Warship Pictorial 32 - South Dakota Class Battleships

WARSHIP PICTORIAL #32

UNITED STATES NAVY

SOUTH DAKOTA CLASS BATTLESHIPS

by Steve Wiper USS SOUTH DAKOTA BB-57 , Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, 24 August 1944.

CLASSIC WARSHIPS PUBLISHING P. O. Box 5759 1-Tucso n, f\Z. 85732 - USA Web Site: www.classic wars hip s.com·Ph/ Fx (520)7 48-2992 Copyri ght © September 2009

ISBN 978-0-9823583-1-3

Print ed by

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ulhograph ers, Tucso n . Arizo na

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GENERAL HISTORY OF THE SOUTH DAKOTA ClASS BATTLESHIPS The design of the SOUTH DAKOTA she wa s constructed with a larger co nning class oattleships grew out of the intention of the tower and expanded accommodations for fl ag ­ US Navy to build an additional two NORTH ship capabilities. The medium and light anti ­ CA ROLINA clas s ba ttleship s. Discu ss ions aircraft (A A) weaponry was also a repeat of the began in 1936, but by 1937, the Chief of Naval prev ious clas s, as well as the catapult arrange­ Operations in sisted o n a new design , which ment and observation aircraft carried . delayed construction until US Congress auth o­ ri zed the program into the 1939 budget. In order for the US Navy design of this new class of battles hip to rem ain within th e 192 1 Washington Nava l Treaty lim it, and have be tter armor p ro tecti o n than th e previou s NORTH C AROLINA class , a compl e te re­ design was necessary. The hull would be short­ er, but remai n at the same maximum width , not ju st for stability when firing the main battery, but also because of the lim it of 108 ft., due to the width of the Panama Canal. The increase in armor protection necessitated placement of the side armor belt to be inbo ard, resultin g in cramped hull compartments and a reduction in underwater protection. As other na tions were buildin g faster battleships, this new class would need to attain a top speed of 27 knots. To do this, the design required greater shaft power than the prev ious design. A shaft horse power of 130,000 was attained , resultin g in a top speed of 27.5 kts. The arm ame nt for this new c lass of American battleship was a repeat of the prev i­ o us NORTH CAROLINA class, with three triple 16 in.l45 cal. main armament turrets, and ten twin 5 in ./38 cal. du al purpose (DP) sec­ ondary mount s . A min or exc epti o n to th e SOUTH DAKOTA , in that she was fitted with eight twin 5 in. DP mounts. This was because 2

Even though the fo llowin g IOWA class battl eships, a newer and much better desi gn , was completing it's design at the same time , as well as being ordered for construction to begin in 1940 , the auth o ri zation of the SOUTH DAKOTA class was ordered , with construction beginning in 193 9. SOUTH DAKOTA (BB-57 ) wa s laid down 5 Jul y 1939 at New York Ship bu ilding, INDIANA ( BB-58 ) o n 20 November 1939 at Newport News Shipbuilding, MASSACHUSETTS (BB-59) 20 Jul y J 939 at Bethlehem Shipbuilding , Quincy, and ALABAMA (BB-60 ) I February 1940 at the Norfolk Navy Yard.

The ph olOgraph. 10 the lefl is of Ihe BB-60 ALAB AMA under cons/ructi o n af th e NO lfolk Navy Yard, 1 Nov ember 1940. T he ph olograph below is ~r BB-S7 SOUTH DAKOTA, launched 7 JIlll e 1941 Of Ihe New Yo';', S hipbll;/di ng Yanl.

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SOUTH DAKOTA was the first of these new battleships to be launched on 7 June 1941, followed by the MASSACHUSETTS on 23 September 194L Soon after, the INDIANA was launched on 21 November 1941, which was fol­ lowed a few months later by the ALABAMA

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on 16 February 1942, After launching, the fitting-out phase of construction was to follow. This consisted of the build-up of the superstructure, installation of the main, secondary and anti-aircraft arma­ ments, deck fittings, aircraft handling equip-

ment and an incredible number of other items necessary to complete each battleship prior to their commissioning into the US Navy. It would be at that point that each warship commissioned into the USN would then receive the prefix USS, which stood for United States Ship.

MASSACHUSETTS dUling her fitting out phase of construction, taken at the Bethlehem shipyw-d in Quincy Massachusetts, 8 October 1941 The other vessels also fitting out are, left to right, thefiM oiler Sinclair Superfhone, ATLANTA clm's light cruisers SAN DIEGO and SAN

The image to the left is of INDIANA completing consfnl.ction pn:or to launching, 1 November 1941. This ~mage is of INDIANA fi lthlg oW in On e of the dly docks aJ the N ewport News shipyani. 9 March 1942.

The USS SOUTH DAKOTA BB-5 8 was c ommissioned into the US Navy on 20 March 1942. At that time , she was not compl et­ ed and was moved to the Philadelphia Navy Yard to fini sh fitting out. Thi s task was com­ pleted by the end of May and she began her

shakedown period and crew training during the months of June and July of 1942 , based out of the Philadelphia Navy Yard. This took place in the Atlantic Ocean. USS I NDIA NA BB -58 was co mmis­ sioned on 30 April 1942 at the Newport News

shipyard. After completi on of construction by the end of Jul y, she would perform her shake­ down crui ses and crew tr ainin g during th e months of August and September of 1942. She also performed this in the Atlantic Ocean and in Casco Bay, off of POltland , Maine.

USS I nd1~~, the 35,000 to!L~~16Vfagon as she l~_ 1liLher berth News , Va ., on t he day of' h er comrn1ss1.on1ng~ April 30. 1942,.

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The USS MASSACH US ETTS BB- 59 was co mmi ss io ne d o n 12 M ay 1942 at the Boston Navy Yard. She com­ pleted fittin g o ut by th e end of July. She would perform her shakedown cru ises and crew training during the months of August through mid October, someti mes in com­ pany with BB-58. This took pl ace in the Atlantic Ocean and at Casco Bay, Maine . By this time the USS SOUTH DAKOTA was en route to the Pacific, via the Panama Canal, passing through on 2 1 August 1942. She arrived at the Ton ga Islands, via Pearl Harbor, on 4 September, USS MASSACHUSETTS BB­ 59 in Boston Harbor, 12 May 1942, the day of her commis­ sioning. She way not complet­ ed at fhat tim e. items such as radar antenna, {Old (he medium cmel some oI the Ugh! anti-air­ crafl weapomy have yet to be instalied. B8-59 war paiflled in II M ellSure 12 R evised cam Ott­ fJage patlem at IhaI lim e.

but two day s later, struck an unchartered reef, badly damaging her bow. BB-S7 was forced to return to Pearl Harbor for dry dock ing and repairs, arriving there in Mid­ September. Tn the meantime, USS ALABAMA BB-60 wa s commissioned on 16 August 1942 at the Norfolk Navy Yard. After fil­ li n g o ut wa s comp le ted in early November, she co mmenced her shake­ down cru ises and crew trai nin g in lh e Chesapeake Bay, moving to the Atlantic and laler to Casco Bay. Thi s continu ed thru early Jan uary 1943.

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A nother view of BB-58 on commissioning day. 30 Apr;1 1942.

The photos on these pages are of USS SOUT H DAKOTA BB-57, «fler commiss ioning . duling her shake down period, abow June J942 . Compare her Layout of twin Sill . 38cal. sec­ ondtilT mounts to thaI of her si3· ler~..hips. 88-57 was painted al that lime in {f Measure 12 R evised (M s. J2R) camouflage patT e rn c on ,\'isting of Nav .v Blue (5 -N) , Ocean Gray (5-0) Gnd Haze Gray (5-H) on her vel1ical srllfa:es and Deck Blue (2 0 -B) 0/1 all horiz.ontal sur­ f(~·es .

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SOUT H DAKOT A carried 'hree Vou g lll OS2 U K ingfisher fEoa/ planes for observati on and sco u. ring

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pUfposes at the till1e of rhis photograph. She was in Ballleship Division 6 (BatDiv 6), so the fus elag e nUI11 ­ "eling of 6 -0 -7 thm 6-0-9 tel! us ,hQJ BB-57 was ,he 'hi I'd vessel of BatDi v 6. Th e "6" >val for th e BQJDiv. while the "0" stood for b(dlleships and the n.umbers '7 " 111m '9" were the aircnft dt!signcuor. Each beo tle­ ship conied three aircraft. USS WASHlNGTON BB-56 und NORTH CAROLINA BB-55 were rhe orher 'wo ba!tleships in that division at that tim e.

