USS Oklahoma City (CLG-5)
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USS Oklahoma City (CLG-5) in the Sea of Japan, August 1974.
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| History | |
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 United States
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| Name: | Oklahoma City |
| Namesake: | City of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma |
| Builder: | William Cramp & Sons Shipbuilding Company, Philadelphia |
| Laid down: | 8 December 1942 |
| Launched: | 20 February 1944 |
| Sponsored by: | Mrs. Anton H. Classen |
| Commissioned: | 22 December 1944 |
| Decommissioned: | 30 June 1947 |
| Refit: | 1957–1960 |
| Recommissioned: | 7 September 1960 |
| Decommissioned: | 15 December 1979 |
| Reclassified: |
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| Struck: | 15 December 1979 |
| Identification: |
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| Honors and awards: |
 2 × battle stars for World War II
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| Fate: | Sunk as target with a torpedo by Republic of Korea Submarine Lee Chun (SS 062) on 25 March 1999 |
| Badge: | _patch.svg) |
| General characteristics (as built) | |
| Class and type: | Cleveland-class Light cruiser |
| Displacement: |
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| Length: | |
| Beam: | 66 ft 4 in (20.22 m) |
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| Propulsion: |
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| Speed: | 32.5 kn (37.4 mph; 60.2 km/h) |
| Range: | 11,000 nmi (20,000 km) @ 15 kn (17 mph; 28 km/h) |
| Complement: | 1,255 officers and enlisted |
| Armament: |
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| Armor: |
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| Aircraft carried: | 4 × floatplanes |
| Aviation facilities: | 2 × stern catapults |
| General characteristics (1960 rebuild) | |
| Class and type: | Galveston-class guided missile cruiser |
| Complement: | 1,426 officers and enlisted |
| Armament: | |
| Aircraft carried: |
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USS Oklahoma City (CL-91/CLG-5/CG-5) was one of 27 United States Navy Cleveland-class light cruisers completed during or shortly after World War II, and one of six to be converted to guided missile cruisers. She was the first US Navy ship to be named for Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Commissioned in late 1944, she participated in the latter part of the Pacific War in anti-aircraft screening and shore bombardment roles, for which she earned two battle stars. She then served a brief stint with the occupation force. Like all but one of her sister ships, she was retired in the post-war defense cutbacks, becoming part of the Pacific Reserve Fleet in 1947.
In the late 1950s she was converted to a Galveston-class guided missile cruiser, which involved removing all her guns except for her forward 6-inch (152 mm) turret and 5-inch (127 mm) mount, and rebuilding her entire superstructure to accommodate the Talos missile system and flagship office spaces and accommodation. Like her three sister ships (Providence, Little Rock, and Springfield) of the Cleveland-class ships converted to missile ships, she was also extensively modified forward to become a flagship. This involved removal of most of her forward armament to allow for a greatly enlarged superstructure. She was recommissioned in 1960 as CLG-5 (and in 1975 redesignated CG-5).
In her second career she served extensively in the Pacific, playing a prominent role in the Vietnam War, including participation in the evacuation of Saigon. Oklahoma City was worked hard in shore bombardment duty during the war. As she was extensively well fitted with flagship accommodations and communications, there was consideration given to an extensive overhaul (of both her and Little Rock) starting in 1977. The ship would have received two 8-cell NATO Sea Sparrow surface-to-air missile (SAM) launchers and two Vulcan Phalanx CIWS systems, in addition to extensive rehabilitation of her propulsion systems, electrical systems, and her hull / superstructure. This would have given her an additional 10 years of service life. This work never got past the planning stage, and she soldiered on for a few more years and was decommissioned for the last time in December 1979. At the time of her decommissioning, she was the last Cleveland-class ship in service, and had served longer than any other ship of that class.
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