USS Iowa (BB-61) is a retired battleship, the lead ship of her class, and the fourth in the United States Navy to be named after the state of Iowa. Owing to the cancellation of the s, Iowa is the last lead ship of any class of United States battleships and was the only ship of her class to serve in the Atlantic Ocean during World War II.
During World War II, she once carried President Franklin D. Roosevelt across the Atlantic to Mers El Kébir, Algeria, en route to a conference of vital importance in 1943 in Tehran with Prime Minister Winston Churchill of the United Kingdom and Joseph Stalin, leader of the Soviet Union. When transferred to the Pacific Fleet in 1944, Iowa shelled beachheads at Kwajalein and Eniwetok in advance of Allied amphibious landings and screened aircraft carriers operating in the Marshall Islands.
During the Korean War, Iowa was involved in raids on the North Korean coast, after which she was decommissioned into the United States Navy reserve fleets. She was reactivated in 1984 and assigned to the United States 2nd Fleet homeported in Norfolk, Virginia, as part of the 600-ship Navy plan and operated in both the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans to counter the recently expanded Soviet Navy. In April 1989, an explosion of undetermined origin wrecked her No. 2 gun turret, killing 47 sailors.
Iowa was decommissioned for the last time on 26 October 1990 after 19 total years of active service, and was initially stricken from the Naval Vessel Register in 1995, before being reinstated from 1999 to 2006 to comply with federal laws that required retention and maintenance of two Iowa-class battleships. In 2011, Iowa was donated to the Los Angeles–based nonprofit Pacific Battleship Center and was permanently moved to Berth 87 at the Port of Los Angeles in 2012, where she was opened to the public as the USS Iowa Museum.
Construction
Ordered in July 1939,. Naval Vessel Register. The Department of Defense. Retrieved on 6 September 2008. USS Iowa was laid down at New York Naval Shipyard in June 1940. She was launched on 27 August 1942, sponsored by Ilo Wallace (wife of Vice President Henry Wallace), and commissioned on 22 February 1943 with Captain John L. McCrea in command.
USS Iowas main battery consisted of nine 16-inch/50-caliber Mark 7 guns, which could fire armor-piercing shells . Her secondary battery consisted of twenty 5"/38 caliber guns in twin mounts, which could fire at targets up to away. With the advent of air power and the need to gain and maintain air superiority came a need to protect the growing fleet of Allied aircraft carriers; to this end, Iowa was fitted with an array of Oerlikon 20 mm and Bofors 40 mm antiaircraft guns to defend Allied carriers from enemy airstrikes.
World War II (1943–1945)
Shakedown and service with the Atlantic Fleet
On 24 February 1943, Iowa put to sea for a shakedown cruise in the Chesapeake Bay and along the Atlantic Coast. She got underway on 27 August for Argentia, Newfoundland, to counter the threat of the , which was reportedly operating in Norwegian waters, before returning to the United States on 25 October for two weeks of maintenance at the Norfolk Navy Yard.
In November 1943, Iowa carried President Roosevelt, Secretary of State Cordell Hull, Roosevelt's Chief of Staff Admiral William D. Leahy, Chief of Staff of the Army General George C. Marshall, Chief of Naval Operations Ernest King, Commanding General of the US Army Air Forces Henry "Hap" Arnold, Harry Hopkins, and other military leaders to Mers El Kébir, Algeria, on the first leg of the journey to the Cairo and Tehran Conferences. On 14 November, in waters east of Bermuda, , a destroyer that was part of Iowas antisubmarine screen, accidentally discharged a torpedo toward Iowa during a drill. Following warnings from the destroyer and her own lookouts, Iowa turned hard to avoid the torpedo, which detonated about 1200 yards astern in the ship's wake. Iowa trained her guns on William D. Porter, concerned that the smaller ship might have been involved in an assassination plot.
Iowa completed her presidential escort mission on 16 December by returning the President to the United States. Roosevelt addressed the crew of Iowa prior to leaving by stating, "... from all I have seen and all I have heard, the Iowa is a 'happy ship,' and having served with the Navy for many years, I know—and you know—what that means." He also touched on the progress made at the conference before concluding his address with "... good luck, and remember that I am with you in spirit, each and every one of you."
Service with Battleship Division 7, Admiral Lee
As flagship of Battleship Division 7 (BatDiv 7), Iowa departed the United States on 2 January 1944 for the Pacific Ocean, transiting the Panama Canal on 7 January in advance of her combat debut in the campaign for the Marshall Islands. From 29 January to 3 February, she supported carrier air strikes made by Rear Admiral Frederick C. Sherman's Task Group 58.3 (TG 58.3) against Kwajalein and Eniwetok atolls. Her next assignment was to support air strikes against the major Japanese naval and logistics base at Truk, Caroline Islands.
