USS Hornet (CV-8) was a Yorktown class aircraft carrier and the seventh ship to bear the name. Her keel was laid down on September 25, 1939 at Newport News, Virginia. She was launched on December 14, 1940 and commissioned on October 20, 1941 at Norfolk Naval Station. On December 7, 1941, she began her shakedown cruise off Norfolk with Air Group Eight.

In March 1942, Hornet was immediately employed on the Doolittle raid. On April 18, she launched 16 Army B-25 bombers to attack Japan, causing relatively little damage but enormous strategic implications. On April 30, she was sent to the South Pacific to aid USS Lexington and USS Yorktown in the Battle of Coral Sea, but the battle was over by the time Hornet arrived. From June 4 to 6, during the Battle of Midway, her planes helped sink the Japanese cruiser Mikuma, damaged a destroyer, and left the cruiser Mogami heavily wounded.

In August 1942, Hornet returned to the South Pacific to join in the fight for Guadalcanal in the Solomons. Bomb damage to USS Enterprise, torpedo damage to USS Saratoga, and the loss of USS Wasp left Hornet the only operational US aircraft carrier available to oppose the Japanese in the area for much of September and October.

On October 24, 1942, Hornet joined Enterprise and headed east of the Santa Cruz Islands to intercept a Japanese strike force consisting of four carriers, four battleships, ten cruisers, thirty destroyers, and twelve submarines. On October 26, during the Battle of Santa Cruz Islands, planes from Hornet severely damaged the carrier Shokaku and the cruiser Chikuma. However, in return, Hornet received hits from two kamikazes, seven bombs and two torpedoes. The next morning, she sank to 16,000 feet under the water off the Santa Cruz Islands.

With the USS Hornet wooden ship model, one can almost hear the roar of the ocean waves. It is an exact replica of the original, handmade with vigilance, from the very first to the last step. Master craftsmen diligently carve high quality mahogany to create the ship's form. After it is sanded and puttied, skilled artists paint on the intricate details. Hand-casted resin and handmade metal parts also constitute the model. Clear lacquer provides the finishing touch and long-lasting protection. Each ship comes on a a display base with brass pedestals and a brass name plate. All items then undergo quality control and are delivered to eagerly waiting customers in professionally-packaged wood crates via FedEx Next Day Air. More than just a display piece, the Hornet ship model is a work of art.