USS Belknap (CG-26)

USS Belknap (CG-26)
History
United States
Name	Belknap
Namesake	George E. Belknap (1832–1903) Reginald R. Belknap (1871–1959)
Ordered	16 May 1961
Builder	Bath Iron Works
Laid down	5 February 1962
Launched	20 July 1963
Sponsored by	Mrs. Leonard B. Cresswell, the grand-daughter and daughter of the RADMs Belknap
Acquired	4 November 1964
Commissioned	7 November 1964
Decommissioned	20 December 1975
Recommissioned	May 1980
Decommissioned	15 February 1995
Reclassified	CG-26 on 30 June 1975
Stricken	15 December 1995
Fate	Sunk as target on 24 SEP 1998 036° 31' 00.3" North 071° 58' 00.5" West 2050 fathoms
Badge
General characteristics
Class and type	Belknap-class cruiser
Displacement	8957 tons
Length	547 ft (167 m)
Beam	55 ft (17 m)
Draft	31 ft (9.4 m) (maximum navigational)
Propulsion	Two sets GE or De laval steam turbines. total 85,000 shp (63 MW)
Speed	maximum speed 34 knots (63 km/h)
Complement	64 officers and 546 enlisted
Sensors and processing systems	AN/SPS-48E air-search radar AN/SPS-49(V)5 air-search radar AN/SPG-55B fire-control radar AN/SPG-53F gun fire-control radar AN/SQS-26 sonar
Electronic warfare & decoys	AN/SLQ-32
Armament	1 × 5 in (127 mm)/54 caliber gun 1 × Mark 10 Mod 7 Missile System Terrier missile / SM-2ER 6 × 12.76-inch (324 mm) torpedo tubes (removed in 1991) Harpoon missiles Phalanx CIWS

USS Belknap (DLG-26/CG-26), named for Rear Admirals George E. Belknap (1832–1903) and his son Reginald Rowan Belknap (1871–1959), was the lead ship of her class of guided missile cruisers in the United States Navy. She was launched in 1963 as DLG-26, a guided missile frigate under the then-current designation system, and reclassified as CG-26 on 30 June 1975.

On 22 November 1975, Belknap and the aircraft carrier John F. Kennedy collided, killing seven sailors on the cruiser and one on the aircraft carrier.