Pennsylvania-class battleship

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naval review
in New York, December 1918
Class overview
NamePennsylvania class
BuildersNewport News and New York
Operators United States Navy
Preceded byNevada class
Succeeded byNew Mexico class
Cost$15,000,000[A]
Built1912–1916
In commission1916–1946
Completed2
Lost1
Retired1
General characteristics (as built)
Type
Dreadnought battleship
Displacement
Length
Beam97 ft 6 in (29.72 m) (waterline)
Draft29 ft 3 in (8.9 m) (deep load)
Installed power
Propulsion
Speed21.38 knots (39.60 km/h; 24.60 mph) (Pennsylvania's average on trials)
Range6,070 nmi (11,240 km; 6,990 mi) at cruising speed of 12 knots (22 km/h; 14 mph)
Complement55 officers and 860 men
Armament
Armor

The Pennsylvania class consisted of two

super-dreadnought battleships built for the United States Navy just before the First World War. Named Pennsylvania and Arizona, after the American states of the same names, the two battleships were the United States' second battleship design to adhere to the "all or nothing" armor scheme. They were the newest American capital ships
when the United States entered the First World War.

The

14-inch (356 mm)/45 caliber guns and improved underwater protection. The class was the second standard type battleship class to join the US Navy, along with the preceding Nevada and the succeeding New Mexico, Tennessee and Colorado
classes.

In service, the Pennsylvania class saw limited use in the First World War, as a shortage of

shore bombardment ship for most of the remainder of the war. Pennsylvania was present at the Battle of Surigao Strait, the last battle ever between battleships, but did not engage. Pennsylvania was severely damaged by a torpedo on 12 August 1945, two days before the cessation of hostilities. With minimal repairs, she was used in Operation Crossroads, part of the nuclear testing at Bikini Atoll, before being expended as a target ship
in 1948.

Background

Main articles: Nevada-class battleship and Standard-type battleship
The Nevada class, represented here by Oklahoma in 1916, were the first American battleship class with triple gun turrets, the "all or nothing" armor concept, oil fuel, and steam turbines with geared cruising turbines (albeit the latter only in Nevada); all of these innovations were continued in the Pennsylvania class.

The preceding Nevada-class battleships represented a leap forward from previous American battleship technology and from most contemporary foreign designs. They were the first in the world to employ the "

armor-piercing (AP) projectiles, stoppable only by heavy armor. Medium or light armor would only serve to detonate the shells. By removing gun turrets and reducing the overall protected length of the ship, the navy's designers were able to devote the weight savings to the belt, as well as extra deck armor to protect against plunging shells.[2]

In issuing desired specifications for the design that would become the Nevada class, the Navy's General Board asked for triple gun turrets, i.e., three guns mounted per turret. They were very unsatisfied with the awkward placement required on classes preceding the Nevadas, which had five and six two-gun turrets—yet moving back to the four two-gun turrets of the South Carolina class would be a significant loss in firepower. Although a triple turret was first proposed in American professional magazines in 1901 and briefly considered for the South Carolinas, it was not even in the experimental stage—the first turret was authorized in 1911 and would not be ready until months after contracts for the new ships would be signed with the shipbuilders. The decision to go ahead with the turret was a calculated gamble, but proved to be a qualified success; the only issue came with shell interference when the center and outside guns were fired simultaneously, which was easily solved by delaying the firing of the center barrel by a small fraction of a second. Moreover, there was a major benefit in weight thanks to the accompanying loss of an armored barbette and turret. These weight savings were applied to the armor protection, making the "all or nothing" concept a reality.[3]

The Nevadas were also the first American battleships to use exclusively

center of gravity, higher metacentric height, and the loss of coal bunkers, which were employed as part of the armor protection. Within a few years oil tanks below the waterline were considered indispensable parts of the underwater armor scheme employed in American dreadnoughts.[4]

Design

Arizona's starboard propeller shaft

The General Board's call for a new 1913 fiscal year battleship design was sent in June 1911 with the recent Nevada innovations in mind. They desired a ship with a main battery of twelve 14-inch guns in triple turrets, a secondary battery of twenty-two 5-inch (127 mm) guns, a speed of 21 knots (39 km/h; 24 mph), and armor equivalent to that of the Nevadas. The US Navy Bureau of Construction and Repair's (C&R) first sketch was unsatisfactory; their lengthy design of 625 feet (191 m) and 30,000 long tons (30,481 t) actually had less armor than the Nevadas, with a 12.5-inch (320 mm) belt.[5]

