Worcester class cruiser

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The Worcester class was a class of light cruisers used by the United States Navy, laid down in 1945 and commissioned in 1948-49. They and their contemporaries the Des Moines-class heavy cruisers were the last all-gun cruisers built for the US Navy. Ten ships were planned for this class, but only two (USS Worcester (CL-144) and USS Roanoke (CL-145)) were completed.

Although technically light cruisers because they carried 6 in (152 mm) guns, they were in fact among the largest cruisers ever built, being longer and displacing more than the Baltimore-class heavy cruisers of World War II. Their main battery layout was quite distinctive in that they carried twin rather than triple turrets, unlike the previous Cleveland-class, St. Louis-class, and Brooklyn-class light cruisers. Aside from the fact that the Worcesters main battery consisted of 6 in (152 mm) rather than 5 in (127 mm) guns, the layout was identical to the much smaller Juneau-class light cruisers, carrying 12 guns in six turrets, three forward and three aft, with only turrets 3 and 4 superfiring.

Both ships were decommissioned in 1958, the last conventional light cruisers to serve in the fleet, and scrapped in the early 1970's.

Worcester class cruiser

Class overview
Name: Worcester class cruiser
Operators: US flag 48 stars.svg United States Navy
Preceded by: Fargo-class cruiser
Planned: 10
Completed: 2
Cancelled: 8
Retired: 2
Preserved: 0
General characteristics
Type: Light Cruiser
Displacement: 13,000 tons (standard)
17,997 tons (full)
Length: 679 ft .5 in
Beam: 70 ft .5 in
Draft: 25 ft
Propulsion: 4x Westinghouse 620 psi boilers
4x geared steam turbines
4x screws
125,000 HorsepowerLink
Speed: 33 knots
Complement: 1,560 officers and enlisted
Armament: 12 x 6-in/47 Mk16 DP in six 2-gun turrets
5 x dual 3-in/50 Mk27 port
(3-in/50s were installed in early 1949)
5 x dual 3-in/50 Mk27 starboard
1 x dual 3-in/50 Mk27 bow
2 x single 3-in/50 Mk33 on blisters fantail
Armor: 3-5 in belt
3.5 in (max) deck
2-6.5 in turrets
5 in barbettes
4.5 in conn
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