USS MASSAC HUSETTS BB-59 during her trial peri ­ od, painted in a M s. J2 Revised ccon ouflage paLlem, dated 13 July 1942. Note the paintin g of {he main gun b(DTl!iS. The painl colors were Nav.y Blue (5 -N), Ocean

Gray (5-0) (Ul(1 Haze Gray (5-H) on the venical s/lIlaces and Deck Blue (20 -B) on (d { decks and horizolllol Sllr­ faces. The general mle of M s. 12 Revised camouflage was for 5-N and 5-0 to painted on the hull and 5-0 (md 5-H to be paillted on the superstructure, but there were exceptions to thaI ntle, a'i in (his case. BB-59 had a patch of 5-H On the bow , and in some areas , lhe con­ timwtion of 5-N, up info lhe supaytmcture. Al Ihis lime, BB-59 was equipp ed with a Mk. 3 fire confml radar, [he (Ultenna mounted alOp both her fore and aft M k. 38 main battery direclors. All four sec­ ondary battery Mk. 37 directors were equipped with Mk. 4 pre control rrxiar, wilh thei r antenna mounted atop those direCrOl-:i. For air search radeo', she was fitted Wilh SC radar, wilh the cultenna mounted atop the fore­ mast . Her ,')wjace search ,War was SG, it's antenna mounted (f/. the leading edge of the fOfwardfire control platfol1" , with a visibility of 270' , looking forward (md to the sides, bur nOl qfl.

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USS INDIANA BB-58 during her shak edown period, during May 1942. She was painted is one of lhe more diverse pattems of M s. 12 Revised. The colors were the Slamlard Navy Blu e, Ocean Cray and Haze Cray , but lhe pG1fem Wll5

much more liberal ;/1 i f'S appLicaTion. In

facI , if one were to study camo ufJo.g e pGltems of th e British R oyal Navy of the lime, there is som e similari­ ty, olm ost a m erging of th e {\tI0 systems. With the Ms . 12 R evised, no deck pallem was applied. All decks, horizomal and semi hori zontal !Jurjaces w ere painted with Deck Blue . The rotiarJilled 10 INDIANA at l!tis time was not com­ pl ete. M issing are the main battery fire co ntrol COld the

sUI/ace se(1lt'h radar cullelllla. The secontiaJy fire control Mk. 37 direclOrs did have Iheir M k. 4 rWarolllennajit­ led. Also, th e SC air search radar antenna wm fifted atop the forem asl. NOI e the subtle difference,f ;n th e conSfntcli on of vari­ ous plmfo nn s on and around fh e bridge Tower from ship to ship wil hi" Ihe SOUTH DAKOTA class battle­ sh ips.

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All three venical su.iface paint colors in BB-58's c(]}n­ ouflage pcdtem were applied to hath. rhe hu.ll and th.e superstructure. In fhis phofograph. dated 8 September 1942, the latest in main battery fire contml radar sys, terns has been installed. Only on the forward Mk. 38 director, a Mk. 8 FC mJar an.tenna is viJijJle. Also, the se swface sew'ch radar antenna is visible on the leading edge of the fire control platform atop the btidge.

On bOlh this page (UJd Ihe previous me pholos of 88-58 cd anchor in Hconpton Roatls, Virginia, dwin8 the p ed­

od of July Ih", September 1942. She

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USS SOUTH DAKOTA with esconing destroyers ill the bockground, dwing the opening phase of ,he "Batlle of Santa Cn
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USS SOUTH DAKOTA co mpleted repairs at Pearl Harbor by earl y October 1942. She a lso received an additional four quad 40mm AA mount s, replacing two quad 1.1 in. AA mounts , giving her a mixed battery of medium AA. She also received twenty 20mm single AA mounts. She began training with Task Force 16 (TF 16), bu iIt around the fleet aircraft carrier USS ENTERPRISE CV-6. They departed Pearl Harbor 16 October and headed for the Solomon I slands, joined by TFI7, built around USS

HORNET CV-8, off of Espiritu Santo , south of the Solomon and Santa Cruz Islands. On 26 October 1942, Japanese carrier aircraft attacked the HORNET group and with­ in one hour, attacked the ENTERPRISE group. Their focus was upon CV-6 , enabling BB-57 to put up a hi g hl y effec ti ve AA defense. The enemy aircraft turned their attack also upon BB-57. Only one hit was scored and one near miss. A short time later 14 torpedo bombers attacked, all mi ss ing. In less than an hour, 29 dive bombers attacked, sc oring only one hit

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SOUTH DAKOTA and ENTERPRISE maneuvering in attempt to evade attacking Japanese carrier aircrqft. In this photograph, ENTERPRISE is near-missed by a bam b while an A ichi D3A J "Val" dive bomber is about to crll5h into the sea.

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atop turret # I. The hit caused only minor dam­ age to the turret roof, but severe damage to two gun barrels on turret #2, renderin g both guns inoperable. One man was killed and 50 wound­ ed. SOUTH DAKOTA claimed an incredible 26 aircraft shot down, but later examination of gun mou nt reports show multiple mounts claiming the sa me kill. It would appear that the number of Japanese aircraft shot down was somewhere between 11 and 20, still an excellent kill record, one that still stands to thi s day. USS HORNET was sunk during thi s battle. A Nakajima B5N2 "Kate" torpedo bomber flyi ng between US Navy warships du.n:n.g an altack upon SOUTH DAKOTA. Two aircrqf! were attacking, one ShOT down plior to the taking oj r.his photo and this llir­ ctVtt jlew over BB-57 '.I' stem and cIW,hed into the sea. Both totpedoes missed their intended targe!.

While departing the Santa Cruz Islands, SOUTH DAKOTA collided with the destroyer USS MAHAN 00-364 while maneuvering to avoid a submarine contact. BB-57 received damage to five of her outhoard fuel oil tanks, while 00-364 had her bow crushed. The fleet arrived at Noumea, New Caledonia and both vessels were repaired for collision and battle damage. On 11 November, her damage repaired, except for the two gun barrels on turret #2, SOUTH DAKOTA, with TFl6 departed Noumea and sortied for the Guadalcanal area. During the dates of 12 to 15 November 1942, the UN attempted a large scale sustained assault upon Guadalcanal. The First Naval Battle of Guadalcanal took place south, off the island of Savo, just /8

offshore of Guadalcanal in the early morning hours, Friday, J 3 November, beginning at o150hrs. This melee between USN and UN warships was so chaotic, as the warships mixed together, firing upon one another, only for ten minutes, that it became known by the Americans as a "Bar Room Brawl." When dawn came, the UN and the USN had lost sev­ eral warships each and several others each, were adrift in the area, severely damaged. The survivors from both Navy's licked their wounds and limped home during that day, as well as the next. During the night of 13 November, the UN was able to bombard Henderson Field on Guadalcanal with heavy cruisers. They were able to retire from the area unscathed in the early hours of 14 November, but were later hit

hard by aircraft from ENTERPRISE, sinking one heavy cruiser and severely damaging two others. On the night of 14-15 November, the Second Naval Battle of Guadalcanal took place, beginning about 2317hrs., when USN battle­ ships opened fire upon an UN light cruiser and destroyer. The USN force, TF 64, consisted of the battleships WASHINGTON and SOUTH DAKOTA and four destroyers, while the UN force consisted of the battleship KIRISHIMA, two heavy cruisers, two light cruisers and eleven destroyers. The two forces made contact off of Guadalcanal, southeast of Savo Island. The two USN battleships ceased fire with no results at 2322hrs., but USN destroyers opened fire upon UN destroyers at 2325hrs., at which time the UN destroyers returned fire.

At 2333 hrs ., SOUTH DAKOTA s udde nl y los t a ll e lec tri ca l power throughout the entire battleship . Her gunfire caused c irc uits to overload and beca use those circuits were locked down , the entire elec­ trical system shorted out. The battles hi p was the n blacked out , but still able to steer manually. She was unabl e to operate all but her light AA mounts, which were useless in a ni ght s hi p-to-ship gun e ngagement. By 2335hrs., SOUTH DAKOTA stee red to starboard to avoid the USS PRESTON 00-379 which was o n fire just ahead. WAS HING­ TON stayed straight on co urse , as the two battles hips separated . At 2336hrs., PRESTON was hi t by a torpedo and sank. 2338hrs ., SOUTH DAKOTA started to regai n power to po rtions of the ship , but was still experiencing significant random power losses. Another USN destroyer, USS WALKE 00-41 6, was hit by a torpedo , blowin g off her bow all the way back to her bridge, sinking soon after. The third USN destroy­ er, US S BEN HAM 00-397 also took a torpedo in the bow at that time. The fourth USN destroyer, USS GW IN 00-433 was hit bad ly by UN destroye r gunfire and turned away, with BEN HAM and retired to the west, out of the fight. That left WAS HI NGTON as the remainin g USN combatant without damage. It was also about this time th at the destroy ­ er HU MS AYANAMI sank from damage by USN destroyer gu nfire. About 234 1hrs., SOUTH DAKOTA had e lectrica l fires break­ in g out in seve ral location s internall y. Soon thereafter, she fired her after turre t at targets astern , igniting her own OS2U observation air­ craft, the fires illuminatin g the aft end of BB-57 . The following salvo then blew the aircraft ri ght off the stern of the battleship . The Japanese force illuminated SOUTH DAKOTA with search­ li ghts about 2348 hrs . Th e majority of the UN force then co ncentrated the ir fire upon SO UTH DAKOTA. Over the next sixteen mi nutes, beg innin g at 2349hrs., and endin g at OOOShrs., she was hit by at least 27 e nemy shells, mostly in the area of the superstructu re. In the mean­ time, WASHINGTON ranged in on KIRIS HIMA duri ng thi s time. She opened fire at OOOOhrs., and ceased fire at 0007 hrs., fi ring 7S main bat­ tery rounds and achieving at least 9 hits and possibly as ma ny as 20. KIRISHIMA also received numero us Sin . hits. She turned away burn­ ing heav il y and came to a stop, all systems inoperable. By 00 IShrs., SOUTH DAKOTA began to exi t the battle area,

