Northampton-class cruiser

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Class overview
*USS Northampton* (CA-26)**
Name:	Northampton class cruiser
Operators:	United States Navy
Preceded by:	Pensacola-class cruiser
Succeeded by:	Portland-class cruiser
Completed:	6
Lost:	3
Retired:	3
Preserved:	0
General characteristics
Type:	Heavy Cruiser
Displacement:	9,050 long tons (9,200 t)
Length:	600 ft 3 in (182.96 m)
Beam:	66 ft 1 in (20.14 m)
Draft:	16 ft 4 in (4.98 m)
Propulsion:	4-shaft Parsons turbines 8 White-Forster boilers 4 screws 107,000 hp (80 MW)
Speed:	32.5 knots (60.2 km/h; 37.4 mph)
Complement:	1,100 Officers: 105 Enlisted: 995^[1]
Armament:	9 × 8 in/55 caliber guns (3×triple turrets) 8 × 5 in/25 caliber guns^[1] 6 × 21-inch torpedo tubes 24 × 40 mm Bofors guns (4×quadruple turrets)^[2] 28 × 20 mm Oerlikon cannons^[3]
Armor:	Belt 3" over machinery with 1" deck 3.75" side and 2" deck over magazines barbettes 1.5" gunhouses 2.5" face 2" roof 0.75" side and rear
Aircraft carried:	2

The Northampton-class cruisers were a group of six heavy cruisers built for the U.S. Navy, and commissioned between 1928 and 1931.

The Northamptons saw much action in World War II. Three (Northampton, Chicago, and Houston) were lost during the war. The other three were decommissioned soon after the end of the war, and scrapped in 1959–1961.

Design

The design of the ships was heavily influenced by the Washington Naval Treaty, which limited cruisers to a maximum of 10,000 tons displacement and a maximum main battery caliber of 8 inches (203 mm). The Northamptons were a reaction to the weight and cost of the immediately preceding Pensacola class, differing in several ways. The Pensacolas mounted a main battery of 10 8-inch (203 mm) guns in four turrets, a twin and superfiring triple fore and aft. In contrast, the Northamptons mounted 9 8-inch (203 mm) guns in three triple turrets, two forward and one aft, the layout followed in all subsequent U.S. heavy cruisers. Although armor was increased, the Northamptons turned out to be lighter than the Pensacolas, and nearly 1,000 tons below the treaty limitations. Freeboard was increased in the Northamptons by adopting a high forecastle, which was extended aft in the last three for use as flagships. These ships were also the first U.S. ships to adopt a hangar for aircraft, and bunks instead of hammocks. Their lighter than expected weight caused them to roll excessively, which necessitated the fitting of deep bilge keels. The immediately following Portland class was essentially a modified Northampton.

Ships in class

Ship Name	Hull No.	Builder	Commission– Decommission
Northampton	CA-26	Bethlehem Steel Corporation, Fore River Shipyard, Quincy, Massachusetts	17 May 1930 - Sunk in the Battle of Tassafaronga, 30 November 1942
Chester	CA-27	New York Shipbuilding Corporation, Camden, New Jersey	24 June 1930 - 10 June 1946
Louisville	CA-28	Puget Sound Navy Yard	15 January 1931 - 17 June 1946
Chicago	CA-29	Mare Island Naval Shipyard	9 March 1931 - Sunk during the Battle of Rennell Island, 30 January 1943
Houston	CA-30	Newport News Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company	17 June 1930 - Sunk in the Battle of Sunda Strait, 1 March 1942
Augusta	CA-31	Newport News Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company	30 January 1931 - 16 July 1946

References

↑ 1.0 1.1 Silverstone, Paul H (1965). US Warships of World War II. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 0-87021-773-9.
↑ Note1 – the Nothamptons were originally fitted with four 1.1 in auto cannons in quad mounts at the start of the war in the Pacific and for the first year of that war and then replaced with Bofors. "Waiting for the Main Attack", Fighting For MacArthur, John Gordon, Naval Institute Press, 2011, ISBN 978-1-61251-057-6, p. 67
↑ Note2 In addition they had special water cooled .50 caliber machine guns instead of Oerlikon 20mm guns which were fitted later in the war.

This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Northampton class cruiser.

v t e Northampton-class cruiser

Northampton Chester Louisville Chicago Houston Augusta

Preceded by: Pensacola class Followed by: Portland class

List of United States Navy cruisers

v t e United States naval ship classes of World War II

Aircraft carriers	Lexington Ranger^S Yorktown Wasp^S Essex Midway^C

Light aircraft carriers	Independence Saipan^C

Escort carriers	Long Island Bogue Sangamon Charger Casablanca Commencement Bay

Battleships	Wyoming New York Nevada Pennsylvania New Mexico Tennessee Colorado North Carolina South Dakota Iowa Montana^X

Battlecruisers	Alaska

Heavy cruisers	Pensacola Northampton Portland New Orleans Wichita^S Baltimore Oregon City^C Des Moines^C

Light cruisers	Omaha Brooklyn St. Louis Atlanta Cleveland Fargo^C Juneau^C Worcester^C

Destroyers	Sampson Caldwell Wickes Clemson Farragut Porter Mahan Gridley Bagley Somers Benham Sims Benson Gleaves Fletcher Allen M. Sumner Robert H. Smith Gearing

Destroyer escorts	Evarts Buckley Cannon Edsall Rudderow John C. Butler

Patrol frigates	Asheville Tacoma

Minesweepers	Lapwing Raven Auk Eagle^S Hawk Admirable

Submarines	O R S Barracuda Argonaut^S Narwhal Dolphin^S Cachalot Porpoise Salmon Sargo Tambor Mackerel Gato Balao Tench

S Single ship of class C Completed after the war X Cancelled

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike; additional terms may apply for the media files.