Fletcher

Revision as of 04:38, 12 July 2017

13.3

Destroyer | U.S.A. | Tier IX

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IX

12,850,000

Fletcher — American Tier IX destroyer.

Fletcher was the lead ship of the most numerous series of destroyers ever produced. They proved to be highly successful ships, combining high speed with efficient AA defenses, quick-firing artillery, and powerful torpedo armament.

Four of the class are preserved as military museum ships: USS Cassin Young in Boston, Massachusetts; USS Kidd in Baton Rouge, Louisiana; USS The Sullivans in Buffalo, New York; and HNS Velos (ex-USS Charrette) in Athens, Greece.

Modules

	Rate of Fire (shots/min)	180° Turn Time (sec)	Maximum Dispersion (m)	Maximum HE Shell Damage (HP)	Chance of Fire on Target Caused by HE Shell (%)	Maximum AP Shell Damage (HP)		Research price (exp)	Purchase price ()
127 mm/38 Mk.12 on a Mk.30 mod.0 mount	18	5.3	103	1,800	5	2,100		0	1,050,000

	Hit Points (HP)	Armor (mm)	Armor (mm)	Main Turrets (pcs.)	Secondary Gun Turrets (pcs.)	AA Mounts (pcs.)	Torpedo Tubes (pcs.)	Hangar Capacity (pcs.)		Research price (exp)	Purchase price ()
Fletcher (A)	13,900	13	20	5		9/3/5	2			0	1,400,000
Fletcher (B)	17,100	13	20	5		7/5	2			36,000	3,250,000

	Rate of Fire (shots/min)	Torpedo Tubes Reload Time (sec)	180° Turn Time (sec)	Maximum Damage (HP)	Torpedo Speed (knot)	Torpedo Range (km)		Research price (exp)	Purchase price ()
Mk15 mod. 3	0.5	122	7.2	16,633	55	9.2		0	1,470,000
Mk16 mod. 1	0.6	106	7.2	19,033	66	10.5		34,500	2,400,000

	IDS_SHIP_PARAM_SUO_INCREASE_DIST (%)	Maximum Firing Range (km)		Research price (exp)	Purchase price ()
Mk9 mod. 1		0		0	880,000
Mk9 mod. 2		0		22,500	1,850,000

	Maximum Speed (knot)		Research price (exp)	Purchase price ()
Propulsion: 60,000 hp	36.5		0	1,100,000

Compatible Upgrades

Slot 1
Slot 2
Slot 3
Slot 4
Slot 5
Slot 6

Player Opinion

Performance

Fletcher-class ships were workhorses of the United States Navy during World War II, and their legacy transfers well into World of Warships. Fletcher herself is, without question, the most flexible destroyer in the game. She can be tailored — via Commander Skills and Upgrades — to be a torpedo boat with good guns, or to be a murderous gunboat with above average torpedoes. She is one of a handful of destroyers in the game with decent anti-aircraft armament in her top configuration, and can finally equip the Defensive AA Fire consumable without having to sacrifice any of her five main battery guns.

As with her immediate predecessors, Fletcher’s main battery is punishing to enemy destroyers at close range. The ballistics of her guns make landing shells reliably on targets beyond 7 or 8 km problematic, but in close-quarters combat she has few rivals. Her upgraded torpedoes are the hardest-hitting torpedoes in the American destroyer line, and she retains Benson’s ability to fire them from well beyond her detection range. Her torpedoes also remain more difficult to spot than those of her Japanese or Russian counterparts. Most importantly, Fletcher gains access to Upgrade Slot 3, allowing her captain to tailor her to a torpedo-centric build (via Torpedo Tubes Modification 3 and Torpedo Armament Expertise) or a gun-centric build (with Main Battery Modification 3 and Basic Firing Training) with relative ease.

There are only a handful of categories where Fletcher does not improve upon Benson, and they're relatively minor things (such as air detection radius). Without Defensive AA Fire equipped she's still very vulnerable to enemy planes, and she's noticeably slower than Benson as well. Still, she's a significant upgrade from Tier VIII and a true joy to play... so much so that many players simply stop playing the line at Fletcher and never move on to Gearing.