Thi s photo of the Inidg e tower On BB-57 shows th e shell darnage from lhe night engage­ ment during fil e Second Naval B01tle of Guadalcanal. Duting {haT engagem ent wirh the Imperial Japmese Navy , SOUTH DAKOTA, iliumin(d ed by searchlighl;. received Ih e concentrated fire oj the IJN bombardmelll force of deslroyell', light CD1d h eavy Cfuisers cuu l the bOfI/eship HUMS KlRISH(M A. She wm hil by al leml 27 e"emy shells af V(u io/ls calibers/rom 5ill ., 5 .5in .. 6in .. 8in. W'ldCR leas! one 14;n. POfNT OF ENTey ~

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are of the damage Ihat SOUTH

DAKOTA received during th e night engagement of the Second Naval Baffle of Guadnlconal,

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ilnages were pari of Ihe "Baltic Damage Repo/1" thot th e US N(wy wouLd put togeth­ er to help analyze 'what dconage was incurred and how to counter sLich damage in the future, If was (lL,~o used 10 anaLyze the effeCliveness of the enemy's anname11l, The two images to

the left sho w Ihe effecI of a shell fh(d pns,\'ed right rhrough rhe ,Htpel:H fllClt./re atld luckily did nOl e rpLode. Ir still did sig ­ dO/1lage 10 rhe bllllLe ­

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fight in g many fires and tryi ng to regai n opera­ tion of her rad ar and comm unication systems, as she slow ly stea med south and to the west of Guadaicanal. During this time WAS HINGTON turned north , west of Savo Island to co nti nue the fight wi th the UN and to draw them away from the retiring BB-57 and the two remaining destroyers. By 0033 hrs., BB-56 turned to the south , pursued by several UN destroyers and a li ght cruiser, but she managed to outrun th em. In the meantime KIRISHIMA was in a bad way . She had lost all power and steering and was bad ly afire. T here were many casual ­ tie s and the battl es hip wa s li st in g he avily. Efforts by other UN warsh ips to assist her were in vain , unable to stop the progress ive floodin g,

she c ap sized and sa nk about 5 mil es west of 34, as flagship, 24 October 1942. They headed Savo Island at 0223hrs. for Casablanca, M orocco, via Gibraltar, arri v­ SOUTH DAKOTA meet BB-56 and the ing there in the ni ght of 7 Nove mber. Thi s wns tw o damaged destroyers sO llth of Guadal cnnn! Operation Torc h, the Allied in vasion of French at a pre-arranged point and the cripp led fl eet Morocco , with BB-59 leading the largest na val steamed to Noumea , New Caledoni a for re pairs. fleet ever assembled to that date . The in vas io n began a t 0630hr5 . , 8 BB -57 rece ived maj o r d amage to he r s uper­ structure during the battle, with 38 kill ed and November 1942, when French shore batterie s 60 wounded, but she was lucky, as it cou ld ha ve fired upon the invasion and s upport vesse ls as bee n much worse. WASHINGTON 's attack they approached the beach to land. BB-59 was upon KIRISHIMA saved SOUTH DAKOTA . in formation JO mil es offs hore of Casablanca BB-57 headed for the US east coast for major Harbor wit h the heavy crui sers USS WICHITA repairs, via the Panama Canal , arrivi ng at New CA-45 and the TUSCALOOSA CA -44 . By York Navy Yard , 8 December 1942. 0700hrs. , one of BB-59 's OS2Us was returning USS MASSACHU SETTS BB ­ 59 with French fighters in pursuit, the USN war­ steamed from Casco Ba y, Maine and joined TF ships shotting down one fighter, with the other BB-59. en route to rhe Nonh Ajlic(U1 CoaH, lost

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vation aircraft fO storm damage in the Ac/antic Ocean, 4 November 1942 , during lIWT Clvssing.

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aircraft turning back. Then, French shore batter­ ies shifted fire onto BB-S9 and the cruisers. Also at this time, the new and incomplete French battleship .JEAN BART, tied up at a pier in Casablanca Harbor, opened fire with her one operating I Sin. four gun tun'et upon BB -S 9 and the cruisers out to sea. It was at 0704hrs. that MASSACHU­ SETTS opened fire upon .JEAN BART. She ceased fire at 0833hrs. BB-S9 had numerou s problems with the shock from firin g her main gu ns temporaril y knocking out all radar sys ­ tems. Fire from JEAN BART was ineffective, w ith no hit s on the USN wars hip s. J EAN BART was hit by BB -S9 fi ve times with exten­ sive damage, as we ll as sinking a destroyer tied up astern. Extensive she ll damage was al so done to port facilities by the USN warships . During the later portion of this bom­ bardment, seven French destroyers sortied from

unknown French submarine. She managed to evade them , one narrowly mi ssed by less than I Sft. Also at this time a French light cruiser and t wo add iti o na l destroyers so rtied from Casab lanca towards the invasio n force to the east. These were engaged by the USN cruisers and kept at bay. MASSACHUSETTS resumed fire upon Casablanca Harbor targets at lO3Shrs. Again at 11 00hrs., she shifted fire back to the French destroyers that were engaged by USN cl1lisers, helping to sink another and drive off the French li ght cru iser with heavy damage. Durin g that time she was hit by a S.I in round that infli cted little damage. There was a lull in fighting until that afternoon when USN warships , including BB­ S9 engaged minor French Navy vessels and the s hore batteries around Casablanca. BB-S9 ceased fire at 13SShrs. to conserve ammunition in case the French battleship RICHELIEU sor­ , tied from Dakar to oppose the All ied invasion force . This never materi ali zed a nd the naval e ngagement ended w ith BB-S9 "clearin g her guns" with one last salvo at the shore batteries. MASSACHUSETTS expended jus t over 60% of her main battery ammunition , he r J 6in. guns fired 786 shells and her Sin . secondary mounts fired 221 rounds. On 12 November 1942 , BB -S9 departed the North African Coast for the Un ited States, arriving at the Norfolk Navy Yard, 22 November 1942. She would soo n steam to the Boston Navy Yard for a major refit, later gun­ nery practic e off Portland, Maine. in Casco Bay, into February 1943.

Casablanca Harbor to attack the landing force 13 miles to the east, guarded only be the crui s­ erS USS AUGUSTA CA-31. USS BROOKLYN CL-40 and destroyers. At 08SShrs. , MASSA­ CHUSETTS and her cruisers headed at top speed to intercept those French destroyers. The French destroyers were engaged about 0918hrs. by the USN cruisers and BB-S9. USN cruisers continued east, but BB-S9 turned back west to avoid a destroyer torpedo attack. She was capa­ ble of ranging in on the French destroyers from much further away than the USN cruisers. During this time, MASSACHUSETTS again experienced radar systems failures from the shock of firing her own main guns. About 1000hrs., TUSCALOOSA and BB-S9 hit and sank a French destroyer, but BB-S9 came under fire from shore batteries, hit once by an 7.6in shell with minor damage. At lOOShrs ., BB-S9 then came und er torpedo attack from an

On the stem, looking fo/ward upon the after turret and superstructure of USS MASSAC HUSETTS BB-59 during a lull in the naval engagement of! ihe French port of Casablanca, M orocco, Note the 20mm single AA mount without the nonnal protective mount tub to the left side of this phOiO , The wriling on the inside of it's g WI shield reat/s ''Lead Damnit Lead," 10 make gUIl­ ners lake proper aim at their aircn:{t /cogels. The radar alllemwjilled mop the Mk. 38 main battelY directors is for her Mk. 3 fite con trol ra1ar. Those fitted aJ0P the smaller Mk, 37 seconavy directors was for 'he Mk, 4 fire control/udal' system. An SC air search radar anten­ na was mounted w op the foremast . Note that the qjter deck in the aircrof, handling area is steel, as 'hat was wood covered in both the NORTH CAROLINA mld IOWA class baJ" esh ips ,

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USS ALABAMA BB-60 ilt anchor, dw;n8 her shakedown periM, in Ly nn HW eII Roa:Is, of! of Virginia Beach. Virginia. She wa~' painted in a Ms . 12R canwujtage palt'em in the ,~'tandtD-d colors of 5-N. 5-0 and 5-H Careful study of the photos on this and,the /olluwilfg Ijage show her pattern to be sorn,ewhaJ in"egular. This photo was taken I December 1942. Below is an aerial image r
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USS ALABAMA BB-60 if! Hampton Ro(m. olf oj' the Norfolk Navy Yam, Notfolk, Virginia, 1 December 1942. The ;Ireglliatit;e.> (loottl t";s cm/Ou­ flage patlem appl;ed to BB-60 are the ItSC of the 1i.~IJlest mint: 5-H run1ling from the superstmclllre oown, onlo the hull . Also the ,,~e b/,5-N from Ihe hull , lip imo the superstructure .

