Class history
The Iowa-class battleships served in every major U.S. war of the mid and latter half of the 20th century. A total of six Iowa-class battleships were authorized — four were completed and served long and distinguished careers. In World War II, they defended aircraft carriers and shelled Japanese positions. All four were recalled during the Korean War and one during the Vietnam War to provide artillery support. They were reactivated during the 1980s as part of the 600-ship Navy and two participated in the Gulf War before being deactivated for the final time in the early 1990s. The other two were never completed and were subject to multiple proposals before ultimately being scrapped in 1958.
USS Iowa (BB-61)
Iowa was ordered 1 July 1939, laid down 27 June 1940, launched 27 August 1942, and commissioned 22 February 1943. During World War II, Iowa countered the threat of the German battleship Tirpitz in the Atlantic before escorting U.S. aircraft carriers in the Pacific. During the Korean War, Iowa bombarded enemy targets in North Korea before being deactivated. Reactivated in the early 1980s, Iowa made several operational cruises in European waters before being decommissioned in 1990 after a deadly turret explosion. Iowa was stricken from the Naval Vessel Register on 17 March 2006.[1][2]
USS New Jersey (BB-62)
New Jersey was ordered 1 July 1939, laid down 16 September 1940, launched 7 December 1942, and commissioned 23 May 1943. During World War II, New Jersey escorted U.S. aircraft carriers during the Marshall Islands campaign and the Battle of Leyte Gulf. She also bombarded Iwo Jima and Okinawa. During the Korean War, New Jersey bombarded targets at Wonsan, Yangyang, and Kansong. Recalled to service during the Vietnam War in 1968, New Jersey reported for duty near the Vietnam DMZ until 1969, when she was again deactivated. During the 1980s, New Jersey was reactivated under the 600-ship Navy program and sent to Lebanon to protect U.S. interests and U.S. Marines, firing her main guns at Druze and Syrian positions in the Bekaa valley east of Beirut. New Jersey was decommissioned on 8 February 1991 and was later donated to the Home Port Alliance of Camden, New Jersey, as a museum ship.[3][4]
USS Missouri (BB-63)
Missouri was ordered 12 June 1940, laid down 6 January 1941, launched 29 January 1944, and commissioned 11 June 1944. During World War II, Missouri escorted U.S. aircraft carriers before bombarding Okinawa, Honshū, and Hokkaidō. In September 1945, the documents of unconditional surrender were signed upon her decks. Missouri was dispatched to Korea at the outbreak of the Korean War and served two tours of duty before being decommissioned in 1956. Reactivated in 1984 as part of the 600-ship Navy plan, Missouri made an around-the-world cruise before being assigned to Operation Earnest Will in 1988. In 1991, Missouri participated in the Gulf War by firing Tomahawk missiles at Iraqi targets and shelling known Iraqi positions along the coast. Decommissioned in 1992, Missouri was donated to the USS Missouri Memorial Association of Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, for use as a museum ship in 1999.[5][6]
USS Wisconsin (BB-64)
Wisconsin was ordered 12 June 1940, laid down 25 January 1942, launched 7 December 1943, and commissioned 16 April 1944. During World War II, Wisconsin escorted U.S. aircraft carriers during the Philippines campaign before bombarding Iwo Jima, Okinawa, and the Japanese home islands. Reactivated in 1950 for the Korean War, Wisconsin served two tours of duty as a fire support unit. She was decommissioned in 1958 and placed in reserve until 1986 when she was reactivated as a part of the 600-ship Navy plan. In 1991, Wisconsin participated in the Gulf War by firing Tomahawk missiles at Iraqi targets and shelling Iraqi troop formations along the coast. Decommissioned on 30 September 1991, Wisconsin remained in the reserve fleet until being stricken from the Naval Vessel Register on 17 March 2006. She is currently berthed in Norfolk, Virginia, pending formal transfer for use as a museum ship.[7][8]
USS Illinois (BB-65)
Illinois was ordered 9 September 1940 and laid down 15 January 1945. Construction was canceled 11 August 1945 when Illinois was 22% complete. She was sold for scrap in September 1958 after proposals to complete the hull up to the point of launching for use as a nuclear-weapons target were deemed too expensive to be practical.[9][10]
USS Kentucky (BB-66)
