USS Arizona BB-39 Statistics


Introduction

Arizona was the most heavily damaged of all the vessels in Battleship Row, suffering three near-misses and four direct-hits from 800-kg bombs dropped by high-altitude Kates. The last bomb to strike her penetrated her deck starboard of turret two and detonated within a 14-inch powder magazine. The resulting massive explosion broke the ship in two forward of turret one, collapsed her forecastle decks, and created such a cavity that her forward turrets and conning tower fell thirty feet into her hull. She was a total loss. Never seriously considered a candidate for salvage, her top-hamper was removed in 1942 and she remains where she sank to this day, a tomb for 945 men who died with her.

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Provided by
Vincent James "Jim" Vlach, Jr., USS Arizona Survivor

 
SHIP'S DATA
Name Arizona
Hull Number BB-39
Builder Brooklyn Navy Yard, NY
Laid Down 16 March 1914
Christened 19 June 1915 - By Miss Esther Ross
Commissioned 17 October 1917
Construction Cost $7,425,000 (hull & machinery), $12,993,579 (total)
DIMENSIONS
Displacement 34,207 Tons (Normal), 37,654 Tons (full load)
Length (wl) 600'
Length (ol) 608'
Maximum Beam 106' 3"
Mean Draft 28'
Maximum Draft 33' 6"
PROPULSION AND MACHINERY
Total Weight of Machinery 2,462 Tons (with liquids)
Boilers Six Bureau Express Type; 300-PSI/472 Degrees F Operating Temperature
Drive Four Westinghouse geared impulse/reaction 3,600rpm high-pressure main turbines; four Westinghouse geared impulse/reaction 3,600rpm cruise turbines; four Parsons 226rpm low-pressure ahead and astern turbines; four Parsons 226rpm high-pressure astern turbines.
Fuel Oil 4,630 Tons (normal); 6,180 Tons (emergency)
Diesel Oil 75 Tons (for boats)
Gasoline 11.76 Tons (for aircraft)
Lubricating Oil 5,000 Gallons
Reserve Boiler Feed Water 323 Tons (normal); 392 Tons (Additional Emergency Capacity)
Potable Water 402 Tons
Electricity Four 400kw, 120/240-volt Turbo-generators
Shaft Horsepower Four, Three-bladded; 12' 7" Diameter
Propellers 11.76 Tons (For Aircraft)
Rudder One Balanced, Tapered Type. 443 square foot area. Trainable 38" to port and starboard
Maximum Speed 20.7 Knots (trial July 1931)
Maximum Radius 8,500 Miles@20 Knots
13,6000 Miles@15 Knots
Anchors Three, 20,000-lb; One starboard, two port 120 Fathoms chain to starboard, 180 Fathoms chain to port.
ARMOR
Belt 14" Amidships, Tapering TO 8" Ends. Entire belt extends 9' above waterline and 8'6" below protected turret magazines and amidships machinery spaces.
Deck 4" Outboard strakes (upper deck); 6" Amidships 2" Outboard strakes (lower deck) protected machinery areas and steering gear from plunging fire.
Funnel 15" At base of boiler uptakes, tapering to 9" at the upper deck. Armored grating inside funnel at the level of the second deck.
Turrets 18" Faces; 9" Sides; 9" Rears; 5" Tops; 2" On Exposed Undersides
Barbettes 13" Above Second Deck; 4.5" Between Second and Third Decks
Conning Tower 16" Sides; Two 4" Layers On Top
Conning Tower Tube 5' Inside diameter from third deck to conning tower base; 16" Armor above second deck; 6" below.
Longitudinal Torpedo Bulkheads Two, continuous each side from frame 20 to 127; 60-lb treated steel plating outer bulkhead, normal structure steel inner bulkhead. Total width of protection each side is 11' 9".
Transverse Torpedo Bulkheads Four 40-lb treated steel bulkheads outboard the outer longitudinal bulkhead at frames 23, 30, 90, and 120
Total Published Armor Weight 8,072 Tons
MAIN ARMAMENT
Main Battery: 4-Inch/45 Caliber Twelve 14"/45 Caliber 70-Ton Rifled Guns mounted in four super-firing triple turrets, two forward and two aft.
Barrel Length 52' 6"
Breech Diameter 46"
Maximum Elevation 30 Degrees
RIFLING Spiral grooves in barrel improved accuracy by imparting a spin to the projectile, giving it a clockwise twist of one revolution for each 37.3 feet of travel.
Maximum Range 34,000 Yards
Maximum Projectile 1,400-lb Armor Piercing
Explosive Charge 31.5-lb (2.5% of projectile weight)
Muzzle Velocity 2,700 Feet per second
Average Rate of Fire 1.5 per minute
SECONDARY ARMAMENT
Secondary Battery Twelve 5"/51 Caliber, Single-mounted guns; ten within the superstructure deckhouse and two atop it, one on either side of the conning tower. (The latter two were removed shortly before Pearl Harbor in anticipation of receiving 1.1" AA mounts. At the time of the attack, these positions were empty.)
Maximum Elevation 20 Degrees
Maximum Range 17,100 Yards
Maximum Projectile 50-lb High-capacity
Explosive Charge 4.5-lb (26.4% of projectile weight)
Muzzle Velocity 3,150 Feet Per Second
ANTI-AIRCRAFT ARMAMENT
Main AA Battery: 5-Inch/25 Caliber Eight 5"/25 Caliber Single-mounted Guns, located atop the superstructure deckhouse, four to a side.
Secondary AA Battery: .50 Caliber MG Eight total; two on each mast, four on the funnel platform.
DIRECTORS
Radar None
Fire Control Two enclosed main battery surface rangefinders (one above pilot house, one on main-mast platform); two MK 20 main battery gun directors (one in the highest level of each mast-top); Four secondary battery directors (one each side of the lowest level of both mast-tops); Two MK 28 anti-aircraft directors (one on each bridge wing).
AIRCRAFT OPERATIONS
Aircraft Three Vought 0S2U Kingfishers (single engine, low-wing, float-type monoplane; one float under fuselage, one float under each wing)
Catapults One Trainable, Powder-fired, P MK VI on Fantail (Typical performance was 6,500 pounds at 65mph in 60 feet); One Fixed, Powder-fired, P MK IV Atop Turret Three (typical performance was 6,350-lb at 64mph in 60 feet)
Stern Crane Serviced Fantail P MK VI; 6,000-lb Lifting Capacity
Boat Cranes Serviced Turret-Mounted P MK IV; 25,687-lb Lifting Capacity
Hangar None
CREW
Complement 1,731 Total (92 Officers and Warrants; 1,639 Enlisted)
Accommodations 2,037 Total (4 Cabin Officers; 44 Wardroom Officers; 32 Junior Officers; 10 Warrant Officers; 72 Chief Petty Officers; 1,875 other Enlisted)
 
Information researched and compiled by N. A. Nease and provided on USSARIZONA.ORG free of charge.
May not be reprinted in any form, other than non-profit educational use, without prior written permission of the author.