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USS ''Wichita'' (CA-45) was a unique heavy cruiser of the United States Navy built in the 1930s. The last American cruiser built under the limits of London Naval Treaty, she was originally intended to be a heavy cruiser, accordingly with the maximum main armament of three triple gun turrets. These were instead placed on an improved hull derived from the ''Brooklyn''-class light cruisers, with increased armoring. This design would go on to form the basis for the later World War II-era heavy cruisers such as the s. The ship was authorized by the 1929 Cruiser Act, laid down at the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard in October 1935, launched in November 1937, and commissioned into the US Navy in February 1939. Following her commissioning, ''Wichita'' was assigned to neutrality patrols in the Atlantic. After the United States entered World War II, the ship saw heavy service throughout the conflict. She was first assigned to convoy escort duty on the Murmansk Run in early 1942, and supported amphibious landings during Operation Torch in November 1942. During the Naval Battle of Casablanca, ''Wichita'' engaged several French coastal batteries and warships, including the battleship ''Jean Bart''. In 1943, ''Wichita'' was transferred to the Pacific Theater, where she remained for the rest of the war. She frequently provided antiaircraft defense for the Fast Carrier Task Force during operations in the central Pacific, including the Battles of the Philippine Sea and Leyte Gulf in 1944. During the latter engagement, ''Wichita'' assisted in the sinking of the Japanese aircraft carrier ''Chiyoda''. ''Wichita'' was heavily engaged during the invasion of Okinawa, where she provided heavy gunfire support to ground troops ashore. After the Japanese surrender, the ship served as part of the occupation force in Japan and assisted in the repatriation of American military personnel under Operation Magic Carpet. After returning to the United States, she was decommissioned and placed in the mothball fleet in 1946. She remained in reserve until 1959, when she was stricken from the Naval Vessel Register and sold for scrapping in August 1959. ==Design== In the early 1930s, the Secretary of the Navy, Curtis D. Wilbur, pushed for a new construction program for light and heavy cruisers.〔Hammond, p. 65〕 Wilbur succeeded in passing the Cruiser Act in 1929, which authorized several new cruisers.〔Hammond, pp. 109–110〕 Five heavy cruisers, the last of which was ''Wichita'', were ordered between 1931 and 1934.〔 ''Wichita'' was the last heavy cruiser permitted under the terms of the London Naval Treaty in 1930, which limited the US to 18 heavy cruisers with a maximum standard displacement of .〔Gardiner & Chesneau, p. 117〕 The ship was originally intended to be built to the design of the , but the design was reworked before construction began.〔Terzibaschitsch, p. 129〕 Instead, the design for ''Wichita'' was based on the of light cruisers. The ''Brooklyn'' design was modified heavily, to give the new ship higher freeboard and better stability, and an increased cruising radius. The secondary battery of eight guns was identical in number to the light cruisers, but was arranged to give better fields of fire. The main battery of nine guns was mounted in a new gun turret design that rectified problems discovered in earlier cruisers.〔 ''Wichita'' was laid down at the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard on 28 October 1935, and launched on 16 November 1937. By the time she was completed, in February 1938, ''Wichita'' was nearly over the 10,000-ton limit; as a result, she was completed with only two of the eight 5-inch guns to keep her under the displacement restriction. When the rest of the 5-inch guns were installed, it was found that the ship was too top-heavy, and so of pig iron had to be added to her bottom to balance the cruiser. ''Wichita'' was commissioned into the US Navy on 16 February 1939.〔 Her first commander was Captain Thaddeus A. Thomson.〔(【引用サイトリンク】url=http://www.history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/w/wichita-i.html )〕 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「USS Wichita (CA-45)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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