NDR US NAVY ships

Phil Nowack

Phil Nowack

Well-known member
I am watching a show on diving the wreckage of the USS Murphy (DD603). I am amazed by the size of this Destroyer... 348' long by only 36' wide... I found the width to be amazing...

Even on on a Battleship such as the USS Iowa (BB-61) It is only 108' wide x 887' Long Then again it is equally imressive that the 9- 16" guns appear to actually move the USS Iowa when all fired at once.
http://en.wikipedia.org/...61_broadside_USN.jpg

When I see the dimensions of the destroyers I am just amazed by how narrow they are.
 
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They wern't worried about the crew getting seasick. I don't know where you live Phil. I think its in the midwest. If you ever come east and you're near Fall River Mass. Stop off at Battlesip Cove. I was there with my kics years ago. There was the Battleship Mass. A WWII Distroyer and 2 compleatly restored PT Boats. Well worth the trip
 
Admiral Halsey lost three destroyers when he sailed his fleet into a typhoon -Dec. 18/19 1944. DDs or "tin cans", long skinny and a bit top heavy too.

Scott

Admiral Halsey (Third Fleet), in USS New Jersey, sailed a task group for air attacks on Luzon in December of 1944. Likely due to poor judgment following support of the aforementioned attacks, the Task Force found itself sailing through a furious typhoon which sank three destroyers - USS Spence, USS Hull, & USS Monaghan. It is known that the demonstrated & observed inability to refuel the tin cans underway in preceding heavy seas at noon of December 17 led to a growing condition of poor ballast aboard many of the escort vessels & that by the 18th, some skippers had possibly not taken the proper countermeasures of taking on adequately substantial amounts of sea water as ballast against the impending 70', sea state & 100+kt winds they found themselves in on the 18th of December.

Some surviving sailors from the escorts indicated that they saw their masts become nearly parallel with the surface on several occasions & surmised that the 3 missing DD's - discovered to be gone by the morning of December 19 - likely just continued on over in their roll as it occurred.
Click to expand...
 
In that typhoon I believe the heavy cruiser Pittsburgh lost her bow section. They recovered it, towed it back to port and reattached it. My friend was on the New Jersey. He said the ship did not move when guns were fired. They shelled Beirut in the 80's. Not like what has been said at least.
 
Phil,

After watching the DE's during storms while aboard the USS Kitty Hawk I thanked my lucky stars I wasn't on any of them. I almost got sea sick just watching them bob around, dip and dive.

Pete
 
Kevin... I was just looking at the water next to the hull on the picture of the Iowa. Maybe that was just the blast force pulling the water from the hull...

Cool ships either way.
 
If you guys are into naval history, especially DD's and DE's, I really recommend the book "Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors" by James Hornfischer. It's mainly about the battle of Leyte Gulf in WW2, where an American carrier force was caught basically unescorted by a Japanese battle group including the battleship Yamato. A small force of destroyers charged straight at the Japanese forces in order to buy time for the carriers. It's really an incredible story about sacrifice and bravery.
 
Cody, couldn't agree with you more. The part of the book where one DE is retiring after firing it's torpedo's and they see another DE heading back in, on fire, doomed but under power. The last sight of the ship was the captain, with one arm gone, steering the ship from the stern because his bridge was gone. And he's on the attack. The final battle scene from "In Harms Way" is loosely based on that naval action. Thanks for bringing this up.
 
If anyone wants my copy of this book I would be happy to forward it to you. I will read this again, but it does more good being passed around. PM me if interested. Won't cost you a dime to ask.
 
My dear friend served with Halsey and was in that typhoon on the U.S.S.Baltimore a heavy cruiser ,his ship towed the sheared bow of the Pittsburgh back to port I still enjoy a cold beer with him at our local Elks Lodge! Not many of them left!!
 
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