Mark 56 Gun Fire Control System (Mk.56 GFCS) is a gun fire-control system made up of AN/SPG-35

radar tracker A radar tracker is a component of a radar system, or an associated command and control (C2) system, that associates consecutive radar observations of the same target into tracks. It is particularly useful when the radar system is reporting data f ...

and the Mark 42 ballistic computer.

Overview

The directional board is maneuverable, equipped with an

X-band The X band is the designation for a band of frequencies in the microwave radio region of the electromagnetic spectrum. In some cases, such as in communication engineering, the frequency range of the X band is rather indefinitely set at approxi ...

radar Mk.35 (later renamed AN/SPG-35 based on the naming convention for military electronic equipment) and an optical sight, and is manned with two operators on board. It was an expression. Target tracking by the operator's optical sight is also possible, but fully automated tracking is the basic operation, and blindfire is also possible for the first time as a practical aircraft of the US Navy.

Mark 42 Ballistic Computer

First, the target is captured by a spiral scan that slowly scans the space by swinging the beam at an angle of 6 degrees, and then a conical scan that quickly measures and distances by narrowing the beam swing angle to 0.5 degrees. Track the target by scanning. The speed of the tracking target is obtained by the gyroscope of the directional board and the tachometer generator of the distance tracking servo system. Ballistic calculation was performed by the Mk.42 ballistic computer housed in the ship, and it was possible to aim two types of guns at the same target by adding a ballistic calculation housing. In addition, during the war, there were many cases where radar tracking could not catch up with the attack aircraft that rushed in at high speed, so Admiral

Ernest King Ernest Joseph King (23 November 1878 – 25 June 1956) was an American naval officer who served as Commander in Chief, United States Fleet (COMINCH) and Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) during World War II. As COMINCH-CNO, he directed the U ...

, Chief of Naval Operations, equipped with additional optical equipment.

AN/SPG-35 Radar Tracker

The first model of this model was delivered in August 1945, and has been in operation since the 1950s. Performance improvements continued after the war, and it became possible to start shooting in 2 seconds from the start of tracking for

subsonic aircraft A subsonic aircraft is an aircraft with a maximum speed less than the speed of sound (Mach 1). The term technically describes an aircraft that flies below its critical Mach number, typically around Mach 0.8. All current civil aircraft, including ...

. Initially, a 5"/38 cal gun was used as the gun to command, but this became the standard when a rapid-firing twin Mark 33 3"/50 cal gun was developed after the war. Mk.68 GFCS was the standard for the Mark 42 5"/54 cal gun, but this machine was also used as a secondary directional board. Well known electric engineer

Ivan A. Getting Ivan Alexander Getting (January 18, 1912 – October 11, 2003) was an American physicist and electrical engineer, credited (along with Roger L. Easton and Bradford Parkinson) with the development of the Global Positioning System (GPS). He was ...

was involved in the creation of AN/SPG-35. The

Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force , abbreviated , also simply known as the Japanese Navy, is the maritime warfare branch of the Japan Self-Defense Forces, tasked with the naval defense of Japan. The JMSDF was formed following the dissolution of the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) ...

requested the equipment of this model with the

Harukaze-class destroyer The ''Harukaze''-class destroyer was the first indigenous post-World War II Japanese destroyer class. Its main mission was anti-submarine warfare. Almost all equipment was supplied from the United States according to the U.S. and Japan Mutual Def ...

, which was the first domestic escort ship after the war, but it was not approved by the US side, and the actual equipment was in the Second Defense Build-up Plan. There is a history of becoming a

Yamagumo-class destroyer The ''Yamagumo'' class are vessels of the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force, usually classified as a destroyer, but due to their relatively light displacement, in other sources as a destroyer escort. This class is the successor of the . This cl ...

or later.

USS Saint Paul (CA-73) shelling Korea 1953

Onboard ships

United States Navy

* Midway-class aircraft carrier *

Essex-class aircraft carrier The ''Essex'' class was a class of aircraft carriers of the United States Navy. The 20th century's most numerous class of capital ship, the class consisted of 24 vessels, which came in "short-hull" and "long-hull" versions. Thirty-two ships wer ...

USS New Jersey (BB-62) USS ''New Jersey'' (BB-62) is an , and was the second ship of the United States Navy to be named after the US state of New Jersey. She was often referred to fondly as "Big J". ''New Jersey'' earned more battle stars for combat actions than the ...

Des Moines-class cruiser ''Italic text'' The ''Des Moines''-class cruisers were a trio of very large U.S. Navy heavy cruisers commissioned in 1948 and 1949. They were the last of the all-gun heavy cruisers, exceeded in size in the American navy only by the s that straddl ...

Worcester-class cruiser The ''Worcester'' class was a class of light cruisers used by the United States Navy, laid down in 1945 and commissioned in 1948–49. They and their contemporaries, the heavy cruisers, were the last all-gun cruisers built for the U.S. Navy. Ten ...

* Juneau-class cruiser * Boston-class cruiser *

Baltimore-class cruiser The ''Baltimore''-class heavy cruisers were a large class of heavy cruisers in the United States Navy commissioned during and shortly after World War II.The ''Baltimore''-class were the largest cruisers of World War II by tonnage. Fourteen ''B ...