Pros:

Excellent concealment.
Punishing main battery reload speed; Fletcher is capable of putting a lot of shells on target in a short amount of time.
Very fast turret rotation speed.
Hard hitting torpedoes deal more damage and reload faster than Tier X Gearing.
Can equip the Defensive AA Fire consumable without giving up any of her main battery guns.

Cons:

Still fragile; engaging Russian destroyers beyond 6km range is inadvisable, and Fletcher remains vulnerable to cruisers of all tiers she will face.
As good as her torpedoes are, Yūgumo’s are still faster and pack more punch per hit.
Slower than Benson.
Upgraded torpedo range is still 6km shorter than Gearing’s.
While her anti-aircraft suite is better than most destroyers, it will struggle to shoot down high tier planes.

Research

Fletcher is likely to spend most of her time in close-combat with enemy destroyers, making Hull (B) the best upgrade to invest in first (for the extra hit points). The Mk16 mod. 1 Torpedo upgrade should come next, as it is a drastic upgrade to her torpedo armament. The Fire Control System upgrade should be saved for last or skipped entirely.

Optimal Configuration

Fletcher is a highly flexible destroyer capable of being tailored in a variety of different ways. Most captains, however, will choose to focus on improving one of her main armaments to the maximum extent possible.

Upgrades

Most Fletcher captains will equip Main Armaments Modification 1 in Upgrade Slot 1, AA Guns Modification 2 or Aiming Systems Modification 1 in Upgrade Slot 2, Propulsion Modification 1 in Upgrade Slot 4, Propulsion Modification 2 or Steering Gears Modification 2 in Upgrade Slot 5, and Concealment Systems Modification 1 in Upgrade Slot 6. The upgrade chosen for Upgrade Slot 3 — and the corresponding commander skills — is where most of the customization lies.

Torpedo Build: Captains wishing to focus their Fletcher as a torpedo boat will opt for Torpedo Tubes Modification 3 in Upgrade Slot 3. This lowers her torpedo reload to only 90 seconds. If her commander invests in the Level 3 commander skill Torpedo Armament Expertise, the reload time drops to a scant 81 seconds. Given how hard her torpedoes hit and how fast they travel, this configuration of Fletcher can give even the vaunted Japanese destroyers a run for their money in the torpedo damage category.

Main Battery (Maximum Rate of Fire) Build: Another solid choice for Fletcher in Upgrade Slot 3 is Main Battery Modification 3. When coupled with Level 3 commander skill Basic Firing Training, her rate of fire increases significantly. In this configuration, the reload time on her main battery guns drops to 2.6 seconds (from a base of 3.3 seconds).

Main Battery (Maximum Range) Build: Some captains prefer to maximize the range of Fletcher’s main battery guns utilizing Gun Fire Control System Modification 2 in the third upgrade slot. While this pushes her main battery range out to 15.0 km, landing shells on all but the slowest, largest ships at such range is incredibly difficult.

The historical maximum firing range of the 5-inch/38 caliber guns aboard Fletcher was approximately 16.0 km. Captains opting for a max range build should equip either Gun Fire Control System Modification 2 OR take the Advanced Firing Training commander skill. Ordinarily these two would stack to give Fletcher’s guns a range approaching 18.0 km; however, the historical max range of her guns is correctly capped in-game and cannot be pushed past 16.3 km.

Commander Skills

Regardless of other choices, Fletcher commanders should always invest in Preventative Maintenance at Level 1, Last Stand at Level 2, Survivability Expert at Level 3, and Concealment Expert at Level 4. Where points go after that depends on how captains wish to play the ship.

A Torpedo Build Fletcher will want to invest in Torpedo Armament Expertise at Level 3, whereas a Main Battery Build Fletcher will want to pick up Basic Firing Training — and probably Demolition Expert — instead. Captains concerned about enemy aircraft could opt for Advanced Firing Training or Manual Fire Control for AA Armament. The latter is the better option, as Fletcher will run most of the time with her anti-aircraft guns disabled in order to avoid detection (making the additional AA range less valuable).

