The start of jet operations in US Navy.

I was reading an interesting paper on China's 'naval dilemma'
(..basically whether to base it's navy on carriers or submarines), and
came across this quote:

'In 1954 alone, in working to master jet aviation off carriers, the U.S.
Navy lost nearly eight hundred aircraft'

Paper: China's aircraft carrier dilemma
By Andrew S Erickson and Andrew R. Wilson

That number seems extremely large to me, can it be that this was
including combat losses?