alaska class battlecruiser

By comparison, the Long Lance torpedo had a maximum range of 32,800 yards. Alaska is Alaska. A battleship that could fulfill the battlecruiser role with its high speed. On 2 December, she left Cuba for the Pacific, transiting the Panama Canal two days later, and reaching San Diego on 12 December. How will they be implemented in this game, if they ever are? [7], After her commissioning, Alaska steamed down to Hampton Roads, escorted by the destroyers Simpson and Broome. The Alaska class battlecruiser were a class of battlecruisers built by the USA in the 1940s and served from 44 to 47 but what if Osea decided to retain for possible use in future. The reuse of a hull design coupled with the adoption of the machinery from the Essex class carriers suggests that designs attempted to save money. Had the Alaska class gotten the chance to actually hunt down Axis cruisers, they would have been formidable opponents. However, the Alaska class would be an exception. Of the six planned, two were completed, the third's construction was suspended after … USS Alaska alongside the Battleship USS Missouri. She left Boston on 1 February 1946 for Bayonne, New Jersey, where she would be berthed in reserve. They are not battlecruisers, but they certainly out class Heavy Cruisers in firepower. They were officially classed as large cruisers (CB), but others have regarded them as battlecruisers. Their high speed enabled them to easily keep pace with carriers and during World War 2, they were known to be exceptional escort vessels. [7], Lead ship of the US Navy Alaska class of large cruisers, L/50 refers to the length of the gun in terms of, International Naval Research Organization, List of battlecruisers of the United States Navy, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=USS_Alaska_(CB-1)&oldid=1001576021, World War II cruisers of the United States, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, This page was last edited on 20 January 2021, at 08:50. [1][2] She carried four OS2U Kingfisher or SC Seahawk seaplanes,[3] with a pair of steam catapults mounted amidships. They then joined a major raid, which included three battleships and three escort carriers, into the estuary of the Yangtze River off Shanghai. She displaced 29,779 long tons (30,257 t) as designed and up to 34,253 long tons (34,803 t) at full combat load. She arrived in Incheon, Korea, on 8 September and supported Army operations there until 26 September, when she left for Tsingtao, China, arriving the following day. Being designed as “cruiser killers” they were essentially designed to resist cruiser guns and not much else.In an effort to reduce weight, the Alaska class cruisers were designed without a torpedo defense system. Shortly thereafter, Alaska was warned that American aircraft were in the vicinity. Traditionally, battlecruisers were of the same size and possessed the same armament that battleships did. Alaska was then transferred to Task Group 58.4 and assigned to support the assault on Iwo Jima. Battlecruisers traditionally devoted anywhere from 19.5% (HMS Invincible),29% (Lexington class Battlecruiser), and even up to 32% (HMS Hood) of their tonnage to armor, a category the Alaska class squarely falls into. A ship born from politics would certainly explain the confusing design process. After reaching San Francisco, she left for the Atlantic, via the Panama Canal, which she transited on 13 December. However, the Mark 8 represented an entirely different breed of naval cannon. [7], On 8 January 1945, Alaska left California for Hawaii, arriving in Pearl Harbor on 13 January. Here, Alaska finally saw combat, as the Japanese launched a major air strike on the American fleet. [7], Alaska remained with TG 58.4 for the Battle of Okinawa. The Alaska class utilized the same machinery as the larger Essex class carriers. ALASKA CLASS LARGE CRUISER. The Alaska-class Battlecruisers were the first of that particular type of warship to serve in the United States Navy. [1], Alaska was authorized under the Fleet Expansion Act on 19 July 1940, and ordered on 9 September. Overview: The Alaska Class Cruisers are often considered Battlecruisers, because of their size and fire power, but theyre designated as large cruisers, or CBs by the United States Navy. On the voyage back to port, another D4Y bomber attacked Franklin, though the ships were unable to shoot it down. Initially labeled with the battlecruiser designation of CC early in development, they were later relabeled with the CB designation of large cruiser. On the subject of protection, it should be noted that the Alaska class devoted only 28.4% of their tonnage to armor compared to the 32% or more that battleships typically did. What the Alaska class lacked in underwater protection, they made up for it in gunfire protection. It is possible that the Alaska class was created as a result of politics rather than wartime thinking. Scharnhorst is a (for her time) rather advanced battleship that only suffers from sub-caliber guns in direct conflict with other battleships. Due to being commissioned late in the war, Alaska saw relatively limited service. The Alaska class is a giant cruiser with larger than average guns (Seriously, upscaled Balitmore with 12" rifles). Post Jun 23, 2018 #594 2018-06-23T03:05 The Alaska-class was a type of battlecruiser starship in service to the Federation Starfleet in the 24th century. At one point there were no less than nine separate designs. Want to support the channel? On 12 November, she left Philadelphia in the company of the destroyer-minelayer Thomas E. Fraser, bound for two weeks of sea trials off Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Most US ships, even some of the larger battleships and carriers, could turn inside of the Alaska class. The Alaska class was not in the same category as either the German or English battlecruisers, because it wasn't a dreadnaught design. It changes nothing about the … Against 8″ cruiser gunfire, they were protected at 10k to 30k yards. On 16 April, the ship shot down another three aircraft and assisted with three others. This class of cruiser is perhaps one of the more confusing ships ever put to sea by the United States. She was the first of two ships of her class to be completed, followed only by Guam; four other ships were ordered but were not completed before the end of the war. Had the Alaska class ever had the opportunity to fight the German raiders or Japanese super cruisers, they would have had an impressive advantage in firepower. See how the US Navy tried to create the ultimate cruiser-killer ship. Her anti-aircraft gunners destroyed a Yokosuka P1Y bomber attempting to crash into Intrepid. Rare Pearl Harbor, USS Arizona Relic For Auction by Small Missoula Company, British Army Put Down 1,200 Combat Dogs after They Could no Longer Serve, Hiroshima: The Day That Changed the World. They were officially classed as large cruisers (CB), but others have regarded them as battlecruisers. [4], The ship was armed with a main battery of nine 12 in (305 mm) L/50 Mark 8 guns in three triple gun turrets, two in a superfiring pair forward and one aft of the superstructure. Today, we look at the unique features and challenging design history of these warships and try to find where they fit. The first study involved removing all of the guns in favor of four different missile systems. On 22 March, the ships reached Ulithi and Alaska was detached to rejoin TG 58.4. In this regard, the Mark 8 could be considered the most powerful naval gun of World War 2 in terms of size. She participated in operations off Iwo Jima and Okinawa in February–July 1945, including providing anti-aircraft defense for various carrier task forces and conducting limited shore bombardment operations. Conceived in the late 1930’s, they were built and commissioned in the later stages of World War II. On 9 June, she and Guam bombarded Oki Daitō. Eight boilers drove four turbines producing a total of 150,000shp. Designed to prowl the oceans and hunt down enemy commerce raiders, they possessed high speed and considerable firepower. Even the larger German 11″ shell would have difficulty penetrating the belt at typical combat ranges. The US however, went with a different approach. Battlecruiser is a starship classification that is applied to a starship that is more heavily armed than a cruiser or light cruiser, but not as heavily armed as a battleship or dreadnought. The first air strikes on Okinawa began that day, and claimed 17 Japanese aircraft destroyed on the ground. The fleet then returned to Okinawa, where Alaska continued in her anti-aircraft defense role. [8] On 16 July, Alaska and Guam conducted a sweep into the East China and Yellow Seas to sink Japanese shipping vessels. They were expected to use their speed to hunt down anything slower while evading anything more powerful. There she participated in further training and was assigned to Task Group 12.2, which departed for Ulithi on 29 January. The Alaska had the most powerful 12in guns ever produced, the same caliber as those on the South Carolina and Wyoming, while the Deutschland class … They were also expected to operate outside of the main battle line and support the fleet through interception of support vessels. Throughout the rest of the month, her heavy anti-aircraft fire succeeded in driving off Japanese bombers. Alaska. Alaska was the third vessel of the US Navy to be named after what was then the territory of Alaska. Later that afternoon, Alaska shot down a second Japanese bomber, a Yokosuka D4Y. Alaska (CB-1) was launched on August 15, 1943, by which time it … They were also ordered at a time when Japan was known to possess a very powerful fleet of cruisers. She arrived there the following day, and on 13 August, she was removed from active service, though she would not be decommissioned until 17 February 1947. Even the US Navy themselves appears confused by the ships. Not Really a Cruiser, Not Really a Battleship, but Never a Battlecruiser: The Story of the US Navy’s Alaska -Class Fast, powerful, and short-lived, the Alaska -class large cruisers of the US Navy in World War II were both state of the art and obsolete at the same time. Tonnage wise, the Alaska were about 75% the weight of the Alaskas. Low. War History online proudly presents this Guest Piece from Chris Knupp. The Alaska Class cruisers were effectively battle cruisers, designed to deal with a potential threat from heavily armoured Japanese and German cruisers that had evaporated by the time the two members of