Recommended Commander Skills
Cost (points)	Endurance		Attack		Support		Versatility
1	Priority Target Situational Awareness indicator will show the number of opponents currently aiming at you with main battery guns. ★	Preventative Maintenance -30% to the risk of incapacitation of main turrets, torpedo tubes, steering gear, engines. ★★★	Expert Loader -50% to reload time when shell type is switched.	Air Supremacy -5% aircraft restoration time.	Direction Center for Fighters +1 fighter to carrier fighter squadrons or catapult fighters.	Improved Engine Boost +10% Aircraft engine boost time.	Incoming Fire Alert Indicator of long-range enemy artillery fire.	Last Gasp Completely restores the engine boost for the last attack flight of the carrier's planes.
2	High Alert -10% to reload time of Damage Control Party consumable. ★★	Jack of All Trades -5% to reload time of all consumables. ★	Expert Marksman +2.5 deg/sec to traverse speed of guns with a caliber up to 139mm. +0.7 deg/sec to traverse speed of guns with a caliber above 139mm.	Torpedo Acceleration +5 knots to torpedo speed. -20% to torpedo range.	Smoke Screen Expert +20% to the radius of the smoke screen. ★	Improved Engines +2.5% Squadron speed.	Adrenaline Rush -0.2% to reload times of all types of armament for each 1% of total health lost. +0.2% squadron speed for each 1% of total health lost. ★★	Last Stand The ship remains able to move and maneuver while the engine or steering gears are incapacitated. ★★★
3	Basics of Survivability -15% to time of repair, fire extinguishing, and recovery from flooding.	Survivability Expert +350 ship HP for each ship tier. +15 aircraft HP for each ship tier. ★★★	Torpedo Armament Expertise -10% to reload time of torpedo tubes. ★★	Aircraft Armor Reduces continuous damage to aircraft in all AA defense zones. -10% continuous damage.	Basic Firing Training -10% to reload time of main battery guns with a caliber up to and including 139mm and all secondary battery guns. +10% to continuous damage from AA guns. ★★	Superintendent +1 additional charge to all consumables mounted on a ship. ★★	Demolition Expert +2% chance of HE shells causing a fire on target. +1% chance of rockets causing a fire on target. +5% chance of HE bombs causing a fire on target. ★★	Vigilance +25% to detection range of enemy torpedoes. ★★
4	Manual Fire Control for Secondary Armament Tightens dispersion of shells from secondary batteries. -15% for Tier I-VI ships. -60% for Tier VII-X ships. Manually selected target only.	Fire Prevention -10% to the risk of fire. The maximum number of fires on a ship is reduced to three.	Inertia Fuse for HE Shells +30% to the armor penetration capacity of HE shells. -1% chance of fire on target caused by shells <=139mm. -3% chance of fire on target caused by shells >139mm. ★	Sight Stabilization Speeds up the aiming of a carrier's aircraft. +5% attack aircraft aiming speed. +5% torpedo bomber aiming speed. +10% dive bomber aiming speed.	Advanced Firing Training +20% to firing range of main battery guns with a caliber up to 139mm and all secondary battery guns. +15% damage/sec. within the explosion radius of shells fired from long-range AA defenses. ★	Massive AA Fire Instantaneous Damage +100%. Priority AA sector cooldown +50%.	Radio Position Finding Shows the direction to the nearest enemy ship. The enemy is alerted that a bearing has been taken.	Concealment Expert -10% to the detection radius of all ships and aircraft. ★★★
Key: ★★★ - Extremely Useful ★★ - Frequently Useful ★ - Occasionally Useful No stars - Meh Χ - Not recommended

Consumables

Even if her captain doesn't sink any commander skill points or upgrades into improving her anti-aircraft suite, Defensive AA Fire is recommended over Engine Boost due to the extreme threat that enemy aircraft create for a Fletcher. Simply having it equipped and demonstrating to an enemy carrier that it is available is frequently a deterrent to them swarming Fletcher with bombers or assigning a fighter squadron to keep her spotted.

