Smederevac94

USS Chester (CL-1) USS Chester (CL-1) of the United States Navy was a light cruiser, the first to be so designated. She was launched on 26 June 1907 by Bath Iron Works, Bath, Maine, sponsored by Miss D. W. Sproul, and commissioned on 25 April 1908, Commander H. B. Wilson in command. She was named in honor of Chester, Pennsylvania. Pre-World War I In the period prior to World War I, Chester operations included training activities off the East Coast and in the Caribbean, participation in the Fleet Reviews of February 1909, October 1912, and May 1915, and many duties of a diplomatic nature. She carried a Congressional committee on a tour of North Africa in 1909, and the next year, joined in a special South American cruise commemorating the 300th anniversary of the founding of Buenos Aires, Argentina. As American interests in the Caribbean were threatened by internal political changes in several nations, Chester patrolled off Mexico, Santo Domingo, and Haiti, and transported a Marine occupation force in 1911. Later that year, she carried men and stores to the steam patrol yacht Scorpion, station ship at the then-Austrian port of Trieste, returning to Boston with the American consul at Tripoli. In April, 1912, the Chester was ordered by the United States Navy to escort the RMS Carpathia back to New York, after the Carpathia had picked up the survivors from the sinking of the RMS Titanic.After a period in reserve from 15 December 1911-5 November 1913, Chester returned to duty in the Gulf of Mexico guarding American citizens and property during the revolution in Mexico. She joined in the occupation of the customs house at Veracruz, Veracruz on 21 April, and transported refugees to Cuba, performed various diplomatic missions, and carried mail and stores to the squadron off Veracruz until 19 June 1914. She returned to Boston for overhaul and another period in reserve, from 12 December 1914-4 April 1915. Late 1915 and early 1916 found Chester in the Mediterranean to aid in relief work in the Middle East, and off the Liberian coast to protect American interests and show American support for the government there threatened by insurrection. Chester returned for duty as receiving ship at Boston, where she was out of commission in reserve from 10 May 1916-24 March 1917. World War I When recommissioned, Chester operated on protective patrol off the East Coast until 23 August, when she sailed for Gibraltar, and duty escorting convoys on their passage between Gibraltar and Plymouth, England. On 5 September 1918, the cruiser sighted an enemy submarine on her starboard bow. In attempting to ram the enemy, Chester passed directly over the U-boat as she dived, damaging her own port paravane. Depth charges were hurled at the submarine's presumed position, but no further contact was made. At war's end, Chester carried several Allied armistice commissions on inspection tours of German ports, then carried troops to the Army units operating in northern Russia. On her homeward bound voyage, on which she cleared Brest, France on 26 April 1919, she carried Army veterans to New York, which she reached 7 May. 11 days later, she arrived at Boston Navy Yard for overhaul, and was decommissioned there on 10 June 1921. In 1927, she was towed to Philadelphia Navy Yard, and on 10 July 1928, her name was changed to York. She was sold for scrap on 13 May 1930. Class overview Name: USS Chester Builder: Bath Iron Works Launched: 26 June 1907 Commissioned: 25 April 1908 Decommissioned: 10 June 1921 Fate: Sold for scrapping, 13 May 1930 General characteristics Class & type: Chester-class cruiser Type: light cruiser Displacement: 3,750 long tons (3,810 t) Length: 423.1 ft (129.0 m) Beam: 47.1 ft (14.4 m) Draft: 16.8 ft (5.1 m) Speed: 24 kn (28 mph; 44 km/h) Complement: 359 officers and enlisted Armament: 2 × 5 inch (127 mm)/51 cal guns (2x1), 6 × 3 in (76 mm)/50 cal guns (6x1), 2 × 21 in (533 mm) torpedo tubes

