BB-61 US IOWA 1984 US Battleship

water line series

Its part of President Ronald Reagan's and Secretary of the Navy John F.Lehman's effort to create an expanded 600-ship Navy, Iowa was reactivated and moved under tow to Avondale Shipyard near New Orleans, Louisiana, for refitting and equipment modernization in advance of her planned recommissioning. During the refit, Iowa had all of her remaining Oerlikon 20 mm and Bofors 40mm anti-aircraft guns removed, due to their ineffectiveness against modern fighter jets and anti-ship missiles. Additionally, the two 5 in (130 mm) gun mounts located at mid-ship and in the aft on the port and starboard sides of the battleship were removed.

Iowa was then towed to Ingalls Shipbuilding, Pascagoula, Mississippi, where over the next several months the battleship was upgraded with the most advanced weaponry available. Among the new weapons systems installed were four MK 141 quad cell launchers for 16 AGM-84 Harpoon anti-ship missiles, eight Amored Box Launchers mounts for 32 BGM-109 Tomahawk missiles, and a quartet of Phalanx Close-in weapon system Gatling guns for defense against enemy anti-ship missiles and enemy aircraft. Iowa was the first battleship to receive the RQ-2 Pioneer Unmanned Aerial Vehicle. She could carry up to eight of the remotely controlled drones, which replaced the helicopters previously used to spot for her nine 16 inch (410 mm)/50 cal Mark 7 guns. Also included in her modernization were upgrades to radar and fire-control systems for her guns and missiles, and improved electronic warfare capabilities. Armed as such, Iowa was formally recommissioned on 28 April 1984, ahead of schedule, within her budget at a cost of $500 million, and under the command of Captain Gerald E. Gneckow. In order to expedite the schedule, many necessary repairs to Iowa engines and guns were not completed and the mandatory Navy Board of Inspection and Survey (InSurv) inspection was skipped.

From April–August 1984, Iowa underwent refresher training and naval gunfire support qualifications in the Atlantic Ocean. She spent the rest of 1984 on a shakedown cruise in the area around Central America. During this cruise she aided in several humanitarian operations, including in Costa Rica and Honduras before returning to the United States in April 1985 for a period of routine maintenance.

With the collapse of the Soviet Union in the early 1990s and the lack of a perceived threat against the United States came drastic cuts to the defense budget and the battleships were deemed uneconomical; as a result, Iowa was decommissioned again on 26 October 1990. She was the first of the reactivated battleships to be decommissioned, and this was done earlier than originally planned as a result of the damaged turret. Iowa was berthed at the Naval Eduction and Training Center in Newport from 24 September 1998 to 8 March 2001, when the ship began her journey under tow to California. The ship arrived in Suisun Bay near San Francisco on 21 April 2001 and joined the reserve fleet there, where she remained in reserve until struck again from the Naval Vessel Register in March 2006. She and her sister ships had been struck previously in 1995. She remained at the Suisun Bay anchorage until November 2011.

Eén uitvoering mogelijk;

• BB-61 US IOWA 1984 US Battleship

Afmetingen;

• Lang; 386 mm.
• Breed; 47 mm.

Aantal onderdelen; 223

Schaal 1:700

Trumpeter 05701