Beyond that, Damage Control Party II is worth the credits (or doubloons) for the shortened cooldown on repairing broken modules.

Camouflage

Type 1, 2, or 5 camouflage can be equipped for credits; Types 1 or 5 are recommended at a minimum to reduce detectibility range.

Players who wish to spend doubloons can equip Fletcher with Type 19 camouflage that lowers her detection radius, reduces the accuracy of incoming shells, reduces her repair costs, and increases the amount of experience she earns.

Signals

Captains who have opted for a Torpedo Build Fletcher will want to equip a Juliet Whiskey Unaone signal in order to maximize potential damage from torpedo hits. Throwing on a Sierra Mike signal is an excellent way to help make up for her loss of speed from Benson. November Foxtrot and Juliet Charlie are also highly recommended, if available. Main Battery Build Fletcher captains should also consider Victor Lima and India X-Ray signals to increase the fire chance of her main battery shells.

Recommended Signal Flags
Combat
Juliet Charlie -100% to the risk of magazine detonation. ★★★	Juliet Yankee Bissotwo -20% to flooding duration.	India Yankee -20% to fire duration.	Hotel Yankee -20% to damage received when ramming the enemy. +50% to damage dealt when ramming the enemy. ★	Victor Lima +1% chance for HE bombs and shells with a caliber above 160mm causing a fire. +0.5% chance for bombs and smaller shells causing a fire. +4% chance of torpedoes causing flooding. ★★	India X-Ray +1% chance for HE bombs and shells with a caliber above 160mm causing a fire. +0.5% chance for bombs and smaller shells causing a fire. +5% to the risk of your ship's magazine detonating. ★★
Juliet Whiskey Unaone +15% chance of causing flooding. +5% to the risk of your ship's magazine detonating. ★★	Mike Yankee Soxisix +5% to secondary battery maximum firing range. -5% to maximum dispersion of secondary battery shells. -5% to secondary battery loading time.	November Echo Setteseven +5% continuous AA damage at all ranges. +5% damage from flak bursts. ★	Sierra Mike +5% to the ship's maximum speed. ★★★	November Foxtrot -5% reload time on all consumables. ★★★	India Delta +20% to the amount of HP recovered when Repair Party  is used.
X-Ray Papa Unaone +10% action time of a Smoke Generator .	Sierra Bravo +10% action time of Hydroacoustic Search  -10% reload time of Defensive AA Fire .

Note: Use of the Juliet Charlie signal makes detonation impossible.

Gallery

Historical Info

Ships of U.S.A.

Destroyers	II Sampson • II Smith • III Wickes • IV Clemson • V Nicholas • V Hill • VI Farragut • VI Monaghan • VII Mahan • VII Sims • VII Sims B • VIII Benson • VIII Kidd • IX Fletcher • IX Benham • IX Halford • IX Black B • IX Black • X Gearing • X Somers • X Forrest Sherman • ★ Joshua Humphreys
Cruisers	I Erie • II Chester • II Albany • III St. Louis • III Charleston • IV Phoenix • V Omaha • V Marblehead • V Marblehead Lima • V Rattlehead • VI Pensacola • VI Dallas • VII Atlanta • VII New Orleans • VII Helena • VII Indianapolis • VII Atlanta B • VII Boise • VII Flint • VIII Baltimore • VIII Cleveland • VIII Wichita • VIII Anchorage • VIII Congress • VIII Rochester • VIII San Diego • VIII AL Montpelier • IX Buffalo • IX Seattle • IX Vallejo • IX Alaska • IX Tulsa • IX Alaska B • X Des Moines • X Worcester • X Puerto Rico • X Salem • X Austin • ★ Annapolis
Battleships	III South Carolina • IV Wyoming • IV Arkansas Beta • V New York • V Oklahoma • V Texas • VI New Mexico • VI Arizona • VI W. Virginia '41 • VII Colorado • VII Florida • VII West Virginia '44 • VII California • VIII North Carolina • VIII Kansas • VIII Nebraska • VIII Alabama • VIII Massachusetts • VIII Alabama VL • VIII Constellation • VIII Massachusetts B • VIII Alabama ST • VIII North Carolina CLR • IX Iowa • IX Minnesota • IX Delaware • IX Missouri • IX Kearsarge • IX Illinois • IX Kearsarge B • IX Georgia • X Montana • X Vermont • X Louisiana • X Ohio • X Rhode Island • X Wisconsin • ★ Maine
Aircraft Carriers	IV Langley • VI Independence • VI Ranger • VIII Yorktown • VIII Lexington • VIII Enterprise • VIII Saipan • VIII Hornet • VIII Saipan B • X Essex • X Midway • X Franklin D. Roosevelt • ★ United States

