The Juneau-class cruisers were a class of United States Navylight cruisers that were modified versions of the Atlanta-classcruiser design. The ships had the same dual-purpose main armament as USS Oakland (herself a modified Atlanta-class) with a much heavier secondary anti-aircraft battery, while the anti-submarine depth charge tracks and torpedo tubes were removed along with a redesigned superstructure to reduce weight and increase stability. Three ships were ordered and built, all completed shortly after World War II, but only Juneau remained active long enough to see action during the Korean War.
Redesign
The Atlanta-classcruisers increased wartime complement and armament; and the loss of Atlanta and Juneau (here referring to the Juneau of the Atlanta-class, not to be confused with the lead ship of the Juneau-class) revealed weaknesses in their stability and hull integrity of the ships which was addressed in a 1942 redesign at the same time as the modified Cleveland-class cruiser, the Fargo-class cruiser. The ships had the same main armament as Oakland, but the bridge and superstructure were redesigned to remove weight and increase visibility, and the reduction in weight allowed increased antiaircraft guns to be added; however, the weight of this additional armament negated the redesign's weight saving and stability goals even prior to launch.[1] Watertight integrity was improved by removing doors on the lowest decks of the ship between bulkheads. In addition, all the anti-submarine armament was removed, along with the torpedo battery.[2]
Specifications
The main gun battery of the Juneau class was composed of six dual 5-inch/38 caliber (127 mm) gun mounts (twelve 5-inch guns).[3] The class was designed with a secondary anti-aircraft armament of thirty-two 40 mm anti-aircraft guns, and sixteen 20 mm rapid-fire anti-aircraft cannon with high-explosive shells.[4] After the war, the ships were planned under project SCB 74D to convert to a 3 in (76 mm) secondary armament to replace the 40 mm guns, but only Juneau was converted.[5][6]
The class was powered by the same equipment as the Atlanta class: four 665 psi (4,590 kPa) boilers, connected to two geared steam turbines producing 75,000 hp (56 MW), and the ships could maintain a top speed of 33.6 knots (62 km/h). On trial Juneau made 32.48 knots (60 km/h) at 78,985 shaft horsepower (58,899 kW). The ships of the Juneau class had the same armor as the Atlanta class: a maximum of 3.75 in (95.3 mm) on their sides, with the 5-inch gun mounts being protected by 1.25 in (31.8 mm) and the conning tower by 2.5 inches (64 mm).[4] The ships were originally designed for 47 officers and 695 men.[7]
Service history
Three ships were built and none of the ships served during World War II; the lead ship of this class, Juneau (CL-119) which was named after the war loss Juneau (CL-52), was launched on 15 July 1945 and commissioned on 15 February 1946. Spokane was launched on 22 September 1945, and commissioned on 17 May 1946. Fresno was launched on 5 March 1946 and commissioned on 27 November 1946.[8]
Spokane and Fresno were decommissioned in 1949 and 1950 prior to the start of the Korean War, but Juneau, at this point redesignated as an anti-aircraft cruiser CLAA-119, participated in the conflict. On 2 July 1950, Juneau, along with HMS Jamaica, and HMS Black Swan were attacked by four torpedo boats and two motor gunboats of the North Korean Navy, and the combined firepower of the Anglo-American ships sank three enemy torpedo boats and both gunboats near Chumonchin Chan.[9] She was decommissioned in 1955, shortly after the war ended. All three ships were considered for refitting as guided missile cruisers or ASW ships but ultimately were sold for scrap in the 1960s.[10]
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