California class
 USS California (CGN-36) in 1986 off California |
|
| Overview | |
|---|---|
| Type | Guided missile cruiser |
| units | 2 built, 0 in service |
| Namesake | State of California |
| period of service |
1974 to 1998 |
| Technical specifications | |
| displacement |
10,150 tons |
| length |
181.7 meters |
| width |
18.6 meters |
| Draft |
9.6 meters |
| crew |
28 officers, 512 men |
| drive |
2 nuclear reactors, 2 waves, 60,000 hp |
| speed |
30+ knots |
| Armament |
2 Mk. 13 single starters for anti-aircraft missiles |
The California-class was a class of nuclear cruisers in service in the United States Navy between 1974 and 1998 and comprised two units, the USS California (CGN-36) and the USS South Carolina (CGN-37) . Their main task was the air defense for the also nuclear powered aircraft carriers .
history
Planning for the California-class ships began in the mid-1960s. They were built as escorts for the aircraft carriers of the Nimitz class . Each carrier battle group should have several nuclear cruisers. The California class was the US Navy's first true class of nuclear-powered surface warships; the previous units ( USS Long Beach (CGN-9) , USS Bainbridge (CGN-25) and USS Truxtun (CGN-35) ) were all so-called one -ship classes . The type ship of the California class was approved with the 1967 budget year, the second unit a year later. An actually planned third unit, which was also to be financed from budget 68, was given up in favor of the subsequent Virginia class , the price of which was supposed to be lower.
Both units were keeled at Newport News Shipbuilding in Newport News , Virginia . The cost was $ 221.4 million for the first unit and $ 199.5 million for the second. This was around 10% more than budgeted in each case. The shipyard costs were just over 70 million each, the remaining amount was spent on weapons and electronic systems.
The two units were the classification DLGN ( Destroyer Leader Guided Missile nuclear powered , dt. Literally. " Destroyer leader with guided missiles, nuclear driven") put into service, the internally Large Frigate was called (dt. "Great Frigate"). Since this classification was in no relation to the size and strategic importance of these ships, both units were reclassified in 1975 with the dissolution of this classification to CGN ( Cruiser Guided Missile nuclear powered , dt. "Cruiser with guided missiles, nuclear driven").
During their service time, the ships were improved with the New Threat Upgrade (Eng. " Upgrade for new threats"). In addition to improvements to the electronics, the interiors of the units in particular were completely redesigned. The cost of operating a ship in 1996 was approximately $ 40 million per year.
Both ships were decommissioned in 1998 and were freed from atomically contaminated parts in the Ship-Submarine Recycling Program and then dismantled. The ships in the US Navy will be replaced by Ticonderoga-class cruisers and Arleigh Burke-class destroyers . Thanks to their Aegis combat system, these are particularly suitable for air defense.
technology
hull
The fuselage of the California class was 181 meters long and 18 meters wide, with which it maintained the classic length: width ratio of 10: 1. The class was the first class from DLGN to exceed the 10,000 ton displacement mark. The deck was a good 20 feet (6.1 meters) aft and 22 feet (6.7 meters) at the bow above the surface of the water. Typical for nuclear-powered ships of the US Navy was the large amount of free space on deck, which offered two opportunities for VERTREP (vertical replenishment) , i.e. the supply of helicopters. One was the aft landing area, and at the bow there was also a place where hovering helicopters could deposit cargo. Because of the open spaces, the ships often appeared underarmed, especially when compared to Soviet ships of the time, which stared at weapons. The superstructure consisted of two deckhouses. The bridge and other rooms for steering and control of the ship were located in the front deckhouse, the rear one was surrounded by the lifeboats.
drive
The drive of the California class consisted of two nuclear reactors of the type D2G . The D stands for the ship type (Destroyer) , the 2 for the generation of the reactor and the G for the manufacturer, in this case General Electric . The reactor delivered steam to two steam turbines , each of which drove a shaft with one propeller each. The power was around 60,000 hp. The Navy stated a speed of 30+ knots, which could be maintained for a long time thanks to the nuclear drive. The range with one reactor filling was approx. 700,000 nautical miles . This is around 1.3 million kilometers or more than 32 circumnavigations of the earth on the equator.
Armament
The main armament of the two Californias consisted of a Mk. 13 single launcher for anti-aircraft missiles at the bow and at the stern. First the RIM-24 Tartar was on board, after its decommissioning, the standard missile SM-1MR ( Medium Range ) was installed. During the New Threat Upgrade , the electronics were upgraded to fire the improved SM-2MR . There were 40 missiles in each of the two magazines. At close range, the Mark 45 lightweight gun with a length of 54 caliber could also be used against air and ground targets . One of these guns was located amidships of the Mk. 13 .
A Mk. 16 launcher for eight RUR-5 ASROC rocket torpedoes , plus a magazine with a further 16 of these weapons, was located directly in front of the bridge for submarine hunting . In the deckhouse astern on each side two torpedo tubes type Mk. 32 permanently installed. They fired Mark 46 anti-submarine torpedoes , and there were 16 spare weapons on board for this too.
In the 1980s, the ships were also equipped with the anti-ship missile AGM-84 Harpoon . Two Starter Mk. 141 with four weapons each without reloading were installed between the deckhouses. A phalanx CIWS was also attached to each broad side of the aft deckhouse for close-range defense .
electronics
At the start of their period of service which consisted radar installation of the California class from the PLC 10 by Raytheon as a navigation radar, as air surveillance radar was located SPS-40 from Lockheed in the astern mast as a guide and the planar antenna SPS-48 of ITT Gilfillan at the front mast as Height finder. Of these systems, only the SPS-10 has been replaced by the more modern SPS-67 from the Norden Corporation .
A sonar system was located in the bow, the SPQ-26 could both actively and passively detect submarines.
A system for electronic warfare consisting of the SLQ-32 was also installed on board at a later date . The antennas located between the deckhouses could be used for telecommunications and electronic reconnaissance and as jammers .
Aircraft
The units of the California class did not have a hangar for permanent storage of a helicopter, there was only a landing area aft from which a Kaman SH-2 Seasprite could be used during operations .
Mission profile
The California class was specially designed as an escort for the new, also nuclear-powered carriers of the US Navy. Within these combat groups, the Califonias were specially designed for air defense and anti- submarine hunting, later also for attacks on surface ships through retrofitting with Harpoon missiles. So-called Nuclear Task Forces were planned , i.e. combat groups that consisted only of nuclear ships. Due to the high construction costs of these units, such groups were only used relatively rarely, the Californias were also often mixed within the task forces with the conventionally powered cruisers of the Leahy and Belknap classes .
The traditional tasks of a cruiser, i.e. operations away from a fleet, such as keeping clear and monitoring sea routes, could be performed by the ships due to their versatility, but only after they were equipped with the AGM-84 Harpoon missiles. These came on board shortly after the reclassification to the cruiser.
The few conflicts in which the two units were used include the 1979/1980 hostage-taking of Tehran when the California covered the USS Nimitz (CVN-68) during Operation Eagle Claw , and Operations Desert Shield / Desert Storm and the NATO operation Deny Flight . In each of these situations, one of the ships served as a radar outpost for air defense within its combat group.
literature
- Wilhelm M. Donko: The nuclear cruisers of the US Navy . Bernard & Graefe Verlag, Koblenz 1987, ISBN 3-7637-5836-4 .
Web links
- California class on globalsecurity.org (English)
