Battle of Rennell Island

29–30 January 1943, Between Rennell Island and San Cristóbal

Japanese victory

The last big naval action of the campaign. Rear Admiral Robert Giffen was taking a convoy towards Guadalcanal with six cruisers and two escort carriers, but he left the slow carriers behind to keep his appointment. At dusk on 29 January Japanese land-based torpedo bombers attacked from the darkening sky, and two torpedoes hit Chicago. Louisville took her in tow, but the next afternoon more bombers put four more torpedoes into her and she sank, with 62 of her crew. Aircraft from Enterprise shot down several of the attackers. The Japanese believed they had sunk a battleship and three cruisers; in fact the attacks drew attention away from their own secret operation, the evacuation of Guadalcanal, which began two days later.