USS Port Royal (CG-73)
Encyclopedia
USS Port Royal (CG-73) is a United States Navy
guided missile cruiser, the 27th and final in the class. She is the second U.S. warship to bear the name of two naval battles of Port Royal Sound
, South Carolina
, of the American Revolutionary War
and the American Civil War
. However, during the initial building phase, the builders and crew were unaware of this history of the first Port Royal
, as a result, the Engineering Control Center bears a plaque "First ship named".
The cruiser was ordered 25 February 1988, laid down 18 October 1991 by Ingalls Shipbuilding
at Pascagoula, Mississippi
, launched on 20 November 1992, christened on 5 December 1992 by Susan G. Baker (wife of James A. Baker III
, Chief of Staff
to President George H. W. Bush
and former Secretary of State
), and formally commissioned on 9 July 1994 at Savannah, Georgia
; Captain Nicholas L. Richards Commanding, Lieutenant Commander Derek B. Kemp Executive Officer, and Master Chief Petty Officer Dennis W. Mills, Command Master Chief. Decommissioning is tentatively set for 2029, but the Navy has already decommissioned the early units in the class that were not equipped with vertical launching systems.
was originally named Port Royal but the name was formally changed during construction.
, FMK 7 Mod 7. The system is an integrated single ship system and a ship to ship network. Because the Aegis Combat System is a key feature of the Ticonderoga class cruisers, the Port Royal is often incorrectly referred to as an "Aegis Class Cruiser." The weapons onboard the Port Royal include two 5"/54 caliber Mark 45 gun mounts, two MK 41 Vertical Launching System
(122 cells) capable of firing Standard surface-to-air missiles, Evolved Sea Sparrow missiles and Tomahawk
cruise missiles, two Harpoon Missile Quad-Canister Launchers, two MK 32 Mod 14 Three-Barrelled Torpedo Tube Mounts, two Mk 15 Mod 12 Phalanx Close-In Weapons System mounts, antisubmarine rockets, one Mk 36 Mod 2 Super Rapid Blooming Chaff System, and passive detection systems. The antisubmarine warfare suite consists of a trio of underwater surveillance equipment: hull mounted sonar, acoustic array sonar towed system, and two SH-60B LAMPS Mk III helicopters.
in 1994 was cancelled, along with all plans to install HELWEPS on Ticonderoga-class cruisers.
Carrier Group Seven. The CVBG was participating in Operation Southern Watch
, but was deployed to the South China Sea
in March 1996 to act as a stabilizing force the Third Taiwan Strait Crisis
. During this deployment, Captain Richards transferred command to Captain Gary Roughead
on 21 January 1996. Following her first deployment, Port Royal became the first US Naval cruiser to integrate women into the crew.
Port Royal deployed with Nimitz battle group for participation in Operation Southern Watch
from September 1997 until March, 1998.
Port Royal deployed with the John C. Stennis battle group, participating in Operation Southern Watch. Leaving in January 2000, she returned to Hawaii early after sustaining damage to her port shaft and Hub during pursuit of a vessel suspected of smuggling Iraqi oil in violation of U.N. sanctions. She returned in June and then in August went into drydock for repairs and upgrades.
Port Royal deployed early Pearl Harbor
on 17 November 2001 to join the John C. Stennis battle group on deployment in support of Operation Enduring Freedom.
Port Royal deployed with Expeditionary Strike Group-One (ESG-1) in support of the Global War on Terrorism (GWOT) from 3 September 2003 until 11 March 2004. This was the very first deployment of an Expeditionary Strike Group.
Port Royal deployed with Peleliu Expeditionary Strike Group-Three (ESG-3) in support of the Global War on Terrorism (GWOT) from 27 February 2006 until 5 August 2006.
On 6 January 2008 the destroyer , the USS Port Royal and the frigate were entering the Persian Gulf through the Strait of Hormuz
when five Iranian boats approached them at high speed and in a threatening manner. The U.S. ships had been in the Arabian Sea
searching for a sailor who had been missing from the USS Hopper for one day. The US Navy says the Iranian boats made "threatening" moves toward the U.S. vessels, coming as close as 200 yards (182.9 m). The U.S. Navy allegedly received a radio transmission saying, "I am coming at you. You will explode in a couple of minutes." As the U.S. ships prepared to fire, the Iranians abruptly turned away, the U.S. officials said. Before leaving, the Iranians dropped white boxes into the water in front of the U.S. ships. The U.S. ships did not investigate the boxes. Officials from the two nations differed on the severity of the incident. The Iranians claimed they were conducting normal maneuvers while American officials claimed that an imminent danger to American naval vessels existed.
's Reef Runway. The ship had just come out of a dry dock after undergoing maintenance and was undergoing its first sea trials. No one was injured in the incident and no fuel was spilled. On 9 February 2009, the Port Royal was pulled off the rock and sand shoal at around 2 a.m. No one was injured during the recovery effort. Captain John Carroll was relieved of his duties and, along with the ship's executive officer and three other sailors, subsequently disciplined for dereliction of duty and improperly hazarding a vessel. Carroll had been the Commanding Officer of the Port Royal since 23 October 2008. RDML Dixon R. Smith, who was aboard the ship assumed temporary command on that day, and on 9 February, Captain John Lauer III, an official in Smith's Naval Surface Group Middle Pacific, assumed command.
