First the ships.

Though several conventional carriers, such as Ranger (CV-4) and Charger (CVE-30), saw WW II duty training naval aviators, two ships were unique in this service: USS Wolverine (IX 64), commissioned in August 1942, and USS Sable (IX 81), commissioned in May 1943. Their IX hull numbers signified "unclassified miscellaneous auxiliary." Both were Great Lakes excursion ships converted for aviation training. Based at Chicago they operated on Lake Michigan, providing flight decks on which student aviators qualified for carrier landings and many flight deck crews and LSOs received their first practical experience in handling aircraft aboard ship.

Wolverine (IX-64) was a coal-fired, side-wheel excursion steamer built in 1913. She was originally named Seeandbee, after her original owners' company name: the Cleveland and Buffalo Transit Co. The American Shipbuilding Co. at Wyandotte, Mich built her. The Navy acquired Seeandbee in March 1942 and designated her IX-64. Conversion began in May 1942. When completed Wolverine offered a 550-foot flight deck. She commenced training operations in January 1943. However, Wolverine was slow moving. As newer, heavier aircraft joined the Fleet more wind over the deck was required to launch them safely (a problem shared with some CVEs). When dead calm wind conditions occurred training operations would be suspended for the day, though sometimes SNJ trainers might be mustered to prevent logjams of waiting student aviators.

Once the war was over, the need for such training ships also came to an end. Wolverine was decommissioned on 7 November 1945. Three weeks later, on 28 November, the ship was struck from the Naval Vessel Register. It was then transferred to the Maritime Commission on 26 November 1947 for disposal. The last records indicate that the ship was sold for scrapping in December 1947 at Cleveland, Ohio.

Below Seeandbee.


Below USS Wolverine (IX 64)









Originally named Greater Buffalo, USS Sable (IX-81) was built in 1924 by the American Ship Building Company at Lorain, Ohio She was acquired by the Navy in August 1942 from the Detroit and Cleveland Navigation Co. She was named Sable with the designation IX-81, in September 1942. The conversion was done at the Erie Plant of American Shipbuilding. Sable was commissioned in May 1943 and joined Wolverine in training operations out of Chicago. Sable's motive power and flight deck characteristics were as for Wolverine. Like Wolverine, Sable was slow moving.
Sable along with her sister ship, Wolverine, were assigned to the 9th Naval District Carrier Qualification Training Unit (CQTU) and qualified pilots for carrier operations. Sable's steel deck was used for testing non-skid material on the flight deck as well as her normal duties. Following the end of World War II, Sable was decommissioned on 7 November 1945 and struck from the Naval Vessel Register on 28 November 1945. She was sold by the Maritime Commission to H. H. Buncher Company on 7 July 1948 and was reported as "disposed of" on 27 July 1948.

Together, Sable and Wolverine trained 17,820 pilots in 116,000 carrier landings. Of these, 51,000 landings were on Sable alone. One of the pilots qualified on Sable was a 20-year-old Lieutenant, junior grade, future President George H. W. Bush.Of the estimated 135-300 aircraft lost during training, 35 have been salvaged and the search for more is underway.

Below Greater Buffalo


Below USS Sable (IX-81)










Below aircraft & crew
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Regards Duggy.