Battle of the Coral Sea

In early May 1942 Japan sent an invasion force toward Port Moresby in New Guinea, with carriers in support. American codebreakers had warned of the plan, and a task force under Admiral Fletcher went to meet it in the Coral Sea. The two fleets never saw each other; the battle was fought by carrier aircraft, which found and sank the light carrier Shoho on 7 May. On 8 May both sides struck each other's main carriers: Shokaku was badly damaged, and Lexington, hit by torpedoes and bombs, was lost. The invasion force turned back, and Shokaku and Zuikaku were unavailable for Midway a month later.

Both sides overclaimed: the Japanese believed they had sunk two American carriers, but only Lexington was lost; Yorktown survived. On 7 May they had also mistaken an oiler and a destroyer for a carrier and a cruiser. Whether the battle was a Japanese tactical victory or an Allied strategic one is the usual debate, since Japan sank more tonnage but the invasion failed. The effect on Midway is also argued, because Zuikaku was undamaged and missed the battle mainly for lack of trained air crews.