Forrest Sherman-class destroyer The 18 ''Forrest Sherman''-class destroyers comprised the first post-war class of US destroyers. Commissioned beginning in 1955, these ships served until the late 1980s. Their weaponry underwent considerable modification during their years of se ...

* USS Norfolk (DL-1) * Bronstein-class frigate *

Brooke-class frigate The ''Brooke'' class was a United States Navy frigate class based on the design of the , but with the addition of the Tartar Guided Missile System. The first unit was commissioned in 1966 and the final sixth unit was decommissioned in 1989. __TO ...

Garcia-class frigate ''Garcia''-class frigates were United States Navy warships. These frigates were originally ocean escorts bearing the hull classification DE until 1975. The ships were commissioned between 1964 and 1968 and decommissioned between 1988 and 1990 ...

Hamilton-class cutter The ''Hamilton''-class cutter was the largest class of vessel in the United States Coast Guard until replaced by the Legend-class cutter, aside from the . The hull classification symbol is prefixed WHEC. The cutters are called the ''Hamilton'' ...

Kilauea-class ammunition ship The ''Kilauea'' class ammunition ship was a class of eight United States Navy cargo vessels designed for underway replenishment of naval warships. The ships were constructed 1968–1972 and were initially commissioned naval ships, carrying a c ...

Mars-class combat stores ship The ''Mars''-class combat stores ships were a class of seven auxiliary vessels of the United States Navy. The ships were designed for underway replenishment, in support of carrier task force groups, carrying miscellaneous stores and munitions. ...

Sacramento-class fast combat support ship The ''Sacramento''-class fast combat support ships were a class of four United States Navy supply ships used to refuel, rearm, and restock ships in the United States Navy in both the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. History The idea of combining the ...

Maritime Self-Defense Force

* Minegumo-class destroyer * Takatsuki-class destroyer

MRS-3

In the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

, the MRS-3 (Medium Range System) was developed based on this model. The Type 903 radar tracker was commissioned in 1946 and 1958. The Type 904 radar tracker was also developed as a derivative of the GWS.22 Seacat air defense missile system. In addition, the Mk.64 GUNAR, which changed the shooting command radar to the gun side equipment (initially the same AN/SPG-34 as the Mk.63, later AN/SPG-48), was also developed, and this was mainly used by the

Royal Canadian Navy The Royal Canadian Navy (RCN; french: Marine royale canadienne, ''MRC'') is the naval force of Canada. The RCN is one of three environmental commands within the Canadian Armed Forces. As of 2021, the RCN operates 12 frigates, four attack submar ...

. This later evolved into the Mk.69, which was independently digitized and refurbished by

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

and changed its radar to SPG-515.

Royal Navy

HMS Hermes (R12) HMS ''Hermes'' was a conventional British aircraft carrier and the last of the . ''Hermes'' was in service with the Royal Navy from 1959 until 1984, and she served as the flagship of the British forces during the 1982 Falklands War. After b ...

Tiger-class cruiser The ''Tiger'' class were a class of three British warships of the 20th century and the last all-gun cruisers of the Royal Navy. Construction of three cruisers (under the names ''Blake'', ''Defence'' and ''Bellerophon'') began during World Wa ...

* Daring-class destroyer *

County-class destroyer The County class was a class of British guided missile destroyers, the first such warships built by the Royal Navy. Designed specifically around the Seaslug anti-aircraft missile system, the primary role of these ships was area air defence aro ...

Rothesay-class frigate The ''Rothesay'' class, or Type 12M frigates were a class of frigates serving with the Royal Navy, South African Navy (where they were called President-class frigates) and the Royal New Zealand Navy.Purvis,M.K., 'Post War RN Frigate and Guided ...

Leander-class frigate The ''Leander''-class, or Type 12I (Improved) frigates,Purvis, M.K., 'Post War RN Frigate and Guided Missile Destroyer Design 1944-1969', Transactions, Royal Institution of Naval Architects (RINA), 1974 comprising twenty-six vessels, was a ...

Tribal-class frigate The Type 81, or Tribal class, frigates were ordered and built as sloops to carry out similar duties to the immediate post war improved s and s in the Persian Gulf. In the mid 1960s the seven Tribals were reclassified as second class general-pur ...

Indian Navy

* Nilgiri-class frigate

{{Flagicon, Peru, variant=naval Peruvian Navy

* Palacios-class destroyer

Citations

References

Norman Friedman Norman Friedman (born 1946) is an American internationally known author and analyst, strategist, and historian. He has written over 30 books and numerous articles on naval and other military matters, has worked for the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps ...

(2006).
The Naval Institute Guide to World Naval Weapon Systems
'.

Naval Institute Press The United States Naval Institute (USNI) is a private non-profit military association that offers independent, nonpartisan forums for debate of national security issues. In addition to publishing magazines and books, the Naval Institute holds se ...

ISBN The International Standard Book Number (ISBN) is a numeric commercial book identifier that is intended to be unique. Publishers purchase ISBNs from an affiliate of the International ISBN Agency. An ISBN is assigned to each separate edition an ...

9781557502629 Naval radars Military radars of Japan Military equipment introduced in the 1950s