In 1947, the aircraft-carrier Midway became the first U.S. vessel from which a long-range rocket was launched. As part of Operation Sandy, accompanied by scientific observers, a captured German V-2 rocket was fired from the flight deck from a position at sea several hundred miles of the east coast of the U.S. the rocket travelled about 6 miles. A ship launch test was only conducted once. There were prior tests carried out at White Sands on a simulated aircraft carrier deck to see what effects the rocket would have if it were to explode on the deck. The Midway, launched 20 Mar 1945, was commanded by Captain Albert Kellogg Morehouse, and was the flagship of the task group commanded by Rear Admiral John Jennings Ballentine.«