The Snapshots in Time Collection
Gallery: Part 1
Photographs from the USS Petrof Bay collection follow the escort carrier through Pacific operations, from flight deck crews tending an FM-2 Wildcat and storm damage to a gun director, to aerial views of warships under fire during the Philippines campaign. Original Bureau of Aeronautics caption sheets and confidential stamps preserve the Navy's wartime documentation practice alongside the images themselves.
Distant View of a Casablanca-Class Escort Carrier Underway at Sea, Pacific Theater, World War II
Caption Card, Official U.S. Navy Photograph No. 770-4 - 'Jap Plane Hitting U.S.S. Suwannee,' Taken Aboard USS Petrof Bay (CVE-80), 25 October 1944
Possible Photograph of Japanese Kamikaze Aircraft Diving on USS Suwannee (CVE-27), 25 October 1944 - Taken from USS Petrof Bay (CVE-80)
Official U.S. Navy Photo Caption Card - Japanese Aircraft Diving on USS Suwannee, October 25, 1944
Flight Deck View of Distant Ship Under Attack, USS Petrof Bay (CVE-80) Collection, WWII Pacific
Distant Aircraft and Gun Crew, USS Petrof Bay (CVE-80), WWII Air Action
Bridge Watch Aboard USS Petrof Bay (CVE-80), World War II
Aerial View of U.S. Navy Destroyer Laying Smoke Screen, Pacific Theater, WWII (Petrof Bay Task Group Collection)
Aerial Photograph of Warships Underway Under Gunfire, Likely Battle off Samar, Leyte Gulf, October 1944
Distant Aircraft in Flight, USS Petrof Bay (CVE-80) Collection, WWII Pacific Theater
TBM/TBF Avenger Torpedo Bombers Spotted on Flight Deck with Engines Turning, USS Petrof Bay (CVE-80), World War II
Flight Deck Crew Spotting a Single-Engine Aircraft Aboard USS Petrof Bay (CVE-80), World War II
Aircraft Struck by Anti-Aircraft Fire Overhead, Photographed from Flight Deck of USS Petrof Bay (CVE-80), World War II
Aerial View of Warship Under Attack, Trailing Smoke and Oil Slick
Flight Deck Crew Spotting TBM Avenger Aboard USS Petrof Bay (CVE-80), WWII
Caption Card, Official U.S. Navy Photograph No. 474, USS Petrof Bay (CVE-80), 16 April 1945 (Subject Unrecorded)
Damage Control Crew Clearing Torn Flight Deck Plating After Battle Damage, Escort Carrier, World War II Pacific Theater
Verso Caption Card, Official U.S. Navy Photograph of USS Petrof Bay (CVE-80), October 26 1944
GMC CCKW Cargo Truck Overturned on 5-inch Gun Mount Aboard USS Petrof Bay (CVE-80), WWII
Verso/Reverse of Official U.S. Navy Photograph Print, USS Petrof Bay (CVE-80), Dated 21 August 1945
Escort Carrier Afire at Sea, Photographed from a Sister Ship's Flight Deck, WWII Pacific Theater
Verso of Official U.S. Navy Photograph, USS Petrof Bay (CVE-80), Dated 26 October 1944, Marked CONFIDENTIAL
Burning Ship Viewed from Flight Deck of USS Petrof Bay (CVE-80), WWII Pacific Theater
Verso of Official U.S. Navy Photograph, USS Petrof Bay (CVE-80), Dated 26 October 1944, Marked CONFIDENTIAL
Explosion Aboard Escort Carrier Under Attack, Witnessed from a Sister Ship, WWII Pacific Theater
Flight Deck Crew Rushing to Aircraft, USS Petrof Bay (CVE-80), WWII
Verso of Official U.S. Navy Photograph, Date-Stamped 13 January 1945
Wrecked FM-2 Wildcat Fighter Being Recovered by Flight Deck Crash Crane, USS Petrof Bay (CVE-80), WWII
Verso of Official U.S. Navy Photograph, Date-Stamped 13 January 1945
FM-2 Wildcat Caught in Crash Barrier During Landing Mishap, USS Petrof Bay (CVE-80), WWII
Jettisoned External Fuel Tank on Flight Deck Beside Aircraft, USS Petrof Bay (CVE-80), WWII
U.S. Navy FM-2 Wildcat Fighter No. 7 on Flight Deck, USS Petrof Bay (CVE-80), WWII
Verso of Official U.S. Navy Photograph, USS Petrof Bay (CVE-80), Dated 16 April 1945, Marked CONFIDENTIAL
FM-2 Wildcat Overturned on Flight Deck After Crash Landing, USS Petrof Bay (CVE-80), WWII
Verso of Official U.S. Navy Photograph, USS Petrof Bay (CVE-80), Dated 16 April 1945, Marked CONFIDENTIAL
Flight Deck Crew Attending to FM-2 Wildcat Fighter Aboard USS Petrof Bay (CVE-80)
FM-2 Wildcat Fighter Parked Beneath the Island Superstructure, USS Petrof Bay (CVE-80)
Verso of Official U.S. Navy Photograph Bearing 'CONFIDENTIAL' Security Stamp
FM-2 Wildcat with Wings Folded, Flight Deck Crew at Work, USS Petrof Bay (CVE-80)
Grumman FM-2 Wildcat Fighter on Flight Deck of USS Petrof Bay (CVE-80), WWII
U.S. Navy Bureau of Aeronautics Photograph Caption Sheet, USS Petrof Bay (CVE-80), 16 April 1945
Storm or Combat Damage: Overturned Truck Atop Gun Director, USS Petrof Bay (CVE-80)
U.S. Navy Bureau of Aeronautics Photograph Caption Sheet, USS Petrof Bay (CVE-80), 21 August 1945
Close-Up Detail of Mechanical Component, USS Petrof Bay (CVE-80) Collection
Verso of Official U.S. Navy Photograph – USS Petrof Bay (CVE-80), Air Department, August 21, 1945
U.S. Navy Bureau of Aeronautics Photograph Caption Sheet, USS Petrof Bay (CVE-80), 21 August 1945 (Duplicate)
USS Petrof Bay (CVE-80) Crew Jettisoning Wrecked Aircraft Tail Section Overboard