The design process was marked by various efforts to meet the General Board's specifications with only a moderate increase in tonnage over the Nevada class. Between January and March 1912, thirteen sketches were prepared for consideration by C&R with reciprocating or turbine engines that traded either speed or metacentric height for armor. Some later designs gave up a half knot of speed to free up about 500 long tons (508 t), enough to thicken the belt from 13.5 to 15 inches (343 to 381 mm) and the barbettes to 14 inches. The choice between double or triple turrets was also still an issue, as the Nevada class had not been completed yet. The Bureau of Ordnance was in favor of waiting for test results, rather than risking reverting to two-gun 14-inch turrets or moving up to two-gun 16-inch turrets.[6]

In March 1912, C&R proposed their seventh, eighth, ninth, and tenth designs to the General Board for approval. The eighth and ninth designs were the ones to give up a half knot of speed, while the tenth was a design with four triple turrets and 1,200 long tons (1,200 t) lighter than the Nevada-class ships. In April, the General Board chose the seventh design, which satisfied all of their requirements, albeit on the largest displacement, 31,300 long tons (31,800 t). The length was fixed at 630 feet (190 m), the beam at 93 feet (28 m), and the draft at 28.5 feet (8.7 m). Steam turbines gave the design 30,500 shaft horsepower (22,700 kW) and 21 knots, while the main armor belt was 13.5 inches tapering to 8 inches (203 mm) at the ends. This design was further refined and emerged in a completed state in September. The delay was partially due to tests on the proposed armor, which were completed in June 1912 and resulted in significant alterations to the Pennsylvania-class' underwater protection.[7]

Specifications

Pennsylvania on a visit to Australia, 1925
Pennsylvania in dry dock, c. 1944

The Pennsylvania-class ships were significantly larger than their predecessors, the Nevada class. They had a

standard and full load displacements were 31,400 long tons (31,900 t) and 32,440 long tons (32,960 t), respectively, but they actually displaced 29,158 long tons (29,626 t) standard and 31,917 long tons (32,429 t) at full load, over 4,000 long tons (4,060 t) more than the older ships. The class had a metacentric height of 7.82 feet (2.4 m) at full load.[8]

The ships had four

direct drive Parsons steam turbine sets with geared cruising turbines, each of which drove a propeller 12 feet 1.5 inches (3.7 m) in diameter.[9] They were powered by twelve Babcock & Wilcox water-tube boilers. The turbines were designed to produce a total of 31,500 shaft horsepower (23,500 kW), but only achieved 29,366 shp (21,898 kW) during Pennsylvania's sea trials, when it slightly exceeded its designed speed of 21 knots (39 km/h; 24 mph).[8] Pennsylvania reached 21.75 knots (40.28 km/h; 25.03 mph) during full-power trials in 1916, and Arizona reached 21.5 knots (39.8 km/h; 24.7 mph) in September 1924.[10] The class was designed to normally carry 1,548 long tons (1,573 t) of fuel oil, but had a maximum capacity of 2,305 long tons (2,342 t). At full capacity, they could steam at a speed of 12 knots (22 km/h; 14 mph) for an estimated 6,070 nautical miles (11,240 km; 6,990 mi); this could be extended to 7,585 nautical miles (14,050 km; 8,730 mi) with a clean bottom. They had four 300-kilowatt (402 hp) turbo generators.[8]

The Pennsylvania class carried twelve 14-inch/45

anti-aircraft (AA) guns, although only two were fitted when completed. The other pair were added shortly afterward on top of Turret III.[15] The class also mounted two submerged 21-inch (533 mm) torpedo tubes and carried 24 Bliss-Leavitt Mark 3 torpedoes for them.[8]

The Pennsylvania-class design continued the all-or-nothing principle of armoring only the most important areas of the battleships, which began in the preceding Nevada class. The waterline armor belt of