Kentucky was ordered 9 September 1940 and laid down on 6 December 1944. Construction was suspended 17 February 1947 when Kentucky was 73% complete. She was informally launched 20 January 1950 to clear a dry-dock for repairs to Missouri, which had ran aground. In June 1956, a 120 ton, 68 foot (21 m) section of Kentucky's bow was removed and shipped in one piece across Hampton Roads, where it was grafted on the battleship Wisconsin, which had collided with the destroyer Eaton. After numerous proposals to complete the ship failed, Kentucky was struck from the Naval Vessel Register on 9 June 1958 and sold to Boston Metals Company of Baltimore, Maryland, for scrap on 31 October. Kentucky's engines were salvaged and installed on the fast combat support ships Sacramento and Camden.[11][12][13]
Unincorporated
Congress had not expected the Iowa class to be so costly; with a price tag of $125 million per ship, the Iowas were 60% more expensive than the previously authorized battleship classes. Moreover, some policymakers were not sold on the need for more battleships, and proposed turning the ships into aircraft carriers by retaining the hull design but switching their decks to carry and handle aircraft. The proposal to build the Iowas as aircraft carriers was countered by Admiral Ernest King, the Chief of Naval Operations, and Congress' position on the funding for the Iowa class changed after the Fall of France, when President Roosevelt demanded that Congress fund a two-ocean navy to meet the threats posed in the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans.
As part of President Ronald Reagan's Navy Secretary John F. Lehman's effort to create a "600-ship Navy" Wisconsin was reactivated 1 August 1986 and moved under tow to the Avondale Shipyard in New Orleans, Louisiana, to commence pre-re-commissioning workups. The battleship was then towed from the Avondale Shipyard and arrived at Ingalls Shipbuilding in Pascagoula, Mississippi, 2 January 1987 to receive weapons systems upgrades for her modernization. During the modernization Wisconsin had all of her remaining Oerlikon 20 mm and Bofors 40 mm anti-aircraft guns removed, due to their ineffectiveness against modern day jet fighters and enemy anti-ship missiles; additionally, the two 5" gun mounts located at mid-ship and in the aft on the port and starboard side of the battleship were removed.
Under the Reagan Administration's program to build a 600-ship Navy, led by Secretary of the Navy John F. Lehman, Missouri was reactivated and towed by the salvage ship Beaufort to the Long Beach Naval Yard in the summer of 1984 to undergo modernization in advance of her scheduled recommissioning. In preparation for the move a skeleton crew of twenty spent three weeks working 12-to-16 hour days preparing the battleship for her tow. During the modernization Missouri had her obsolete armament removed: Oerlikon 20 mm and Bofors 40 mm anti-aircraft guns, and 5 inch gun mounts.
Over the next several months the ship was upgraded with the most advanced weaponry available; among the new weapons systems installed were four Mk 141 quad cell launchers for 16 AGM-84 Harpoon anti-ship missiles, eight Armored Box Launcher (ABL) mounts for 32 BGM-109 Tomahawk missiles, and a quartet of Phalanx Close In Weapon System (CIWS) gatling guns for defense against enemy anti-ship missiles and enemy aircraft. Also included in her modernization were upgrades to radar and fire control systems for her guns and missiles, and improved electronic warfare capabilities.
As part of President Ronald Reagan's Navy Secretary John Lehman's effort to create a 600-ship Navy, New Jersey was reactivated in 1982 and moved under tow to the Long Beach Naval Shipyard for modernization. At the time of the reactivation the Navy envisioned using New Jersey and her sister ship Iowa to meet sustained global requirements and relieve the strain on the Navy created by an increase in U.S. commitments to the Indian Ocean and Caribbean Sea regions. During this time the Navy developed several proposals to update their battleships to carry cruise missiles and anti-ship missile, as well as point defense system mounts. Preliminary modernizations schemes included the removal of four of the ten 5 in gun mounts on New Jersey to make room for the armored box launchers that would be required to carry and launch the BGM-109 Tomahawk missiles. At one point the NATO Sea Sparrow was to be installed on the reactivated battleships; however, it was determined that the system could not withstand the overpressure effects when firing the main battery.
