The Lexington operated in the Pacific during the war. She was hit by torpedo in December of 43. As the Lex sailed for Pearl Harbor, the Japanese announced she had been sunk. The Lex was reported sunk a second time in April of 44 in a raid where she hadn't even taken damage. In October of 44, in the Leyte Gulf, the Lexington sunk three Japanese carriers in one day, the Chitose, Zukkako, and Zuiho. In the battle, the Lexington took a Kamikaze hit to the island, after which, the Japanese again claimed she was sunk.

The Lexington was put in mothballs until 1953, when she was refit with the angled flight deck. She operated in the Pacific until 1960, when she was ordered to Pensacola to become the Navy's training carrier. But as she arrived in the Atlantic, the Cuban Missile Crisis broke out, and the Lex was on patrol until December of 1963. The Lexington served as the Navy training carrier until 1991. Her boilers were essentially worn out, and it was less costly to substitute another ship than to refit the Lex.