The ''Belknap''-class cruiser was a class of single-ended
guided-missile cruiser
A cruiser is a type of warship. Modern cruisers are generally the largest ships in a fleet after aircraft carriers and amphibious assault ships, and can usually perform several roles.
The term "cruiser", which has been in use for several hu ...
s (their missile armament was installed only forward, unlike "double-ended" missile cruisers with missile armament installed both forward and aft) built for the
United States Navy
The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...
during the 1960s. They were originally designated as DLG frigates (
destroyer leader
Destroyer leader (DL) was the United States Navy designation for large destroyers from 9 February 1951 through the early years of the Cold War. United States ships with hull classification symbol DL were officially frigates from 1 January 1955Blac ...
s; the USN use of the term frigate from 1950 to 1975 was intended to evoke the power of the sailing frigates of old), but in the
1975 fleet realignment, they were reclassified as guided missile cruisers (CG).
Description
When commissioned, the main armament of the ''Belknap'' class was a
5-inch/54-caliber Mk. 42 gun on the quarterdeck and a twin-rail
RIM-2 Terrier
The Convair RIM-2 Terrier was a two-stage medium-range naval surface-to-air missile (SAM), and was among the earliest surface-to-air missiles to equip United States Navy ships. It underwent significant upgrades while in service, starting with be ...
Mk 10 Missile Launcher
MK or mk may refer to:
In arts, entertainment and media Fictional characters
* Moon Knight, a Marvel Comics superhero
* M.K., an '' ''Into the Badlands'' (TV series) character
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on the foredeck.
[
] The Mk 10 Mod 7 launchers in this class were also capable of launching
RUR-5 ASROC
The RUR-5 ASROC (for "Anti-Submarine Rocket") is an all-weather, all sea-conditions anti-submarine missile system. Developed by the United States Navy in the 1950s, it was deployed in the 1960s, updated in the 1990s, and eventually installed ...
to eliminate need for a separate Mk 112 ASROC launcher.
These were unofficially spoken of as Ter/AS (tear-ass) launchers. The class was also equipped with two twin
3"/50 caliber gun
The 3"/50 caliber gun (spoken "three-inch fifty-caliber") in United States naval gun terminology indicates the gun fired a projectile in diameter, and the barrel was 50 calibers long (barrel length is 3 in × 50 = ). Different guns (identifi ...
s for defence against sub-sonic aircraft.
[
] In the early 1980s, the Terrier missiles were replaced with RIM-67
Standard missiles; and during the
NTU program in the late 1980s and early 1990s the class had its Standard SM-1 system upgraded to utilize
SM-2ER Block II, the 3-inch guns were replaced with two 4 cell Harpoon Surface-to-surface missile launchers, and two
Phalanx CIWS
The Phalanx CIWS (often spoken as "sea-wiz") is a gun-based close-in weapon system to defend military watercraft automatically against incoming threats such as aircraft, missiles, and small boats. It was designed and manufactured by the Gene ...
systems were installed.
The derivative
USS ''Truxtun'' shared the weapons systems outfit of the ''Belknap'' class, but was
nuclear-powered
Nuclear power is the use of nuclear reactions to produce electricity. Nuclear power can be obtained from nuclear fission, nuclear decay and nuclear fusion reactions. Presently, the vast majority of electricity from nuclear power is produced b ...
, larger and substantially unrelated in design (for example, many weapons systems in different locations, such as the aft-facing GMLS). Most information related to nuclear cruisers is still classified, but ''Truxtun'' appears to be more a Belknap-like derivative of the nuclear cruiser ''Bainbridge'' than the other way around.
Ships in class
See also
*
List of cruisers of the United States Navy
This list of cruisers of the United States Navy includes all ships that were ever called "cruiser", either publicly or in internal documentation.
The Navy has 17 cruisers in active service, as of 29 September 2022, with the last tentatively s ...
*
List of United States Navy destroyer leaders
In the 1930s, the United States Navy built two classes of flotilla leaders, the ''Porter'' class, and the ''Somers'' class. Due to the regulations of the London Naval Treaty, these 13 ships had a displacement of 1,850 tons, compared to the 1,50 ...
*
Nuclear powered cruisers of the United States Navy __NOTOC__
In the early 1960s, the United States Navy was the world's first to have nuclear-powered cruisers as part of its fleet. The first such ship was . Commissioned in late summer 1961, she was the world's first nuclear-powered surface combat ...
References
Bibliography
*
External links
''Belknap''-class frigatesa
Destroyer History Foundationwrite-up
{{DEFAULTSORT:Belknap-class cruiser