First appearance | The Last Ship |
---|---|
Affiliation | United States Navy |
General characteristics | |
Class | Nathan James-class guided missile destroyer |
Armaments | 2 × 61-cell Mk 41 Vertical Launching Systems, 56 nuclear-tipped Tomahawk cruise missiles |
Power | Nuclear reactor |
Length | 466 feet (142 m) |
Width | 59 feet (18 m) |
First appearance | The Last Ship |
---|---|
Affiliation | United States Navy |
General characteristics | |
Class | Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer |
Maximum speed | 30+ knots (55+ km/h) |
Auxiliary craft | 2 × SH-60 Sea Hawk helicopters |
Armaments | 1 × 32 cell, 1 × 64 cell Mk 41 vertical launch systems, 96 × RIM-66 SM-2, BGM-109 Tomahawk or RUM-139 VL-ASROC, missiles 1 × 5/62 in (127/62 mm), 2 × 25 mm, 4 × 12.7 mm guns 2 × Mk 46 triple torpedo tubes 1 x 20mm Phalanx CIWS |
Propulsion | 4 × General Electric LM2500-30 gas turbines, 2 shafts |
Power | 100,000 shp (75 MW) |
Length | 509 feet (155 m) |
Width | 66 feet (20 m) |
USS Nathan James is a fictional guided missile destroyer of the United States Navy, used as the setting for the 1988 post-apocalyptic novel The Last Ship and the television series of the same name.
USS Nathan James (hull code: DDG-80) is the lead ship of her class and has a beam of 59 feet (18 m), a draft of 27 feet (8.2 m), and a length of 466 feet (142 m), with a rated speed of 38 knots (43.73 mph; 70.38 km/h). The number at the end of the hull code stands for the ship's position in the series, while the letters "DD" stand for "Destroyer" and the "G" for "Guided Missile". The ship was named after a U.S. Navy ensign who was awarded the Navy Cross for his actions during the Battle of Leyte Gulf in World War II.
Armed with two 61-cell Mk 41 Vertical Launching Systems, the Nathan James carries a payload of 28 nuclear-tipped Tomahawk land-attack cruise missiles for each Vertical Launching System, for a total of 56 nuclear-tipped Tomahawk cruise missiles rated at 200 kilotons each.
In the television series, USS Nathan James is homeported at Virginia's Naval Station Norfolk, rather than in Norway, as in the book. Its hull code is DDG-151, where in the book it is DDG-80. This change was made because USS Roosevelt, launched in 1999, was assigned the hull code DDG-80. In the pilot, "Phase Six", it is mentioned that the Nathan James has a crew complement of 217. By the season 2 finale, "A More Perfect Union", CDR Chandler mentions that there are 204 crewmen on the Nathan James.
In the season 2 finale, "A More Perfect Union", the Nathan James arrives in St. Louis, Missouri after defeating the Immunes and is scheduled to spend the next few months in drydock.