Wasp class amphibious assault ship

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USS Wasp (LHD 1).jpg
Class overview
Name: Wasp
Preceded by: Tarawa class amphibious assault ship
Succeeded by: America class amphibious assault ship
Completed: 8
Active: 8
General characteristics
Class and type: amphibious assault ship
Displacement: Approx. 40,500 tons (41,150 metric tons) full load
Length: 844 ft (257 m)
Beam: 106 ft (32 m)
Propulsion: Two boilers, two geared steam turbines, two shafts, 70,000 shaft-horsepower (52 megawatt);
but two General Electric LM2500 geared gas turbines, two shafts on the USS Makin Island)
Speed: 20 knots (37 km/h)
Complement: 104 officers, 1,004 enlisted
1,894 Marine Detachment
Armament: Two Rolling Airframe Missile launchers
Two Sea Sparrow missile launchers
Three 20 mm Phalanx CIWS systems (LHD 5-7 with two)
Four .50 BMG machine guns
Four 25 mmMk 38 chain guns (LHD 5-7 with three).
Aircraft carried: Actual mix depends upon the mission[1]
Standard Complement
6 AV-8B Harrier II attack aircraft
4 AH-1W SuperCobra attack helicopter
12 CH-46 Sea Knight helicopters
4 CH-53 Sea Stallion helicopters
3 UH-1N Huey helicopters
OR
Assault
42 CH-46 Sea Knight helicopters
OR
Sea Control
20 AV-8B Harrier II attack aircraft
6 SH-60F/HH-60H ASW helicopters
Notes: Ships included:
USS Wasp (LHD-1)
USS Essex (LHD-2)
USS Kearsarge (LHD-3)
USS Boxer  (LHD-4)
USS Bataan (LHD-5)
USS Bonhomme Richard (LHD-6)
USS Iwo Jima (LHD-7)
USS Makin Island (LHD-8)

The Wasp-class amphibious assault ships of the United States Navy are designed to land forces on hostile shores, and they are the largest vessels of this type in service anywhere in the world. They are named after former aircraft carriers, United States Marine Corps battles such as the USS Iwo Jima (LHD-7), and previous amphibious assault ships. The Wasp-class has an air group of helicopters that are used to ferry Marines and equipment to the shore from the ships. These helicopters are supplemented by a squadron of up to eight AV-8B Harrier II V/STOL ground-attack aircraft. Up to 20 Harriers can be embarked when the ship is used as a temporary STOL or "Harrier Carrier."[2] They also possess a "well"-deck for launching smaller landing craft, up to three Landing Craft Air Cushion (LCAC) hovercraft or Landing Craft Utility (LCUs). The Wasp-class ship design was derived from the earlier Tarawa-class design. The Tarawa-class ships have a "notched" flight deck, and also forward sponsons which originally carried two 5-inch Mk 45 naval guns, whereas the Wasp-class warships have a squared-off forward flight deck and no forward sponsons. In addition, the Wasp-class warships are 24 feet longer in overall length to better accommodate the LCAC landing craft. Each Wasp-class warship has a hospital with 600 patient beds and six operating rooms.

The entire Wasp-class has been built at the Ingalls Shipbuilding company, in Pascagoula, Mississippi. The first warship of this class, the USS Wasp (LHD-1) was commissioned on July 29, 1989.

Contents

[edit] Ships

[edit] Gallery

Port quarter view of Wasp, showing LCAC

Well deck of amphibious assault ship USS Essex (LHD 2) with a landing craft utility about to depart.

A U.S. Marine Corps AV-8B Harrier II launches from the flight deck of the amphibious assault ship USS Kearsarge

The USS Essex performs a stern gate marriage with Landing Craft Utility 1631, while back-loading elements of the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit.

[edit] References

  1. ^ "LHD-1 Wasp class". US Navy Ships. Federation of American Scientists. 2000-05-09. http://www.fas.org/man/dod-101/sys/ship/lhd-1.htm. 
  2. ^ United States Navy (March 2003). "Harrier Carrier: Strike Force for Freedom". Press release. http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_pnav/is_200303/ai_499748219. 

[edit] External links

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Wasp-class amphibious assault ship
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