the class were completed. The Alaska class was a class of six large cruisers ordered before World War II. USS Alaska (CB-1) was the lead ship of the Alaska class of large cruisers which served with the United States Navy during the end of World War II. Other nations fulfilled the battlecruiser role by designing vessels like battleships, but stripped of armor and other features to gain speed. The ship had a cruising range of 12,000 nautical miles (22,000 km; 14,000 mi) at a speed of 15 kn (28 km/h; 17 mph). While some in the Navy felt that designing ships solely to hunt down commerce raiders was a waste of resources, others thought the threat was grave enough to warrant these new vessels. The Maus Tank – An Crazy Invention, But Would It Have Been Effective Enough To Change The Outcome Of WWII? The ship was then deployed for a shakedown cruise, first in the Chesapeake Bay and then into the Caribbean, off Trinidad. Alaska's 12 inch guns would have given her a massive advantage against normal cruisers, if she had seen any. In this regard, the term “large cruiser” is accurate. [a] The secondary battery consisted of twelve 5 in (130 mm) L/38 dual-purpose guns in six twin turrets. When firing these shells, the Mark 8 offered performance slightly superior to that of US battleships mounting 14″ naval guns. Perhaps aware of the increasing power of aircraft carriers, designers were also quick to ensure the ships would be well suited to screening the carriers as well. [1] A pair of Mk 34 gun directors aided gun laying for the main battery, while two Mk 37 directors controlled the 5-inch guns and a Mk 57 director aided the 40 mm guns. The "large cruiser" concept originated in the early 1930s when the United States Navy was hoping to counter Deutschland-class "Pocket Battleships" that had just been commissioned by Germany. Surely if it looks like a battlecruiser and performs like a battlecruiser, it must be a battlecruiser. When compared to the Baltimore class cruiser, one can immediately spot the similarities in the arrangement of the secondary weapons. This is more than likely to avoid confusion that the Alaskas where battleships of any sort. The Task Group reached Ulithi on 6 February and was merged into Task Group 58.5, part of Task Force 58, the Fast Carrier Task Force. Two additional mounts are superfiring over the main cannons. The Alaska Class' roots began with the Lexington class Battlecruisers (shown), which were cancelled due to the signing of the Washington Naval Treaty. It is possible that utilizing existing components might have accelerated development of these ships to counter the threat of Japan’s cruisers. Fischler. USS Alaska alongside the Battleship USS Missouri. The designers initially had no clear idea on what role the ship was to perform and produced a wide variety of designs. That invalidates, IMO, the comparison you were trying to make. Alaska Class Battlecruisers (or heavy cruisers) Class and type: Alaska-class large cruiser Type: "Large cruiser" (officially), battlecruiser in actuality. [6] On 17 December 1941 she was laid down at New York Shipbuilding in Camden, New Jersey. After the end of the war, she assisted in the occupation of Korea and transported a contingent of US Army troops back to the United States. Despite Naval policy, … Alaska and her sister Guam, two other cruisers, and several destroyers were detached to create Task Group 58.2.9 to escort the crippled Franklin back to Ulithi. Thank you for reading my latest article. She was decommissioned in February 1947 and placed in reserve, where she remained until she was stricken in 1960 and sold for scrapping the following year. Of particular note in the photos is the location of the aircraft catapults. Gunfire from one of the 5-inch guns accidentally caused flash burns on several men standing nearby; these were the only casualties suffered by her crew during the war. However, General Board finally settled on a design that was essentially an enlarged Baltimore class heavy cruiser. ... and that the President may well have inspired it on the basis of his notions of foreign 'battlecruiser' and 'supercruiser' development. The ships rejoined TG 58.4 at a refueling point, after which they returned to Okinawa to support the landings when they began on 1 April. The best way to look at the Alaska class might be to ignore the older ideas of a battlecruiser and look at them as their own design. They had only limited success, however, and returned to the fleet on 23 July. There her gun crews trained for shore bombardment and anti-aircraft fire. There were many battlecruisers, there were many heavy cruisers, but the Alaska design was its own unique design between them. The Alaska class were battlecruisers right down to the exact same design principles and job description of the original battlecruisers. Even the 40mm and 20mm Anti-air weapons are arranged in a similar manner. Discussion. So in terms of tonnage comparison the Alaska class was actually more on par to the weight of battleships of her time than the Courageous and yet Courageous was classified a battlecruiser in the end. Alaska left Incheon with a contingent of soldiers bound for San Francisco. She was launched on 15 August 1943, sponsored by Mrs. Dorothy Gruening (née Smith) the wife of