I love the Iowa-class battleships. They weren't the biggest capital ships, nor did they carry the biggest main guns and shoot the biggest shells (those honors go to Japan's Yamato-class ships). But they were the most advanced examples of their class ever built. The Iowa, New Jersey, Missouri, and Wisconsin comprised our ultimate (and final) group of ships to bear the “BB” designation. Two other ships, the Illinois and Kentucky, were begun but never finished. They operated throughout the Second World War, in Korea, in Vietnam, and even in the first Gulf War (mostly as cruise missile platforms). They were the longest-serving battleships ever built and, in my opinion, were (and still are) works of art.
But while Today's History Lesson concerns these gorgeous vessels, it's less about ”art” and more about tragedy, misplaced blame, and ruined lives. In January of 1989, the USS Iowa had set a record, firing a 16-inch shell 27 miles. Three months later, on the morning of April 19, 1989, the #2 turret fired again during a fleet exercise, with entirely different results.
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