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fighting ships of the world

UNITED STATES NAVY (UNITED STATES OF AMERICA)

TORPEDO SHIPS

WICKES destroyers (1918-1921)

Wickes 1918

Ringgold 1918

Dent 1918

Ward 1942

McKean 1942

McKean 1942

Project history: These were the famous 'flush deckers', mass produced during World War One, formed the bulk of the US destroyer force nearly until the outbreak of World War Two. They were essentially a 35kt version of Caldwell, the speed matching that of the FY 17 batttecruisers and scouts (Omaha class). Higher speed cost nearly 50% more power, and that in turn cost 90 to 100 tons of machinery. The earlier flush-decker hull was, therefore, modified, with a level keel (no drag) and with more nearly horizontal shafting. In arrangement, however, these ships duplicated the first six flush-deckers. The first 50 were authorized as part of the massive 1916 programme. There were two detail designs, one by Bath and one by Bethlehem Steel, for Fore River and Union Iron Works. Bath employed Parsons or Westinghouse turbines and Normand, Thornycroft, or White-Foster boilers; Bethlehem - Curtis turbines and, in many cases, Yarrow boilers. The latter deteriorated badly in service, and in 1929 the Navy decided to scrap 60 ships with Yarrow boilers. All the non-Bethlehem yards built the Bath design, known unofficially as the 'Liberty'.

    Ships differed radically in performance, particularly in fuel economy, so that although the Wickes was credited with about 3178nm at 20krs, Fore River boats were credited with no more than about 3400nm at 15kts, and other Bethlehem ships were credited with only about 2300nm-2400nm at 15kts. The best 107 Bath ships were described as 'Long Radius Boats'.

The design called for two 1pdr AA guns, but in many vessels 76mm/23s had to be substituted.

Order on first 20 ships was given out in November, 1916 (DD75-94), a month later the repeated order on remained 30 (DD95-124) followed. Ships were built within the limits of the three-year program of 1916. USA's entry into the First World War has led to increase an order by 61 ships (DD125-185). Trials of first completed destroyers have appeared to some extent discouraging: both prototypes, and followed serial 'flushdeckers' have appeared notably wet, in comparison with predecessors, and the pitching even has increased, at the expense of narrower of ship ends.

Modernizations: 1918 - 1919, all destroyers early completed: - 1 x 1 - 76/23 or 2 x 1 - 37/43; + (1 - 2) x 1 - 76/23 Mk XIV

1920, DM Stribling, Murray, Israel, Luce, Maury, Lansdale, Mahan, Hart, Ingraham, Ludlow, Burns, Anthony, Sproston, Rizal; 1930, Gamble; 1931, Montgomery, Breese, Ramsay: - (1 - 2) x 1 - 76/23, 4 x 3 - 533 TT, 1 DCT; + 80 mines

1930s, all survived: + 2 x 1 - 12.7/90 (only 1 76mm gun on board)

1940-1942, almost all survived: + QCJ or QCL sonar

1940, DMS Dorsey, Lamberton, Boggs, Elliot, Palmer, Hogan, Howard, Stansbury; 1941, Hamilton: - 4 x 1 - 102/50, 1 x 1 - 76/23, 4 x 3 - 533 TT, 1 DCT (Y-gun); + 4 x 1 - 76/50 Mk 20, 2 x 1 - 12.7/90, (2 - 4) DCT, minesweeping gear, one boiler was removed (25kts max)

1940, Little, Gregory, Stringham, Colhoun, McKean; 1942, Talbot, Waters, Dent; 1943, Schley, Tattnall, Kilty, Ward, Roper, Dickerson, Herbert, Crosby; 1944, Rathburne were converted to fast attack transports with data as given in the table

1941 - 1942, Lea, Badger, Babbitt, Jacob Jones, Tarbell, Greer, Roper, Dupont, Bernadou, Ellis, Cole, Dickerson, Leary, Schenck, Herbert: - 4 x 1 - 102/50, 1 x 1 - 76/23, 2 x 3 - 533 TT; + 6 x 1 - 76/50 Mk 20, 2 x 1 - 12.7/90

1942, McKean, Stringham: - 3 x 1 - 102/50, 6 x 1 - 12.7/90; + 3 x 1 - 76/50 Mk 20, 6 x 1 - 20/70 Mk 4

