USS Wichita (CA-45)
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USS ''Wichita'' was a unique heavy cruiser of the United States Navy built in the 1930s. The last American cruiser designed to meet the limits of the
London Naval Treaty The London Naval Treaty, officially the Treaty for the Limitation and Reduction of Naval Armament, was an agreement between the United Kingdom, Japan, France, Italy, and the United States that was signed on 22 April 1930. Seeking to address is ...
, she was originally intended to be a heavy cruiser, accordingly with the maximum main armament of three triple gun turrets. These were instead placed on an improved hull derived from the ''Brooklyn''-class light cruisers, with increased armoring. This design would go on to form the basis for the later World War II-era heavy cruisers such as the s. The ship was authorized by the 1929
Cruiser Act The Cruiser Act is a United States federal law passed by the U.S. Congress on February 13, 1929. 1929 in American law United States federal defense and national security legislation United States Navy in the 20th century {{US-fed-statu ...
, laid down at the
Philadelphia Naval Shipyard The Philadelphia Naval Shipyard was an important naval shipyard of the United States for almost two centuries. Philadelphia's original navy yard, begun in 1776 on Front Street and Federal Street in what is now the Pennsport section of the cit ...
in October 1935, launched in November 1937, and commissioned into the US Navy in February 1939. Following her commissioning, ''Wichita'' was assigned to neutrality patrols in the Atlantic. After the United States entered World War II, the ship saw heavy service throughout the conflict. She was first assigned to convoy escort duty on the Murmansk Run in early 1942, and supported amphibious landings during
Operation Torch Operation Torch (8 November 1942 – Run for Tunis, 16 November 1942) was an Allies of World War II, Allied invasion of French North Africa during the Second World War. Torch was a compromise operation that met the British objective of secu ...
in November 1942. During the Naval Battle of Casablanca, ''Wichita'' engaged several French coastal batteries and warships, including the battleship ''Jean Bart''. In 1943, ''Wichita'' was transferred to the
Pacific Theater The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...
, where she remained for the rest of the war. She frequently provided antiaircraft defense for the Fast Carrier Task Force during operations in the central Pacific, including the Battles of the Philippine Sea and Leyte Gulf in 1944. During the latter engagement, ''Wichita'' assisted in the sinking of the Japanese aircraft carrier ''Chiyoda''. ''Wichita'' was heavily engaged during the invasion of Okinawa, where she provided heavy gunfire support to ground troops ashore. After the Japanese surrender, the ship served as part of the occupation force in Japan and assisted in the repatriation of American military personnel under
Operation Magic Carpet Operation Magic Carpet was the post-World War II operation by the War Shipping Administration to repatriate over eight million American military personnel from the European, Pacific, and Asian theaters. Hundreds of Liberty ships, Victory ships ...
. After returning to the United States, she was decommissioned and placed in the mothball fleet in 1947. She remained in reserve until 1959, when she was stricken from the Naval Vessel Register and sold for scrapping in August 1959.


Design

In the early 1930s, the Secretary of the Navy,
Curtis D. Wilbur Curtis Dwight Wilbur (May 10, 1867 – September 8, 1954) was an American lawyer, California state judge, 43rd United States Secretary of the Navy and a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. Ear ...
, pushed for a new construction program for light and heavy cruisers.Hammond, p. 65 Wilbur succeeded in passing the
Cruiser Act The Cruiser Act is a United States federal law passed by the U.S. Congress on February 13, 1929. 1929 in American law United States federal defense and national security legislation United States Navy in the 20th century {{US-fed-statu ...
in 1929, which authorized several new cruisers. Five heavy cruisers, the last of which was ''Wichita'', were ordered between 1931 and 1934. ''Wichita'' was the last heavy cruiser permitted under the terms of the
London Naval Treaty The London Naval Treaty, officially the Treaty for the Limitation and Reduction of Naval Armament, was an agreement between the United Kingdom, Japan, France, Italy, and the United States that was signed on 22 April 1930. Seeking to address is ...
in 1930, which limited the US to 18 heavy cruisers with a maximum standard displacement of .Friedman, p. 117 The ship was originally intended to be built to the design of the , but the design was reworked before construction began.Terzibaschitsch, p. 129 Instead, the design for ''Wichita'' was based on the of light cruisers. The ''Brooklyn'' design was modified heavily, to give the new ship higher freeboard and better stability, and an increased cruising radius. The secondary battery of eight guns was identical in number to the light cruisers, but was arranged to give better fields of fire. The main battery of nine guns was mounted in a new gun turret design that rectified problems discovered in earlier cruisers. ''Wichita'' was laid down at the
Philadelphia Naval Shipyard The Philadelphia Naval Shipyard was an important naval shipyard of the United States for almost two centuries. Philadelphia's original navy yard, begun in 1776 on Front Street and Federal Street in what is now the Pennsport section of the cit ...
on 28 October 1935, and launched on 16 November 1937. By the time she was completed, in February 1938, ''Wichita'' was nearly over the 10,000-ton limit; as a result, she was completed with only two of the eight 5-inch guns to keep her under the displacement restriction. When the rest of the 5-inch guns were installed, it was found that the ship was too top-heavy, and so of
pig iron Pig iron, also known as crude iron, is an intermediate product of the iron industry in the production of steel which is obtained by smelting iron ore in a blast furnace. Pig iron has a high carbon content, typically 3.8–4.7%, along with silic ...
had to be added to her bottom to balance the cruiser. ''Wichita'' was commissioned into the US Navy on 16 February 1939 and was assigned the hull number CA-45. Her first commander was Captain Thaddeus A. Thomson.


