The Part Carriers Played Off North Africa

All Hands Magazine — February 1943

These two pages from the February 1943 issue of All Hands — the Bureau of Naval Personnel magazine — cover the role of U.S. Navy carriers during Operation Torch, the Allied amphibious invasion of French North Africa in November 1942. Carrier air power was essential to the landings at Casablanca, Oran, and Algiers, suppressing Vichy French air and naval opposition while Army troops went ashore. Published just three months after the operation, this article offers a contemporary account of what was then the largest amphibious invasion in history.

Page 9 — click to enlarge

The Part Carriers Played Off North Africa — All Hands February 1943, p. 9

Page 71 — click to enlarge

The Part Carriers Played Off North Africa — All Hands February 1943, p. 71