Destroyers

Japan	II Tachibana • II Umikaze • II Tachibana Lima • III Wakatake • IV Isokaze • V Minekaze • V Fūjin • V Kamikaze • V Kamikaze R • V Mutsuki • VI Fubuki • VI Hatsuharu • VI Shinonome B • VI Shinonome • VII Akatsuki • VII Shiratsuyu • VII Yūdachi • VIII Akizuki • VIII Kagerō • VIII Asashio • VIII HSF Harekaze II • VIII Asashio B • VIII HSF Harekaze • VIII AL Yukikaze • IX Yūgumo • IX Kitakaze • IX Minegumo • IX STAR Kitakaze • X Shimakaze • X Harugumo • X Hayate • ★ Yamagiri
U.K.	II Medea • III Valkyrie • III Campbeltown • IV Wakeful • V Acasta • VI Icarus • VI Gallant • VII Jervis • VII Jupiter '42 • VIII Lightning • VIII Cossack • VIII Cossack B • IX Jutland • IX Somme • X Daring • X Druid
France	II Enseigne Gabolde • III Fusilier • IV Bourrasque • V Jaguar • V Siroco • VI Guépard • VI Aigle • VII Vauquelin • VIII Le Fantasque • VIII Le Terrible • IX Mogador • X Kléber • X Marceau • X Kléber CLR
U.S.S.R.	II Storozhevoi • III Derzki • IV Izyaslav • V Gremyashchy • V Podvoisky • V Okhotnik • VI Gnevny • VII Minsk • VII Leningrad • VII Tashkent '39 • VIII Ognevoi • VIII Kiev • IX Udaloi • IX Tashkent • IX Neustrashimy • X Khabarovsk • X Grozovoi • X Delny • ★ Zorkiy
U.S.A.	II Sampson • II Smith • III Wickes • IV Clemson • V Nicholas • V Hill • VI Farragut • VI Monaghan • VII Mahan • VII Sims • VII Sims B • VIII Benson • VIII Kidd • IX Fletcher • IX Benham • IX Halford • IX Black B • IX Black • X Gearing • X Somers • X Forrest Sherman • ★ Joshua Humphreys
Germany	II V-25 • III G-101 • IV V-170 • V T-22 • VI Ernst Gaede • VI T-61 • VI Karl von Schönberg • VII Leberecht Maass • VII Z-31 • VII Z-39 • VIII Z-23 • VIII Gustav-Julius Maerker • VIII Z-35 • IX Z-46 • IX Felix Schultz • IX Z-44 • IX ZF-6 • X Z-52 • X Elbing • X Z-42
Pan-Asia	II Longjiang • III Phra Ruang • IV Shenyang • V Jianwei • VI Fushun • VI Anshan • VII Gadjah Mada • VIII Hsienyang • VIII Siliwangi • VIII Loyang • VIII Fenyang • VIII Loyang B • VIII Ship Smasha • IX Chung Mu • X Yueyang • X Lüshun • ★ Kunming
Spain	X Álvaro de Bazán
Europe	II Tátra • III Romulus • IV Klas Horn • V Visby • V Muavenet • VI Västerås • VI Stord • VII Skåne • VII Grom • VII Błyskawica • VII Stord '43 • VIII Öland • VIII Split • VIII Orkan • IX Östergötland • IX Lambros Katsonis • IX Velos • IX Friesland • IX Jäger • X Halland • X Gdańsk • X Småland • X Ragnar • ★ Dalarna
Netherlands	IX Groningen • X Tromp
Italy	II Curtatone • III Nazario Sauro • IV Turbine • V Maestrale • VI Aviere • VI Leone • VII Luca Tarigo • VII FR25 • VIII Vittorio Cuniberti • IX Adriatico • IX Paolo Emilio • X Attilio Regolo
Commonwealth	III Vampire • VII Haida • VII Huron • X Vampire II
Pan-America	VI Juruá

