The Battle of Santa Cruz: Naval Aviation and the Fate of America's South Pacific Campaign
Class - In Person & Zoom | Available (Membership Required)
This class will explore the history of the Battle of Santa Cruz, October 26, 1942. By the end of the class, students should understand where this battle occurred, why it happened, and why it should be remembered. The bulk of the lesson will primarily focus on naval air combat and the loss of USS Hornet.
Timothy Orr
Timothy J. Orr is Associate Professor of Military History at Old Dominion. He is the editor of Last to
Leave the Field: The Life and Letters of First Sergeant Ambrose Henry Hayward (2011), the author of the three-
volume Battle of Gettysburg Series by Osprey Publishing (2022-2024), and the co-author of the national
bestseller Never Call Me a Hero: A Legendary American Dive-Bomber Pilot Remembers the Battle of
Midway (2017). His current book project is entitled, No Routine Flights: U.S. Navy Dive-Bomber Pilot Donald
Kirkpatrick, Jr. and the Pacific War. For eight years, Dr. Orr worked as a seasonal ranger at Gettysburg National
Military Park.