Krupp armor measured 13.5 inches thick and only covered the class' machinery spaces and magazines. It had a total height of 17 feet 6 inches (5.3 m), of which 8 feet 9.75 inches (2.7 m) was below the waterline; beginning 2 feet 4 inches (0.7 m) below the waterline, the belt tapered to its minimum thickness of 8 inches.[8] The transverse bulkheads at each end of the ships ranged from 13 to 8 inches in thickness. The faces of the gun turrets were 18 inches (457 mm) thick while the sides were 9–10 inches (230–250 mm) thick and the turret roofs were protected by 5 inches of armor. The armor of the barbettes was 13 to 4.5 inches (330 to 114 mm) thick. The conning tower was protected by 16 inches (406 mm) of armor and had a roof eight inches thick.[16]

The main armor deck was three plates thick with a total thickness of 3 inches; over the steering gear the armor increased to 6.25 inches (159 mm) in two plates. Beneath it was the splinter deck that ranged from 1.5 to 2 inches (38 to 51 mm) in thickness.

TNT.[17]

Plans for Pennsylvania drawn during the Second World War, after its late 1920s/early 1930s modernization; it shows the ship from three crossections (top), from the starboard side (middle), and from above (bottom). The most visible change from the ships' original configuration came in the secondary armament, which was moved from casemates into their own twin mounts. This greatly improved range and usage as anti aircraft weapons

Authorization and construction

See also: Maximum battleship
Arizona underway on 4 June 1927, shortly before her modernization

The authorization for the two Pennsylvania-class ships faced political opposition for being too weak and expensive. Senator Benjamin Tillman believed that a much more capable warship was needed because of the shocking increase in battleship size over the previous few years—between 1907 (the Delaware class) and 1912, the displacement of American battleships increased by about fifty percent, from around 20,000 long tons (20,000 t) to 30,000 long tons.[18] Tillman proposed a "maximum battleship" in a Senate resolution in July 1912, which was adopted unanimously:

Resolved: That the Committee on Naval Affairs [is] instructed to investigate and report to the Senate ... the object being to find out from official sources the maximum size and maximum draft, the maximum armament, and the maximum armor to make the best battleship or cruiser the world has ever seen or ever will see; to have this country own the greatest marine engine of war ever constructed or ever to be constructed under known conditions; and to report whether one such overpowering vessel would not in its judgement be better for this country to build than to continue by increasing taxation to spend the millions and millions of dollars now in prospect in the race for naval supremacy. ... Let us leave some money in the Treasury for other more necessary and useful expenditures, such as good roads, controlling the floods in the Mississippi, draining swamp land in the South, and irrigating the arid land in the West. (S 361, 62nd Cong., 2nd sess.)[19]

Tillman's proposal was, in his own words, treated as a "joke"; the

Norfolk. Tillman was concerned with this speed, and another study increased the speed to 25 knots (46 km/h; 29 mph), trading it for four 14-inch (356 mm) guns, or one-third of the main battery, and much of the armor.[21][B]

Other politicians in Congress also had concerns with the navy's plans. The

bids were opened on 18 February 1913; and the contract was awarded to the lowest bidder, Newport News, on 27 February 1913 at the quoted price of $7,260,000 without armor or armament.[22] The independent bidding process led the navy to claim $750,000 in savings, but the final cost actually came in at $7,800,000 ($15,000,000 with armor and armament).[23]

launch
, 19 June 1915

Arizona was the one approved battleship for the fiscal year 1914. Secretary of the Navy George von Lengerke Meyer had requested three battleships for that fiscal year, citing the former policy of building two per year, plus an additional ship to make up for authorizing only Pennsylvania in the previous year, but congressional compromises once again approved only one new battleship. Arizona was authorized on 4 March 1913, but to avoid a lengthy delay between the two, the ship was ordered much more quickly, on 24 June, by giving the contract to a navy-owned shipyard.[24]

Pennsylvania was

Franklin Delano Roosevelt in attendance,[26] and the builders intended to set a world-record ten months between keel-laying and launch,[27] These ambitious goals—Pennsylvania's anticipated completion date was a full two months earlier than the American record—were set by Navy Secretary Josephus Daniels, who wanted the United States to compete with British and German achievements.[28]

The constructors were not able to meet these goals. Pennsylvania was launched on 16 March 1915, a full seventeen months after keel-laying, when she was just over two-thirds complete. Arizona was launched on 19 June 1915, about fifteen months after keel laying, when she weighed about 12,800 long tons (13,000 t).

