Farragut class (1960)
_underway_in_the_Atlantic_Ocean_on_12_August_1988_(6442967).jpg) USS MacDonough in 1991 under tow in front of the base in Charleston |
|
| Overview | |
|---|---|
| Type | destroyer |
| units | 10 built, 0 in service |
| Namesake | Admiral David Glasgow Farragut |
| period of service |
1960 to 1993 |
| Technical specifications | |
| displacement |
5800 tn.l. |
| length |
156.2 meters |
| width |
15.80 meters |
| Draft |
7.6 meters |
| crew |
21 officers, 356 sailors, possibly 19 staff |
| drive |
2 propellers, driven by 2 geared turbines; 85,000 hp |
| speed |
34 knots |
| Range |
4000 nautical miles (7400 km) at 20 knots |
| Armament |
1 double-arm launcher for missiles |
The Farragut-class , also known as the Coontz-class , was a class of guided missile destroyers that served in the United States Navy from 1960 . Ten ships of the class were built and were in service until around 1990. The ships were multi-purpose combat ships and could be used against air targets as well as against ships and submarines.
history
Planning and construction
Planning for the Farragut class began in the early 1950s. First the ships were classified as destroyer leaders ( DL , colloquially Large Frigate , German: large frigate ) and should only be armed with guns . The identification numbers ran from 6 to 15. In 1955, however, it was decided to give the class also guided weapons. At the end of 1956, long before the first unit was commissioned, the classification was therefore changed to DLG , the G here means guided missile . The change in plans also greatly mixed up the order in which the ships were commissioned and built. The Coontz was the first ship that was ordered (hence the name as Coontz class ), but is only the fourth unit in the sequence. In the end ten ships were built, the keel laying took place in 1957 and 1958, the units were put into service in 1959, 1960 and 1961. After the DLG classification was discontinued in 1975, the ships became guided missile destroyers ( DDG ), the only ships having their identification numbers had to change because 6 to 15 within the DDG classification had already been assigned to ships of the Charles F. Adams class . The new identification numbers were 37 to 46.
The construction time for each of the units was just over a year, after which around one and a half years were required for equipment, test drives and a last short layover time. The ships were built at a total of five different shipyards, these were the Fore River Shipyard for three, the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard , the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard and Bath Iron Works for two ships each and the San Francisco Naval Shipyard for one destroyer. Construction costs were $ 52 million per ship.
Modifications
Plans for modifications to the class were started as early as 1964. The reason for this is that very different versions of weapon and radar systems were installed. The guided missile launch systems on all ships were brought up to a standard, and the eight units that had not received a Naval Tactical Data System from the start were retrofitted with this information processing system. Radar systems were brought up to date and the mast design changed. The costs for these measures, which were carried out between 1966 and 1977, were between 29 and 50 million US dollars per ship, the average 39 million US dollars. Not all modifications, however, made it to series production. For example, a further missile magazine was retrofitted on the foredeck of the Farragut , but this had a negative impact on stability and (in addition to cost reasons) was therefore only installed on this unit.
period of service
The Farragut destroyers entered service around 1960 and had a scheduled service life of approximately 30 years. This meant that the date for the decommissioning was around 1990. In the 1980s there were considerations to carry out a further modernization of the ships with the New Threat Upgrade . This improvement in the interoperability of the systems was tested on the Mahan as early as 1982 , but was not installed on any other sister ship, as the cost-benefit factor was too low due to the age of the ships. The first ships were decommissioned in 1989, the others until 1992. Only the Mahan remained in service until 1993. The destroyers of the Spruance-class came into the fleet already during service, from 1975, and the Farragut- class was replaced by the new destroyers of the Arleigh Burke-class , which entered service from 1991.
The Farragut-class ships were all scrapped and sold as scrap.
technology
hull
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The hull of a Farragut was 156.2 meters long and 15.8 meters wide. The draft was 7.6 meters. With that, the destroyers, fully laden, displaced 5,800 tons. A tripod mast was initially installed on the front chimney, which was soon replaced by a mast with four legs. A second mast stood directly in front of the aft chimney. While the hull of the ships was made of steel, the superstructures were made of light metals, mainly aluminum. This reduced the weight of the units considerably. In addition to the normal crew, there was also space on board for an association staff , so that the Farragut- class ships were often chosen as flagships for small associations.
