Baltimore-class heavy cruiser
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USS Baltimore (CA-68)
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| Class overview | |
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| Name: | Baltimore class |
| Operators: |
 United States Navy
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| Preceded by: | Wichita class |
| Succeeded by: | Oregon City class |
| Cost: | US $40 million per ship |
| In commission: | 1943–71 |
| Completed: | 14 |
| Retired: | 14 |
| Preserved: | 0 |
| General characteristics | |
| Type: | Heavy cruiser |
| Displacement: |
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| Length: | 673 ft 5 in (205.26 m) |
| Beam: | 70 ft 10 in (21.59 m) |
| Height: | 112 ft 10 in (34.39 m) (mast) |
| Draft: | 26 ft 10 in (8.18 m) |
| Propulsion: | Geared steam turbines with four screws |
| Speed: | 33 knots (61 km/h; 38 mph) |
| Complement: | 61 officers and 1,085 sailors |
| Armament: |
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| Armor: |
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The Baltimore-class cruiser was a large class of heavy cruisers in the United States Navy commissioned during or shortly after World War II. Fourteen Baltimores were completed, more than any other class of heavy cruiser, along with three ships of the Oregon City class sub-class. Fast and heavily armed, the Baltimore cruisers were mainly used in World War II to protect the fast aircraft carriers in battle groups from air attack. Additionally, their 8-inch (203 mm) main guns and secondary 5-inch (127 mm) guns were regularly used to bombard land targets in support of amphibious landings. After the war, only six Baltimores (St Paul, Macon, Toledo, Columbus, Bremerton, and Helena) and two Oregon City-class ships (Albany and Rochester) remained in service, while the rest were moved to the reserve fleet. However, all ships except Boston, Canberra, Chicago and Fall River were reactivated for the Korean War. Except for St Paul, all the ships retaining all-gun configurations had very short (18 years or less) service lives, and by 1971 were decommissioned, and started showing up in the scrap-sale lists. However, four Baltimore-class cruisers were refitted and converted into some of the first guided missile cruisers in the world, becoming two of the three Albany-class and two Boston-class cruisers. The last of these was decommissioned in 1980, with the Chicago lasting until 1991 in reserve. No example of the Baltimore class still exists.
Immediately after the outbreak of World War II in September 1939, the US Navy initiated studies regarding a new class of heavy cruiser, which eventually led to the construction of the Baltimore class. With the start of the war, the limitations instituted by the Second London Naval Treaty, which had completely banned the construction of heavy cruisers, became obsolete. The Baltimore class was based partly on USS Wichita, a heavy cruiser from 1937, which represented the transition from inter-war to World War II designs. It was also based partly on the Cleveland class, a light cruiser that was then being built. In profile, the Baltimores looked very much like the Cleveland-class light cruisers, the obvious difference being that the larger Baltimores carried nine 8-inch (203 mm) guns in three triple turrets, compared to the 12 6-inch (152 mm) guns in four triple turrets of the Clevelands.
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