(Source: United States Battleship Missouri, The Second Decommissioning program, March 31, 1992)
| Spec | Description |
|---|---|
| Built | New York Naval Shipyard, Brooklyn, New York |
| Class | Iowa-class battleship |
| Keel Laid | January 6, 1941 |
| Launched | January 29, 1944 |
| Commissioned | June 11, 1944 |
| Operational | December 14, 1944 |
| Decommissioned | February 26, 1955 |
| Recommissioned | May 10, 1986 |
| Decommissioned | March 31, 1992 |
| Length | 887'3" (270.4m) |
| Beam | 108' 3" (33m) |
| Draft | 38' (11.6m) |
| Height | 216’ 6” (66m) from keel to mast top |
| Displacement | 58,000 tons loaded: 45,000 tons unloaded |
| Personnel | 134 officers, 2400 enlisted (World War II) 65 officers, 1450 enlisted (1986-1992) |
| Boilers | Eight 600 pounds per square inch Babcock & Wilcox |
| Main Engines | Four geared General Electric Turbines |
| Horsepower | 212,000 shaft horsepower (total of all four shafts) |
| Propellers | Two five-bladed 17' 5" (5.3m) inboard Two four-bladed 18' 3" (5.6m) outboard |
| Rudders | Two |
| Speed | In excess of 30 knots |
| Tank capacity | 2.5-million gallons of fuel oil 30,000 gallons of aviation fuel 239,000 gallons of fresh water |
| Armor | The main armor of the hull is 13.5" tapering 19 degrees vertically to 1.62" Aft, for protection of the propellers and shafts, the armor is 13.5 Other armor thicknesses are: Turret faces: 17" Turret tops: 7.25" Turret backs: 12" Turret sides: 9.25" Second deck armor: 6" Conning tower sides: 17.3" |
| Main Gun Battery | Nine 16".50 caliber guns in three, three-gun turrets Range: 23 miles Projectiles: Armor piercing – 2,700 pounds High capacity – 1,900 pounds Powder: standard load of six, 110-pound bags Rate of fire: two rounds per minute, per gun Use: Anti-surface and shore bombardment |
| Secondary Battery | Twelve 5"/38 caliber guns in six dual mounts Range: 9 miles Projectiles: 55 pounds Powder: 30 pounds Rate of fire: 15 rounds per minute, per gun Use: Anti-surface, anti-air and shore bombardment |
| Air Defense | Four Phalanx Close-In Weapons System (CIWS) Gatling-style guns, capable of firing 20mm ammunition at a rate of 50 rounds per second (3000 rounds per minute) for self-defense against missiles and aircraft |
| Missiles | Capable of carrying up to 32 Tomahawk Anti-Surface or Land Attack missiles and up to 16 Harpoon anti-surface missiles |
Built in the midst of World War II in the Brooklyn Navy Yard, USS Missouri (BB 63) is the youngest of her other Iowa-class sisters, following…
From its keel-laying in 1941 to its opening as a memorial in 1999, the USS Missouri served in WWII, hosted Japan's surrender, fought in Korea, and was modernized for Desert Storm.