Portland-class cruiser
_at_Pearl_Harbor_1942.jpg) USS Portland (CA-33) in 1942
| |
| Class overview | |
|---|---|
| Name | Portland class cruiser |
| Operators | .svg){kind=small} United States Navy |
| Preceded by | Northampton-class cruiser |
| Succeeded by | New Orleans-class cruiser |
| Completed | 2 |
| Lost | 1 |
| Retired | 1 |
| Preserved | 0 |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | Heavy cruiser |
| Displacement | 9,950 tons |
| Length | 610 ft 3 in (186.00 m) |
| Beam | 66 ft 1 in (20.14 m) |
| Draft | 17 ft 1 in (5.21 m) |
| Propulsion | list error: <br /> list (help) Parsons turbines 8 boilers 4 shafts 107,000 shp (80,000 kW) |
| Speed | 32.7 knots (60.6 km/h) |
| Range | list error: <br /> list (help) 10,000 nmi @ 15 knots 19,000 km @ 28 km/h |
| Complement | 848 officers and enlisted |
| Armament | |
| Armor | list error: <br /> list (help) 3.25-5" main belt 2.5" deck 1.5" barbettes 1.5-2.5" gunhouses |
| Aircraft carried | 4 |
The Portland-class of heavy cruisers consisted of two ships built for the United States Navy in the 1930s: Portland (CA-33) and Indianapolis (CA-35).
Design
These ships were planned as a follow-on class to the Northampton class. The Portland-class was the third U.S. Navy class of "Washington Treaty" 10,000-ton heavy cruisers. The general layout followed the Northampton-class, using the same three triple-turret layout for their 8-inch (203 mm) guns. However, the number of 5-inch (127 mm) guns was doubled (8 vs 4) and the torpedo tubes were deleted. After commissioning of the Northamptons it was discovered that they were about a thousand tons lighter than allowed. This was corrected in the design of the Portland-class, using the extra weight for a better protection of the machinery spaces and the magazines. The main difference were measures to reduce topweight. The masts were much lower and the aft tripod mast was much lighter. Both ships were fitted out as flagships, providing enough room for an admiral and his staff. They were extensively modified in mid-1943 in a way that was later used to modernize the Northampton-class, making it sometimes difficult to distinguish the classes.
Six ships were originally planned for the Portland-class, but the cruisers CA-32, CA-34, and CA-36 were built using a modified design which became the New Orleans class.[1]
History
Portland took part in the Battle of the Coral Sea, the Battle of Midway, and was heavily damaged by a Japanese torpedo in the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal on 13 November 1942. On 24 October 1944 she fought in the Battle of Surigao Strait, the last battle between battleships. She was decommissioned soon after the war ended and was sold for scrap in 1959.[2]
Indianapolis hosted President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1933, 1934 and 1936. During World War II she was mainly used to screen aircraft carriers, besides operating in the Aleutians in 1943. In July 1945, Indianapolis carried parts and the enriched uranium for the atomic bomb Little Boy to Tinian island.[3] The cruiser then left for Guam and was ordered to proceed to Leyte. On 30 July 1945, she was struck by two torpedoes from the Japanese submarine I-58 and was sunk, being the last major U.S. warship lost. Due to a communications error, only 316 of Indianapolis´ crew of almost 850 survived.[4]
References
- ^ Stefan Terzibaschitsch: Kreuzer der U.S. Navy, Koehler, Herford (Germany) 1984, p. 108. ISBN 3782203488
- ^ Paul H. Silverstone: US Warships of World War 2. Ian Allan, London 1982, p. 71. ISBN 071100157X
- ^ "Little Boy," the bomb dropped on Hiroshima, was also inscribed with numerous autographs and graffiti by ground crews who loaded it into the plane. One of them read: "Greetings to the Emperor from the men of the Indianapolis." Richard Rhodes, The making of the atomic bomb (Simon & Schuster, 1986), 710.
- ^ http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/sh-usn/usnsh-i/ca35.htm
External links
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