New Jersey's modernization was unique in that she was to be the only reactivated Iowa-class battleship to lose a gun turret. At the time the Navy made the announcement plans were underway to remove New Jersey's #3 16 in gun turret (located in the aft). In its place the Navy planned to install one of two systems: a vertical launching missile magazine which would have enabled New Jersey to carry an additional 48 Tomahawk or Harpoon missiles, or using the space generated by a removed gun turret for aircraft related updates centering on VTOL or V/STOL type aircraft; however these ideas were ultimately dropped, and New Jersey retained her #3 Gun Turret during her 1980s career.
Because New Jersey had been recalled for service in the Vietnam War her modernization differed from her sisters for a number of reasons. When reactivated in 1967 New Jersey had her 20 mm Oerlikon and 40 mm Bofors anti-aircraft guns removed, and received improved electronic warfare capabilities. This alteration help speed up the time it took to get New Jersey recommissioned: since she was not in her World War II format the only major physical alteration to New Jersey involved the removal of four of her ten 5 in gun mounts to make room for the Armored Box Launchers. In addition to saving time, this also made New Jersey cheaper to reactivate since the cost needed to modernize the battleship only included the addition of missile and gun system mounts, electronic warfare suites, and improved radar and gun spotter technology.
Since the Tomahawk missile system had not yet been adopted for use during New Jersey's original update the Navy announced plans to divert assets from two of their Spruance-class destroyers to install the necessary Tomahawk launchers. Similarly, assets were diverted from two Farragut-class guided missile destroyers to allow for the installation of Harpoon launchers on New Jersey.
As part of President Ronald Reagan's and Secretary of the Navy John F. Lehman's effort to create an expanded 600-ship Navy, Iowa was reactivated and moved under tow to Avondale Shipyards near New Orleans, Louisiana for refitting and equipment modernization in advance of her planned recommissioning. During the refit, Iowa had all of her remaining Oerlikon 20 mm and Bofors 40 mm anti-aircraft guns removed, due to their ineffectiveness against modern jet fighters and anti-ship missiles. Additionally, the two 5 inch gun mounts located at mid-ship and in the aft on the port and starboard side of the battleship were removed.
The Iowa was then towed to Ingalls Shipbuilding, Pascagoula, Mississippi, where over the next several months the battleship was upgraded with the most advanced weaponry available. Among the new weapons systems installed were four Mk 141 quad cell launchers for 16 AGM-84 Harpoon anti-ship missiles, eight Armored Box Launcher (ABL) mounts for 32 BGM-109 Tomahawk missiles, and a quartet of Phalanx Close In Weapon System (CIWS) gatling guns for defense against enemy anti-ship missiles and enemy aircraft. Also included in her modernization were upgrades to radar and fire control systems for her guns and missiles, and improved electronic warfare capabilities.
The final type of ammunition developed for the Iowa class were "Katie" shells. These shells were born from the concept of nuclear deterrence that had begun to shape the United States armed forces as the Cold War began. To compete with the Air Force and the Army, which had developed nuclear bombs and nuclear shells for use on the battlefield, the United States Navy began a top-secret program to develop Mk 23 nuclear naval shells. These shells were designed to be launched from the best seaborne artillery platform available, which at the time were the four ships of the Iowa class. The shells entered development around 1953, and were reportedly ready by 1956. Contemporary reports state that Iowa and Wisconsin carried a full complement of 10 Mk 23 nuclear rounds as well as 9 Mk 24 practice rounds with 1 drill projectile; New Jersey only carried a drill projectile, while Missouri was never modified to accept the shells due to her deactivation in 1955.[14] Wisconsin also is reported to have expended Mk 24 rounds in gunnery drills.[15] The "Katie" shells were withdrawn from the U.S. nuclear stockpile in 1961, but the capability to expend them was deactivated when Wisconsin was decommissioned in 1958.[16]
During their modernization in the 1980s, each Iowa-class battleship was equipped with four of the United States Navy's Phalanx CIWS mounts. Iowa, New Jersey, and Missouri were equipped with the Block 0 version of the Phalanx, while Wisconsin received the first operational Block 1 version in 1988.
Alaska-class cruiser
USS Alaska (CB-1)
USS Guam (CB-2)
USS Hawaii (CB-3)
Kitty Hawk-class aircraft carrier
CVN-79
Shipwreck of the SS American Star, Canary Islands
Skylab, the first American space station
The Soyuz TMA-7 spacecraft
The San Jacinto Monument and the USS Texas in the fog at dawn
.jpg)