General characteristics

''Wichita'' was
long at the waterline A vessel's length at the waterline (abbreviated to L.W.L)Note: originally Load Waterline Length is the length of a ship or boat at the level where it sits in the water (the ''waterline''). The LWL will be shorter than the length of the boat over ...
and
long overall __NOTOC__ Length overall (LOA, o/a, o.a. or oa) is the maximum length of a vessel's hull measured parallel to the waterline. This length is important while docking the ship. It is the most commonly used way of expressing the size of a ship, and ...
. She had a
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of and a draft of . She displaced at standard displacement and at full combat load. The ship had a crew of 929 officers and enlisted men. She was equipped with four seaplanes and a pair of aircraft catapults and a crane for handling the aircraft which were mounted on the stern. ''Wichita'' was powered by four
Parsons Parsons may refer to: Places In the United States: * Parsons, Kansas, a city * Parsons, Missouri, an unincorporated community * Parsons, Tennessee, a city * Parsons, West Virginia, a town * Camp Parsons, a Boy Scout camp in the state of Washingto ...
steam turbine A steam turbine is a machine that extracts thermal energy from pressurized steam and uses it to do mechanical work on a rotating output shaft. Its modern manifestation was invented by Charles Parsons in 1884. Fabrication of a modern steam turbin ...
s and eight Babcock & Wilcox oil-fired water-tube boilers. The propulsion system was rated at and a top speed of . She carried of fuel oil, which gave her a maximum cruising range of at . The hull was protected by a waterline
armored belt Belt armor is a layer of heavy metal vehicle armor, armor plated onto or within the outer hulls of warships, typically on battleships, battlecruisers and cruisers, and aircraft carriers. The belt armor is designed to prevent projectiles from p ...
composed of Class A armor that was thick amidships. It was reduced to thick on either end. The belt was backed with of special treatment steel. The Class A steel was significantly more effective than the Class B armor used in earlier cruisers; 8-inch guns had to be within to penetrate the belt, as opposed to for the earlier armor. ''Wichita'' had a thick deck, which was immune to 8-inch fire inside . The
conning tower A conning tower is a raised platform on a ship or submarine, often armored, from which an officer in charge can conn the vessel, controlling movements of the ship by giving orders to those responsible for the ship's engine, rudder, lines, and gro ...
had thick sides and a 2.25 in thick roof. The ship's main battery turrets had thick faces, thick sides, thick rears, and thick roofs. The turrets were mounted on armored barbettes protected with of armor plating.


Armament

''Wichita'' was armed with a main battery of nine 8-inch /55 Mark 12 guns mounted in three 3-gun turrets. The guns fired a
projectile A projectile is an object that is propelled by the application of an external force and then moves freely under the influence of gravity and air resistance. Although any objects in motion through space are projectiles, they are commonly found in ...
s at a
muzzle velocity Muzzle velocity is the speed of a projectile (bullet, pellet, slug, ball/shots or shell) with respect to the muzzle at the moment it leaves the end of a gun's barrel (i.e. the muzzle). Firearm muzzle velocities range from approximately to i ...
of . Maximum elevation of the guns was 41 degrees; this provided a maximum range of .
Rate of fire Rate of fire is the frequency at which a specific weapon can fire or launch its projectiles. This can be influenced by several factors, including operator training level, mechanical limitations, ammunition availability, and weapon condition. In m ...
was approximately one salvo every fifteen seconds. The turrets allowed each gun to elevate and fire individually.Terzibaschitsch, p. 130 Her secondary battery consisted of eight 5-inch /38 Mark 12
dual-purpose gun A dual-purpose gun is a naval artillery mounting designed to engage both surface and air targets. Description Second World War-era capital ships had four classes of artillery: the heavy main battery, intended to engage opposing battleships and ...
s, four in single, enclosed Mark 30 high-angle mounts, and four in open mounts. These guns fired projectiles at a rate of 20 rounds per minute. Muzzle velocity was ; against aerial targets, the guns had a ceiling of at 85 degrees. At 45 degrees, the guns could engage surface targets at a range of . ''Wichita'' was the first cruiser in the US Navy to be equipped with the new 5-inch /38 gun. By August 1945, the ship had been equipped with numerous smaller guns for close-range anti-aircraft defense. Sixteen
Bofors 40 mm Bofors 40 mm gun is a name or designation given to two models of 40 mm calibre anti-aircraft guns designed and developed by the Swedish company Bofors: *Bofors 40 mm L/60 gun - developed in the 1930s, widely used in World War II and into the 1990s ...
guns were placed in quadruple mounts, and another eight were in dual mounts. She also carried eighteen Oerlikon 20 mm guns in single mountings. The 40 mm guns had a ceiling of at 90 degrees elevation and a maximum rate of fire of 160 rounds per minute. The 20 mm gun had a rate of fire of 465–480 rounds per minute; they had a ceiling of . By the end of the war, the ship was armed with a variety of fire control systems for her guns, including Mark 34 fire control gear and Mark 13 and Mark 28 fire control radars.


