Brooke class ships were nearly identical to the Garcia class, except the second 5"/38 caliber gun was replaced with a Tartar missile system and electronics. Brooke class ships also had the AN/SPS-52 3D air search radar instead of the two dimension AN/SPS-40 and added the AN/SPG-51 for target tracking and missile guidance. The Mk 22, single arm, 16 missile launcher was placed midships.
FFG-1 through FFG-3 had a Westinghouse geared steam turbine while FFG-4 through FFG-6 employed a General Electric turbine. All ships had two Foster-Wheeler boilers. FFG-4 through FFG-6 had an angled base of the bridge structure behind the ASROC launcher for automatic reloading.
The Brooke class was originally designed to carry the DASH drone, but were later equipped with LAMPS SH-2 Seasprite after the hangar was enlarged.
Oliver Hazard Perry class systems were evaluated on USS Talbot (FFG-4) including the Otobreda 76 mm gun, the AN/SQS-56 sonar and other systems.
Initially authorized as guided missile destroyer escorts (DEG), FFG-1 through FFG-3 were authorized in FY1962 while FFG-4 through FFG-6 were authorized in FY1963. Plans called for ten more ships to be authorized in FY1964 and possibly three more in later years, but those plans were dropped because of the $11 million higher cost of the DEG over an FF.
| General characteristics | |
|---|---|
| Type: | Guided missile frigate |
| Displacement: | 2,640 tons std 3,426 tons full |
| Length: | 414 ft (126 m) |
| Beam: | 44 ft (13 m) |
| Draft: | 14 ft 6 in (4.42 m) (keel) 24 ft (7.3 m) (sonar) |
| Propulsion: | 2 Foster-Wheeler boilers, 1 GE (1-3) or Westinghouse (4-6) geared turbine, 35,000 shp, 1 screw |
| Speed: | 27.2 knots |
| Range: | 4,000 nautical miles |
| Complement: | 14 officers, 214 crew |
| Sensors and processing systems: | AN/SPS-52 3D air search radar AN/SPS-10 surface search radar AN/SPG-51 missile fire control radar AN/SQS-26 bow mounted sonar |
| Electronic warfare and decoys: | AN/SLQ-32 |
| Armament: | 1x5"/38 caliber gun 1x Mk 22 RIM-24 Tartar/RIM-66 Standard missile launcher (16 missiles) 1x8 cell ASROC launcher 2x3 12.75 in (324mm) Mk 32 torpedo tubes, Mk 46 torpedoes 2 x MK 37 torpedo tubes (fixed, stern, removed later) |
| Aircraft carried: | 1 SH-2 Seasprite |
