First entirely aircraft carrier battle where fleets never saw each other; halted the Japanese advance toward Australia.

• A. Battle of the Coral Sea
• B. Battle of Midway
• C. Battle of Leyte Gulf
• D. Battle of Guadalcanal

Answer: (A)

This question targets the first battle where opposing fleets never visually met and fought entirely through carrier aircraft. In the Battle of the Coral Sea, fought in May 1942, the combat was carried out by planes launched from aircraft carriers rather than ships firing at each other from gun ranges. Because the fleets did not come into sight of one another, the engagement unfolded as an air-first contest, with carriers striking the enemy from a distance and the result shaping the battle’s strategic outcome.

The significance lies in its strategic objective: Japan’s plan to seize Port Moresby and threaten Australia was thwarted, halting the southward Japanese advance toward Australia and marking a shift in how naval power could be projected—through aircraft from carriers rather than surface ships alone. The other options involve different kinds of engagements or stages in the war, where ships or islands were more directly involved or the battles did not represent the first all-aircraft carrier confrontation with that specific strategic aim.