Service history

''Wichita'' departed Philadelphia after her commissioning, bound for
Houston, Texas Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...
. She arrived on 20 April 1939 and took part in the dedicatory and memorial service at the San Jacinto Battle Monument and War Relic Museum. The ship left Houston on 1 May for her shakedown cruise, during which she visited the Virgin Islands, Cuba, and the Bahamas before she returned to Philadelphia for post-shakedown repairs. On 25 September, a few weeks after the outbreak of World War II in Europe, ''Wichita'' was assigned to
Cruiser Division 7 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 h ...
in the Atlantic Squadron, based in the
Hampton Roads Hampton Roads is the name of both a body of water in the United States that serves as a wide channel for the James River, James, Nansemond River, Nansemond and Elizabeth River (Virginia), Elizabeth rivers between Old Point Comfort and Sewell's ...
. She conducted her first neutrality patrol on 4–9 October. After returning to port, she went into dock at the Norfolk Navy Yard for maintenance, which lasted until 1 December. On 4 December, ''Wichita'' steamed to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, arriving on the 8th. There, Thomson assumed command of the newly formed Caribbean Patrol, which included ''Wichita'' and the cruiser , and the destroyers , , , , and , and Navy patrol squadrons VP-33 and
VP-51 VP-51 was a Patrol Squadron of the U.S. Navy. The squadron was established as Air Early Warning Squadron 1 (VPW-1) on 1 April 1948, redesignated Patrol Squadron 51 (VP-51) on 1 September 1948 and disestablished on 1 February 1950. It was the third ...
. Over the course of the next three months, the force conducted a series of training maneuvers in the Caribbean. At the end of February, ''Wichita'' returned to Norfolk via Philadelphia, where she participated in further training through May. Starting in June, ''Wichita'' and conducted a goodwill cruise to South America; ''Wichita'' carried Rear Admiral Andrew C. Pickens, the commander of Cruiser Division 7. Included in the ports of call were Rio de Janeiro and Santos in Brazil, Buenos Aires, Argentina, and
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, Uruguay. The cruise ended in late September; the two cruisers arrived in Norfolk on the 24th. Over the next three months, ''Wichita'' served as a training ship for Naval Reserve midshipmen and conducted gunnery practices off the Virginia capes. On 7 January 1941, ''Wichita'' departed Hampton Roads for Guantanamo, arriving four days later. She participated in fleet maneuvers in the Caribbean through March and took part in practice amphibious landings at Puerto Rico. She returned to the United States, docking at the
New York Navy Yard The Brooklyn Navy Yard (originally known as the New York Navy Yard) is a shipyard and industrial complex located in northwest Brooklyn in New York City, New York (state), New York. The Navy Yard is located on the East River in Wallabout Bay, a ...
, on 23 March. ''Wichita'' went to sea again on 6 April, bound for Bermuda; she reached her destination two days later. She then joined the
aircraft carrier An aircraft carrier is a warship that serves as a seagoing airbase, equipped with a full-length flight deck and facilities for carrying, arming, deploying, and recovering aircraft. Typically, it is the capital ship of a fleet, as it allows a ...
and the heavy cruiser for a patrol in the North Atlantic, during which the ships sailed to within of Ireland. ''Wichita'' then returned to the New York Navy Yard on 17 May and went into drydock on 21 June. Repairs were completed on 2 July, after which ''Wichita'' was transferred to Newport, Rhode Island. She sortied again on 27 July bound for Iceland as part of Task Force 16 under Operation Indigo II, the
occupation of Iceland The Allied occupation of Iceland during World War II began with a British invasion intent on occupying and denying Iceland to Germany. The military operation, codenamed Operation Fork, was conducted by the Royal Navy and Royal Marines. In tim ...
. ''Wichita'' arrived in Reykjavík on 6 August, along with the carrier and the
battleship A battleship is a large armored warship with a main battery consisting of large caliber guns. It dominated naval warfare in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The term ''battleship'' came into use in the late 1880s to describe a type of ...
. The task force landed a contingent of US Army troops and fighter aircraft to provide air support. The cruiser returned to the United States by 20 August. ''Wichita'' returned to Iceland in September, arriving in Reykjavík on 28 September. Two days prior to ''Wichita''s arrival, the US Navy ordered the units of the Atlantic Fleet to protect all ships engaged in commerce in United States defensive waters. The orders authorized the Navy to patrol, escort merchantmen, and attack any German or Italian naval forces encountered. ''Wichita'' was assigned to Task Group 7.5, which was engaged in patrolling Icelandic waters through the end 1941. On 7 December 1941, the Japanese
attacked Pearl Harbor The attack on Pearl HarborAlso known as the Battle of Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike by the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service upon the United States against the naval base at Pearl Harbor in Honolulu, Territory of Hawaii, j ...
, bringing the United States into World War II; on the day of the attack, ''Wichita'' lay at anchor at Hvalfjörður, Iceland.