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USS INDIANA BB-58 at anchor off of Noumea, New Caledonia, These photos weFe taken jrom USS SARATOGA CV-3, 17 December 1942. BB-58 was then painted in a Ms. 22 camouflage. pattern, the paint color~'; consisting of 5-N on the hull and 5 -H on every venical su}face above 5-N. The decks and hmizontal swfaces were painted with 20-B. Note the Mk. 8 FC radar C01tenna aJ;op the main battery directors. This way {/ much improved systern t/ver"IJr!1!,iff r Mk . 3 rad,,·. At that tim e she wm sfill filled with Iho 81; . ,.~ .lUiarre£l~t-amenna mmtnted on her f oremast .

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Below are two images of SOUTH DAKOTA taken at the conclusion of her refil to repair battl e damage incLmeci al rhe Second Naval Battle of GuactrJ canal.

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BB-57 at the condusion her refit at the -New Yark Navy ford. This photo wa, taken 23 Febnwry - 192/3. Noto thal SOUTH DAKOTA was then painted in a Ms. 21 camOl(flage of 5~N, an overall N avy Blu~ . with deck;, and Iwfizontcil ""u/a :es painted in Deck. Blue io­ .1l. A.lso_nme tbat only rhe g{ter-M fi. : 38 r(tai~, battelY. director wastilt/ed witlr a upgrarh/ Mk _ 8 F.e rti/t;JJ-.

USS INDIANA BB-58 began combat operations on 9 November 1942 when she arrived at Pearl Harbor and later steamed for Noumea, New Caledonia. She joined with USS NORTH CAROLINA BB-55, and WASHING­ TON, replacing SOUTH DAKOTA, at Noumea, 28 November. They would operate as a distant covering force to the aircraft carriers ENTERPRISE and SARATOGA. BB-58 also covered troop and invasion convoys in the Solomon Island campaign for the following few months, into early 1943. In this role she acted as an AA escort and performed bombardment duties for landings _ This time was rather uneventful for INDIANA. 28

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ALABAMA returned to the US east coast and continued training in Chesapeake Bay through January and into February 1943. She joined Task Group 22 (TG 22) and returned to Casco Bay for tactical maneuvers and battle practice with SOUTH DAKOTA in March, who had just finished her battle damage refit. BB-58 also performed maneuvers with BB-57 and the aircraft carrier USS RANGER CV-4 in the North Atlantic during the later part of March, into April 1943. During this time the two battle­ ships operated with the RANGER to protect convoys in the North Atlantic Ocean en route to Murmansk, Russia. SOUTH DAKOTA and ALABAMA were the long range escort for

those convoys in the event that the German bat­ tleships SCHARNHORST and TIRPITZ, or the heavy cruiser LDTZOW sortied to attack the MUlmansk bound convoys. In the meantime, MASSACHUSETTS departed the US east coast in late February 1943 and transited the Panama Canal en route to Pearl Harbor. From there she departed for Noumea, New Caledonia, arriving there 4 March 1943. She joined her sistership INDI­ ANA and battleship WASHINGTON, replacing NORTH CAROLINA who departed to Pearl Harbor for a refit and upgrade. The battleships bombarded Russell Island in that invasion dur­ ing April 1943_

USS ALABAMA BB-60 dwing her shakedown cl1lise and crew lmining in the Nonh AtlaJ1lic Ocean and in. Casco Bay, off of Pon/culd Main e, dun:ng December 1942, ;11{0 Jrmu{J]Y 1943. M,ulY of {he color photos of B8-60 thm were lakell dwing this littu show lhe e/fect.\' of extreme cold in their di:scoloratiofl of the image.

Above, USS ALABAMA BB-60 at sea in high winds, 4 March 1943, off ,!f the US Emt Com! .

BB-60 from USS RANGER CV-4 , 28 Mmrh 1943 , possibly in Casco Bay , Maine , She war painted inl.o a Ms. 22 camouflage on her lasl YaIr!. peJiod, more thcol likely som etim e in Febmcuy 1943 .

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ALABAMA a nd SOUTH DAKOTA bega n opera tion s wi th the British Royal Navy, Hom e F lee t , dur in g mid -Apr il , ba se d out of Arge ntia , Newfo undland. They wou ld later be ba sed ou t of Scapa Flow, beginning in mid-Ma y 1943. Thi s was done to re inforce the Royal Navy (RN ) in the North Atlant ic due to th eir efforts to bu ild th e ir s tr e ngt h in th e M editerranean theater of opera ti o n s. Th e British appeal for assistance was answered wi th the assignmen t of these two battleships and an esco rt of five de s troyers. BB-S7 and BB-60 work ed with hea vy units of th e RN throu gh Jul y 1943. Th e ir duty included long ra nge Ano th.er view, a close~ up of rhe s up ers tructure of ALABAMA, Ihi s phOlograph lakenjlvlJl CV-4, Some­ lim e during March 1943. She Wa\' painled in Ms. 22 camouflage at the time of this pholO. She also has the upgraded M k. 8 Fe /TOtTI', Ihe al11enM visible aLOp the Mk. 38 m ain batwy {5reCIOIs. It "ppeo)'s that she still retain ed Ihe SC air search ratto·, (he (uztennO mounted GlOp lhe j'oremasf.

e sc ort of Murmansk bound co nvoy s . They operated w ith the RN battleships KING GEORGE V, DUKE OF YORK and ANSON. Early in Jun e 194 3, both SO UTH DAKOTA and ALABAMA , along w ith RN Home Fleet units, covered the re in force ment of the ga rrison on the island of Spitzberge n. This was an important North Atlanti c weather Slation manned by All ied Forces. It is located betwee n the Barents S ea and the Arcti c Ocea n , over 1000 miles north of the Arctic Circle. This was po ss ibly the furthe st north that any American battles hip has ever ventu red. Later in July 1943, both American bat-

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tleship s participate d , w ith RN Home Fle et heavy units in "Operation Governor," a diver­ sion aimed toward so uth ern Norway, to draw German attention away from Alli ed operations in the invas ion of Sic il y, Italy. It had also been dev ised to attempt to lure ou t the German bat­ tleships and heavy cru isers into battle. This was un s uc cessful , w ith th e German hea vy units remai nin g in the ir Norweg ian fjord anchorages. O n I Au g us t 19 4 3, both SOUTH DAKOTA and ALABAMA and the ir sc reenin g destroyers, de tached from the RN Home Fleet and steamed for the Norfo lk Na vy Yard . Thi s TF arri ved at Norfolk on 9 August 1943 .

Thi.v histon e color photog raph of Ihe sum of ALABA.M:A ;s a grear view of m{Q/Y derails On Ihis area of the bCd(leship. Th e larg e boom pl"(~iecfil1g out 110m fhe starboard of her hull was kl1.o "vn as a "Boar Boom, "/0 which fhe sh.ips boats could be kept ill the

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waJercd read}' and were lied up to (hi s boom. Th e aircraft on lite stco-iJoard adcqJUlr was a

Voughl as 2 U Kingfisher obsel1'aJiofL jloaJpic01e. The SOUTH DAKOTA clau bedtie­ .'I·h ips call1.ed three such aircmji. This ;mage WC/.\· taken. somerime in 1943 .

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Another great II;s tOric color p~OIO l aken aboard BB-60 , sometime ilT l ate 1942, or early 1943. She waf ope""­

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Ocean in the vicin i l), of Newfoundland. Duting [hOI time she U'QS' going through her shakedown croue and crew tmining.

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SOUTH DAKOTA in Scapa Flow, Great Bli/Gin, during June 1943 , wilde ope rar;"tg with the Royal Navy Home Fleet. She w", wuiel1aking onti.aircrajt firing practice and Ifl cU'l.euvering at the lim e this photograph Will' tak en. The aircrqft in th is image is a Bel1ujighler.

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From Ih e slern deck of Ihe HMS KING GEORGE V, the Amelican b{ulleships SOUTH DAKOTA and ALABAMA, during a voyage willi Ihe Brilish Royal Nwy Home Fleet. The dale of this photograph is heLieved (0 be sometime chu7ng July

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ships. BB-57 was pain ,ed in Ms. 21 and BB-60 IVai' painled il1 Ms . 22. Ms. 21 lVas

possibly a belfer ccunouflage application jor IIi gilt engagem elliS,

011 this and th e p receding page are historic photographs oj USS ALABAMA BB-60 in em-Iy December 1942, eluling her shakedown and crew train ing period. She wore th is 111 s. 12R C(onm~f7age p(dfem for on ly (f sh0l1 tim e, until she put to

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11lirh The British Royol Nav y .

