Farragut-class Destroyer (1934)
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The ''Farragut''-class destroyers were a class of eight 1,365-ton
destroyer In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast, maneuverable, long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy, or carrier battle group and defend them against a wide range of general threats. They were conceived i ...
s in the
United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...
and the first US destroyers of post-
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design. Their construction, along with the , was authorized by
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on 29 April 1916, but funding was delayed considerably. Limited to 1,500 tons
standard displacement The displacement or displacement tonnage of a ship is its weight. As the term indicates, it is measured indirectly, using Archimedes' principle, by first calculating the volume of water displaced by the ship, then converting that value into wei ...
by the provisions of the
London Naval Treaty The London Naval Treaty, officially the Treaty for the Limitation and Reduction of Naval Armament, was an agreement between the United Kingdom, Empire of Japan, Japan, French Third Republic, France, Kingdom of Italy, Italy, and the United Stat ...
of 1930, the ships were laid down beginning in 1932 and were completed by 1935. After 12 years since the last of the previous class of American destroyers (the ) was commissioned, the ''Farragut''s were commissioned in 1934 and 1935. These ships were slightly larger than their predecessors, faster, and they had only two
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s, versus the four stacks common to all the earlier classes. The class was the first of six classes of 1,500-ton destroyers built in the 1930s to modernize the United States Navy, and all eight ''Farragut''s saw extensive front-line service during
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
. None were lost in battle, although only five survived the war. After numerous incremental improvements, the 1,500-tonners were succeeded by the 2,100-ton , which was not subject to treaty restrictions.


Design

The ''Farragut''s were a considerable improvement from previous destroyers, taking advantage of technological advances during the 12-year gap in destroyer production. The impact of aircraft on naval warfare was reflected in their heavy dual-purpose main gun armament. They also had greatly improved machinery and greater fuel capacity that extended their range to as opposed to the ''Clemson''s . Their larger size and improved habitability soon earned them the nickname of "goldplaters" from the crews of older destroyers. The list of desired improvements compiled from the operational experience of the earlier and ''Clemson'' classes was both long and comprehensive. Both classes had pointed
stern The stern is the back or aft-most part of a ship or boat, technically defined as the area built up over the sternpost, extending upwards from the counter rail to the taffrail. The stern lies opposite the bow, the foremost part of a ship. O ...
s that deeply dug into the water, greatly increasing turning diameter.Friedman, p.46 This was addressed with the
transom stern The stern is the back or aft-most part of a ship or boat, technically defined as the area built up over the sternpost, extending upwards from the counter rail to the taffrail. The stern lies opposite the bow, the foremost part of a ship. Ori ...
design of the ''Farragut'' class. The previous classes were
flush deck In naval architecture, a flush deck is a Deck (ship), ship deck that is continuous from stem to stern. History Flush decks have been in use since the times of the ancient Egyptians. Greco-Roman Trireme often had a flush deck but may have also ha ...
designs; while providing good hull strength, this proved to be wet in high seas. This was addressed with the raised forecastle employed on the ''Farragut'' class. Cruising range on both the ''Wickes'' and ''Clemson'' classes had been a constant affliction of commanders; the ''Clemson''s had been built with wing tanks giving better range, but at the cost of having high mounted fuel oil on both sides—a decidedly vulnerable feature in a ship without an armored belt such as a destroyer.Friedman, p.44 The ''Farragut'' class corrected this range deficiency by having a design range of as opposed to the ''Clemson's'' . Steady improvements to both boilers and steam turbines in the years between the ''Clemson'' and ''Farragut'' designs allowed this improved range, along with greater speed and a reduction from 4 to 2 stacks. The success of the efforts become clear with the testimony of Rear Admiral Emory S. Land, head of the
Bureau of Construction and Repair The Bureau of Construction and Repair (BuC&R) was the part of the United States Navy which from 1862 to 1940 was responsible for supervising the design, construction, conversion, procurement, maintenance, and repair of ships and other craft for the ...
, to the
General Board The General Board of the United States Navy was an advisory body of the United States Navy, somewhat akin to a naval general staff. The General Board was established by general order 544, issued on March 13, 1900 by Secretary of the Navy John ...
, comparing the ''Farragut'' class to the ''Wickes'' and ''Clemson'' classes. Those advantages were: *The ''Farragut'' class was 3.3 knots faster. *The class had double the GM height (resulting in greater initial stability). *They had 25% more armament—5 main guns rather than 4—and about 35% greater firepower, mounting /38 caliber guns (Mark 12) as opposed to the 4 in (102 mm)/50 caliber gun (Mark 9) mounted on most previous destroyers. *All 8 torpedo tubes were on the preferred centerline position. *The guns were fed by power hoist from the magazines. *Being high-freeboard vessels, sea-keeping was much improved over the flush deckers that preceded it. *The radius of action increased by . This had all been accomplished on a displacement rise of only 22%. The ''Farragut''-class destroyers were considered unstable in heavy weather and in turns. This was compounded by war-time modifications that made them even more top-heavy. Two of the destroyers, ''Hull'' and ''Monaghan'', sank as a result of the December 1944 typhoon. One of the survivors stated A court of inquiry after the loss concluded that hebasic stability of the ''Farragut''-class ships "is materially less than other destroyers."


