7049 USS SAVANNAH 1944 CL-42 1944

The USS Savannah (CL-42) was an American light cruiser, the keel of which was laid in May 1934, launched in May 1937, and was completely completed in March 1938. The total length of the ship at the time of launching was 185.4 m, width 18.8 m, with a standard displacement of about 9,900 tons. The maximum speed was up to 32-33 knots. The armament of the unit at the time of launching mainly consisted of: 15 152 mm guns, 8 127 mm anti-aircraft guns and 8 heavy 12.7 mm machine guns. The ship could also operate with 4 seaplanes. The USS Savannah (CL-42) was the third of nine Brooklyn-class cruisers launched for the US Navy between 1935 and 1938. The design of these ships was to some extent based on the design and lessons learned from the operation of New Orleans-class heavy cruisers. At the same time, they were the American response to Japanese Mogami-class ships, also armed with 15 main artillery guns. Moreover, during the design and construction of the Brooklyn-class cruisers, great emphasis was placed on the greatest possible range of navigation, seaworthiness and careful workmanship. Ultimately, units of this type turned out to be highly successful and were successfully used during World War II. The USS Savannah (CL-42) was constructed at the New York Shipbuilding Corporation in Camden, NJ. At the time of the US accession to World War II, the unit operated in the Atlantic and was quickly directed to its southern part, in order to undertake patrol tasks in the Caribbean region at the beginning of 1942. The unit took a very active part in Operation Torch (November 1942), i.e. during the Allied landing in North Africa. In the first half of 1943, the USS Savannah (CL-42) operated in the South Atlantic, but in May of the same year it was sent to the Mediterranean basin, where it supported landing operations in Sicily shortly after. In September 1943, while supporting the operations near Salerno, the unit was severely damaged by the German Fritz X bomb. The repair of the ship lasted until September 1944! The unit, however, was no longer used in combat during World War II. In 1947, the ship was withdrawn from the line, and in 1959, she was scrapped.