1942, Lea, Badger, Babbitt, Tarbell, Greer, Roper, Dupont, Bernadou, Ellis, Cole, Dickerson, Leary, Schenck, Herbert: - 4 x 1 - 12.7/90, 1 DCT (Y-gun); + 5 x 1 - 20/70 Mk 4, 6 DCT

1942 - 1943, Gamble, Montgomery, Breese, Ramsay: - 4 x 1 - 102/50, 1 x 1 - 76/23, 2 x 1 - 12.7/90; + 4 x 1 - 76/50 Mk 20, 4 x 1 - 20/70 Mk 4

1942-1943, almost all survived: + SA, SE radars

1942 - 1944, Dorsey, Lamberton, Boggs, Elliot, Palmer, Hogan, Howard, Stansbury, Hamilton: - (1 - 2) x 1 - 76/50, 2 x 1 - 12.7/90; + 1 x 2 - 40/56 Mk 1.2 (on ships with 2 76mm guns), (3 - 5) x 1 - 20/70 Mk 4

1943, McKean, Stringham, Talbot, Waters, Dent: - 1 x 1 - 20/70, + 1 x 2 - 40/56 Mk 1.2

1943, almost all survived: no more than 3 boilers (25kt max), fuel stowage was increased

1943, Crane, Lea, Badger, Babbitt, Tarbell, Upshur, Greer: - (1 - 2) x 1 - 20/70 (4 x 1 Mk 4 on board), 2 DCT; + 1 x 24 - 178 Hedgehog Mk 10 ASWRL

1945, Schley, Rathburne, Talbot, Waters, Kilty: - landing craft and landing capacity

1/1946, APD9, 19: 3 x 1 - 76/50 Mk 22, 1 x 2 - 40/60 Mk 1, 5 x 1 - 20/70 Mk 10, 4 DCT, 2 DCR, 4 LCP(L) or LCP(R), 144 troops, SA, SE radars, QCJ or QCL sonar

1/1946, DMS2: 2 x 1 - 76/50 Mk 20, 1 x 2 - 40/60 Mk 1, 5 x 1 - 20/70 Mk 10, 4 DCT, 2 DCR, minesweeping gear, SA, SE radars, QCJ or QCL sonar

1/1946, DM18: 4 x 1 - 76/50 Mk 22, 4 x 1 - 20/70 Mk 10, 2 DCR, 80 mines, SA, SE radars, QCJ or QCL sonar

Naval service: Woolsey collided with s/s Steel Inventor off Balboa 26.2.1921 and sunk. De Long 1.12.1921 wrecked in Half Moon bay (California), later salvaged and scrapped.

    Jacob Jones 28.2.1942 was sunk at coast of Delaware by German submarine U578. Colhoun 30.8.1942 at Guadalcanal was sunk by Japanese bombers. Little and Gregory 5.9.1942 were sunk at Guadalcanal by Japanese destroyers Yudachi, Hatsuyuki and Murakumo. McKean 17.11.1942 was sunk in Empress Augusta Bay by Japanese air torpedo. Leary 24.12.1943 was sunk in Northern Atlantic by German submarines U275 and U382. Ward 7.12.1944 was sunk by kamikaze in Ormock bay. Palmer 7.1.1945 was sunk by Japanese aircraft off Luzon. Dickerson 2.4.1945 was badly damaged by kamikaze off Okinawa and scuttled by own crew two days later.

Blakeley 25.5.1942 was damaged by a torpedo from German submarine at Martinique and was under repair till September, 1942. Stansbury 8.11.1942 was damaged by a mine during operation "Torch". Montgomery 17.10.1944 was badly damaged by a mine E from Palau. Talbot 10.11.1944 was damaged at explosion of ammunition carrying by cargo carrier Mount Hood. Gamble 18.2.1945 was badly damaged by Japanese aircraft off Iwojima, for some reasons her repair have not started and 16.7.1945 she was scuttled off Guam.

As a result of attacks of Japanese aircraft and kamikazes at Okinawa following ships received damages of various severity level: Dorsey (26.3.1945, heavy), Rathburne (27.4.1945, heavy), Tattnall (20.5.1945), Roper (25.5.1945, heavy).

Dorsey 9.10.1945 during a typhoon was wrecked at coast of Okinawa and finally was destroyed 1.1.1946. Hogan 8.11.1945 was sunk as a target off San Diego.

Fairfax 1918

© Ivan Gogin, 2014-15