USS Iowa (BB-61) Battleship (1943)
The USS Iowa was recipient of no fewer than 11 battle stars during her reign of the seas.
The USS Iowa was ordered on July 1st, 1939 and laid down on June 27th, 1940 by the New York Naval Yard. She was officially launched on February 27th, 1942 and was formally commissioned on February 22nd, 1943. She set out from Chesapeake Bay that same month under the motto of "Our LIberties We Prize, Our Rights We Will Maintain". She garnered the nickname of "The Big Stick" over her storied tenure.
By August of that year, the USS Iowa was already on open seas assignment, escorting ships in the Atlantic and transporting the United States President - Franklin Roosevelt - to North Africa. It was not long before the system was eventually made part of the Pacific Fleet where she would end up seeing most of her combat action concerning World War 2. Once active in the Pacific Theater, the USS Iowa took part in the Marshall Islands campaign, the Philippines, the Okinawa landings, and the assault on targets in Honshu and Hokkaido. Her massive battery of 16" guns pummeled fortified shoreline positions and targets of interest. In the attacks she sustained only relatively light damage from oncoming Japanese artillery.
The entire Iowa-class was characterized by their 9 x 16" main guns, three guns fitted to each turret with two turrets fore and one aft. These were augmented by the 20 x 5" guns and further defensed by 80 x 40mm anti-aircraft and 49 x 20mm anti-aircraft cannon systems. Onboard reconnaissance and patrol could be conducted through the use of up to three Vought-type Kingfisher floatplane aircraft held aboard, launched by catapult and recovered by crane. The vessel's crew complement totaled 1,921 personnel during 1943. Power was derived from four shaft geared turbines delivering 212,000 horsepower which allowed for the required maximum surface speed of 33 knots to be reached in ideal conditions.
At the end of the war, the USS Iowa served with the massive flotilla of navy vessels standing guard in Tokyo Bay, Japan. Shortly thereafter, she was made flagship for a time until final decommissioning in 1949 only to be called back into service by 1951 in time for the Korean War (1950-1953). Serving once again as flagship, she pounded enemy shore and inland positions with her usual precision and supported ground offensives in turn. Before the armistice of 1953, the Iowa was already on her way back home for a needed overhaul and further crew training. She was decommissioned again in 1958.
By 1982, the Iowa-class ships were undergoing a period of heavy modernization that included the installation of 32 x BGM-109 Tomahawk cruise missiles, 16 x RGM-84 Harpoon anti-ship missiles and 4 x 20mm Phalanx digitally controlled Close-In Weapon Systems (CIWSs). These new additions surpassed the capabilities of the 16" main guns for the Iowa could now reach farther targets with more precision and defend herself from incoming missile threats and low-flying strike aircraft. The 16" guns retained their ferocious value, however, and would be called to action once more. The Iowa-class ships were then reactivated for service once again and the USS Iowa was used in the Persian Gulf for escort duties providing watch over Kuwaiti tankers under threat.
During a gunnery exercise observed in April of 1989, the USS Iowa suffered a catastrophic explosion in her number two turret (second forward mounting) when a powder magazine ignited. The result was the loss of 47 souls with the likely culprit later to found being static electricity of the 1930s-era magazines. This event led to several changes in the handling and storing of the powder for future's sake. With the investigation complete, the Iowa set off once more on the high seas, this time to ports across Europe. By 1990, the USS Iowa was officially decommissioned for good and landed at port in Suisun Bay, San Francisco, California. On July 7th, 2012, the USS Iowa opened to the public as a floating museum Los Angeles, California.
USS Iowa Update:
The four vessels of the Iowa-class have survived history. The USS Missouri (BB-63), residing in Honolulu, Hawaii, was donated in 1998. The USS New Jersey (BB-62), now in Camden, New Jersey, was donated in 2000. The USS Wisconsin (BB-64), making its home in Norfolk, Virginia, was donated in 2009. USS Iowa (BB-61), in mothballs for the last 21 years, became the last of the four Iowa-class battleships to be donated for preservation.
In 2006, the US Congress, under the National Defense Authorization Act, Public Law 109-163, authorized the Secretary of the Navy to strike USS Iowa (BB-61) from the US Naval Vessel Register and offer the ship for donation to an entity that would display the vessel in a proper military and historical on the waters of the state of California. After a number of proposals were evaluated by the US Navy, the Pacific Battleship Center was selected as the recipient of the ship on Sept. 6th, 2011.
On April 30th, 2012, Vice Admiral Mark Skinner, the military deputy to the Assistant Secretary of the Navy, formally transferred ownership of the historic Iowa (BB-61) to Robert Kent, president of the Pacific Battleship Center. The ship donation contract documents were signed in the Capitol Hill office of Iowa Representative Tom Latham. Vice Admiral Mark Skinner commented "Today marks the transition from the ship's storied naval career to a brand new career as a museum and memorial that will serve for generations to come. I look forward to seeing her brought back to life for public display, continuing to serve our country and its citizens in a new capacity."
The USS Iowa has since been undergoing final repairs at the Naval Port of Richmond, California to prepare her for museum ship status. On May 20th, 2012, USS Iowa (BB-61) was towed from Richmond to its new permanent home at the Pacific Battleship Center located at the Port of Los Angeles in San Pedro, California. Text ©2003-2013 www.MilitaryFactory.com • All Rights Reserved • No Reproduction Permitted
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Specifications for the
USS Iowa (BB-61)
Battleship
Country of Origin: United States
Initial Year of Service: 1943
Operators: United States
Crew: 1,921
Length: 887ft (270.36m)
Beam: 108ft (32.92m)
Draught: 38ft (11.58m)
Displacement: 48,500tons
Machinery: 4-shaft geared turbines generating 212,000shp.
Surface Speed: 33kts (38mph)
Range: 0miles (0km)
Armament:
1943:
9 x 16" Mark 7 main guns
20 x 5" Mark 12 guns
80 x 40mm anti-aircraft cannons
49 x 20mm anti-aircraft cannons
1982:
9 x 16" Mark 7 main guns
12 x 5" Mark 12 guns
32 x BGM-109 Tomahawk cruise missiles
16 x RGM-84 Harpoon anti-ship missiles
4 x 20mm Phalanx CIWS
Air Arm:
1943:
3 x Vought Kingfisher floatplanes
Ship Class: Iowa-class
Number-in-Class: 4
Ships-in-Class: USS Iowa (BB 61); USS New Jersey (BB 62); USS Missouri (BB 63); USS Wisconsin (BB 64)
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