Governor Ernest Gruening of Alaska, after which fitting-out work was effected. She was the first of two ships of her class to be completed, followed only by Guam; four other ships were ordered but were not completed before the end of the war. With the exception of armor, battlecruisers shared many similarities with battleships. It could be called a battle cruiser, large cruiser, baby battleship, refrigerator light or flugglewump supreme. With this in mind, why would a ship designed to perform the battlecruiser role be labeled anything else? [9] In the course of her service during World War II, Alaska was awarded three battle stars. Alaska was 808 feet 6 inches (246.43 m) long overall and had a beam of 91 ft 1 in (27.76 m) and a draft of 31 ft 10 in (9.70 m). [7], After returning to her unit, Alaska continued to screen for the aircraft carriers off Okinawa. The Alaska-class equipped nine 12-inch, 50 caliber Mark 8 rifles as the main armament, similar to the “cruiser killers” being implemented by the Axis navies. Again, the operation met with limited success. She was then assigned to TG 38.4, the reorganized carrier task force. She served in the screen for the carriers off Iwo Jima for nineteen days, after which time she had to return to Ulithi to replenish fuel and supplies. According to Fleets of World War II, the Alaska-class cruisers were armed with nine 12-inch guns and 12 five-inch dual-purpose guns. This would have cost $82 million, and was still seen as too cost-prohibitive. She was laid down on 17 December 1941, ten days after the outbreak of war, was launched in August 1943 by the New York Shipbuilding Corporation, in Camden, New Jersey, and was commissioned in June 1944. Alaska then took on the role of fighter director; using her air search radar, she vectored fighters to intercept and destroy a Kawasaki Ki-45 heavy fighter. Displacement: 29,779 tons (standard) 34,253 tons (full load) Length: 808 ft 6 in (246.4 m) Beam: 91 ft 1 in (27.8 m) While fast in a straight line, they were not particularly agile. In the 23rd century, this classification was used to describe starships of both the Klingon Empire and the Romulan Star Empire. Designed solely for the Alaska-class, they took advantage of ballistic technology being implemented in the early 1940s. Afterward, the Navy made it a habit to discourage the labeling of these ships as battlecruisers. If you want to check out more of my work, you can access my collection here at navalgeneralboard.com, US Air Force Names New F-15 Fighter Jet Replacement, Iconic American Colt Firearms Now Owned by a Czech Company. On 27 March, she was detached to conduct a bombardment of Minamidaitō. They would be resurrected years later following rumors of supposed “super cruisers” Japan was thought to be building. The arrangement of the 5″ secondary guns is immediately clear with the dual port and starboard mounts. The fleet sailed for Japan on 10 February to conduct air strikes against Tokyo and the surrounding airfields. She was officially classified as a battlecruiser. Initially labeled with the battlecruiser designation of CC early in development, they were later relabeled with the CB designation of large cruiser. On the cruise, she was escorted by the destroyers Bainbridge and Decatur. The ship was powered by four-shaft General Electric geared steam turbines and eight oil-fired Babcock & Wilcox boilers rated at 150,000 shaft horsepower (110,000 kW), generating a top speed of 33 knots (61 km/h; 38 mph). Planning for the Power Plant. Alaska class battlecruiser American battlecruiser APNS Guam (CB-02) underway on November 13th, 1944. Vastly more powerfully than typical cruisers and at a disadvantage against battleships, the classification of these ships has divided historians. However, for the US, the designs remained on the drawing board. The problem is that the internal subdivision on british battlecruisers was similar to the one used on battleships of their time. About ten minutes later, her gunners spotted an unidentified aircraft, approaching in what they thought was a threatening manner; they shot down what turned out to be a Grumman F6F Hellcat fighter, though the pilot was uninjured. Task Group 58.5 was assigned to provide anti-aircraft defense for the aircraft carriers; Alaska was assigned to the carriers Enterprise and Saratoga. On the night of 27–28 March, she fired forty-five 12-inch shells and three hundred and fifty-two 5-inch rounds at the island. At standard output, the Alaska class cruisers were able to achieve up to 33 knots. What little protection they had was against a 700lb warhead at a time when Japan was fielding torpedoes with 1100lbs of explosives. Britain, France, and the United States all worked on new designs intended to counter this threat. Likewise, the Alaska class could be described as a fusion of heavy cruiser and battlecruiser, a large cruiser that could act as a battlecruiser due to its larger size and heavier firepower. The battlecruisers were built New York Shipbuilding, with the first, Alaska, laid down just ten days after Pearl Harbor. She was laid down on 17 December 1941, ten days after the outbreak of war, was launched in August 194… [5] The main armored belt was 9 in (229 mm) thick, while the gun turrets had 12.8 in (325 mm) thick