Looking over Ihe ifl c SOUTH DAKOTA as .,he sreams oul of Scapa Flnw , \Vilh her s istership AMA followin g a'i tem, in her wake. who war also being followed by SON, visible j usl beyond HMS SHEFFffiLD . The capital warship d her WIIS l;fMS RENOWN. BOlh of Ilzese RN w{]/shipS j!lSl. compiel r rifits and were fJ7!shly painted at tlte lillie I"e
of Ihis pholo.

The STIl {dt illsel image is of one of BB-57 's OS2 U Kingfisher obser­ vation aircm/t being i nlided 0/1,10 the ship 's catapul"l . dJ+rin g June 1943. in SC<¥)Q Flow.

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This image WaI' taken from the bridge of the SOUTH DAKOTA while she Will ope/tilin g with tile RN battleship HMS DUKE OF YORK and the aircroft anTier HMS UNl­ CORN . They sonied off 11I'e No nveg ian coast, near Sogn1iord' 23 lilly 1943" in an attempt to lure out the Gelmall bCd!ieships TIRPITZ COld SCHAR NHORST .

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Both this and the photograph Oil the followillg page Wel~ taken aboard SOUTH DAKOTA during 1944. III this image her band is procticing afl of tul7~t #3, which is traifled to starboard. The rest of the crewmembers in thi,f image are relaxing in the hot summer sun of the Pacific Ocean. The image on the following page is of BBMS7's OS2Us undergoing some maintenance time.

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Both of the images on this page are of the USS ALABAM A, 20 Aug" s, 1943. S he was painted imo a Ms . 21 cam ouflage, which was lUI overall painting of Navy Blue 0 11 alL vertical surfaces and Deck BI"e on all decks and hor;·

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This contemponvy photogrtfJh of th e ALA BAMA . l ike the image to the left. shows ho ..... I1Il1ch of her WW lI cOIifigura­ lion she retained. This image w llI' l akel! I jwlU(VY 1980.

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1943. Nervy personnel have marked the image with the upgrades that were made £0 the ballleship during Ihat rejit. Adjacent 10 the waist Mk . 37 director LOwer , a Mk . 51 AA direcror and tub was installed, as weI! as modifications to the Jarema'lI. NO! ,,!orked, but jilled, was- (01 lXliriOlwl SG rat/tu' COl.lelll'lfl atop the mainmnsr, rlum g i ving BB-60 a. ,,¥IIlJ" sweep of 360", whemas s"he only had 270 0 previousLy. InTeresfingly ellough, she did nOf receive an. upgrale 10 her ail' ~;earc" nxiar, (he older

SC amenlla visible atop herforema;;t.

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USS SOlITH DAKOTA BB-57 depw1ing the Norfolk Navy fwd, 20 August 1943, Gl the conclusi.on of a minor refit after her selv ;ce with the Royal Navy 's Home Fleet. She retained her Ms. 21 camouflage configura/ion with a fresh application. The one thing thai was- unique about 88-57 wa\' Ihe quad 40mm mount at the bow. Because she had 0 redu.ced 5in. balte/y. she wac; able

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Some of the cri1ifiolls male to BB-57 aJ this refit were circled ill these pho­ lographs . Like BB-60, SOUTH DAKOTA also received (I Mk. 51 AA d;,~ctor Md tub. both pon and .~·t(J,board, amidships. She also receili ed an elecrronics upgrcK/e to her M.k . 8 FC reria)" cdop the Mk. 38 foretop main balfef)' director. The forgesl upgrade fO BB-S7 .vas the addition of the SK air secur:h ratif1l'syS ­ lem. 'he (U1./ennCl mOUn.1ed mop the foremast. This S K system was' much sffVnger and m.ore accuraJe than the previolls S C system .

INDIANA and MASSACHUSETTS continued their support role in the Guadalcanal area, based out of Noumea , New Caledonia. By 17 May 1943 , the British Roya l Navy aircraft ca rrier HMS VICTORIOUS arrived as a replacement to ENTERPRISE , which needed an overhaul. VICTORIOUS , outfitted wit h USN aircraft and additional AA mounts , operat­ ed wi th SARATOGA, protected by the battle­ s hips NORTH CARO LINA, MASSACHU­ SETTS and INDIANA . For the rest of May, and into June , this group, with crui sers and destroy­ ers trained in the seas near New Caledonia. The same training for the aircraft carriers, supported by the three fast battleships, continued through Jul y, in an effort to cross train USN and RN av iators, while protecting USN warships in the

Solomon Island area . While training , this TF Yard , 21 Augu st 1943, bound for the Pacific al s o s upporte d the operations in the New th ea ter of operation s. They tran si te d the Georgia campaig n. Panama Ca nal , stopped at Pearl Harbor, arri v­ By the be ginn ing of August 1943 , ing at Ha va nnah Harb or, Efate Island , in the IND IAN A was en route to Pearl Harbor to re­ New Hebrides chain of is lands, 14 September supply, arri ving there on 9 August. By the end 1943. They trained with the new ESSEX class of Augu st, BB-58 departed with the new air­ aircraft carriers for the remainder of September craft carriers USS ESSEX CV-9, YORKTOWN and all of October 1943. The summer of 1943 CV-IO and INDEPENDENCE CVL-22, cruis­ was a time of recuperati on for the US Na vy, ers and destroyers on a surprise raid upon the due to the heavy losses they incurred with the Japanese stronghold at M arcus Island. Thi s raid fighting during the Guadalcanal campaign . This took place on I September 1943, with complete was also a time that the US Navy designed and success, decimating the Japanese there. This refined new tactics and much training was need comp leted , INDIAN A returned to Pearl Harbor for thi s. By early November, US Naval force s re-grouped in the Fiji Islands to start the new for a refit. In the meantime SOUTH DAKOTA ca mpaign of " Island Hopping" towards victory and ALABAMA departed the Norfolk Na vy over Japan . USS INDlANA BB-58 undenvay ;n rhe Pacific Ocean , 24 ](JJwary 1944. She was painted in a Measure 32 Pattern llD (Ms. 321llD) , also kn own as a ''Dazzle Patfem" cam OUflage. The paint colors for this camou­ Jlage consisted of Light Gray (5- L!, Ocean Gray (5 -0) and Dull Black (BK) on vertical suI/aces and 5-0 and Deck Blue.(20-B) on decks and horizonral swjaces.

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IND IA NA s feam in g with Task Force 58.1 on 27 JaJluary i944, en route W cuUlck Taran island airfield, Maloelap Atoll, Marshall Islands, wearing a Ms. 321I I D cconollflage, Ihe only SOUTH DAKOTA class battleship 10 wear a thzzle camouflage, Taken by a USS ENTERPRISE CY-fJ photographer.

USS SOUTH DAKOTA BB-57 , 29 j {Ulluuy 1944. She 11'", screening rhe canier.; of TF-58 duril1g rhe alfack upon Ihe Marshall 1slantk. This pholograph, laken on Ihe "bove dote, is off of rhe KlI'ajalein Atoll, shOl flVl1I Ihe fleer eCD7ier USS INTREPID CV-ll , wilh rhe bOJlleship NORTH CAROLIN A, rhe lighr conier MONTEREY CVL­ 26 {Dlli rh e heavy emiser INDIANAPOLIS CA-35 i1l backglVu/ld.

AnOlher view of BB-57 from on aircra/i from USS BUNKER HILL CY- 17, daJed 24 January 1944. fJI roule to the large scale attack upon the Japanese forces entrenched throughout the Morshall lslflJ1(ls. BB-60 is ill the backglVund" as the two battleships were en route to bombard the islands of Roi roul Namur, I Febmary 1944.

The next offensive in vo l vi n g th e SOU TH DAKOTA class battleships against the Japanese began wi th the attack a nd liberati o n of the vas t Gi lbert and Marshall Islands, starting in November 1943. ALABA­ MA was part of the screen for the carrier YORKTOWN in the invasio n of Tarawa. Whe n th at ope ration was sec ured, she joined her sis tership SOUTH DAKOTA and WASHINGTON to screen the TG around BUNKER HILL and her TF. They would then steam to bombard the island of Nauru , after which , they escorted the carri ­ ers back to the New Hebrides, then onto Pearl Harbor, arrivi ng 12 January 1944 , with the SOUTH DAKOTA rema inin g at Efate, New Hebrides. INDIANA and MA SSAC H USETTS we re th e screen for the ENTERPRISE carrier TG on those raids upon Tarawa, in the Gilberts, and other island airfields, as we ll as thei r bombardment and that upon Na uru . Both battleships moved on to bombard Kwajalein and it 's air­ fie ld in late Jan uary 1944.

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INDIANA being eased inlo a dry dock at the Pearl HcuiJor Navy Yard, aj'er her anival Ihtle 14 FeblllCUY 1944. Note the mis,\'i ng rCDlg ejinder, catapult and after 40mm AA mount , as well as the extensive ckonage 10 her huU.