Atlantic theater

''Wichita'' left port on 5 January 1942 for training and a patrol in the Denmark Strait; she returned to Hvalfjörður on 10 January. On the 15th, a powerful storm, with sustained winds of and gusts up to , hit Iceland. ''Wichita'' was damaged by the storm, including a collision with the freighter and the British trawler . She then ran aground off Hrafneyri Light. The following day, the ship's crew evaluated her condition; she had suffered minor damage from the collisions, including some leaks, and damage to the hull from the grounding. Temporary repairs were effected in Iceland to allow ''Wichita'' to return to the New York Navy Yard for more thorough repairs. She arrived on 9 February, and repairs lasted until 26 February, when she left port for training maneuvers off Maine in early March. On 26 March, ''Wichita'', assigned to Task Force 39, departed the United States to reinforce the British
Home Fleet The Home Fleet was a fleet of the Royal Navy that operated from the United Kingdom's territorial waters from 1902 with intervals until 1967. In 1967, it was merged with the Mediterranean Fleet creating the new Western Fleet. Before the First ...
based in
Scapa Flow Scapa Flow viewed from its eastern end in June 2009 Scapa Flow (; ) is a body of water in the Orkney Islands, Scotland, sheltered by the islands of Mainland, Graemsay, Burray,S. C. George, ''Jutland to Junkyard'', 1973. South Ronaldsay and ...
. Task Force 39, commanded by Rear Admiral
John W. Wilcox, Jr. John Walter Wilcox Jr. (22 March 1882 – 27 March 1942) was a rear admiral of the United States Navy. He saw service in World War I and in the opening weeks of United States involvement in World War II before being lost overboard from his fla ...
, included ''Wasp'', the battleship , the cruiser ''Tuscaloosa'', and eight destroyers. While en route, Wilcox was swept overboard in a heavy sea and lost. Rear Admiral
Robert C. Giffen Robert Carlisle Giffen (1886 – 1962) was an admiral in the United States Navy. Birth to the beginning of World War I Robert Carlisle Giffen was born in West Chester, Pennsylvania, on 29 June 1886. He attended the University of Notre Dame, ...
, who flew his flag in ''Wichita'', took command of the task force. After arriving in Scapa Flow, ''Wichita'' and the other American ships spent several weeks training with their British counterparts. On 28 April, ''Wichita'' departed on her first major operation with the British. She was assigned to the Allied escort for the Arctic convoys QP 11 and
PQ 15 PQ may refer to: Places * Province of Quebec, the largest province of Canada by area * Rancho Peñasquitos, San Diego, informally Politics and law * Parti Québécois, a provincial political party in Quebec, Canada * Parliamentary question, a ...
. The American component, organized as Task Force 99, comprised ''Washington'', ''Wichita'', ''Tuscaloosa'', and four destroyers. The British assigned the carrier , the battleship , a light cruiser, and five destroyers. After successfully escorting the convoys, ''Wichita'' returned to Hvalfjörður, arriving on 6 May. ''Wichita'' sortied on 12 May to relieve ''Tuscaloosa'', which was patrolling the Denmark Strait. ''Wichita'' returned to Hvalfjörður a week later, before putting to sea as part of another Allied convoy escort protecting one leg of the movement of Murmansk-bound convoy
PQ 16 Convoy PQ 16 (21–30 May 1942) was an Arctic convoy of British, United States and Allied ships from Iceland to Murmansk and Archangelsk in the Soviet Union during the Second World War. The convoy was the largest yet and was provided with a consi ...
and eastbound QP 12. She put into Scapa Flow on 29 May after completing the mission. While in Scapa Flow, King George VI inspected ''Wichita'' on 7 June. ''Wichita'' left Scapa Flow on 12 June, bound for Hvalfjörður, and arrived 14 June. She then relieved the British cruiser on patrol in the Denmark Strait. While on patrol on 17 June, ''Wichita'' spotted a German Focke-Wulf Fw 200 reconnaissance bomber and opened fire, though without result. Three days later, she engaged another Fw 200, again without success. After returning to Hvalfjörður, ''Wichita'' steamed to Seidisfjord at the end of June, where she joined ''Tuscaloosa'' and three destroyers. They were assigned to the escort for the
convoy PQ 17 PQ 17 was the code name for an Allied Arctic convoy during the Second World War. On 27 June 1942, the ships sailed from Hvalfjörður, Iceland, for the port of Arkhangelsk in the Soviet Union. The convoy was located by German forces on 1 July, aft ...
. The convoy escort also included ''Washington'', ''Victorious'', and the battleship . The Germans organized a powerful task force, centered on the battleship and three heavy cruisers, to attack the convoy; the operation was codenamed ''Rösselsprung'' ( Knight's Move). Swedish intelligence had meanwhile reported the German departures to the
British Admiralty The Admiralty was a department of the Government of the United Kingdom responsible for the command of the Royal Navy until 1964, historically under its titular head, the Lord High Admiral – one of the Great Officers of State. For much of it ...
, which ordered the convoy to disperse. Aware that they had been detected, the Germans aborted the operation and turned over the attack to U-boats and the Luftwaffe. The scattered vessels could no longer be protected by the convoy escorts, and the Germans sank 21 of the 34 isolated transports. The next day, while south of
Spitzbergen Svalbard ( , ), also known as Spitsbergen, or Spitzbergen, is a Norwegian archipelago in the Arctic Ocean. North of mainland Europe, it is about midway between the northern coast of Norway and the North Pole. The islands of the group range ...
, the ships were spotted and shadowed by a pair of Fw 200s. Both ''Wichita'' and ''Tuscaloosa'' opened fire with their antiaircraft guns, but the Fw 200s escaped without damage. In late July, ''Wichita'' went into drydock at the Royal Navy base in Rosyth, Scotland. Repairs, which included correcting a propeller shaft vibration, lasted from 24 July until 9 August. The repairs to the propeller shaft were ineffective, however, which necessitated a return to the United States. She reached the New York Navy Yard on 22 August for repairs, which lasted until 5 September. She completed a round of post-repair sea trials before conducting gunnery exercises in the Chesapeake Bay. ''Wichita'' conducted training off the Virginia Capes for the rest of the month, after which she steamed to Casco Bay in Maine for further maneuvers.


