Albany-class cruiser

Class description

The conversion was extensive, stripping the ships down to their hulls, removing all armament and the ship's superstructure. , an , was converted at Boston Naval Shipyard starting in January 1959 and recommissioned as CG-10 on November 3, 1962. , a , was converted at San Francisco Naval Shipyard starting in July 1959 and was recommissioned as CG-11 on May 2, 1964. was originally slated to be CG-12, but was converted instead. Columbus was converted at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard beginning in September 1959 and recommissioning as CG-12 on December 1, 1962. and were also proposed for conversion to CG-13 and CG-14, but those plans were dropped because of the high cost of the conversion and capabilities of newer guided-missile frigates.

Weapons and systems

The weapon systems carried included the Mk 77 missile fire-control system with four AN/SPG-49 fire-control radars and two Mk 12 twin launchers for their armament of 104 Talos long-range surface-to-air missiles, one forward and one aft. These cruisers also carried an armament of 84 shorter-ranged Tartar missiles launched from two Mk 11 twin launchers, one to the port of and one to the starboard of the cruiser's main superstructure. The Tartar missiles were controlled by the Mk 74 missile fire-control system with four AN/SPG-51 fire-control radars. Some space was allocated on these cruisers amidships abaft the after stack for the possible installation of eight Polaris missiles, but the concept to add these ballistic missiles was dropped in mid-1959.

For anti-submarine warfare (ASW), one eight-cell Mk 112 "matchbox" ASROC missile launcher was installed amidships on each of these cruisers, located between their two stacks. Also for ASW purposes, two triple Mk 32 torpedo tubes for the Mk 46 ASW torpedo were installed.

These cruisers were initially converted into all-missile warships with no naval guns, but later on, two open-mount Mk 24 5 in 38 calibre guns were added to the port side and the starboard side, near their aft exhaust stacks.

In the late 1960s Chicago and Albany underwent major engineering overhauls under SCB 002 and both the missile systems (Talos and Tartar) had new digital fire control system upgrades to handle the increasing threat from Soviet Navy anti-ship cruise missiles and aircraft, although Chicago did not receive all of the changes that Albany received. Columbus did not receive these missile system upgrades due to lack of funding, and would be decommissioned in 1976. The Talos system was deactivated on the Albany class (leaving them with the Tartar as the only SAM system operational) and all other ships in the fleet that carried it during 1976.

In late 1979 the two surviving ships (Chicago and Albany) were scheduled for massive overhauls. SM-1 (MR) missiles (which were to replace the Tartar system), as well as two Phalanx CIWS and two four-cell Harpoon missile launchers were planned to be installed, as well as a major refitting of the ships' machinery, structure, and electronics. The funding appropriated for this work was diverted, however, to other ships and both cruisers were finally decommissioned in 1980.

Service history

All three ships served extensively through the 1960s and 1970s with Chicago being a long time flagship for the Third Fleet in the Pacific, and Albany serving likewise as the Second Fleet flagship in the Western Atlantic and as the Sixth Fleet flagship in the Mediterranean. Columbus did not receive the extensive Talos fire-control upgrades and extensive refits that the other two ships received in the late 1960s, though she did receive engineering overhauls to allow her to remain active until she was decommissioned early in 1976, and then immediately sold for scrap. Albany and Chicago remained in service until 1980, and while funding for massive overhauls for both was appropriated for 1979, the funds were diverted to other projects, and both ships were laid up in the summer of 1980. Both were retained in the reserve fleet and received minimal preservation until 1990 when they were both sold for scrap.

Ships in class

Gallery

File:USS Chicago (CG-11) underway in the Coral Sea, in October 1979.jpg|Chicago under way in the Coral Sea in 1979 showing the forward AN/SPG-49 radar scanners and Mk 12 SAM launcher File:USS Albany (CG-10) firing missiles 1963 (colour).jpg|Albany firing Talos and Tartar missiles, 1963 File:RIM-8 Talos missiles aboard USS Columbus (CG-12), in 1962 (NH 98462).jpg|Talos launcher on Columbus, 1962 File:Mark 11 Mod 2 missile launcher aboard USS Chicago (CG-11), circa in 1970.png|RIM-24 Tartar launcher on Chicago, 1970 File:ASROC launcher USS Columbus 1962.jpg|USS Columbus 8-tube Mk 112 ASROC, 1962 File:USS Columbus (CG-12) underway in the Mediterranean Sea, in 1974 (NH 81595).jpg|Elevated port side view of Columbus

References

Notes

Sources

References

1. Friedman, Cruisers, pp. 394-398
2. Moore, Jane's, pp. 126
3. Friedman, Cruisers, pp. 398
4. Moore, Jane's, pp. 126