faces. The forerunner to the Alaska class design got its start as a result of the introduction of the German “pocket battleships.” Well armed and with a respectable speed, they posed a threat to merchant vessels. The large size of the Alaska class is evident. The light anti-aircraft battery consisted of 56 quad-mounted 40 mm (1.6 in) Bofors guns and 34 single-mounted 20 mm (0.79 in) Oerlikon guns. The designation of the Alaska class has always been a source of argument among historians. Like traditional battlecruisers, the Alaska class were lightly armored, but fast and powerfully armed. They used the same armor scheme, weapons arrangement, and general design characteristics of  heavy cruisers but on a much larger scale. Even the US Navy themselves appears confused by the ships. She shot down several Japanese aircraft off Okinawa, including a possible Ohka piloted missile. She was armed with a main battery of nine 12 in (300 mm) guns in three triple turrets and had a top speed of 33 kn (61 km/h; 38 mph). [7], On 30 August, Alaska left Okinawa for Japan to participate in the 7th Fleet occupation force. Alaska was the lead ship of her class of large cruisers, a classification with few WW2-era peers. This study left the forward batteries—the two 12-inch triple turrets and three of the 5-inch dual turrets—in place and added a reduced version of the first plan for the aft. Designs ranged from 6,000 ton fast cruisers to enlarged heavy cruisers and even a 38,000 ton “light” battleship. USS Alaska (CB-1) Battlecruiser "USS GUAM" (CB-2) Was the Second of Two (808.6') Alaska Class Large Cruisers (Honors - 2 Battle Stars) Commissioned 17 September 1944 - Decommissioned 17 February 1947 - Scrapped, 10 July 1961 The main armored deck was 4 in (102 mm) thick. The large size of the Alaska class is evident. The Alaska class was to have 6 buildings, but soon, when it became apparent that the concepts underlying them were totally out of date, the other three, which should have been started in June 1943, were canceled. The United States Navy began the construction of battleships with USS Texas in 1892, but the first battleship under that designation would be USS Indiana. Battlecruisers traditionally devoted anywhere from 19.5% (HMS Invincible),29% (Lexington class Battlecruiser), and even up to 32% (HMS Hood) of their tonnage to armor, a category the Alaska class squarely falls into. As torpedoes became more prevalent, all capital ships (including surviving battlecruisers) were intended to have torpedo defense systems installed. [7], The following day, the carrier Franklin was badly damaged by several bomb hits and a kamikaze. The Alaska Class Battle Cruisers: The Last of the Line Line drawing of Alaska in 1945 The three ships of the Alaska Class though classed as “Large Cruisers” by the US Navy were actually the last Battle Cruisers designed, built and put into operation by any Navy. The Alaska class did not meet either of these criteria. The Japanese did not attack the fleet during the operation. It was due to her unusual composition of a body as long as a battleship but yet the beam was as slim as a cruiser, while her displacement was much larger than a typical cruiser while not as heavily armed as a battleship. The 12″/50 Mark 8 Naval gun was a return to a barrel size not used by the US in over three decades. Premium tier 9 Alaska is a representative of a special type of ship, standing somewhere between a cruiser and a battleship. The Alaska-class battlecruisers, or large cruisers, with extra firepower and armour, were constructed to serve as "cruiser-killers" and bombardment ships. The Alaska class (CB 1 Alaska and CB 2 Guam) have been described as "heavy cruisers freed of treaty restrictions" and "enlarged Baltimores", as well as "white elephants" (the last not an uncommon description for any battlecruiser). Well, the KM Scharnhorst class including Gneisau and the USS Alaska class inlcuding the USS Guam were similar. Afterward, the Navy made it a habit to discourage the labeling of these ships as battlecruisers. The Alaska-class consisted of six battlecruisers ordered before World War II for the American People's Navy. NavWeaps.com notes that these guns, the 12″/50 Mark 8, had a maximum range of 38,573 yards. Two were placed on the centerline superfiring over the main battery turrets, fore and aft, and the remaining four turrets were placed on the corners of the superstructure. There, she supported the 6th Marine Division until 13 November, when she returned to Incheon to take on Army soldiers as part of Operation Magic Carpet, the mass repatriation of millions of American servicemen from Asia and Europe. They were a unique design, much like the other hybrid types the US was fond of during World War 2. By then the era of the Battlecruiser and Battleship had come and gone. Both ships served with the Pacific Fleet during 1945. With their long length and single rudder, they had a large turning radius of 800 yards. TG 38.4 then steamed to San Pedro Bay in the Leyte Gulf for rest and maintenance; the ship remained there from 13 June until 13 July, when she was assigned to Cruiser Task Force 95 along with her sister Guam, under the command of Rear Admiral Francis S.

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