Operation Torch

At the end of October, ''Wichita'' was assigned to Task Group 34.1, under the command of Rear Admiral
H. Kent Hewitt Henry Kent Hewitt (February 11, 1887 – September 15, 1972) was the United States Navy commander of amphibious operations in north Africa and southern Europe through World War II. He was born in Hackensack, New Jersey and graduated from the Unit ...
, who flew his flag in . The Task Group also included the battleship and ''Tuscaloosa''. The ships were assigned to provide gunfire support for Operation Torch, the invasion of French North Africa. ''Wichita'' participated in the Naval Battle of Casablanca, which began early on the morning of 8 November. The ships were tasked with neutralizing the primary French defenses, which included coastal guns on El Hank, several submarines, and the incomplete battleship which lay at anchor in the harbor. ''Wichita'' and ''Tuscaloosa'' initially engaged the French batteries on El Hank and the French submarine pens, while ''Massachusetts'' attacked ''Jean Bart''. French naval forces, led by the cruiser , put up a stubborn defense.Rohwer, pp. 209–210 In response, the French launched a pair of attacks to break up the American landings. During the first French attack, either ''Wichita'' or ''Tuscaloosa'' damaged the French destroyer and forced it aground. A second French attack was also defeated; one of the two cruisers sank the destroyer and damaged . ''Wichita'', ''Tuscaloosa'', and ''Massachusetts'' also engaged ''Jean Bart''. At 11:28, ''Wichita'' was hit by a shell, fired by a gun on El Hank. The shell penetrated her deck and exploded below, injuring fourteen men. Hewitt broke off the attack temporarily, but by 13:12, several American warships began firing on French vessels exiting the harbor. ''Wichita'' and ''Tuscaloosa'' closed on the port to engage the cruisers ''Primauguet'' and , still in the harbor. Heavy fire from El Hank forced the American cruisers to retreat shortly after 15:00. For the remainder of the operations off North Africa, ''Wichita'' patrolled between Casablanca and Fedhala. Her part in the amphibious assault complete, ''Wichita'' departed the area on 12 November, bound for New York for repairs; she arrived on 19 November.


