North Carolina

The North Carolina class was a class of two fast battleships, North Carolina and Washington, built for the United States Navy in the late 1930s and early 1940s. The navy was originally uncertain whether the ships should be fast enough to counter the Japanese Kongō class, which was believed by the United States to be capable of 26 knots (30 mph; 48 km/h), or should sacrifice speed for additional firepower and armor. The Second London Naval Treaty's requirement that all capital ships have a standard displacement of under 35,000 long tons (35,560 metric tons) prevented the desired objectives from being fully realized within its limits, and the navy considered over fifty designs before one was chosen.

Towards the end of this lengthy design period the General Board of the United States Navy declared its preference for a battleship with a speed of 30 knots (35 mph; 56 km/h), faster than any in US service or under construction, with a main battery of nine 14-inch (356 mm)/50 caliber Mark B guns. The board believed that such ships could fulfill a multitude of roles, as they would have enough protection to be put into a battle line while also having enough speed to escort aircraft carriers or engage in commerce raiding. However, the acting Secretary of the Navy authorized a modified version of a different design, which in its original form had been rejected by the General Board. This called for a 27-knot (31 mph; 50 km/h) ship with twelve 14-inch rifles in quadruple turrets and protection against guns of the same caliber. In a major departure from traditional American design practices, this design accepted lower speed and protection in exchange for maximum firepower. After construction had begun, the United States became concerned over Japan's refusal to commit to the caliber limit of the Second London Naval Treaty, so they invoked the "escalator clause" of that pact and increased the class' main armament to nine 16-inch (406 mm)/45 Mark 6 caliber guns from the original twelve 14-inch guns.

Both North Carolina and Washington saw extensive service during the Second World War in a variety of roles, primarily in the Pacific theater where they escorted fast carrier task forces and conducted shore bombardments. North Carolina shot down between seven and fourteen Japanese aircraft in the Battle of the Eastern Solomons, and later sustained a torpedo hit from a Japanese submarine. During the naval battle of Guadalcanal, which was a chaotic night engagement, Washington's radar-directed main batteries fatally damaged the Japanese battleship Kirishima and caused her to sink next day. In February 1943, Washington crushed her bow in a collision with battleship Indiana. Following repairs, Washington rejoined her sister for the Battle of the Philippine Sea. After the end of the war, both ships took part in Operation Magic Carpet, the withdrawal of American military personnel from overseas deployments. The vessels were laid up in the reserve fleet until the early 1960s, when North Carolina was sold to her home state as a museum ship, and Washington was broken up for scrap.

Historical Accuracy

North Carolina's actual propulsion is 121,000 hp. There was no 100,000 hp downgrade.

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  North Carolina underway on 3 June 1946. By this time, many of the light anti-aircraft weapons (Bofors 40 mm and Oerlikon 20 mm) mounted during the war had been removed, while more modern radars had been mounted on her forefunnel and mainmast.

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  North Carolina seen from the air on 17 April 1942

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  North Carolina fires a three-gun salvo from her number one turret.

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  The 32,250-long-ton (32,770 t) design "A" was one of the first proposals. Unlike "B" and "C", it was far below the treaty-mandated limit of 35,000 long tons (36,000 t). It would have carried nine 14-inch (356 mm) guns in its main battery; although all of the turrets were forward of the superstructure, the guns could still fire forward provided that they were elevated to 4.5 degrees or more. The secondary battery planned was twelve 5-inch (130 mm) were unusually arranged in triple mounts.

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  "F" was an attempt to create a viable combination of an aircraft carrier and a battleship. With regards to the treaty limits, the design had an extremely comfortable margin with a standard displacement of 31,750 long tons (32,260 t; 35,560 short tons). Three catapults were mounted on the bow, while a hangar located under that would contain ten bombers with wings folded. Two non-superfiring turrets would be mounted aft, both holding four 14-in guns.

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  "VII" harked back to the days of the slow battleships; with a top speed of 22 knots (25 mph; 41 km/h), it would have been only 1 knot (1.2 mph; 1.9 km/h) faster than the old ""standard" battleships. The weight gained from reducing the speed was added back in firepower and protection: "VII" would have had twelve 14-inch/50 caliber guns in four triple turrets and an immune zone against its own 14-inch gun between 21,400 and 30,000 yards (12.2 and 17.0 mi; 19.6 and 27.4 km).

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  "XVI" was one of the final proposals; after "XVI-C" was rejected, a modified version of this design was chosen for the North Carolinas. There were a few major differences between this and the final plan. For example, all exhaust was eventually trunked into two funnels as opposed to one, and the 5-in/38 caliber secondary battery was composed of all dual-mounted guns (no single).

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  A cut-away diagram of the 16-inch turrets on board the North Carolina class

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  Washington‍ '​s tower foremast, seen on 18 August 1942 at the New York Navy Yard; note the SG surface search radar located on the top

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  North Carolina's No. 2 machinery space under construction, seen from the port side of the ship on 16 January 1939; the No. 4 boiler has just been installed

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  One of Washington‍ '​s main gun turrets is installed upon the ship; note how thick the barbette is, ranging from 11.5 to 16 inches (290–410 mm)

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  North Carolina fitting out.

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  I-15‍ '​s torpedo opened a gaping hole in North Carolina‍ '​s hull

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  Fireworks exploding over North Carolina in 2008, during ceremonies commemorating the commissioning of the submarine North Carolina (SSN-777)

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  The launch of Washington on 1 June 1940

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  King George VI of the United Kingdom (left column, walking towards camera) on board Washington, 7 June 1942. An OS2U Kingfisher is in the background.

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  The severe damage done to Washington‍ '​s bow after her collision with Indiana

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  Washington steaming at high speed in Puget Sound during post-overhaul trials, 10 September 1945