AnOlher view of INDIANA in a ,by dock of Ihe Pecul HOJ1)Or Navy Yard, ajier herani l'ollhere 14 Feb",cu), 1944 .

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Thi.' is aJ10ther im age of the b01lleship SOUTH DAKOTA at sea dwing the assault upon the M arshall Islalltis, taken Jrwf! an aircrift from BUNKER HILL, 24 J{I1Iuwy 1944 .

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BB-57 at an chor ill rhe harbo r Ql Majuro Is lan.d, (he Marshall Is/wltis, 8 April 1944. Th ere is a BALTIM ORE class heavy emiser beyond her stem wId Ihe USS WICHI­ TA CA-45 is at anchor beyund her bow .

MASSACHUSETTS slowing moving fOYWCDri, jusl out of Ihe Pugel S OUM NfNal Shipy ard, II July 1944 . She finely received a major upgrade to her air search radar wilh Ihe ""#rion of Ihe S K system, Ihe an.tenna mounted 0 11 the foremosl . She also had Irer S G sur­ face search rodl". upgraded by mouming {he CDZlel1na (J/op both {he fore {l11d iff m asls.

During this refit BB-59 also received a pair of 40m.m Ql-w d AA mOuTHS Oil rhe foredeck.

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In the pre-d awn hours of I February 1944, IN DlANA was in a serious colli sion with WASHINGTON, disabling both warships. While maneuvering to refuel, BB-S8 turned in front of BB-S6, unable to avoid INDIA NA, cru s hed almost 100ft. of her bow, severely holing BB-58 on her starboard side. BB-S6's fore deck ripped the rangefinder off turret #3 , slid along INDI­ ANA's deck, also ripping off the catapult and starboard aft 40mm mount, before collapsing onto her cru shed bow. The crippled battleships limped to Majuro for temporary repairs before steaming for Pearl Harbor. MASSACH USETTS, SOUTH DAKO­

TA and ALABAMA, still screening carrier TFs, took part in the mid-February raid upon the pri­ mary IJN fo rward anchorage at Truk with devas­ tating results to the Japanese Navy. The three sis­ ter ships would continue their carr ier sc ree n duties during the raids upon the Marianas, with strikes upon Tinian , Saipan and Guam. During this operation , a Sin. mount aboard ALABAMA accidentally fi red into another Sin. mount lUlling 5 crewmen, 21 February 1944. They returned to Majuro by the end of February 1944. The three SOUTH DAKOTA class bat­ tleships later sortied for carrier strike operations with TF-S8 against strongholds in the Caroline

Island s at Palau , Yap, Ulithi, and Woleai , 22 March 1944. The battleships returned briefly to Majuro to re-supply and then departed to cover carrier strikes against various airfield targets and cover US troop landings along the New Guinea coast. INDIAN A, just returned from Pearl Harbor, co lli sion damage rep aired, joined her three sisterships and was able to pruticipate in a seco nd strike upon the UN base at Truk, 29-30 April 1944. Afterwards, MASSACH USETTS departed for Puget Sound Naval Shipyard for a major refit, while the other three returned to Majuro to re-supply.

MASSACHUSETTS dllring an linde/way replenish­ l1I ellt (UNREP) wirh rhe f1eel lallker USS KASKASKIA AO-27 , 17 Ocrober 1944.

USS INDIANA 88-5 8 at anchor off of Pllget SOllnd Naval Shipyard, 1 Decel1!b er 1944 . She was then

prep(]}ing to depan for the Pacific theater of opettaions.

S he weB'" aJ this nfll to receive the basic overlwul ({ter tlVa years of hcod sle('unin.s in (l camba zotte.

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MASSAC H USE TTS arr ive d at the Pu get Sound for a major refit to re-line her main a nd second ary gun baJTel s. She completed thi s task on 11 July 1944. She arri ved at Pearl Ha r bor , de parting th e re o n I A ugu s t f o r Eniwetok, the Mars ha ll Island s . BB-59 later departed 30 August for the Philippine Islands. 60

SOU TH DAKOTA, I N DIA NA a nd ALA BAMA spent a month, beginning 4 May, exercis i ng and perfo rming min or refit s at Majuro , Marshall Islands . Thi s was to prepare for th e in va s io n of the Mari ana I s la nd s. Depa lting Majuro, 5 June 1944 , as part of TF­ 58, the three sisterships screened carrie r stri ke

groups and performed bo mbard me nt duties as they assa ulted the Marianas. On 13 Jun e 1944 , BB -57 , 58 and 60 with fo ur other battleships , bombard ed Saipan and Tinian with both their main and secondary batteries. Bac k to guarding the fast cani er strike groups, SOUTH DAKOTA was hit by a 5001b.

bomb on her main deck, 19 June. Damage was heavy, with 24 killed and as many wounded . BB-57 managed to continu e fightin g durin g what wou ld become known as the "Battle of the Philippine Sea." ALABAMA was near-missed , but INDIANA narrowly escaped a torpedo onl y to be hit in the hull side by a crashing Japanese airc ra ft. Debri s sc attered ov er he r deck, bu t caused little damage. The I.JN losses were huge, with over 300 aircraft shot down by USN air­ craft and warships and they lost two fleet carri­ ers. The US Navy carrier strike forces contin­ ued th eir conquest of the Mariana s, with th e primary foc us on Guam through to the end of June 1944 . SOUTH DAKOTA de parted Ulithi 27 June for Pugel Sound for an overh aul and refit,

an'iving there 10 Jul y. Her overhaul was short, dep a rting 26 A ugust for Pearl Harbor , the n back to Ulithi to join TF-38 and screen the fast carrier strike groups. MA SSACH USETTS trained with carri­ ers in preparation fo r the pending invasio n of th e Philippine Island s dur ing th e month of September. She was an AA escort for the carrier strike gro up s beca use of her pow e rful AA armame nt , as were the other fast battleships. Their speed was also another reason these bat­ tleships were used extensively with the fa st car­ rier strike groups. ALABAM A and INDIANA continued to steam in the area around the Marianas to pro­ tect US landing forces on Saipall, screening the fast carrier strike groups as they struck enem y

shipping, airfields, and shore installati ons on Guam , Tinian and Saipall . They later returned to tb e Marshall Island s fo r mainte nance by earl y JUly. Durin g tbe rem ainder of July and into Au gust, BB -60 continued to sup port the fast carrier strike groups as AA escort , and to protect landin gs on Guam, Pal au, Ulithi, and Yap. During Septemb er they continued their support of the fas t carrier strike groups in the preparation of tb e coming invasion of Leyte , tbe Philippines. INDIANA departed in early October for a muc h need refit and overhaul. Sbe was bound for Puget Sound , arriving at tbat Navy Yard , 23 October 1944. Sbe would be there for more than a month of round the clock work and not depart for Pearl Harbor until 6 December 1944. USS MASSACHUSETTS BB-59 a1 sea in UNREP Wilh the f leet oiler USS SAUGATUCK AO-7S, en m ule to bombard Japan. This photograph was taken from tkef/eet aircrqft COIrier USS HORNET CV-1 2, 20 A pril 1945 .

..

USS ALABAMA BB-60, 12 March 1945, deponing the Puge! Sound Naval S hipYCDtl after (f minor nii! and over­ h{Q,JI. This W(r,' /nost.I)' routine, but she did stiffer .wme t/collage j mm the ma\'sive ty phoon encoumered in mid­ Decem her 1944. One of the upgrades during lhis relif Wll5 the aldifion of SK-2 radar, 'he (D1fenna on herjoremast. Ano/her addilion was the then new SR air search ({mr system, a redundam sys fem, to SK, orSK·2 , it 's (DUen11a installed 011 the mainll1ast.

The image ro the light is £/ great view of /naJlY of the fined £ult ennO duting rhis n4/f ill Febn/(IIY 1945. No,e 'hat BB-60 ,"so received an. I.fpgm{k 10 her main bOllery fire control rewl". with the then nel".! Mk . 13 FC antenflQ Jilted OIOP the fOJward maifl baltel), director.

