 USS Saipan duringExpeditionary Strike Group integration training in 2004 | |
| Class overview | |
|---|---|
| Name | Tarawa class |
| Builders | Ingalls Shipbuilding |
| Operators |  United States Navy |
| Preceded by | Iwo Jima class |
| Succeeded by | Wasp class |
| Built | 15 November 1971 – 3 May 1980 |
| In commission | 29 May 1976 – 31 March 2015 |
| Planned | 9 |
| Completed | 5 |
| Cancelled | 4 |
| Retired | 5 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class & type | Amphibious assault ship/LHA |
| Displacement | 39,967 tonnes (39,336 long tons; 44,056 short tons) full load |
| Length | 834 feet (254 m) |
| Beam | 131.9 feet (40.2 m) |
| Draft | 25.9 feet (7.9 m) |
| Propulsion |
|
| Speed | 24 knots (44 km/h; 28 mph) |
| Range | 10,000 nautical miles (19,000 km; 12,000 mi) at 20 knots (37 km/h; 23 mph) |
| Boats & landing craft carried | |
| Troops | 1,703 |
| Complement | 56 officers, 874 sailors (1998) |
| Armament |
|
| Aircraft carried |
|
| Aviation facilities | 820-by-118.1-foot (249.9 by 36.0 m) flight deck with 2 aircraft lifts |
TheTarawa class is aship class ofLanding Helicopter Assault (LHA) typeamphibious assault ships operated by theUnited States Navy (USN). Five ships were built byIngalls Shipbuilding between 1971 and 1980; another four ships were planned, but later canceled; instead they were joined by theWasp-classamphibious assault ships.
As of March 2015[update], all vessels had been decommissioned. TheTarawa class were replaced by theAmerica-classamphibious assault ships from 2014 onward while theWasp class remains in service.
The vessels have a full load displacement of 39,967 tonnes (39,336 long tons; 44,056 short tons).[1] Each ship is 834 feet (254 m) long, with a beam of 131.9 feet (40.2 m), and a draft of 25.9 feet (7.9 m).[1]
Propulsion is provided by twoCombustion Engineering boilers, connected to twoWestinghouse turbines.[1] These supply 70,000horsepower (52,000 kW) to the ship's two propeller shafts.[1] ATarawa-class vessel can reach a maximum speed of 24knots (44 km/h; 28 mph), and has a maximum range of 10,000nautical miles (19,000 km; 12,000 mi) at 20 knots (37 km/h; 23 mph).[1] In addition to the main propulsion system, the ships are fitted with abow thruster.[1]
As of 1998, the ships' armament consisted of a Mark 49 RAM surface-to-air missile system, twoVulcan Phalanx close-in weapons systems, six Mark 242 25 mm automatic cannons, and eight 12.7 mm machine guns.[1] Previously, the amphibious warships were fitted with 2 Mark 25Sea Sparrow missile systems (which were replaced by the Phalanx units), and three5-inch (127 mm) Mk 45 lightweight guns in bow and starboard aftsponsons (the guns were removed across the class during 1997 and 1998).[1] Countermeasures and decoys include fourMark 36 SRBOC launchers, aSLQ-25 Nixie towed torpedo decoy, aSea Gnat unit,SLQ-49 chaff decoys.[1]
The number of helicopters carried by each vessel was up to 19Sikorsky CH-53 Sea Stallions, 26Boeing Vertol CH-46 Sea Knight, or a mix of the two.[1] The 820-by-118.1-foot (249.9 by 36.0 m) flight deck is fitted with two aircraft lifts, and up to nine Sea Stallions or 12 Sea Knights can be operated simultaneously.[1] With a small amount of modification, the ships could carry and operate up to sixMcDonnell Douglas AV-8B Harrier II jump-jets.[1]
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TheTarawa-class ships are designed to embark a reinforced battalion of theUnited States Marine Corps and their equipment.[1] Onboard accommodation is provided for up to 1,703 marines, while 33,730 cubic feet (955 m3) is provided for the battalion's vehicles, and 116,900 cubic feet (3,310 m3) is allocated for stores and other equipment.[1] As well as deploying by helicopters, personnel and equipment can be embarked or offloaded via a 268-by-78-foot (82 by 24 m)well deck in each ship's stern.[1] Up to fourLCU 1610 landing craft can be transported in and operated from the well deck, along with other designs and combinations of landing craft (two LCU and twoLCM-8, or 17LCM-6, or 45AAVP).[1]
TheTarawa design was later repeated for theWasp-class amphibious assault ships, with some changes.[2] The main changes to the latter eight-ship class include the lower placement of the ship'sbridge aboard theWasps, the relocation of the command and control facilities to inside the hull, modifications to allow the operation of Harrier jump-jets andLanding Craft Air Cushion hovercraft, and removal of the 5-inch guns and their sponsons to increase the overall size of the flight deck.[2][3]
All fivewarships were built byIngalls Shipbuilding, at this company'sshipyard inPascagoula, Mississippi.[1]Tarawa was approved for construction duringfiscal year 1969, with two more ships of this class ordered byCongress in the 1970 and 1971 fiscal years.[1]
Design problems emerged early in the LHA program and contrary to the intent of theTotal Package Procurement concept, the Navy became heavily involved in the design process.[4] Nine ships were originally contracted for theTarawa class, but that number was reduced to five in January 1971.[4] The other four ships were never built for the Navy.[1]
Work on the first warship of this class,USS Tarawa, began on 15 November 1971, and she was commissioned into the Navy on 29 May 1976.[1] The last of the five ships,USS Peleliu, was completed on 3 May 1980.[1]
TheTarawas began leaving service in 2005. By April 2011, four of the five amphibious assault ships had been decommissioned, leaving onlyPeleliu in active service.[5]Peleliu was decommissioned on 31 March 2015 in San Diego.[6]
TheTarawa class is to be replaced by theAmerica class.[3] The firstAmerica-class vessel was delivered and commissioned in 2014.[citation needed]
| Name | Hull number | Laid down | Launched | Commissioned | Decommissioned | Fate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tarawa | LHA-1 | 15 November 1971 | 1 December 1973 | 29 May 1976 | 31 March 2009 | Sunk as target ship on 19 July 2024 |
| Saipan | LHA-2 | 21 July 1972 | 18 July 1974 | 15 October 1977 | 25 April 2007 | Scrapped 2009 |
| Belleau Wood (ex-Philippine Sea) | LHA-3 | 5 March 1973 | 11 April 1977 | 23 September 1978 | 28 October 2005 | Sunk astarget ship on 13 July 2006 |
| Nassau (ex-Leyte Gulf) | LHA-4 | 13 August 1973 | 21 January 1978 | 28 July 1979 | 31 March 2011 | Scrapped 30 April 2021[7] |
| Peleliu (ex-Da Nang, ex-Khe Sanh) | LHA-5 | 12 November 1976 | 25 November 1978 | 3 May 1980 | 31 March 2015 | In reserve |