Engineering

The ''Farragut''-class propulsion plant was considerably improved over the ''Clemson''-class. Steam pressure and temperature were raised from
saturated steam Steam is water vapor, often mixed with air or an aerosol of liquid water droplets. This may occur due to evaporation or due to boiling, where heat is applied until water reaches the enthalpy of vaporization. Saturated or superheated steam is ...
to steam
superheated A superheater is a device used to convert saturated steam or wet steam into superheated steam or dry steam. Superheated steam is used in steam turbines for electricity generation, in some steam engines, and in processes such as steam reforming. ...
to . Superheated steam increased the efficiency of the turbines, improving the ships' range. This was the first use of superheaters in a US destroyer.
Economizer Economizers (US and Oxford spelling), or economisers (UK), are mechanical devices intended to reduce energy consumption, or to perform useful function such as preheating a fluid. The term economizer is used for other purposes as well. Boiler, p ...
s were also fitted; these used boiler exhaust gas to preheat the
feedwater Boiler feedwater is the water which is supplied to a boiler. The feed water is put into the steam drum from a feed pump. In the steam drum the feed water is then turned into steam from the heat. After the steam is used, it is then dumped to the ...
before it entered the boiler; these increased the ships' range by requiring less fuel to boil the water to steam.Friedman, p. 88 The ''Farragut''s turbines were Parsons-type reaction turbines manufactured by
Bethlehem Steel The Bethlehem Steel Corporation was an American steelmaking company headquartered in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. Until its closure in 2003, it was one of the world's largest steel-producing and shipbuilding companies. At the height of its success ...
. Each main turbine was divided into a high-pressure and a low-pressure turbine feeding into a common reduction gear to drive a shaft, in a similar manner to the machinery illustrated below and at the following reference. This general arrangement became standard for most subsequent steam-powered surface ships of the US Navy. Single-reduction gearing (as in the ''Clemson''s) was used on the ''Farragut''s; the s and later classes had double-reduction gearing, which reduced the required size of the (then faster spinning) turbines still further.