-

SOUTH DAKOTA joined TF- 38 with M ASSACHU SETTS and ALABAMA and sorti ed 6 October 1944 for air attacks upon Okinawa. In mid-October they supported carri er strikes aga inst shipping and shore install ation s o n Formosa. The three SOU TH DAKOTA c lass battleships were screen in g a fast ca rrier strike force of TF-38 whe n th e landings on Leyte took place on 20 October 1944. The largest naval battle in history bega n on 22 October 1944, known as the " Battl e of Leyte Gu lf," was so large that it was broken dow n into several battl es over a six day period. The battle­ ships and the ir floc k of fast carri ers steamed north towards a Japanese force deliberately set up as a decoy. The American fleet feU for the ru se. The Japanese pla n almost worked, had it not been for the damage previ­ ous ly infli cted upon them in the early stages of tbe battl e . The UN just could not press for ward their attack successfull y. They had ga mbl ed eve rythin g and by the end of thi s battl e, their losses were substantial. They were never agai n able to assemb le an effec ti ve strikin g force . The fa st carrier strike force that the three SOUTH DAKOTA class battlesh ips were supporting did strike the UN divers ionary force with a vengea nce, sin king fo ur UN carriers , a crui ser and a destroyer. This was known as the "Battle off Cape Engano ," one of the lesser battles of the "Battl e of Leyte Gulf." Du e to th is circumstance, the fast battleships were not abl e to engage the UN battleships, as they so badl y wanted to. Afte r th e retreat of th e Im perial Ja pan ese Na vy o ut of the Philip pin e Is lands , the US Navy co ntinu ed with air strikes agai nst ai r fie lds and shore in stallations on many of the Philip pi ne Island s, including Lu zon, Manil a and Mindoro th roughout the month of November. SOU TH DAKOTA , MAS SACHUSETTS and ALABA MA continu ed to support this force. They ret urned to Ulithi on 24 November 1944, the three battle­ shi ps fe-supp lied and their crew 's rested for 16 days. In the mea nti me, IND I ANA arr ived a t Pearl Harbor on 12 December. She condu cted tra ining exercises with otber flee t units for nine days in Hawa iian waters. BB-5 8 departed for bombard ment duty in the invasio n of I wo Jima , 10 January 1945 , via Eniwetok a nd Sa ip an . Bombardment of Iwo Jima took place on 24 January with little resistance . She departed Iwo Jima for Ulithi , arri ving there 26 January fo r two weeks of re-supplyin g and crew rest.

II 1·lew thoard INDIA..\lA, lM'en fmm Ihe

rWn :01Itenna WfR' v~ry similfl'lo ea.'h otlier, but the two peJ./o17n(1d the same June­ /ionj . ~'Ps Wtfrn fined to bdtlt!:rh.ips ttnd ('m isers more frequen tly . This was a height

ji,u511li rrdr ,hflt "''''" v..,'

tlC
INDlANA and MASSACHUSETIS at sea off the coilll of'

Japon , 14 July 1945. They were COndu.cling a bombard­ ment of rhe i mperial Ironwork s at Kam.aisi1i, ofllhe island of Honshu. . The heavy cntisers in the background of this image were QUINCY and CHICAGO .

SOUTH DAKOTA , MASSACHU­ SETTS and ALABAMA departed U lithi 10 December 1944 in support of fa st ca rri er strike groups in ai r assaults upon Japanese forces on L uzo n . The se started o n 14 December with attacks upon air field s in an effort to ne utrali ze Japanese retaliation for the US in vasion upon Mindoro. The mi ss ion was comple ted by 17 December and as the fleet attempted to refuel at sea, UNREP, they were surpri sed by a massive typhoon. Rough seas and very high winds made refueling impo ss ibl e by th e 18 th. Winds reac hed speeds of 120 knots, wi th seas as high SOUTH DAKOTA Cd sea. 21 August 1945, off of Japau, as pW1

~f

t-he fleet kept in reseIVe off' of' Japan in ca<;e of' a

surprise attack during tlu: time of Japan's

SttlTender.

as 40 to SOft. When the storm cleared the area by 20 December , the US N avy lost three destroyers, severe damage to a cruiser and sev ­ eral carriers, wi th many warships receivi ng minor storm damage. Of th e three SOUTH D AKO TA c la ss battleships, ALABAMA received th e mo st damage, losing all of he r OS2U Kingfi sher aircraft in the larges t storm the US Navy had ever weathered. The three battleships retired with the Third Fleet to Ulithi on 24 December, making repairs and re-supply­ in g. ALABAMA departed fo r Pu ge t So und Naval Shipyard , 26 December 1944.

SOUTH DAKOTA and MASSACHU­ SETTS supported the fast carrier strike groups in their assau lts from 30 December through 26 J anuary 1945. They made air strike s up on Formosa, Luzon, Camranh Bay, Hong Kon g and Okinawa . The Third Fleet returned to Ulithi to re-supply on 28 January. INDIANA had just arrived at Ulithi two days earlier. The Fifth Fleet sortied from Ulithi on 10 February 1945, the three SOUTH DAKOTA class battleships BB-57 , 58 and 59 , included, for waters off of Iwo Jima and Japan for opera­ tions for the invasion of Iwo Jima.

us S

MAS SACHUS ETTS BB-59 or Ihe conclusion 0/ Irer filIal repi jll jeu1Ucuy 1946, at the Puger Sound Ncnl(l/ Shipyturl. She wmo repailrten qgain with the Ms . 22 cam ouflage paltem, but due to the shonage of blue p igmclu at rhai rim e, there was a Ch{Du:e rhar she waS' painted "WiTh Ilemml g 1U)'S . Note the S R nrur anten.na on her maimna.)'{.

~

... T he invasion of Iwo Jima began on 16 Febru ary 1945 with air strikes on that island. BB-57, 58 and 59 all supported the fa st carrier st rik e gro up s in this operation, fir s t of th e Japanese home island of Honshu in an effort to d isab le Japa nese land ba sed air power. B y 17 February, they moved to launch strikes upo n Iwo Jima. The nex t da y the three fa st battle-

s hip s bombard ed l wo J ima wi th th eir 16i n . guns. They stayed in the vicinity of Iwo Jima until they g uarded the carriers on strikes upon Tokyo on 25 February and the n Okina wa on I March 1945. TF-58 arri ved back at Ulithi on 3 March to re-supply. Task Force 58 departed Ulithi 14 March 1945 with the SOUTH DAKOTA, INDIANA

as support for the fast ca rri e r s trike g ro up s to o pe ra te air strikes aga inst Japan to di sa ble Japanese air power and a ny rema inin g naval strength. The air strikes were aga in st the IJN bases and IJ A air fields at Kobe , Kure and Kyu sbu on 18 ancl 19 March. While gua rd ing the fast ca rri e rs, the three SO UTH DAKOTA class battleships and other

USS INDIANA BB-58 at sea, jusl Qut of her final refil

the Pugel Soulld Naval Shipyard ill Febmary 1946.

She "is also pcu'",ed ill Ms. 22 .. Note the reduction of 20mm AA m ount,\".

a1

. ....

• ,~-

escorts present were unable to stop some of the hundreds of ka mikazes, one striking the carrier USS FRANKLI N CV-17, 19 March. She was badly damaged and by a miracl e was saved by her crew and able to limp home to the USA. TF-58 then moved to launch air strikes upon Okin awa on 23 Marc h. The next day the battleships bombarded southeastern Okinawa. TF-58 again struc k air fie lds on Kyushu on 29 March. They returned to Okinawa and pounded targets the re from 3 1 March throu gh 3 Apri I 1945 , during the in vasio n. On 7 Apri l, th e fast carrier strike groups launched an attack upon the UN 's super battle­ ship YAMATO. as she was attempting to reach Ok inaw a and the USN invasion fl eet. She was sunk with ai r strik es, a big disappointment to the crew s of USN battleships that all wanted a chance to slug it out with any of the UN battle­ ships. On II April , more kamikazes startcd to break through th e carrier screen and crash into the HANCOC K CV- 19 , bad ly dam ag ing her and putting her out of action. The three BB-57 type battleships present continued to guard the rem ainin g carri ers in ope rati on s against Ok inaw a and the Japanese homeland into May 1945. Th ey returned to Ulithi to re-supp ly at that time. On 6 May 1945, SOUTH DAKOTA had an accide nt in the turret #2 magazine with a flash fire from the dropping of po wder charges that necessitated the floodin g of that magazine. Eleven crew were killed with 24 wounded. The ship was lucky that the magazine was fl ooded as qui ckly as it was, as the magaz ine could have

exploded and sunk the battles hip. BB-5 7 was able to make for Guam on her ow n pow er, where she was dry docked and repaired until I July 1945 . In th e mea ntime , A LAB AMA, back from her refi t at Pu get Sound,joined the TF-5 8, departing Ulithi 9 M ay 1945, bound fo r fa st carri er strikes upon Kyu shu, Japa n . She was joined in her screening role by INDIANA and MASSACHUSETTS. Whil e operating off of Japan, TF-5 8 was hit by many kamika zes, some getting throu gh. Carriers were the primary tar­ get, with INTREPID CV-II , BUNKER HILL CV- 17 and ENTERPRISE CV-6 , all badly dam­ aged and out of action. On 5 June 1945, TF-58 wa s hit by anoth e r typhoon. Wind speeds of 140 knots were measured , wi th seas as high as 50ft. Two cruisers were damaged and a carrier lo st her fo rward flight deck. Many ships received heavy storm dam age. INDIANA lost steerin g for 35 minu tes, al so losing power fro m on e eng ine , lost one OS2U and was nearly swa mped . She m a nag ed to regai n pow er and s teering and headed for the Philippines to repair damages. All fo ur SOUTH DAKOTA class battle­ s hip s join ed TG- 38 for attacks up on th e Japanese home island s with both air strikes and bo mbard ment s. They departed Ley te Gulf I Jul y 1945 and headed for Japan. Initially they guarded cani ers on their air strikes upon Tokyo , then three of the class BB-57, 58 and 59 bom­ bard ed the Imperial Ironwork s at Kama ishi , Honsh u, 14 July. Later on the ni ght of 17- 18 July, all four SOUTH DAKOTA class battl e­ ships bom barded six maj or industria l plants on

