The USS Franklin (CV-13), nicknamed "Big Ben," was an Essex-class aircraft carriers. She served in the Pacific War campaign: Bonin and Mariana Islands assaults, Peleliu, invasion, invasion landings on Leyte, Honshū and later a strike against shipping in Kobe Harbor). She earned four battle stars. The U.S. Navy aircraft carrier USS Franklin (CV-13) operating near the Marianas, 1 August 1944. Between May 1944 and November 1944, Franklin was the only carrier wearing two different camouflage schemes