Pacific theater

Shortly after repairs were completed, ''Wichita'' was transferred to the Pacific theater. She was assigned to Task Force 18, commanded by Rear Admiral Giffen, and tasked with operations off
Guadalcanal Guadalcanal (; indigenous name: ''Isatabu'') is the principal island in Guadalcanal Province of Solomon Islands, located in the south-western Pacific, northeast of Australia. It is the largest island in the Solomon Islands by area, and the seco ...
. She was joined by the heavy cruisers and , the light cruisers , , and . In addition, the
escort carrier The escort carrier or escort aircraft carrier (U.S. hull classification symbol CVE), also called a "jeep carrier" or "baby flattop" in the United States Navy (USN) or "Woolworth Carrier" by the Royal Navy, was a small and slow type of aircraft ...
s and , and eight destroyers were present in the task group. On the night of 29 January 1943, the Task Force was steaming off
Rennell Island Rennell Island, locally known as Mugaba, is the main island of two inhabited islands that make up the Rennell and Bellona Province in the nation state of Solomon Islands. Rennell Island has a land area of that is about long and wide. It is th ...
; wary of the threat from Japanese submarines, which Allied intelligence indicated were likely in the area, Giffen arranged his cruisers and destroyers for anti-submarine defense, not expecting an air attack. The cruisers were aligned in two columns, spaced apart. ''Wichita'', ''Chicago'', and ''Louisville'', in that order, were to starboard, and ''Montpelier'', ''Cleveland'', and ''Columbia'' were to port. The six destroyers were in a semicircle ahead of the cruiser columns. That evening, the ships came under attack from Japanese torpedo bombers. In the ensuing Battle of Rennell Island, ''Chicago'' was hit by several torpedoes and sunk; ''Wichita'' was hit by one torpedo, though it failed to explode. ''Wichita'' then steamed to Efate in the New Hebrides for a training period. She then departed on 7 April, bound for Pearl Harbor and arriving there a week later. On 18 April, she steamed out of Pearl Harbor for Adak, Alaska, again flying Giffen's flag, for Task Group 52.10. In early May, ''Wichita'' was assigned to the amphibious force tasked with liberating the Aleutian Islands from Japanese control. She served as the flagship of the northern covering force, along with the cruisers ''Louisville'' and and four destroyers. On 6 July, ''Wichita'', three other cruisers, and four destroyers bombarded Japanese positions on the island of Kiska.Rohwer, p. 260 The bombardment convinced the Japanese that the Americans intended to invade the island in the near future; they therefore planned an evacuation by July. On 19 July, a powerful American fleet, including the battleships , , and ''Mississippi'' joined ''Wichita'' to conduct another attack on Kiska three days later. Five days later, malfunctioning radar equipment led to a battle with radar phantoms (the " Battle of the Pips"); ''Wichita'', two battleships, and two other cruisers expended over a thousand rounds of ammunition from their main batteries on the empty sea. That same day, the Japanese successfully evacuated the island, which was invaded by American troops two weeks later. The morning after the assumed engagement, ''Wichita'' launched a seaplane to reconnoiter the area, but found no evidence of Japanese forces. ''Wichita'' participated in exercises off Hawaii for the remainder of the year. On 16 January 1944, she departed to take part in the invasion of the Marshall Islands. She was assigned to Task Group 58.3, under the command of Rear Admiral
Frederick C. Sherman Frederick Carl Sherman (May 27, 1888 – July 27, 1957) was a highly decorated admiral of the United States Navy during World War II. Early life Sherman was born in Port Huron, Michigan on May 27, 1888. His grandfather, Loren Sherman, was the lo ...
. The Task Group included the fleet carrier , the light carriers and , the fast battleships , ''Massachusetts'', , and , and several destroyers. ''Wichita'' provided anti-aircraft support for the carriers while they conducted air strikes on Kwajalein and Eniwetok on 29–31 January. On 4 February, ''Wichita'' arrived at Majuro; she was transferred to Task Group 58.2. The force departed Majuro on 12 February and conducted Operation Hailstone, a major air strike on the Japanese base at Truk, four days later. On the night of 16 February, Japanese aircraft launched an attack on the Task Group and torpedoed the carrier . Task Unit 58.2.4, which included ''Wichita'', was detached to escort ''Intrepid'' back to safety and repairs. The ships reached Majuro on 20 February, and departed for Hawaii eight days later. The ships arrived in port on 4 March, and on the 9th, ''Wichita'' became the flagship of Cruiser Division 6. On 15 March, Cruiser Division 6 departed Hawaii to return to Majuro, arriving on 20 March. After arriving, she joined the screen for the Fast Carrier Task Force, which struck Japanese bases on Yap,
Woleai Woleai, also known as Oleai, is a coral atoll of twenty-two islands in the western Caroline Islands in the Pacific Ocean, and forms a legislative district in the Yap State in the Federated States of Micronesia and is located approximately west-n ...
, and in the Palaus. ''Wichita'' supported strikes on
Hollandia Hollandia may refer to: * HVV Hollandia, Dutch football team * Hollandia Victoria Combinatie, defunct Dutch football team * ''Hollandia'' (1742 ship), a ship of the Dutch East India Company, wrecked in 1743 on her maiden voyage * Jayapura, a city ...
in New Guinea on 13–22 April. The task force returned to the seas off Truk on 29 April for a second round of airstrikes on the port. While the carriers were striking Truk, ''Wichita'' and several cruisers and destroyers shelled Japanese targets on
Satawan Satawan Atoll is an atoll located about southeast of Chuuk Lagoon proper. Geographically it is part of the Nomoi or Mortlock Islands in the Carolines and administratively it is part of Chuuk State in the Federated States of Micronesia. About ...
Island in the Nomol group of the Caroline Islands. On 4 May, ''Wichita'' returned to Majuro for a month of training. In June, she returned to the fleet, which was gathering at Kwajalein in preparations for operations against the
Mariana Islands The Mariana Islands (; also the Marianas; in Chamorro: ''Manislan Mariånas'') are a crescent-shaped archipelago comprising the summits of fifteen longitudinally oriented, mostly dormant volcanic mountains in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, betw ...
. ''Wichita'' was assigned to Task Unit 53.10.8, which shelled
Saipan Saipan ( ch, Sa’ipan, cal, Seipél, formerly in es, Saipán, and in ja, 彩帆島, Saipan-tō) is the largest island of the Northern Mariana Islands, a Commonwealth (U.S. insular area), commonwealth of the United States in the western Pa ...
on 13 June. The next day, ''Wichita'' bombarded Japanese gun positions on Guam, before returning to Saipan later that day. On 17 June, she joined Task Group 58.7; the force patrolled to the west of the Marianas over the next three days in an attempt to intercept the large Japanese carrier force known to be approaching. On 19 June, the Japanese carriers struck at the American fleet, starting the Battle of the Philippine Sea. ''Wichita'' contributed to the antiaircraft screen; her gunners claimed to have assisted in the destruction of two Nakajima B5N torpedo bombers. The ship was detached to cover troop transports and escort carriers off Saipan on 25 June. This duty lasted through the first week of July. Now part of Task Unit 53.18.1, ''Wichita'' bombarded Japanese positions on Guam on 8–12 July, and again starting on 18 July. ''Wichita'' departed Guam on 10 August, bound for Eniwetok. She arrived three days later and remained there until 29 July, when she put to sea to join Task Group 38.1. She screened for the fast carrier task group while they launched airstrikes on Japanese targets in Palau, the Carolines, the Philippines, and
Dutch East Indies The Dutch East Indies, also known as the Netherlands East Indies ( nl, Nederlands(ch)-Indië; ), was a Dutch colony consisting of what is now Indonesia. It was formed from the nationalised trading posts of the Dutch East India Company, which ...
. On 28 August, TG 38.1 raided targets in Palau and
Morotai Morotai Island ( id, Pulau Morotai) is an island in the Halmahera group of eastern Indonesia's Maluku Islands (Moluccas). It is one of Indonesia's northernmost islands. Morotai is a rugged, forested island lying to the north of Halmahera. It ha ...
. By mid-September, TG 38.1 provided air support for the assault on Morotai; the operation lasted until 21 September. The following day, the carriers launched an airstrike on Manila in the Philippines. Early on 22 September, Japanese aircraft launched a counterattack. At 07:34, ''Wichita'' shot down a bomber approximately 50 yards from her. She shot down another bomber at 07:45. She continued to provide antiaircraft defense for the carriers while they struck Japanese installations on Cebu,
Negros Negros is the fourth largest and third most populous island in the Philippines, with a total land area of . Negros is one of the many islands of the Visayas, in the central part of the country. The predominant inhabitants of the island region a ...
, and Coron.