Honshu , e ight miles from Tokyo. The fou r battleships of the SOUTH DAKOTA continued to support the fas t carrier strike groups for the rem ai nd er of Jul y with strikes on ind ustrial centers and military instal­ lation s on Honshu and Hokkaido. Th e battle­ ships bombarded Honshu again on 29 July, an d once more on 9 August 1945 . There was one la st grou p o f carrier strikes on 13 an d 15 Augu st before Japan capitulated late in the day on 15 A ugu s t. SOUTH DAKOTA and INDI­ AN A were present in To kyo Bay fo r the surren­ der signing aboard the USS MISSOURI BB-63 on 2 September 1945 . MA SSAC HUSETTS headed back to Puget Sound on J September for a refit and ALABAMA screened carriers off of Japan , b ut late r entered To kyo Bay o n 5 September. All fo ur of the SOUTH DAKOTA class battl es hip s performed " Ma gic Carpet Duty ," transporting US serv ice personnel back to the USA during the months after the surre nd er of Japa n. They then all received minor refits post­ war and were put into the reserve fleet. BB-57 was decommissioned on 31 January 1947, BB­ 58 on II September 1947, BB-59 on 27 March 1947, and BB-60 on 9 January 1947, all in the Reserve F leet. The n , much later BB-57 was so ld for scrapping on 25 October 1962 and BB­ 58 on 6 September 1963. BB-59 and BB-60 were both save d for memorial s tatu s, with MASSACHUSETTS goi ng to Fall River , Massachn setts in 1965 and ALABAMA going to Mobile, Alabama in 1964. Both battleships still exist as mem orials as of the date of thi s book 's printing. 69

GENERAL STATISTICS

Aircraft

Dimensions (ft.) lenglh overall.. beam ... . draught

(min .) (max.).... .

................680.00 . .... . 108.20 ..... ..29.50

194 1-1946 .... 1945- 1947 ..

.. ... 2 or 3x Voughl OS 2U-3 .. l o r 3x Cnrti " SC- J

Complement 1942 .... ............... 145 officers . .. .. .... 2, 112 men

.. .... 168 o fficers .......... ..... . 2,500 men

1945..

as built light... . ..................... . ...... 35 ,412

s tm"lard ....... ... ... . . .. ...... .. .37,970

fuiJ load... ...... ... .. . ... ... .. . .. .44 ,5 19

.... ... ... .. ..45,23 1

1945 full load...

Armament Summary a~

design ed orfilled

Mai n Bal tery

9x 16in .l45cal. (406 mm )(three gun tll n'ct,)

Armor (in.) main belt..

... ...... ....

dxks....

...... 12.25 to 7.25

. ...... ..... .......... 5 .3 to 5.0

turrets. . ....... ...... 16 face. 7 roof, 12 sides, 10 rear

b ul khead,.. . ........ ............ .... ...... .. .. 13.4

..... 17 .3 to 11.5

barbettes .. . .................. . .. 15 + 7.25 roof

co nning tower.

Propulsion boilers engines speed (J 94 1) ..

.......... Babcock & Wi llcox 4 .. ... General Electric geared lLnbines

8..

.. .....27 .OOk ts

Seco ndary Battery (dual pu rpo se)

20x 5 in .l38cal. ( l27mm)(lwo gun tUlTets)

Note: BB-57 fitted with 16x Sin .138cal.

Medium Anti·Aircraft

4x 1.lin .(guad AA moun ts)

Light Anti-Aircraft

12x 20mm (s ingle AA mounts)

A nti-Aircraft Weapon C hanges (WWU)

BB-57

I . Jin Quod Mount ~ 03/42 03142 Q2I!I2 8 2f2.tJ.uR Q}M2.

16 (1 945 )... .. .... 26.80kts .... ... I 33,000 shaft ho"epo wCJ' (fOlward) .. .... .. 32 ,000 (as,em ) ........ ...... .. fuel capacilY (nonnal)....... .. ............ ..... .6 ,673 lo n, fuel capaci ty (m ax )

..............

.. .... .. 7, 127 Ions

Endurance 18 ,500nm @ 10kts 1O,61Onm @ 20kls

15,020nm @ 15kts 5.950nm @ 25 kls

12 40nun

.... .36.S0

Displacement (tons)

BB-59 20mm 04/42 .LIMl

4Qmnl

Q2M2 4

09/42 36+

7

5

02/4 3 35

.l.2L4±

Q3&1

72

77

35

0 1/43 50

Quad M O~l11l 0 1/43

Q4M2 llL'!2 6 6 BB·60

10

20mm 04/42 Olill 03/41 12 35 40 40mm Quod MOLl fJ( 04/42 Q..l.i4l 03143 6 8 12

02/43 61

06144 52

Q.2M± 38

02/43 12

06/44 16

Q.2M± 18

04 /41 52

02/45

Q1M3.

Q2L4.l

12

12

S6

Directors Main Battery Secondary Battery 40mm Batte,y

M k.3 8 Mk .37 Mk . 5 1 & Mk. 5 7

Fire Control Radar l242.

l21.l.

~

M ain Batt . Secondary Batt.

Mk.3 Mk. 4

Mk .8

Mk 13 Mk . 12/22

40mm Batl.

Mk.5 1

Mk . 5 1 & 57

Search Radar

Quoo Moun!

l2!!l

~

SC SO

SK

02/41 17

12/44 18

mM.5. 17

Air Search S urface Search

llI42

.l.QL41

.l.2L4±

35

56

S6

BB-59 May 194 2

1945 S K-2 S O& SU

BB-58

Cost to Build

2Ilm..nL Q.6L42. 16 4Qm m

Q6LL!2 6

$76 ,885.750.00

Qucxl M Qunf 11 /41 6

.l.QL41

12

12/44 12

71

REFERENCES

RESOURCES

Action in the Pacific

The Floating Dry dock

L. Sowinski, Naval Institute Press., 198 1

Naval Radar

P. O. Box 9587, Trensnre Island, FL 33740 Web Site: www.floatingillycbck.com

N. Frie
U. S. Naval Historical Center

Naval Weapons of WWII

805 Kiilier Breese SE, Bldg # 57 Washington Navy Yard, Washingto n DC , 20374-5060 Still Phews (202)'133-2765· Web Site: www .hi story. navy.m il U. S. National Archives @ College Park 8601 Aoclphi Rd. , College Park , MD. 20740-6001 (30 1)713-{)800 • Web Site: www.nara.gov

1. Campbell , Conway Maritime P ress , 1985

Ship's Data !ISS Massachusetts BB-59 A.S . Lott , R . F. Sumrall , Leeward Publi cat ions. 1973

Ship's Data 2: 1)SS Alabama BB-60 A.S. Lo u , R . F . S umrall , Leeward Publi cati o ns , 1974

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Classic Warships

would like fa express il lS gratitude for assislculCefrmn lhefollowing in.div;duals ­

Ron Smith • Randy Shoker

Pete Clayton • Don Montgomery

Don Prelll

WARSIDP PICTORIAL SERIES at thetimcofthis printin g

Ships & Aircraft of the 1), S, Fleet J . C. Fal,ey , S hips & Aircraft Press , 1945

!I, S, Battleships N. Frie
1), S, Battleships, 1935-1992 W. Ganke & R . Dulin , Naval Institute Press, 1976

lJ, S. Naval Weapons N. Frie
!ISS Massachusetts: Technical Reference 2 R . S . S haker, Oxford Museum Press, 2004 USS YORKTOWN CV-lO, the subject of the nex t book ill th e Warship Pictorial sefies.

W. W. W. W. W. W. W. W. W. W. W. W. W.

P. # 4 USS Texas BB-35 P. #10 Indianapolis & Portland P. #14 USS Wichita CA-45 P. #18 USS New Mexi co P . #20 HMS Hood P. #22 USS Ticonocroga P. #23 Italian Heav y Cruisers P . #24 Arleigh Burke ClalS Destroyers P . #27 KM T ype VI! U-Boats P . #29 NOIth Carolin a Class Battles hips P . #30 UN Takao C lass C I1Ii sers P. #3 1 USS Buchanan DD-484 P . #32 South Dakota C lass Batt l"' hips

Front Co ver USS ALABAMA 88-60 dUlin g her shokedown. em ise in

o

th e north Atlantic Ocean,

ol! th e coast of Main e,

Decem her 1942.

Back Cover:

Top Photo: BB-60 at cu'/Chor in Lynn Hav en R o(~l\' dur­ ing December 1942.

Boltom Photo' USS INDIANA 88-58 firing upon Ihe

Kamai shi Steel W ork s factory on the Japanese main

island of Honshu.

:•