SCB-125 was the United States Navy

United States Navy

The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...

 designation for a series of upgrades to the Essex

Essex class aircraft carrier

The Essex class was a class of aircraft carriers of the United States Navy, which constituted the 20th century's most numerous class of capital ships with 24 vessels built in both "short-hull" and "long-hull" versions. Thirty-two were originally ordered; however as World War II wound down, six were...

 class of aircraft carrier

Aircraft carrier

An aircraft carrier is a warship designed with a primary mission of deploying and recovering aircraft, acting as a seagoing airbase. Aircraft carriers thus allow a naval force to project air power worldwide without having to depend on local bases for staging aircraft operations...

s (both short-hull and long-hull (or Ticonderoga

USS Ticonderoga (CV-14)

USS Ticonderoga was one of 24 s built during World War II for the United States Navy. The ship was the fourth US Navy ship to bear the name, and was named for historic Fort Ticonderoga, which played a role in the American Revolutionary War...

) groups), conducted between 1954 and 1959. These upgrades included the addition of an angled flight deck and other enhancements aimed at improving flight operations and seakeeping

Seakeeping

Seakeeping ability is a measure of how well-suited a watercraft is to conditions when underway. A ship or boat which has good seakeeping ability is said to be very seaworthy and is able to operate effectively even in high sea states....

.

Principal alterations

The SCB-125 modifications included

• Angled flight deck
• Enclosed hurricane bow
• Mirror landing system
• Improved Mark 7 arresting gear
• Primary Flight Control moved to after end of island
• Air conditioning
• No 1 (forward) elevator lengthened (SBC-27C ships only)
• No 3 (aft) elevator moved from centerline to starboard deck edge (on SCB-27A ships; had been part of SCB-27C refits)

Program history

The SCB-125 upgrade program was first applied to the final three Essex-class carriers to undergo the SCB-27C

SCB-27

SCB-27, or "Two Seven-Charlie" was the United States Navy designation for a series of upgrades to the Essex class aircraft carriers , conducted between 1947 and 1955...

 modernization while they were still in the midst of their original refit. Ultimately every SCB-27 ship would undergo the SCB-125 modification with the exception of .

Despite the drastic alteration of the carriers' appearance, the SCB-125 refit involved relatively little modification of the ships' existing structure compared to SCB-27, and took around six to nine months as against the approximately two years of the earlier program. The original SCB-27A vessels, which were fitted with a pair of H 8 hydraulic catapults, were not upgraded with the C 11 steam catapults fitted to their SCB-27C sister ships due to machinery space limitations. The SBC-27As also did not receive the enlarged No. 1 (forward) elevator installed in the 27C ships as part of SBC-125.

USS Oriskany

USS Oriskany (CV-34)

USS Oriskany – nicknamed Mighty O, The O-boat, and Toasted O – was one of 24 s completed during or shortly after World War II for the United States Navy. The ship was the third US Navy ship to bear the name, and was named for the Revolutionary War Battle of Oriskany.The history of...

 (CV-34), the prototype for the SCB-27 conversion, was the final Essex to undergo SCB-125 conversion and as such, received further enhancements. As a result of the addition of Mk 7 arresting gear

Arresting gear

Arresting gear, or arrestor gear, is the name used for mechanical systems designed to rapidly decelerate an aircraft as it lands. Arresting gear on aircraft carriers is an essential component of naval aviation, and it is most commonly used on CATOBAR and STOBAR aircraft carriers. Similar systems...

 and more-powerful C 11-1 steam catapults

Aircraft catapult

An aircraft catapult is a device used to launch aircraft from ships—in particular aircraft carriers—as a form of assisted take off. It consists of a track built into the flight deck, below which is a large piston or shuttle that is attached through the track to the nose gear of the aircraft, or in...

 to the standard SCB-125 modifications, Oriskany alone was referred to as a SCB-125A vessel. These changes also made Oriskany the sole SCB-27A vessel to receive steam catapults.