At the beginning there was an area on the aft deck intended for VERTREP, i.e. for supply by hovering helicopters (VERTREP: Vertical Replenishment, German: vertical supply). Later, at least for some units, the complete leveling of the surface and the attachment of fuel tanks and holding devices created the possibility of landing and supplying a helicopter. The permanent stationing of a helicopter was not possible due to the lack of a hangar.
drive
The ten Farraguts were powered by steam turbines. Four Foster Wheeler or Babcock & Wilcox boilers heated water at pressures of up to 1,200 psi (85 bar ). The resulting steam was directed to two geared turbines from Allis-Chalmers or De Laval , each of which drove a shaft with a single screw. The system's output was 85,000 hp. This enabled the destroyers to reach speeds of up to 34 knots, with a range of up to 6,000 nautical miles (11,000 kilometers) at 14 knots (without supply at sea). When driving faster, the range decreased and was 4,000 nautical miles (7,400 kilometers) at 20 knots or 1,500 nautical miles (2,775 km) at 30 knots. The amount of fuel carried was 900 ts.
Armament
_fires_RIM-2_Terrier.jpg)
The main armament of the destroyers was a double - armed launcher Mk. 10 , which was located on the quarterdeck and could fire RIM-2 Terrier anti-aircraft missiles. These were later replaced by the more modern RIM-67 Standard Missile ER . 40 missiles could be carried in the magazines. Eight ASROC rocket torpedoes , the launchers of which were located in front of the bridge, could be used against submarines . Apart from the Farragut , no ship had a magazine for this weapon, so reloading at sea was not possible. The six torpedo tubes , which were arranged in two groups of three and fired torpedoes of the Mk. 46 type, were also intended for use against submarines .
A gun was also installed in front of the ASROC starter. This was of type Mk. 42 and had a caliber of 12.7 cm / 5 inches with a caliber length of 54. It could fire at both air and sea and ground targets. Around 1980 two launchers for four anti-ship missiles AGM-84 Harpoon were installed on all ships . The weapons were on either side of the aft deckhouse. The launch container could be rotated 180 ° so that full coverage could be achieved.
electronics
_radar.jpg)
The radar systems of the Farragut-class ships were also subject to constant change. At the beginning, the SPS-37 from Westinghouse Electric Corporation was installed on the rear mast as the aerial surveillance radar , and the 3D radar SPS-39 from Hughes worked together on the front mast. The former was later replaced by the SPS-49 from Raytheon , the latter with the SPS-48 from ITT-Gilfillan . Only the navigation radar, which was attached to the front mast above the aerial surveillance antenna, remained unchanged throughout the service: It was a Raytheon SPS-10 .
The sonar system was of the SQQ-23 model . This had two sonodomes in the bottom of the ship and could detect actively as well as passively submerged submarines. For electronic warfare , the WLR-1 was initially on board; this was later replaced by the SLQ-32 . The SLQ-32 package also includes the Mark 36 SRBOC , which shoots chaffs and flares into the air that are intended to deflect approaching missiles away from the ship with both radar and infrared seekers.
Mission profile
The Farragut-class destroyers were primarily responsible for protecting the aircraft carriers. In addition to air defense, they could also be used against submarines, and since they were equipped with the harpoon they could also be used against surface ships. Due to the staff room, they were also often used as a flagship for exercises and maneuvers when no aircraft carrier was present.
In addition to exercises, maneuvers and the standard relocations as part of Carrier Vessel Battle Groups , Farragut-class units also took part in the Vietnam War and sailed in the Persian Gulf during the Iran-Iraq War to protect Allied ships there. The destroyers also drove during and after Operation Desert Storm , where, among other things, they were responsible for enforcing UN sanctions against Iraq.
literature
- Norman Friedman: US Destroyers: An Illustrated Design History, Revised Edition . Naval Institute Press, Annapolis, 2003, ISBN 1-55750-442-3 .
Web links
- Farragut class on globalsecurity.org (English)
Footnotes
- ↑ a b Stefan Terzibaschitsch : Seemacht USA , Bechtermünz-Verlag, ISBN 3-86047-576-2 , page 396
