Benson-class destroyer
 USS Benson (DD-421) | |
| Class overview | |
|---|---|
| Name: | Benson class destroyer |
| Builders: |
Bethlehem Shipbuilding Corporation: Fore River Shipyard, Union Iron Works, Staten Island, New York Division, San Pedro, California Division Boston Navy Yard Charleston Navy Yard Puget Sound Navy Yard |
| Operators: |
 United States Navy  Republic of China Navy (Taiwan) |
| Preceded by: | Sims-class destroyer |
| Succeeded by: | Gleaves-class destroyer |
| Subclasses: | 24 Bristol-class[1] |
| Built: | 1938–1943 |
| In commission: | 1940–1951 |
| Completed: | 30 |
| Lost: | 4 |
| General characteristics | |
| Type: | Destroyer |
| Displacement: | 1620 tons[1] (2515 tons full load) |
| Length: |
341 ft (103.9 m) waterline, 348 ft 2 in (106.12 m) overall |
| Beam: | 36 ft 1 in (11.00 m) |
| Draft: |
11 ft 9 in (3.58 m) (normal), 17 ft 9 in (5.41 m) (full load) |
| Propulsion: |
four Babcock & Wilcox boilers, General Electric SR geared turbines; two shafts; 50000 shp (37 MW) |
| Speed: |
37.5 knots (69.5 km/h) 33 knots (61.1 km/h) full load |
| Range: |
6,000 nautical miles (11,000 km) at 15 kt (11,000 km at 28 km/h) |
| Complement: | 208 (276 war) |
| Armament: |
5 × 5 in (127 mm) DP guns, 6 × 0.50 in. (12.7 mm) guns, 10 × 21 in (53 cm) torpedo tubes, 2 × depth charge tracks |
| Notes: |
authorized in fiscal year 1938[1] Ship data source.[2] |
The Benson class was a class of 30 destroyers of the U.S. Navy built 1939–1943.
It was named after William Shepherd Benson, a graduate of the Naval Academy in 1877. He commanded the USS Albany, USS Missouri, USS Utah, and the Philadelphia Navy Yard. Benson was appointed first Chief of Naval Operations in 1915 and then served as CNO until he retired 25 September 1919. He died in Washington, D.C., 20 May 1932.[3]
The Benson class was designed as an improved version of the Sims class with two stacks and a new machinery arrangement that featured alternating boiler and engine rooms designed to give the ships a better chance at surviving torpedo damage. Their scantlings, or framing dimensions, were increased to carry the weight of the new machinery. This increased the ship's displacement by about sixty tons. The Benson-class destroyer was the backbone of the pre-war Neutrality Patrols and brought the action to the enemy by participating in every major campaign of the war.
Following class
The Gleaves-class destroyers were built to nearly the same design and were virtually identical to the Benson-class. The only visible difference between Benson and Gleaves was the shape of the stacks (the Bensons were flat-sided).
Losses
USS Laffey and USS Barton were lost at the Battle of Guadalcanal on 13 November 1942.; the USS Lansdale was lost in a battle in the Mediterranean Sea on 20 April 1944 and the bow section of USS Murphy was cut off in a collision with SS Bulkoil 75 miles (121 km) outside of New York, 21 October 1943 and sank. The rest of the ship was saved and was rebuilt and returned to service .[1]
Decorations
USS Laffey received a Presidential Unit Citation for her role in the Battle of Guadalcanal. USS Bailey received a Navy Unit Commendation for her service in the Battle of the Komandorski Islands, 26 March 1943. Also, the USS Hilary P. Jones received a Navy Unit Commendation for her actions in the final operations in the Mediterranean Sea in September 1944.[1]
Ships in class
| Name | Commissioned | Decommissioned |
|---|---|---|
| USS Benson (DD-421) | 25 July 1940 | 18 March 1946 |
| USS Mayo (DD-422) | 18 September 1940 | 18 March 1946 |
| USS Madison (DD-425) | 6 August 1940 | 13 March 1946 (sunk as target 14 October 1969) |
| USS Lansdale (DD-426) | 17 September 1940 | 20 April 1944 (sunk by the Luftwaffe) |
| USS Hilary P. Jones (DD-427) | 6 September 1940 | 6 February 1947 |
| USS Charles F. Hughes (DD-428) | 6 September 1940 | 18 March 1946 (sunk as target 26 March 1969) |
| USS Laffey (DD-459) | 31 March 1942 | 13 November 1942 (sunk by Japanese battleship Hiei) |
| USS Woodworth (DD-460) | 30 April 1942 21 November 1950 | 11 April 1946 14 January 1951 |
| USS Farenholt (DD-491) | 2 April 1942 | 26 April 1946 |
| USS Bailey (DD-492) | 11 May 1942 | 2 May 1948 (sunk as target 4 November 1969) |
| USS Bancroft (DD-598) | 30 April 1942 | 1 February 1946 |
| USS Barton (DD-599) | 29 May 1942 | 13 November 1942 (sunk by Japanese torpedoes at Guadalcanal) |
| USS Boyle (DD-600) | 15 August 1942 | 29 March 1946 (sunk as target 3 May 1973) |
| USS Champlin (DD-601) | 12 September 1942 | 31 January 1947 |
| USS Meade (DD-602) | 22 June 1942 | 17 June 1946 (sunk as target February 1973) |
| USS Murphy (DD-603) | 23 July 1942 | Bow section sunk in collision with SS Bulkoil 75 miles (121 km) outside of New York, 21 October 1943. Ship rebuilt and returned to service.[4]
9 March 1946 |
| USS Parker (DD-604) | 31 August 1942 | 31 January 1947 |
| USS Caldwell (DD-605) | 10 June 1942 | 24 April 1946 |
| USS Coghlan (DD-606) | 10 July 1942 | 31 March 1947 |
| USS Frazier (DD-607) | 30 July 1942 | 15 April 1946 |
| USS Gansevoort (DD-608) | 25 August 1942 | 1 February 1946 (sunk as target 23 March 1972) |
| USS Gillespie (DD-609) | 18 September 1942 | 17 April 1946 (sunk as target 1973) |
| USS Hobby (DD-610) | 18 November 1942 | 1 February 1946 (sunk as target 1 June 1972) |
| USS Kalk (DD-611) | 17 October 1942 | 3 May 1946 (sunk as target March 1969) |
| USS Kendrick (DD-612) | 12 September 1942 | 31 March 1947 |
| USS Laub (DD-613) | 24 October 1942 | 2 February 1946 |
| USS MacKenzie (DD-614) | 21 November 1942 | 4 February 1946 (sunk as target 1 June 1974) |
| USS McLanahan (DD-615) | 19 December 1942 | 2 February 1946 |
| USS Nields (DD-616) | 15 January 1943 | 25 March 1946 |
| USS Ordronaux (DD-617) | 13 February 1943 | January 1947 |
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Destroyer History - Benson Class
- ↑ Destroyers - Benson Class
- ↑ USS Benson History
- ↑ Quest for Sunken Warships- USS Murphy, 2007, 19 July 2007, Military Channel, 2-3am, MDT.
External links
- Benson-class destroyers at Destroyer History Foundation
- Tin Can Sailors @ Destroyers.org - Benson class destroyer
See also
Media related to Benson class destroyers at Wikimedia Commons
- Livermore class destroyer
- List of destroyers of the United States Navy
- List of destroyer classes of the United States Navy
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