@@ Line 39: / Line 39: @@
 '''Main Battery (Maximum Rate of Fire) Build:'''  Another solid choice for ''Fletcher'' in Upgrade Slot 3 is Main Battery Modification 3.  When coupled with Level 3 commander skill Basic Firing Training, her rate of fire increases significantly.  In this configuration, the reload time on her main battery guns drops to 2.6 seconds (from a base of 3.3 seconds).
-'''Main Battery (Maximum Range) Build:'''  Some captains prefer to maximize the range of ''Fletcher''’s main battery guns utilizing Gun Fire Control System Modification 2 in the third upgrade slot.  While this pushes her main battery range out to 15 km and gives her a large window from which she can safely fire beyond her detection range, landing shells on all but the slowest, largest ships at such range is incredibly difficult.
+'''Main Battery (Maximum Range) Build:'''  Some captains prefer to maximize the range of ''Fletcher''’s main battery guns utilizing Gun Fire Control System Modification 2 in the third upgrade slot.  While this pushes her main battery range out to 15.0 km, landing shells on all but the slowest, largest ships at such range is incredibly difficult.
+{{block|!!|content=The historical maximum firing range of the 5-inch/38 caliber guns aboard ''Fletcher'' was approximately 16.0 km.  Captains opting for a max range build should equip '''either''' Gun Fire Control System Modification 2 OR take the Advanced Firing Training commander skill.  Ordinarily these two would stack to give ''Fletcher''’s guns a range approaching 18.0 km; however, the historical max range of her guns is correctly capped in-game and cannot be pushed past 16.3 km.}}
 |CommanderSkills=<!-- write text about best set of Commander Skills below -->
@@ Line 159: / Line 161: @@
 ====Design====
-As the first class of destroyers produced by a wartime United States, the ''Fletcher-class'' was seen as a logical progression from the pre-war designs. The design firm of Gibbs and Cox took their experience in designing the previous ''[[Benson]]'' and ''Gleaves classes'' and sought to rectify the deficiencies in both designs. Coming in above 1,500 tons, the previous designs failed to meet the armament requirement of five (5) 5-inch guns and ten (10) torpedo tubes; they were seen as too small and top heavy. History would prove their third creation to be a war-winner; the mettle and venerability of the ''Fletchers'' were displayed regularly during the grueling combat of the Pacific campaign in World War II.
+As the first class of destroyers produced by a wartime United States, the ''Fletcher''-class was seen as a logical progression from the pre-war designs. The design firm of Gibbs and Cox took their experience in designing the previous ''[[Benson]]'' and ''Gleaves'' classes and sought to rectify the deficiencies in both designs. Coming in above 1,500 tons, the previous designs failed to meet the armament requirement of five (5) 5-inch guns and ten (10) torpedo tubes; they were seen as too small and top heavy. History would prove their third creation to be a war-winner; the mettle and venerability of the ''Fletchers'' were displayed regularly during the grueling combat of the Pacific campaign in World War II.
-The ''Fletcher-class'' ships were the first destroyers in the US Navy to exceed 2,000 tons displacement. In a change from previous design practice, Fletchers had flush decks as opposed to the raised forecastle design seen on the ''Benson class''. This increased her length but decreased her freeboard and improved her handling; overall, this was considered a very structurally sound and seaworthy design. An interesting design choice to note, early built ''Fletchers'' have the taller rounded-tower superstructure design – as seen in game – whereas late build ''Fletchers'' had a superstructure that was lower in height with a flat-faced bridge.
+The ''Fletcher''-class ships were the first destroyers in the US Navy to exceed 2,000 tons displacement. In a change from previous design practice, Fletchers had flush decks as opposed to the raised forecastle design seen on the ''Benson class''. This increased her length but decreased her freeboard and improved her handling; overall, this was considered a very structurally sound and seaworthy design. An interesting design choice to note, early built ''Fletchers'' have the taller rounded-tower superstructure design – as seen in game – whereas late build ''Fletchers'' had a superstructure that was lower in height with a flat-faced bridge.