fitting-out period and sea trials. On Pennsylvania's trials, the ship attained a top speed of 21.75 knots (40.28 km/h; 25.03 mph), averaged 21.38 knots (39.60 km/h; 24.60 mph), and was also able to steam for twelve hours at 21.05 knots (38.98 km/h; 24.22 mph) in 50-mile-per-hour (80 km/h) winds.[32] These attributes pleased the Navy's Board of Inspection, but Scientific American lamented the ship's low speed compared to the Italian Andrea Dorias, Russian Ganguts, and British Queen Elizabeths, which they (somewhat inaccurately) stated had top speeds of 22.5, 23, and 25 knots, respectively.[33] Pennsylvania was commissioned on 12 June 1916, her sister ship followed on 17 October 1916.[34]

Ships

Construction data
Ship name Hull no. Builder Laid down Launched Commissioned Decommissioned Fate
Pennsylvania BB-38 Newport News Shipbuilding 27 October 1913 16 March 1915 12 June 1916 29 August 1946 Target ship, Operation Crossroads; scuttled 10 February 1948
Arizona BB-39
New York Naval Shipyard
 16 March 1914 19 June 1915 17 October 1916 29 December 1941 Sunk during the attack on Pearl Harbor, 7 December 1941

Service histories

Arizona on the East River in New York City near the Brooklyn Bridge, 1918

Pennsylvania and Arizona were commissioned during the

inter-war period, both ships took part in a mission to Peru and were transferred to the Pacific Fleet.[40]

Pennsylvania and Arizona were given extensive modernizations from 1929 through 1931; the expenditure came in the fiscal year 1930.[41] As part of the rebuilding, Pennsylvania, which had been designed as a fleet flagship, had her conning tower expanded. Aside from that, Pennsylvania and Arizona received similar treatment: the elevation of the main batteries was increased to 30°, new fire control systems on tripod masts were added, the secondary armament and directors were replaced and overhauled, eight 5-inch/25 caliber anti-aircraft guns (four per side) were mounted on the weather deck which was above the secondary anti-ship 5-inch gun battery, and their bridges were enlarged to hold elevated anti-aircraft directors. Armor additions were comparatively minimal beyond anti-torpedo bulges, which were standard additions on all major warships in this period: 1.75 to 2 inches (44 to 51 mm) of armor were added to the second armored deck, and a torpedo bulkhead was added to the engine room. The propulsion system of the two Pennsylvanias received perhaps the most attention. The boiler system was entirely replaced with six small-tube boilers and new turbines, the latter partially from the cancelled Colorado-class battleship Washington. The new machinery allowed the ships to come close to their old design speed of 21 knots (39 km/h; 24 mph), even with the added bulk of bulges: Pennsylvania made 20.89 knots and Arizona 20.7 knots on full-power trials.[42]

Arizona burning after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor

After their modernization, both ships participated in the normal activities of the fleet, including

partly salvaged and is now a war memorial.[43]

Pennsylvania came back into service more quickly than many of the other battleships present during the attack; she left on 20 December and was under repair in

Aleutian Islands Campaign. During this time, Pennsylvania was nearly hit by a torpedo from Japanese submarine I-31, which was later sunk.[44]

For the next year, Pennsylvania provided shore bombardment during the Battles of Makin, Kwajalein, Eniwetok, and Saipan, along with the Palau Islands Campaign. The ship also participated in the landings on Leyte and the Battle of Leyte Gulf. During this time, Pennsylvania was present at the last battle ever between battleships, the Battle of Surigao Strait. The ship did not fire any salvos because the Japanese vessels were turned away or sunk at long range, beyond Pennsylvania's outdated fire control but within range of other, radar-directed battleships.[45]

Pennsylvania leading Colorado and three cruisers into Lingayen Gulf before the invasion of Luzon (Philippines), in January 1945

In 1945, Pennsylvania was sent for another refit in San Francisco, and the guns in her main battery, worn out from the frequent shore bombardments, were replaced by those from Nevada and

Navy Yard Puget Sound for a more permanent solution. Pennsylvania made it to Puget Sound on 24 October, albeit not without a great deal of trouble caused by temporary repair work.[46]

With the

Navy Vessel Register nine days later.[47]

Footnotes

  1. ^ This figure was also given as $7,800,000 without armor or armament.[1]
  2. ^ For more information on these studies, see A.D. Zimm, "Build the Limit: The American 'Maximum Battleship' Studies of 1916–17," Warship International 12, no. 1 (1975), 31–59.