Operations off the Philippines

''Wichita'' got underway to support a raid on Okinawa on 2 October. On 10 October, the fleet reached the waters off Okinawa and launched the strike. The following day, the fleet struck Aparri on Luzon. The fleet then raided
Formosa Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is an island country located in East Asia. The main island of Taiwan, formerly known in the Western political circles, press and literature as Formosa, makes up 99% of the land area of the territorie ...
, where they targeted Japanese airfields to prepare for the upcoming assault against the Philippines. On 13 October, Japanese bombers attacked the fleet and badly damaged the cruiser . ''Wichita'' took ''Canberra'' under tow, though she was relieved by the ocean-going tug on 15 October. ''Wichita'' joined the screen for ''Canberra''; the squadron was joined by the badly damaged cruiser . The ships were attacked again the following day, and ''Houston'' was torpedoed again. ''Wichita'' left the damaged ships on 21 October, after they had successfully reached safer waters. ''Wichita'' then rejoined the fleet off Luzon, assigned to Task Force 34 under Vice Admiral
Willis A. Lee Willis Augustus "Ching" Lee Jr. (May 11, 1888 – August 25, 1945) was a vice admiral of the United States Navy during World War II. Lee commanded the American ships during the second night of the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal (November 14–15, 19 ...
. ''Wichita'' was present during the
Battle of Leyte Gulf The Battle of Leyte Gulf ( fil, Labanan sa golpo ng Leyte, lit=Battle of Leyte gulf; ) was the largest naval battle of World War II and by some criteria the largest naval battle in history, with over 200,000 naval personnel involved. It was fou ...
, which started on 23 October. On 25 October, the Fast Carrier Strike Force had steamed north, to attack the Northern Force commanded by
Jisaburō Ozawa was an admiral in the Imperial Japanese Navy during World War II. He was the last Commander-in-Chief of the Combined Fleet. Ozawa has been noted for his unusual height, measuring in at over tall, although his exact height has not been reliabl ...
. ''Wichita'' again screened for the carriers, which sank or damaged several Japanese carriers. Task Force 34 was detached to finish off several of the crippled Japanese ships with gunfire; ''Wichita'' and three other cruisers sank the light carrier and the destroyer . ''Wichita'' expended twenty-two percent of her armor-piercing rounds at the two ships, which amounted to 148 rounds at ''Chiyoda'' and 173 against ''Hatsuzuki''. In the aftermath of the battle, ''Wichita'' returned to screening for the carriers off Samar. On 28 October, she provided gunfire support to troops ashore on Leyte. Two days later, she defended against a Japanese airstrike on the fleet. On 31 October, ''Wichita'' left the area, bound for Ulithi, reaching her destination on 2 November. After replenishing her ammunition and stores, she returned to Leyte for several days, until the middle of November. Her crew detected severe vibrations in her No. 4 engine; the propeller shaft had broken and the propeller was trailing. She was therefore detached on 18 November for repairs in California, via Ulithi. While in Ulithi, divers discovered cracks in a strut for No. 3 propeller shaft; now only two screws were operational. She reached San Pedro in California on 15 December. She entered the
Terminal Island Terminal Island, historically known as Isla Raza de Buena Gente, is a largely artificial island located in Los Angeles County, California, between the neighborhoods of Wilmington and San Pedro in the city of Los Angeles, and the city of Long Be ...
Navy Yard shortly after reaching port. Repairs lasted until 8 February 1945, and by 28 February, she departed for Pearl Harbor. ''Wichita'' arrived in Hawaii on 6 March, before departing five days later for Ulithi.