Armament

*As built: These were the first US destroyers with a dual-purpose main armament. They received five of the then-new /38cal gun (Mark 12), installed in Mark 21 dual-purpose single mounts. The forward two mounts (numbered 51 and 52) were partially enclosed with lightly armored open-back shields. (''see picture'') The midships mount (No 53) and the after two mounts (numbers 54 and 55) were open. Unlike subsequent five-gun US destroyers, mount 53 was immediately aft of the stacks. An important feature was the dual-purpose Mark 33
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above the bridge, which coordinated the fire of the 5 inch guns against both ships and aircraft. By late 1942, radio
proximity fuse A Proximity Fuse (also VT fuse or "variable time fuze") is a fuse that detonates an explosive device automatically when it approaches within a certain distance of its target. Proximity fuses are designed for elusive military targets such as air ...
s (VT fuses) would make the guns much more effective against aircraft. Just aft of mount 53 were two trainable
torpedo tube A torpedo tube is a cylindrical device for launching torpedoes. There are two main types of torpedo tube: underwater tubes fitted to submarines and some surface ships, and deck-mounted units (also referred to as torpedo launchers) installed aboa ...
quad-mounts (with four tubes on each mount), one abaft the other. The class was initially equipped with the Mark 8 torpedo, which was replaced by the
Mark 15 torpedo The Mark 15 torpedo was the standard American destroyer-launched torpedo of World War II. It was very similar in design to the Mark 14 torpedo except that it was longer, heavier, and had greater range and a larger warhead. The Mark 15 was develo ...
beginning in 1938. On the 02 level, aft of mount 52, there were two single .50 cal (12.7mm) machine gun (MG) mounts next to the port and starboard rails. Two more .50 cal MGs were on the main deck, midships. *c 1943: Due to the need for greater light
anti-aircraft Anti-aircraft warfare (AAW) is the counter to aerial warfare and includes "all measures designed to nullify or reduce the effectiveness of hostile air action".AAP-6 It encompasses surface-based, subsurface ( submarine-launched), and air-ba ...
(AA) protection that emerged following the
attack on Pearl Harbor The attack on Pearl HarborAlso known as the Battle of Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike by the Empire of Japan on the United States Pacific Fleet at Naval Station Pearl Harbor, its naval base at Pearl Harbor on Oahu, Territory of ...
, the .50 cal MGs and Mount 53 were replaced by 20 mm and 40 mm AA weapons. The type and quantity varied from ship to ship depending on when and where they were refitted. Also, roll-off
depth charge A depth charge is an anti-submarine warfare (ASW) weapon designed to destroy submarine A submarine (often shortened to sub) is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. (It differs from a submersible, which has more limited ...
racks were added to the stern, along with four
K-gun A depth charge is an anti-submarine warfare (ASW) weapon designed to destroy submarines by detonating in the water near the target and subjecting it to a destructive hydraulic shock. Most depth charges use high explosives with a fuze set to det ...
depth charge throwers.Gardiner and Chesneau, p. 125 One source states the depth charge racks were added in 1936.


Service

All ships were present at the
attack on Pearl Harbor The attack on Pearl HarborAlso known as the Battle of Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike by the Empire of Japan on the United States Pacific Fleet at Naval Station Pearl Harbor, its naval base at Pearl Harbor on Oahu, Territory of ...
, where sank a
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midget submarine A midget submarine is any submarine under 150 tons, typically operated by a crew of one or two but sometimes up to six or nine, with little or no on-board living accommodation. They normally work with mother ships, from which they are launched an ...
. Three of the class were lost in the war: ran aground in
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n waters in January 1943 and became a total loss, while and ''Monaghan'' were lost in
Typhoon Cobra Typhoon Cobra, also known as the Typhoon of 1944 or Halsey's Typhoon (named after Admiral William Halsey Jr.), was the United States Navy designation for a powerful tropical cyclone that struck the United States Pacific Fleet in December 1944, ...
in December 1944. The remaining five ships survived World War II; they were broken up for scrap shortly after the end of the war.


Ships in class


See also

* *
List of destroyer classes of the United States Navy A list is a set of discrete items of information collected and set forth in some format for utility, entertainment, or other purposes. A list may be memorialized in any number of ways, including existing only in the mind of the list-maker, but ...
*
List of United States Navy losses in World War II List of United States Navy and United States Coast Guard, Coast Guard ships lost during World War II, from 31 October 1941 to 31 December 1946, sorted by type and name. This listing also includes constructive losses, which are ships that were d ...


References


Citations


Sources

* * * *


External links


''Farragut''-class destroyers
a
Destroyer History Foundation

"Goldplater" destroyers
a
Destroyer History Foundation

Comparison of 1500-ton classes
a
Destroyer History Foundation

USS ''Farragut'' (DD-348) General Information Book with as-built data
a
Destroyer History Foundation


* ttp://www.navsource.net/archives/05idx.htm NavSource Destroyer Photo Index Page* {{Authority control Destroyer classes