HMAS Australia (1911) HMAS Australia was one of three Indefatigable-class battlecruisers built for the defence of the British Empire. Ordered by the Australian government in 1909, she was launched in 1911, and commissioned as flagship of the fledgling Royal Australian Navy (RAN) in 1913. Australia was the only capital ship ever to serve in the RAN. At the start of World War I, Australia was tasked with finding and destroying the German East Asia Squadron, which was prompted to withdraw from the Pacific by the battlecruiser's presence. Repeated diversions to support the capture of German colonies in New Guinea and Samoa, as well as an overcautious Admiralty, prevented the battlecruiser from engaging the German squadron before the latter's destruction. Australia was then assigned to North Sea operations, which consisted primarily of patrols and exercises, until the end of the war. During this time, Australia was involved in early attempts at naval aviation, and 11 of her personnel participated in the Zeebrugge Raid. The battlecruiser was not at the Battle of Jutland, as she was undergoing repairs following a collision with sister ship HMS New Zealand. Australia only ever fired in anger twice: at a German merchant vessel in January 1915, and at a suspected submarine contact in December 1917. On her return to Australian waters, several sailors aboard the warship mutinied after a request for an extra day's leave in Fremantle was denied, although other issues played a part in the mutiny, including minimal leave during the war, problems with pay, and the perception that Royal Navy personnel were more likely to receive promotions than Australian sailors. Post-war budget cuts saw Australia's role downgraded to a training ship before she was placed in reserve in 1921. The disarmament provisions of the Washington Naval Treaty required the destruction of Australia as part of Britain's commitment, and she was scuttled off Sydney Heads in 1924. Design: The Indefatigable class of battlecruisers were based heavily on the preceding Invincible class. The main difference was that the Indefatigable's design was enlarged to give the ships' two wing turrets a wider arc of fire. As a result, the Indefatigable class was not a significant improvement on the Invincible design; the ships were smaller and not as well protected as the contemporary German battlecruiser SMS Von der Tann and subsequent German designs. While Von der Tann's characteristics were not known when the lead ship of the class, HMS Indefatigable, was laid down in February 1909, the Royal Navy obtained accurate information on the German ship before work began on Australia and her sister ship HMS New Zealand. Australia had an overall length of 590 feet (179.8 m), a beam of 80 feet (24.4 m), and a maximum draught of 30 feet 4 inches (9.2 m). She displaced 18,500 long tons (18,797 t) at load and 22,130 long tons (22,485 t) at deep load. The Parsons direct-drive steam turbines were designed to produce 44,000 shaft horsepower (32,811 kW), which would propel the ship at 25 knots (46 km/h; 29 mph). However, during trials in 1913, Australia's turbines provided 55,000 shp (41,013 kW), allowing her to reach 26.89 knots (49.80 km/h; 30.94 mph). Australia carried approximately 3,200 long tons (3,251 t) of coal, and an additional 850 long tons (864 t) of fuel oil; this was sprayed on the coal to increase its burn rate. Australia carried eight BL 12-inch Mark X guns in four BVIII* twin turrets; the largest guns fitted to any Australian warship. Two turrets were mounted fore and aft on the centreline, identified as 'A' and 'X' respectively. The other two were wing turrets mounted amidships and staggered diagonally: 'P' was forward and to port of the centre funnel, while 'Q' was situated starboard and aft. Each wing turret had some limited ability to fire to the opposite side. Her secondary armament consisted of sixteen BL 4-inch Mark VII guns positioned in the superstructure. She mounted two submerged tubes for 18-inch torpedoes, one on each side aft of 'X' barbette, and 12 torpedoes were carried. Australia's 'A' turret was fitted with a 9-foot (2.7 m) rangefinder at the rear of the turret roof. It was also equipped to control the entire main armament, in case normal fire control positions were knocked out or rendered incommunicado. Modifications: Australia received a single QF 3-inch 20 cwt (76 mm) anti-aircraft (AA) gun on a high-angle Mark II mount that was added in March 1915. This had a maximum depression of 10° and a maximum elevation of 90°. It fired a 12.5-pound (5.7 kg) shell at a muzzle velocity of 2,500 ft/s (760 m/s) at a rate of fire of 12–14 rounds per minute. It had a maximum effective ceiling of 23,500 ft (7,200 m). It was provided with 500 rounds. The 4-inch guns were enclosed in casemates and given blast shields during a refit in November 1915 to better protect the gun crews from weather and enemy action, and two aft guns were removed at the same time. An additional 4-inch gun was fitted in during 1917 as an AA gun. It was mounted on a Mark II high-angle mounting with a maximum elevation of 60°. It had a reduced propellant charge with a muzzle velocity of only 2,864 ft/s (873 m/s); 100 rounds were carried for it. Australia's forward turret ('A') in 1918; note the port (i.e. left-side) wing turret in the background with a biplane on its roof Australia received a fire-control director sometime between mid-1915 and May 1916; this centralised fire control under the director officer, who now fired the guns. The turret crewmen merely had to follow pointers transmitted from the director to align their guns on the target.This greatly increased accuracy, as it was easier to spot the fall of shells and eliminated the problem of the ship's roll dispersing the shells when each turret fired independently. Australia was also fitted with an additional inch of armour around the midships turrets following the Battle of Jutland. By 1918, Australia carried a Sopwith Pup and a Sopwith 1½ Strutter on platforms fitted to the top of 'P' and 'Q' turrets. The first flying off by a 1½ Strutter was from Australia's 'Q' turret on 4 