Endnotes

  1. ^ "Battleship 'Pennsylvania' and Class," Scientific American, 254.
  2. ^ Friedman, Design and Development, 65–66; Friedman, US Battleships, 101–02.
  3. ^ Friedman, Design and Development, 134–35; Friedman, US Battleships, 102, 107, 111.
  4. ^ Friedman, Design and Development, 93–95; Friedman, US Battleships, 102, 104–05.
  5. ^ Friedman, US Battleships, 113.
  6. ^ Friedman, US Battleships, 113–15.
  7. ^ Friedman, US Battleships, 114–15.
  8. ^ a b c d e f g Friedman, US Battleships, 440.
  9. ^ Stillwell, Battleship Arizona, 360.
  10. ^ Stillwell, Battleship Arizona, 305; "Trials of Our Latest Dreadnought," Scientific American, 297.
  11. ^ Friedman, US Battleships, 135.
  12. ^ Wright, "The US Navy's Study of the Loss of the Battleship Arizona," 66, 123, 285.
  13. ^ Friedman, US Battleships, 116, 440.
  14. ^ Campbell, Naval Weapons of World War II, 136.
  15. ^ Stillwell, Battleship Arizona, 19.
  16. ^ a b Stillwell, Battleship Arizona, 359.
  17. ^ a b Friedman, US Battleships, 115, 118, 440.
  18. ^ Friedman, US Battleships, 115–16.
  19. ^ United States Congressional Serial Set (Washington, DC: US Government Printing Office, 1916), 120.
  20. ^ Tillman and Moffet, Construction of Battleships, 3; "The Tillman Maximum Battleship," Advocate of Peace, 182.
  21. ^ Friedman, US Battleships, 148–49.
  22. ^ Friedman, US Battleships, 116; "Battleship Pennsylvania," Naval Engineers, 519.
  23. ^ "Battleship 'Pennsylvania' and Class," Scientific American, 254; "Saves $750,000 on New Battleship," The New York Times, 5 December 1913.
  24. ^ Friedman, US Battleships, 116.
  25. Pittsburg Press
    , 28 October 1913, 3.
  26. ^ "Lay Keel of Navy's New Dreadnought," The New York Times, 17 March 1914.
  27. ^ Stillwell, Battleship Arizona, 3–5.
  28. ^ "Navy to Build New Ship," Boston Evening Transcript, 13 June 1913, 6.
  29. ^ Barber, "Launching of the Battleship Arizona," 334.
  30. ^ "Battleship Pennsylvania," Naval Engineers, 519; "Recent Launches," International Marine Engineering, 180; "Prayer Launches Greatest Warship," The New York Times, 17 March 1915, 7; "50,000 to witness Arizona launching," The New York Times, 13 June 1915.
  31. ^ McCarthy, "Launching a Giant Battleship a Long-planned and Risky Job," 673–74.
  32. ^ Gill, "'Pennsylvania' Trials," 584.
  33. ^ "Trials of the Battleship Pennsylvania," International Marine Engineering, 189; "Trials of Our Latest Dreadnought," Scientific American, 297.
  34. ^ "The Pennsylvania Commissioned," The New York Times, 13 June 1916; "The Mighty Arizona Now a Part of Navy," The New York Times, 18 October 1918.
  35. ^ Stillwell, Battleship Arizona, 13–17.
  36. ^ "Pennsylvania", Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships.
  37. ^ Stillwell, Battleship Arizona, 18–21.
  38. ^ Jones, Battleship Operations, 28, 92.
  39. ^ Stillwell, Battleship Arizona, 37–38; Jones, Battleship Operations, 106.
  40. ^ "Pennsylvania" and "Arizona", Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships.
  41. ^ Friedman, US Battleships, 191, 197.
  42. ^ Friedman, US Battleships, 197–201.
  43. ^ Stillwell, Battleship Arizona, 274–76; Whitley, Battleships, 262; "Pennsylvania" and "Arizona", Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships.
  44. ^ Whitley, Battleships, 262.
  45. ^ Whitley, Battleships, 262–63.
  46. ^ Whitley, Battleships, 263; Cates, War History, 37–38.
  47. ^ Whitley, Battleships, 263; Cates, War History, 38; "Pennsylvania (BB 38)," Naval Vessel Register.

References

External links

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