Operation Hailstone
Iowa, in company with her sistership USS New Jersey, the heavy cruisers USS New Orleans and USS Minneapolis, and the destroyers USS Bradford, Burns, Charette, and Izard, was detached from the support group on 16 February 1944 to conduct an anti-shipping sweep around Truk during Operation Hailstone, with the objective of destroying enemy naval vessels escaping to the north. During the raid which destroyed Truk as a capable naval base, a raid by carrier aircraft attacked a group of Japanese ships consisting of the destroyers Nowaki and Maikaze, the training cruiser Katori, the armed merchant cruiser Akagi Maru, and the auxiliary submarine chaser Shonan Maru. Dive bombers sank Akagi Maru and disabled Maikaze, while torpedo bombers crippled Katori. Instead of another wave of aircraft, Admiral Spruance called off attacks to allow his surface force an action against enemy warships.
Several hours later, Iowa and her group of ships made contact with the Japanese group. Nowaki was towing Maikaze while Katori was straggling at 2 knots. At a distance of 14,500 yards, Iowa opened fire with her forward 16-inch (406 mm) guns on the limping Katori and after eight salvos, she struck the training cruiser with seven 16-inch (406 mm) shells below the waterline and nine 5-inch (127 mm) shells from her secondary battery—Katori responded with her own gunfire and a spread of torpedoes but to no use—which delivered the coup de grace. Over 11 minutes, Katori listed to port before she sank by the stern with the loss of all hands (315 men). This was Iowas only sinking of an enemy ship, and the only instance of an Iowa-class battleship hitting an enemy vessel with its 16-inch (406 mm) guns.
In the meantime, the disabled Maikaze was dogpiled by New Jerseys secondary battery, New Orleans and Minneapolis, and Bradford, Burns, Charette, and Izard, and exploded and sank with all hands after a hail of 5-inch (127 mm) and 8-inch (203 mm) gunfire. In turn, Maikaze fired a spread of torpedoes that nearly hit New Jersey, but still missed. New Jersey, New Orleans, and Minneapolis then chased down and sank Shonan Maru with all hands. However, Nowaki was speeding away at full power to escape the American ships, which resulted in Iowa and New Jersey opening fire at 21,000 yards. Nowaki avoided being hit but was straddled several times. The pair then lost track of the destroyer as she disappeared off radar, but 10 minutes later discovered an "" at over 35,000 yards, which was actually the Nowaki continuing her escape. Iowa and New Jersey opened fire yet again and further straddled Nowaki in their first salvos, the longest ranged straddle in history. Nowaki suffered minor splinter damage with one killed and three wounded but escaped to fight another day.
On 21 February, Iowa was underway with the Fast Carrier Task Force (alternatively designated TF 38 while with 3rd Fleet and TF 58 while with 5th Fleet) while it conducted the first strikes against Saipan, Tinian, Rota, and Guam in the Mariana Islands. On 18 March 1944, Iowa, flying the flag of Vice Admiral Willis A. Lee (Commander, Battleships, Pacific), joined in the bombardment of Mili Atoll in the Marshall Islands. Although struck by two Japanese projectiles, Iowa suffered negligible damage. She then rejoined TF 58 on 30 March, and supported air strikes against the Palau Islands and Woleai of the Carolines for several days.
From 22 to 28 April, Iowa supported air raids on Hollandia (now known as Jayapura), Aitape, and Wake Islands to support Army forces on Aitape and at Tanahmerah and Humboldt Bays in New Guinea. She then joined the Task Force's second strike on Truk, on 29 and 30 April, and bombarded Japanese facilities on Ponape in the Carolines on 1 May.
In the opening phases of the Mariana and Palau Islands campaign, Iowa protected the American carriers during air strikes on the islands of Saipan, Tinian, Guam, Rota, and Pagan Island on 12 June. Iowa was then detached to bombard enemy installations on Saipan and Tinian on 13–14 June, which resulted in the destruction of a Japanese ammunition dump. On 19 June, in an engagement known as the Battle of the Philippine Sea, Iowa, as part of the battle line of TF 58, helped repel four massive air raids launched by the Japanese Middle Fleet. This resulted in the almost complete destruction of Japanese carrier-based air forces, with Iowa claiming the destruction of three enemy aircraft. Iowa then joined in the pursuit of the fleeing enemy fleet, shooting down one torpedo plane and assisting in splashing another.
Throughout July, Iowa remained off the Marianas supporting air strikes on the Palaus and landings on Guam. After a month's rest, Iowa sailed from Eniwetok as part of the Third Fleet, and helped support the landings on Peleliu on 17 September. She then protected the carriers during air strikes against the Central Philippines to neutralize enemy air power for the long-awaited invasion of the Philippines. On 10 October, Iowa arrived off Okinawa for a series of air strikes on the Ryukyu Islands and Formosa. She then supported air strikes against Luzon on 18 October and continued this duty during General Douglas MacArthur's landing on Leyte on 20 October.