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The ''Kidd''-class guided missile destroyers (DDGs) were a series of four warships based on the ''Spruance'' class destroyers. The ''Kidds'' were designed as more advanced multipurpose ships, in contrast to their predecessor's focus on anti-submarine warfare, adding considerably enhanced anti-aircraft capabilities.〔()〕 Originally ordered for the former Imperial Iranian Navy, the contracts were canceled when the 1979 Iranian Revolution began, and the ships were completed for the U.S. Navy. Because they were equipped with heavy-duty air conditioning and other features that made them suitable in hot climates, they tended to be used in the Middle East, specifically the Persian Gulf itself.〔()〕 During their service with the U.S. Navy from the 1980s to the late 1990s, the ships were popularly known as the "Ayatollah" or "dead admiral" class. They were decommissioned and sold to Taiwan, now being known as the ''Kee Lung''-class. ==History== These ships were originally ordered by the last Shah (king) of Iran for service in the Persian Gulf, in an air defence role. The Shah was overthrown in the Iranian Revolution, prior to Iran accepting delivery of the ships, causing the United States Navy to integrate the vessels into its own fleet. Each ship in the class was named after a U.S. Navy Admiral who had died in combat in the Pacific in World War II: * was named after Rear Admiral Isaac C. Kidd, who died on the bridge of his flagship, the , during the attack on Pearl Harbor on 7 December 1941. * was named after Rear Admiral Daniel Callaghan, who was killed during a surface action at the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal, 13 November 1942, aboard the . * was named after Rear Admiral Norman Scott, who was killed during the same surface action that killed Admiral Callaghan at the First Naval Battle of Guadalcanal, aboard the . * was named after Rear Admiral Theodore Chandler, who died on 7 January 1945, as a result of burns received from a kamikaze crashing into his flagship, the , the previous day. In 1988–90, the Kidds’ received the “New Threat Upgrade”, including a new superstructure and heavier mainmast cooperative engagement with Aegis ''Ticonderoga''-class cruisers, which could control the Kidds’ surface-to-air missiles while they remained electronically silent. However, the arrival of the Aegis-equipped ''Arleigh Burke''-class destroyers, which were more effective and cost-efficient, led to the accelerated retirement of the ''Spruance'' and ''Kidd'' classes, despite their recent modifications (including 24 members of the ''Spruance'' class receiving a 61-cell Vertical Launch System for Tomahawk missiles).〔〔()〕 All four ships were decommissioned from the U.S. Navy in the late 1990s, and were initially offered for sale to Australia in 1997 for A$30 million each. In 1999, the offer was rejected, based on extensive problems the Royal Australian Navy had encountered during the acquisition of two surplus ''Newport'' class tank landing ships from the U.S. Navy in 1994.〔 After the Australian refusal, the four ships were offered to Greece, which also refused.〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Kidd-class destroyer」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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