved version of the Navy's prototype search radar, the CXAM. Enterprise's sister ship, Yorktown CV-5 was the first US carrier fitted with radar, a CXAM. Installations of CXAM-1 sets began in late 1941, with some sets remaining in service through 1943. Range: Capable of detecting large aircraft at 10,000 feet altitude at 70 nautical miles (80.5 statute miles), or fighters (small aircraft) at 10,000 feet altitude at 50 nautical miles (57.5 statute miles). Accuracy: 200 yards.

SK Search Radar Description: Essentially an SC-2 with a larger (CXAM-sized) antenna. Capable of detecting a medium bomber at 10,000 feet and 100 nautical miles, Enterprise's SK set was installed during her fall 1943 refit at Bremerton, Washington, replacing the CXAM-1 set, along with an SM height finder. The SC-2 secondary search radar was retained. Range: Capable of detecting large aircraft at 10,000 feet altitude at 100 nautical miles (115 statute miles). The SM height finder, located atop and at the rear of Enterprise's tripod mast, could detect large aircraft at 10,000 feet altitude at 50 nautical miles (58 statute miles). Accuracy: 100 yards; SM accuracy was 200 yards, or 500 feet in elevation.

Directors and Fire Control Radar

Fire (as in "gun fire") control radar was optimized to detect and track specific targets, forming a critical input to fire direction systems. Fire control directors solved the complex problem of aiming a weapon based on the target's range, speed and direction and the ship's own movement (including roll). The calculated solutions guided the aiming and firing of shipboard weapons. Typically, larger weapons - such as 5" and 40mm anti-aircraft weapons - benefited most from fire control radar, as they tended to engage their targets at long range and low rates of fire. Each of Enterprise's directors could provide range and direction data for two 5" gun groups. Following her 1943 refit, her directors could also be coupled to the quad 40mm guns to provide range data only.

John Campbell's Naval Weapons of World War Two and Norm Friedman's Naval Radar are good general references. Information regarding Enterprise's gunnery and radar systems can be found in Friedman's U.S. Aircraft Carriers: An Illustrated Design History and Steve Wiper's Warship Pictorial #9: Yorktown Class Carriers.

Mk 37 Director Description: A fully-enclosed, power-driven fire control director, designed to accommodate fire-control radar. In addition, certain components of the Mk 37 were located in armored compartments below decks, including the firing solution "computer" itself. Capable of obtaining firing solutions for targets moving at up to 400 knots level speed, and up to 250 knots vertically. Installations: Late 1943 - 1945: Two Mk 37 directors mounted fore and aft of the island, with Mk 12 fire-control radar. The Mk 12 could detect aircraft at 45,000 yards with an accuracy of 20 yards, or ships at 40,000 yards.