She took part in the attacks on Rabaul and Tarawa before being torpedoed by Japanese aircraft, necessitating repairs in San Francisco from January to July 1944.

Independence got underway for Pearl Harbor 14 July, and after two weeks of training exercises sailed with carriers Essex and Yorktown for a raid on Marcus Island.

[2] After this operation, the carrier refueled at Espiritu Santo, headed for the Gilbert Islands, and conducted pre-landing strikes on Tarawa 18 to 20 November 1943.

The ship sailed with a large task group 29 August to take part in the Palau operation and the Battle of Peleliu, aimed at securing bases for the final assault on the Philippines in October.

Japanese air counterattacks were repulsed, with Independence providing day strike groups in addition to night fighters and reconnaissance aircraft for defensive protection.

As the carrier groups steamed east of the Philippines 23 October, it became apparent, as Admiral Carney later recalled, that "something on a grand scale was underfoot."

Aircraft from Independence's Task Group 38.2, under Rear Admiral Bogan, spotted Kurita's striking force in the Sibuyan Sea 24 October and the carriers launched a series of attacks.

Independence's night search aircraft made contact and shadowed the Japanese ships of the northern force until dawn on 25 October, when the carriers launched an attack.

After the battle, which virtually spelled the end of the Japanese Navy as a major threat, Independence continued to provide search aircraft and night fighter protection for TF 38 in strikes against the Philippines.

Independence joined the Operation Magic Carpet fleet beginning 15 November 1945, transporting veterans back to the United States until arriving at San Francisco once more 28 January 1946.

Assigned as a target vessel for the Operation Crossroads atomic bomb tests, she was placed within one half mile of ground zero for the 1 July explosion.

The veteran ship did not sink (though her funnels and island were crumpled by the blast), and after taking part in another explosion on 25 July was taken to Kwajalein and decommissioned 28 August 1946.

Using robotic exploration vehicles, the team surveyed the USS Independence for the first time since she sank 65 years ago, streaming footage online.

While investigating the wreckage, researchers found evidence of at least one existing Grumman Hellcat plane as well as the partial remains of an SB2C-4 Helldiver and 40-millimeter and 20-millimeter anti-aircraft weaponry.