April 1918. Each platform had a canvas hangar to protect the aircraft during inclement weather. At the end of World War I, Australia was described as "the least obsolescent of her class". After the war, both anti-aircraft guns were replaced by a pair of QF 4-inch Mark V guns on manually operated high-angle mounts in January 1920. Their elevation limits were −5° to 80°. The guns fired a 31-pound (14 kg) shell at a muzzle velocity of 2,387 ft/s (728 m/s) at a rate of fire of 10–15 rounds per minute. They had a maximum effective ceiling of 28,750 ft (8,760 m). Acquisition and construction: At the start of the 20th century, the British Admiralty maintained that naval defence of the British Empire, including the Dominions, should be unified under the Royal Navy. Attitudes on this matter softened during the first decade, and at the 1909 Imperial Conference, the Admiralty proposed the creation of 'Fleet Units': forces consisting of a battlecruiser, three light cruisers, six destroyers, and three submarines. Although some were to be operated by the Royal Navy at distant bases, particularly in the Far East, the Dominions were encouraged to purchase fleet units to serve as the core of new national navies: Australia and Canada were both encouraged to do so at earliest opportunity, New Zealand was asked to partially subsidise a fleet unit for the China Station, and there were plans for South Africa to fund one at a future point. Each fleet unit was designed as a "navy in miniature", and would operate under the control of the purchasing Dominion during peacetime. In the event of widespread conflict, the fleet units would come under Admiralty control, and would be merged to form larger fleets for regional defence. Australia was the only Dominion to purchase a full fleet unit, and while the New Zealand-funded battlecruiser was donated to the Royal Navy outright, no other nation purchased ships under the fleet unit plan. On 9 December 1909, a cable was sent by Governor-General Lord Dudley to the Secretary of State for the Colonies, The Earl of Crewe, requesting that construction of three Town class cruisers and an Indefatigable-class battlecruiser start at earliest opportunity. It is unclear why this design was selected, given that it was known to be inferior to the battlecruisers entering service with the German Imperial Navy (Kaiserliche Marine). Historian John Roberts has suggested that the request may have been attributable to the Royal Navy's practice of using small battleships and large cruisers as flagships of stations far from Britain, or it might have reflected the preferences of the First Sea Lord and Admiral of the Fleet John Fisher, preferences not widely shared. The Australian Government decided on the name Australia, as this would avoid claims of favouritism or association with a particular state. The ship's badge depicted the Federation Star overlaid by a naval crown, and her motto was "Endeavour", reflecting both an idealisation of Australians' national spirit and attitude, and a connection to James Cook and HM Bark Endeavour. On 6 May 1910, George Reid, Australia's high commissioner to the United Kingdom, sent a telegram cable to the Australian Government suggesting that the ship be named after the newly crowned King George V, but this was rebuffed. HMAS Australia on delivery in the UK in 1913 Bids for construction were forwarded to the Australian Government by Reid on 7 March 1910, and Prime Minister Alfred Deakin approved the submission by John Brown & Company to construct the hull and machinery, with separate contracts awarded to Armstrong and Vickers for the battlecruiser's armament. The total cost of construction was set at £2 million. Contracts were signed between the Admiralty and the builders to avoid the problems of distant supervision by the Australian Government, and a close watch on proceedings was maintained by Reid and Captain Francis Haworth-Booth, the Australian Naval Representative in London. Australia's keel was laid at John Brown & Company's Clydebank yard on 23 June 1910, and was assigned the yard number 402. The ship was launched by Lady Reid on 25 October 1911, in a ceremony which received extensive media coverage. Australia's design was altered during construction to incorporate improvements in technology, including the newly developed nickel-steel armour plate. While it was intended that the entire ship be fitted with the new armour, manufacturing problems meant that older armour had to be used in some sections: the delay in sourcing the older armour plates set construction back half a year. Despite this, John Brown & Company delivered the ship £295,000 under budget. During construction, First Lord of the Admiralty Winston Churchill attempted to arrange for Australia to remain in British waters on completion. Although the claim was made on strategic grounds, the reasoning behind it was so the Australian-funded ship could replace one to be purchased with British defence funds. This plan was successfully resisted by Admiral George King-Hall, then Commander-in-Chief of the Royal Navy's Australia Squadron. Australia sailed for Devonport, Devon in mid-February 1913 to begin her acceptance trials. Testing of the guns, torpedoes, and machinery was successful, but it was discovered that two hull plates had been damaged during the launch, requiring the battlecruiser to dock for repairs. Australia was commissioned into the RAN at Portsmouth on 21 June 1913. Two days later, Rear Admiral George Patey, the first Rear Admiral Commanding Australian Fleet, raised his flag aboard Australia. At launch, the standard ship's company was 820, over half of which were Royal Navy personnel; the other half was made up of Australian-born RAN personnel, or Britons transferring from the Royal Navy to the RAN. Accommodation areas were crowded, with each man having only 14 inches (36 cm) of space to sling his hammock when Australia was fully manned. Moreover, the ventilation system was designed for conditions in Europe, and was inadequate for the climate in and around Australia. On delivery, Australia was the largest warship in the Southern Hemisphere.

