Originally laid down as Cabot on the 15 July 1941, USS Lexington CV-16 was launched on 23 September 1942. She was commissioned 17 February 1943, with Captain Felix B. Stump in command.

Lexington began her combat operations in the September-October raids on the Tarawa and Wake islands. In November and December 1943, aircraft from Lexington covered the landings in the Gilberts and flew sorties in the Marshalls, battering down Japanese resistance. After raiding Kwajalein on 4 December 1943, that might she was hot by a torpedo, knocking out her steering gear. Running with a make-shift hand-operated steering unit, Lexington reached Pearl Harbor five days later.

Lexington returned to the warzone March 1944 and took part in raids in the central Pacific and New Guinea areas. In June, she joined TF-58 that supported the Marianas invasion and won the Battle of the Philippine Sea.

VF-19 were reported aboard the Lexington on 11 July 1944 for thier first combat deployment until late November 1944.

Lexington continued her strikes on enemy targets in the central and western Pacific, including the Battle of Leyte Gulf where she carried out attacks on Japanese ships during October. She was damaged by a suicide plane on 5 November, but was repaired locally. After her planes helped prepare Luzon for invasion in late 1944 and early 1945, Lexington took part in the February 1945 Iwo Jima operation and in carrier attacks on the Japanese Home Islands.

After the war, she was decommissioned on 23 April 1947 and entered the Reserve Fleet. Over the next six years, she underwent modernization and, among many improvements to accomodate high-performance aircraft, received a new angled flight deck, steam catapults and was redesignated attack carrier CVA-16. Missing out on the Korean war, she was recommissioned 15 August 1955 and rejoined the Pacific 7^th fleet in May 1956. For the next few years, she trained several airgroups and carried out exercises, maneuvers, and search and rescue missions.

She was decommissioned 8 November 1991 and on 15 June 1992, was donated as a museum and is now at permanent anchor in Corpus Christi, Texas, USA.

USS Lexington CV-16 received the Presidential Unit Citation and 11 battle stars for World War II service.

Displacement:	Length:	Beam:	Flightdeck:	Draft:	Speed:	Complement:	Armament:	Aircraft:	Class:
27,100 tons	872 ft (265.8 m)	93 ft (28.4 m)	192 ft (59.4 m)	28 ft 7 in (8.7 m)	32.7 knots	3,748	12 x five-in guns, 68 x 40mm guns	103	Essex