350912 U.S. NAVY BATTLESHIP WISCONSIN BB-64

USS Wisconsin (BB-64) was an American battleship laid down in 1941, launched in December 1943, and commissioned with the US Navy in April 1944. The length of the ship was 270.4 m, width 33 m, and her full displacement - at the time of launching - 58,400 tons. The top speed of the USS Wisconsin battleship was up to 33 knots. The main armament at the time of the launch was 9 406 mm guns in three turrets of three guns each, and the secondary armament was mainly 20 127 mm guns. USS Wisconsin was the fourth of the six Iowa-class battleships to be ordered and the last to launch. As it turned out, with the Montana-class construction program not being implemented, the Iowa-class ships were the last battleships to be launched for the US Navy. As they were built without any financial or displacement limits, they also turned out to be the most technologically advanced American battleships in World War II. From the outset, they were built as key carrier ships for aircraft carriers and placed great emphasis on high top speed, which made Iowa-class battleships much faster than any other American battleships. They also had carefully crafted armor and new 406 mm Mk. VII with a greater range of the effective shot. USS Wisconsin (BB-64) began its participation in World War II at the end of 1944, when it was assigned to the Pacific Fleet, supporting primarily US land operations in the Philippines. In January 1945, it was a component of the protection of the fleet's high-speed aircraft carriers during their air attacks on targets in Taiwan and Luzon. In February, together with other ships, he made an effective raid against targets located in the Japanese Islands and supported the American landing on Iwo-Jima, and in March and April he fired at Japanese positions in Okinawa. In 1950-1952 he took part in the Korean War, and in 1958 he was transferred to the reserve. In the 1980s, it returned to line service, having previously undergone a thorough modernization in 1986-1988. It involved the installation of modern electronics and fire control systems, as well as the installation of Tomahawk and Harpoon rocket launchers and Phalanx anti-aircraft systems. The battleship was also adapted to the homing of on-board helicopters. The ship modernized in this way took an active part in the Operation Desert Storm (1990-1991), firing at targets in Iraq with missiles and on-board artillery. Finally, in 1991, the ship was decommissioned. At present, it serves as a museum ship.