YW mate!

Maybe as premium, that's for sure.

YW mate!

Nice info and pics, tnx for sharing mate

Sry for pics guys, I dont know what is wrong with them...here you go link with pics of this ship: http://www.navsource.org/archives/01/16b.htm

I'm glad you like it

Nice post, well done

This Alaska is too powerful for tier 6 btw. In WW2 Alaska was the third vessel of the US Navy to be named after what was then the territory of Alaska.

Tnx

xexexe...thank you

Nice post, if you ask me this will be good tier X

Nice article, tnx for sharing :honoring:

I love montana, +1 from me :medal: :great:

Very nice post, tnx :great: :popcorn:

domen3, on 06 December 2013 - 10:26 AM, said: That was too much for me to read it all , but still.....a very nice (and long) post Tnx mate :glasses:

Nice info and pics :honoring:

Tuccy, on 05 December 2013 - 12:25 AM, said: Great article on one of the "mystery ships". :honoring: Thanks, I love mystery ships. :hiding:

Good work :glasses:

Well done, +1 :medal:

tintir, on 04 December 2013 - 07:39 PM, said: Nice post! Layout is good and gives a good old feeling. The ship is nice and you give us good info. Thank you very much mate :honoring:

GJ mate :honoring:

Well done!

Well done mate, +1 again :medal::honoring: