USS Alaska (CB-1)

USS Alaska
History
United States
Name	USS Alaska
Namesake	Territory of Alaska
Ordered	9 September 1940
Builder	New York Shipbuilding Corporation
Laid down	17 December 1941
Launched	15 August 1943
Commissioned	17 June 1944
Decommissioned	17 February 1947
Stricken	1 June 1960
Honors and awards	Three battle stars for World War II service
Fate	Scrapped in 1960
General characteristics
Class and type	Alaska-class large cruiser
Displacement	Standard: 29,779 long tons (30,257 t) Full load: 34,253 long tons (34,803 t)
Length	808 ft 6 in (246.4 m)
Beam	91 ft 1 in (27.8 m)
Draft	31 ft 10 in (9.7 m)
Installed power	8 × Babcock & Wilcox water-tube boilers 153,000 shp (114,000 kW)
Propulsion	4 × General Electric steam turbines 4 × screw propellers
Speed	33 knots (61 km/h; 38 mph)
Range	12,000 nmi (22,000 km; 14,000 mi) at 15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph)
Crew	1,517
Armament	9 × 12 in (305 mm) guns 12 × 5 in (127 mm) dual-purpose guns 56 × 40 mm (1.6 in) guns 34 × 20 mm (0.79 in) guns
Armor	Belt: 9 in (229 mm) Deck: 4 in (102 mm) Conning tower: 10.6 in (270 mm) Turrets: 12.8 in (325 mm)
Aircraft carried	4

USS Alaska was the lead ship of the Alaska class of large cruisers which served with the United States Navy during the end of World War II. She was the first of two ships of her class to be completed, followed only by Guam; four other ships were ordered but were not completed before the end of the war. Alaska was the third vessel of the US Navy to be named after what was then the territory of Alaska, and was assigned the hull number CB-1. She was laid down on 17 December 1941, ten days after the United States entered the war, was launched in August 1943 by the New York Shipbuilding Corporation, in Camden, New Jersey, and was commissioned in June 1944. She was armed with a main battery of nine 12 in (305 mm) guns in three triple turrets and had a top speed of 33 kn (61 km/h; 38 mph).

Due to being commissioned late in the war, Alaska saw relatively limited service. She participated in operations off Iwo Jima and Okinawa in February–July 1945, including providing anti-aircraft defense for various carrier task forces and conducting limited shore bombardment operations. She shot down several Japanese aircraft off Okinawa, including a possible Ohka piloted missile. In July–August 1945 she participated in sweeps for Japanese shipping in the East China and Yellow Seas. After the war, she assisted in the occupation of Korea and transported a contingent of US Army troops back to the United States. She was decommissioned in February 1947 and placed in reserve, where she remained until she was stricken in 1960 and sold for scrapping the following year.