Modified vessels

Source:www.history.navy.mil

	Program	Shipyard	Work Began	Recommissioned
USS Shangri-La (CVA-38) USS Shangri-La (CV-38) USS Shangri-La was one of 24 s completed during or shortly after World War II for the United States Navy.Commissioned in 1944, Shangri-La participated in several campaigns in the Pacific Theater of Operations in World War II, earning two battle stars...	SCB-27C/125	Puget Sound Puget Sound Naval Shipyard Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and Intermediate Maintenance Facility is a United States Navy shipyard covering 179 acres on Puget Sound at Bremerton, Washington...	Oct 1952	Jan 1955
USS Lexington (CVS-16) USS Lexington (CV-16) USS Lexington , known as "The Blue Ghost", is one of 24 s built during World War II for the United States Navy. The ship, the fifth US Navy ship to bear the name, is named in honor of the Revolutionary War Battle of Lexington...	SCB-27C/125	Puget Sound Puget Sound Naval Shipyard Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and Intermediate Maintenance Facility is a United States Navy shipyard covering 179 acres on Puget Sound at Bremerton, Washington...	Sep 1953	Aug 1955
USS Bon Homme Richard (CVA-31)	SCB-27C/125	Hunters Point San Francisco Naval Shipyard The San Francisco Naval Shipyard was a United States Navy shipyard in San Francisco, California, located on of waterfront at Hunters Point in the southeast corner of the city...	May 1953	Sep 1955
USS Bennington (CVA-20) USS Bennington (CV-20) USS Bennington was one of 24 s built during World War II for the United States Navy. The ship was the second US Navy ship to bear the name, and was named for the Revolutionary War Battle of Bennington...	SCB-125	New York	Jun 1954	Apr 1955
USS Yorktown (CVA-10) USS Yorktown (CV-10) USS Yorktown is one of 24 s built during World War II for the United States Navy. She is named after the Battle of Yorktown of the American Revolutionary War, and is the fourth U.S. Navy ship to bear the name...	SCB-125	Puget Sound Puget Sound Naval Shipyard Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and Intermediate Maintenance Facility is a United States Navy shipyard covering 179 acres on Puget Sound at Bremerton, Washington...	Mar 1955	Oct 1955
USS Wasp (CVA-18) USS Wasp (CV-18) USS Wasp was one of 24 s built during World War II for the United States Navy. The ship, the ninth US Navy ship to bear the name, was originally named Oriskany, but was renamed while under construction in honor of the previous , which was sunk 15 September 1942...	SCB-125	Hunters Point San Francisco Naval Shipyard The San Francisco Naval Shipyard was a United States Navy shipyard in San Francisco, California, located on of waterfront at Hunters Point in the southeast corner of the city...	Mar 1955	Dec 1955
USS Randolph (CVA-15) USS Randolph (CV-15) USS Randolph was one of 24 s built during World War II for the United States Navy. The second US Navy ship to bear the name, she was named for Peyton Randolph, president of the First Continental Congress. Randolph was commissioned in October 1944, and served in several campaigns in the Pacific...	SCB-125	Norfolk Norfolk Naval Shipyard The Norfolk Naval Shipyard, often called the Norfolk Navy Yard and abbreviated as NNSY, is a U.S. Navy facility in Portsmouth, Virginia, for building, remodeling, and repairing the Navy's ships. It's the oldest and largest industrial facility that belongs to the U.S. Navy as well as the most...	Aug 1955	Feb 1956
USS Essex (CVA-9) USS Essex (CV-9) USS Essex was an aircraft carrier, the lead ship of the 24-ship built for the United States Navy during World War II. She was the fourth US Navy ship to bear the name. Commissioned in December 1942, Essex participated in several campaigns in the Pacific Theater of Operations, earning the...	SCB-125	Puget Sound Puget Sound Naval Shipyard Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and Intermediate Maintenance Facility is a United States Navy shipyard covering 179 acres on Puget Sound at Bremerton, Washington...	Aug 1955	Jan 1956
USS Hornet (CVA-12) USS Hornet (CV-12) USS Hornet is a United States Navy aircraft carrier of the Essex class. Construction started in August 1942; she was originally named , but was renamed in honor of the , which was lost in October 1942, becoming the eighth ship to bear the name.Hornet was commissioned in November 1943, and after...	SCB-125	Puget Sound Puget Sound Naval Shipyard Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and Intermediate Maintenance Facility is a United States Navy shipyard covering 179 acres on Puget Sound at Bremerton, Washington...	Jan 1956	Aug 1956
USS Hancock (CVA-19) USS Hancock (CV-19) USS Hancock was one of 24 s built during World War II for the United States Navy. The ship was the fourth US Navy ship to bear the name, and was named for John Hancock, president of the Second Continental Congress and first governor of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts...	SCB-125	Hunters Point San Francisco Naval Shipyard The San Francisco Naval Shipyard was a United States Navy shipyard in San Francisco, California, located on of waterfront at Hunters Point in the southeast corner of the city...	Apr 1956	Nov 1956
USS Kearsarge (CVA-33) USS Kearsarge (CV-33) USS Kearsarge was one of 24 s completed during or shortly after World War II for the United States Navy. The ship was the third US Navy ship to bear the name, and was named for a Civil War-era steam sloop. Kearsarge was commissioned in March 1946...	SCB-125		Jul 1956	Jan 1957
USS Ticonderoga (CVA-14) USS Ticonderoga (CV-14) USS Ticonderoga was one of 24 s built during World War II for the United States Navy. The ship was the fourth US Navy ship to bear the name, and was named for historic Fort Ticonderoga, which played a role in the American Revolutionary War...	SCB-125	Norfolk Norfolk Naval Shipyard The Norfolk Naval Shipyard, often called the Norfolk Navy Yard and abbreviated as NNSY, is a U.S. Navy facility in Portsmouth, Virginia, for building, remodeling, and repairing the Navy's ships. It's the oldest and largest industrial facility that belongs to the U.S. Navy as well as the most...	Aug 1956	Apr 1957
USS Intrepid (CVA-11) USS Intrepid (CV-11) USS Intrepid , also known as The Fighting "I", is one of 24 s built during World War II for the United States Navy. She is the fourth US Navy ship to bear the name. Commissioned in August 1943, Intrepid participated in several campaigns in the Pacific Theater of Operations, most notably the Battle...	SCB-125	New York	Sep 1956	May 1957
USS Oriskany (CVA-34) USS Oriskany (CV-34) USS Oriskany – nicknamed Mighty O, The O-boat, and Toasted O – was one of 24 s completed during or shortly after World War II for the United States Navy. The ship was the third US Navy ship to bear the name, and was named for the Revolutionary War Battle of Oriskany.The history of...	SCB-125A	Hunters Point San Francisco Naval Shipyard The San Francisco Naval Shipyard was a United States Navy shipyard in San Francisco, California, located on of waterfront at Hunters Point in the southeast corner of the city...	Jan 1957	May 1959