USS Mobile Bay |
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| Career (United States of America) | |
|---|---|
| Name: | USS Mobile Bay |
| Namesake: | Battle of Mobile Bay |
| Operator: | United States Navy |
| Ordered: | 15 January 1982 |
| Builder: | Ingalls Shipbuilding |
| Laid down: | 6 June 1984 |
| Launched: | 22 August 1985 |
| Commissioned: | 21 February 1987 |
| Homeport: | Naval Base San Diego |
| Motto: | Full Speed Ahead |
| Status: | in active service, as of 2012[update] |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type: | Ticonderoga class cruiser |
| Displacement: | Approx. 9,600 long tons (9,800 t) full load |
| Length: | 567 feet (173 m) |
| Beam: | 55 feet (16.8 meters) |
| Draft: | 34 feet (10.2 meters) |
| Propulsion: |
4 × General Electric LM2500 gas turbine engines, 80,000 shaft horsepower (60,000 kW) |
| Speed: | 32.5 knots (60 km/h) |
| Complement: | 33 officers, 27 Chief Petty Officers, and approx. 340 enlisted |
| Sensors and processing systems: |
AN/SPY-1A/B multi-function radar
|
| Armament: | 2 × 61 cell Mk 41 vertical launch systems 122 × Mix of RIM-66M-5 Standard SM-2MR Block IIIB, RIM-156A SM-2ER Block IV, RIM-161 SM-3, RIM-162A ESSM, RIM-174A Standard ERAM, BGM-109 Tomahawk, or RUM-139A VL-ASROC 8 × RGM-84 Harpoon missiles 2 × Mk 45 Mod 2 5 in / 54 cal lightweight gun 2 × 25 mm Mk 38 gun 2–4 × .50 cal (12.7 mm) gun 2 × Phalanx CIWS Block 1B 2 × Mk 32 12.75 in (324 mm) triple torpedo tubes for lightweight torpedoes |
| Aircraft carried: | 2 × Sikorsky SH-60B or MH-60R Seahawk LAMPS III helicopters. |
USS Mobile Bay (CG-53) is a Ticonderoga class guided-missile cruiser serving in the United States Navy. She is named for the naval Battle of Mobile Bay during the American Civil War in 1864. She is currently on deployment to the Persian Gulf, providing support for the John C. Stennis Strikegroup.
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The ship was ordered from Ingalls Shipbuilding on 15 January 1982. She was laid down on 6 June 1984, launched on 22 August 1985, and commissioned into the USN on 21 February 1987.
With guided missiles and rapid-fire cannons, she is capable of defeating threats in the air, on the sea, on shore, and undersea. She carries the Tomahawk Land Attack Missile which played an integral part in the strikes on Iraqi targets during the opening stages of Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2003. She also carries two Seahawk LAMPS multi-purpose helicopters, but mainly for anti-submarine warfare (ASW). She is also capable of conducting Maritime Interdiction Operations, and carries a fully trained boarding team.
After commissioning, MOBILE BAY joined the U. S. Atlantic Fleet, arriving at its Mayport, Florida, homeport in March 1987. Following a year of crew qualifications, tests and systems trials, MOBILE BAY embarked on its maiden deployment on 11 May 1989. During this cruise, MOBILE BAY earned its first two awards: the Sea Service Deployment Ribbon and the Armed Services Expeditionary Medal, for operations conducted in the Gulf of Oman.
In June 1990, MOBILE BAY shifted homeports from Mayport, Florida to Yokosuka, Japan. Shortly thereafter, MOBILE BAY deployed in August 1990 in support of Operation Desert Shield and Storm, becoming the first Aegis cruiser to circumnavigate the globe. In the Persian Gulf, the ship distinguished itself by becoming the first Battle Force Anti-Air Warfare Commander to control a four-carrier Task Force. MOBILE BAY launched 22 Tomahawk land-attack cruise missile strikes, and controlling carrier-launched attack aircraft that contributed to the complete destruction of the Iraqi Navy.
In May 1991, MOBILE BAY was ordered to Subic Bay, Republic of the Philippines, to participate in Operation Fiery Vigil, the evacuation of thousands of people displaced by the volcanic eruption of Mt. Pinatubo. In December 1991, MOBILE BAY began work-ups for a spring 1992 Persian Gulf deployment.
On 15 April 1992, MOBILE BAY once again set sail for the Persian Gulf. En route, the ship and crew visited Sydney, Australia, to represent the U. S. Navy at the 50th Anniversary celebration of the Battle of Coral Sea. Sailing through the Straits of Hormuz in late May 1992, the ship began duties as the Persian Gulf Anti-Air Warfare Commander. MOBILE BAY also played a vital role in Operation Southern Watch, the enforcement of the U. N.-mandated "No Fly Zone" over Southern Iraq. Returning to Japan in October, MOBILE BAY participated in ANNUALEX-92, a major naval exercise involving units of the U. S. Navy and the Japanese Maritime Self Defense Force. MOBILE BAY served as the Anti-Air Warfare Commander for a joint U. S. - Japanese flotilla.[1]
After participating in SPRING TRAINING-93 off the coast of Australia, she made an historic visit to the Russian seaport of Vladivostok in September 1993. Accompanying her was the USS Bunker Hill.[2]
Mobile Bay was deployed to East Timor as part of the Australian-led INTERFET peacekeeping taskforce from 20 September to 5 October 1999.[3] As the most capable air defense vessel available, the ship was placed in charge of air defence,[4] although the U.S. requests for screening Mobile Bay necessitated a considerable degree of effort by other ships of the force.
Mobile Bay operated in support of the U.S. invasion of Iraq from 17 June to 17 December 2004. The ship was later awarded the Iraq Campaign Medal.
In 2006, the cruiser was deployed to the Western Pacific, where she served as the Air Defense Commander for the Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group.
On 16 February 2007, Mobile Bay was awarded the 2006 Battle "E" award.[5] The ship completed a 10-month overhaul in early 2010.[6]
On 8 April 2011, the ship was given a failing grade of "unsatisfactory" in its INSURV inspection, mainly for problems with the ship's propulsion, operations, aviation, and communication. A remedial inspection was scheduled for late April 2011.[7]
This article includes information collected from the Naval Vessel Register, which, as a U.S. government publication, is in the public domain.
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