 In order to maintain the 38 knot speed despite the increase in tonnage, new propulsion machinery was utilized: boilers that were 20-30% more efficient and turbines that were 20% more powerful than predecessors were installed. Ultimately, a third of the internal space was consumed by propulsion machinery in a unique configuration. The forward boiler and turbine room were separated from the rear boiler and engine room via watertight bulkheads. Each individual segment ran the port and starboard propulsion screws, respectively. This configuration resulted in greater machine survivability from combat damage.
-As required by US Navy specifications, each ''Fletcher class'' ship was able to mount five (5) 5-inch guns in single, enclosed dual-purpose mounts; two guns forward, two guns rear, and one amidships. All turrets were controlled by Mark 37 and Mark 22 Fire Directors. Feeding information to the gun computer, the main battery could all be remotely controlled if required. Furthermore, the class got to implement SG surface radar and "Variable-Time" proximity fuses — both novelties to the Navy — that allowed effective engagement of both surface and air threats.
+As required by US Navy specifications, each ''Fletcher'' class ship was able to mount five (5) 5-inch guns in single, enclosed dual-purpose mounts; two guns forward, two guns rear, and one amidships. All turrets were controlled by Mark 37 and Mark 22 Fire Directors. Feeding information to the gun computer, the main battery could all be remotely controlled if required. Furthermore, the class got to implement SG surface radar and "Variable-Time" proximity fuses — both novelties to the Navy — that allowed effective engagement of both surface and air threats.
-Learning from the experience of Pearl Harbor, the Navy decided to invest in heavier anti-aircraft armament. After seeing their effectiveness during the Spanish Civil War, the Navy's Bureau of Ordnance (BuOrd) arranged manufacturing licences for Oerlikon 20mm and Bofors 40mm cannons. Anti-aircraft armament was constantly being changed throughout the war; for instance,  the average ''Fletcher-class'' destroyer was armed with seven (7) 20mm and ten (10) 40mm AA guns for most of her time in the Pacific.
+Learning from the experience of Pearl Harbor, the Navy decided to invest in heavier anti-aircraft armament. After seeing their effectiveness during the Spanish Civil War, the Navy's Bureau of Ordnance (BuOrd) arranged manufacturing licences for Oerlikon 20mm and Bofors 40mm cannons. Anti-aircraft armament was constantly being changed throughout the war; for instance,  the average ''Fletcher''-class destroyer was armed with seven (7) 20mm and ten (10) 40mm AA guns for most of her time in the Pacific.
 Finally, the class was able to mount ten (10) torpedoes in two quintuple-tube launchers amidships, the heaviest torpedo broadside of any US Navy destroyer at the time. By also carrying depth charge launchers in conjunction with anti-submarine sonar, ''Fletchers'' were well-equipped to conduct anti-submarine operations as well. Overall, the class was armed with a plethora of tools to combat a myriad of threats.
-In the end, 175 ''Fletchers'' were produced from 11 different shipyards throughout the United States. ''USS Fletcher'' (DD-445) was the lead ship of her class, built by Federal Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Co. in Kearny, New Jersey. Laid down in 2 October 1941, she was launched 3 May 1942, and commissioned 30 June 1942.
+In the end, 175 ''Fletchers'' were produced from 11 different shipyards throughout the United States. USS ''Fletcher'' (DD-445) was the lead ship of her class, built by Federal Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Co. in Kearny, New Jersey. Laid down in 2 October 1941, she was launched 3 May 1942, and commissioned 30 June 1942.
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Fletcher

Revision as of 04:38, 12 July 2017

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Compatible Upgrades