Invasion of Okinawa

''Wichita'' arrived in Ulithi on 20 March, and was assigned to
Task Force 54 Task may refer to: * Task (computing), in computing, a program execution context * Task (language instruction) refers to a certain type of activity used in language instruction * Task (project management), an activity that needs to be accomplished ...
(TF 54) the next day. She put to sea to take part in the
invasion of Okinawa The , codenamed Operation Iceberg, was a major battle of the Pacific War fought on the island of Okinawa by United States Army (USA) and United States Marine Corps (USMC) forces against the Imperial Japanese Army (IJA). The initial invasion of ...
. The ship was placed in Task Unit 54.2.3 to cover minesweepers off Okinawa on 25 March. On the afternoon of the following day, ''Wichita'' bombarded Japanese positions on the island, from 13:50 to 16:30. Japanese aircraft attacked the ships early the next morning; ''Wichita''s gunners shot down one of the aircraft. Later that day, the ship resumed bombardment duties in preparation for the amphibious invasion. She continued to shell the island through 28 March. The next day, she retired to
Kerama Retto The are a subtropical island group southwest of Okinawa Island in Japan. Geography Four islands are inhabited: Tokashiki Island, Zamami Island, Aka Island, and Geruma Island. The islands are administered as Tokashiki Village and Zamami Vill ...
to replenish her ammunition. The ship then returned to Okinawa later that day to cover underwater demolition teams as they cleared beach obstacles. ''Wichita'' continued to support the demolition teams the next day, as well as shelling targets ashore. On 31 March, ''Wichita'' bombarded the sea wall to create a breach in preparation for the landings. The invasion began on 1 April, and ''Wichita'' provided gunfire support to the landing troops on the southern beaches. At around 12:00, she left the firing line to replenish her ammunition. She resumed bombardment the following day and resupplied again on 3 April before covering minesweepers on 4 April. During the night of 4–5 April, ''Wichita'' shelled the Japanese defenders on Okinawa. The ship was assigned to join Task Group 51.19 the next day to bombard Tsugen Shima in company with ''Tuscaloosa'' and the battleships and . Japanese aircraft appeared, which forced the cancellation of the mission. Nevertheless, ''Wichita'' shelled Japanese shore batteries at Chiyama Shima that evening. Late on 6 April, an A6M Zero attempted to attack ''Wichita''. The fighter came down through a break in the clouds on ''Wichita''s port side. The ship's anti-aircraft gunners immediately opened fire; a burst from one of the 20 mm guns shot away the Zero's tail. The plane veered away, out of control, and dropped its bomb, which fell approximately from the ship. The Zero's wing clipped the deck before the plane crashed into the sea. Eleven men were wounded in the attack, though the ship remained undamaged. The following day, ''Wichita'' steamed into
Nakagusuku Bay is a bay on the southern coast of Okinawa Island on the Pacific Ocean in Japan. The bay covers and ranges between to deep. The bay is surrounded by the municipalities of Uruma, Kitanakagusuku, Nakagusuku, Nishihara, Yonabaru, Nanjō, all in ...
to shell a coastal battery. Shells from the Japanese guns landed close to the ship, but no hits were scored before ''Wichita'' neutralized the battery. Over the next two days, the ship continued to bombard Japanese defenses on the island, until she retired to replenish ammunition on 10 April. ''Wichita'' continued to provide gunfire support throughout the rest of the month. On 27 April, a small caliber shell penetrated a fuel oil tank five feet below the waterline. After temporary repairs while still off Okinawa proved unsuccessful, ''Wichita'' returned to Kerama Retto where the damage was repaired on 29–30 April. ''Wichita'' then returned to the gun line. On 12 May, the ship was damaged by friendly fire. A 5-inch round struck the port aircraft catapult; shell fragments hit the shield of an antiaircraft director, killing one man and injuring eleven others. She departed the area to rest and refit at Leyte, returning to Okinawa on 18 June. ''Wichita'' continued to provide gunfire support to the troops on Okinawa through July, as part of Task Unit 2. On 15 August, the ship's crew received word that the war with Japan was over. ''Wichita'' was awarded 13 battle stars for her service during World War II.


Post-War

''Wichita'' was assigned to the occupying force shortly after the end of the war. She departed Okinawa on 10 September for Nagasaki, arriving the following day as part of Task Group 55.7. ''Wichita'' was one of the first major warships to reach Japan; she was escorted by a destroyer, a pair of destroyer escorts, two minesweepers, and the hospital ship .Sloan, p. 349 ''Wichita'' was transferred to Sasebo on 25 September for four days before she returned to Nagasaki on 29 September. She returned to Sasebo shortly thereafter, and while she was there, a severe typhoon struck the area on 9–11 October. ''Wichita'' was not damaged during the storms. While at Sasebo, ''Wichita''s crew inspected the Japanese ships and harbor installations to ensure Japanese compliance with the terms of surrender. On 5 November, ''Wichita'' was assigned to
Operation Magic Carpet Operation Magic Carpet was the post-World War II operation by the War Shipping Administration to repatriate over eight million American military personnel from the European, Pacific, and Asian theaters. Hundreds of Liberty ships, Victory ships ...
, the repatriation of American military personnel. She refueled in Tokyo before departing for San Francisco. The ship reached San Francisco on 24 November, where she went into drydock at the
Mare Island Naval Shipyard The Mare Island Naval Shipyard (MINSY) was the first United States Navy base established on the Pacific Ocean. It is located northeast of San Francisco in Vallejo, California. The Napa River goes through the Mare Island Strait and separates th ...
two days later. Repairs and modifications for further Magic Carpet duty were completed by 1 December. ''Wichita'' departed for Hawaii on 6 December, reaching Pearl Harbor on 12 December before proceeding to the Marianas. There, the ship loaded servicemen from Saipan and steamed back to San Francisco, arriving on 12 January 1946. She left port on 27 January bound for the east coast of the United States; she transited the Panama Canal on 5–9 February and reached Philadelphia on 14 February. There, she was assigned to the Sixteenth Fleet and was placed in reserve on 15 July. ''Wichita'' was decommissioned on 3 February 1947 and laid up at Philadelphia. In the late 1940s, the Navy considered converting ''Wichita'' into a guided-missile cruiser, but and ''Canberra'' were chosen instead. On 1 March 1959, the ship was stricken from the Naval Vessel Register and sold on 14 August to the Union Minerals and Alloys Corp.


See also

* List of cruisers of the United States Navy


Notes


References

* * * * * * * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Wichita (Ca-45) Wichita-class cruisers Ships built in Philadelphia 1937 ships World War II cruisers of the United States Ships of the Aleutian Islands campaign