The warship suffered heavy damage to the underwater bow sonar dome and to its propellers and propeller shafts and was drydocked for repairs. Captain Neil Parrott was assigned to preside over the investigation into the grounding. On February 18, the ship entered Dry Dock Number 4 at Pearl Harbor. The Navy estimated that repairs would cost between $25 and $40 million. The ship left dry dock on September 24, 2009 but needed several more weeks of repair and assessment before returning to duty.
novel Debt of Honor
, Port Royal is mentioned as one of the escorts for the . She serves as a landing platform for Army RAH-66 Comanche helicopters after a special operation.
In the Tom Clancy
novel Executive Orders
, Port Royal is one of the missile cruisers escorting Task Force Comedy to the conflict between the UIR and other Persian Gulf states.
In the Patrick Robinson novel Nimitz Class
, Port Royal is part of a CVBG that is attacked by a rogue Kilo-class
submarine
in an attempt to destroy the USS Thomas Jefferson.
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...
guided missile cruiser, the 27th and final in the class. She is the second U.S. warship to bear the name of two naval battles of Port Royal Sound
Port Royal Sound
Port Royal Sound is a coastal sound, or inlet of the Atlantic Ocean, located in the Sea Islands region, in Beaufort County in the U.S. state of South Carolina...
, South Carolina
South Carolina
South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
, of the American Revolutionary War
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...
and the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
. However, during the initial building phase, the builders and crew were unaware of this history of the first Port Royal
USS Port Royal (1862)
USS Port Royal was a double-ended steamboat acquired by the Union Navy during the American Civil War. The steamboat was converted into an armed gunboat by the Navy, and assigned to patrol the rivers and other waterways of the Confederate States of America and to enforce the Union blockade on the...
, as a result, the Engineering Control Center bears a plaque "First ship named".
The cruiser was ordered 25 February 1988, laid down 18 October 1991 by Ingalls Shipbuilding
Ingalls Shipbuilding
Ingalls Shipbuilding is a shipyard located in Pascagoula, Mississippi, USA, originally established in 1938, and is now part of Huntington Ingalls Industries...
at Pascagoula, Mississippi
Pascagoula, Mississippi
Pascagoula is a city in Jackson County, Mississippi, United States. It is the principal city of the Pascagoula, Mississippi Metropolitan Statistical Area, as a part of the Gulfport–Biloxi–Pascagoula, Mississippi Combined Statistical Area. The population was 26,200 at the 2000 census...
, launched on 20 November 1992, christened on 5 December 1992 by Susan G. Baker (wife of James A. Baker III
James Baker
James Addison Baker, III is an American attorney, politician and political advisor.Baker served as the Chief of Staff in President Ronald Reagan's first administration and in the final year of the administration of President George H. W. Bush...
, Chief of Staff
White House Chief of Staff
The White House Chief of Staff is the highest ranking member of the Executive Office of the President of the United States and a senior aide to the President.The current White House Chief of Staff is Bill Daley.-History:...
to President George H. W. Bush
George H. W. Bush
George Herbert Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 41st President of the United States . He had previously served as the 43rd Vice President of the United States , a congressman, an ambassador, and Director of Central Intelligence.Bush was born in Milton, Massachusetts, to...
and former Secretary of State
United States Secretary of State
The United States Secretary of State is the head of the United States Department of State, concerned with foreign affairs. The Secretary is a member of the Cabinet and the highest-ranking cabinet secretary both in line of succession and order of precedence...
), and formally commissioned on 9 July 1994 at Savannah, Georgia
Savannah, Georgia
Savannah is the largest city and the county seat of Chatham County, in the U.S. state of Georgia. Established in 1733, the city of Savannah was the colonial capital of the Province of Georgia and later the first state capital of Georgia. Today Savannah is an industrial center and an important...
; Captain Nicholas L. Richards Commanding, Lieutenant Commander Derek B. Kemp Executive Officer, and Master Chief Petty Officer Dennis W. Mills, Command Master Chief. Decommissioning is tentatively set for 2029, but the Navy has already decommissioned the early units in the class that were not equipped with vertical launching systems.
was originally named Port Royal but the name was formally changed during construction.
Weapons
The ship employs a variant of the Aegis Combat SystemAegis combat system
The Aegis Combat System is an integrated naval weapons system developed by the Missile and Surface Radar Division of RCA, and now produced by Lockheed Martin...
, FMK 7 Mod 7. The system is an integrated single ship system and a ship to ship network. Because the Aegis Combat System is a key feature of the Ticonderoga class cruisers, the Port Royal is often incorrectly referred to as an "Aegis Class Cruiser." The weapons onboard the Port Royal include two 5"/54 caliber Mark 45 gun mounts, two MK 41 Vertical Launching System
Vertical Launching System
A vertical launching system is a system for holding and firing missiles on surface ships and submarines used by many navies around the world. Each VLS system consists of a number of cells, which can hold one or more missiles ready for firing...
(122 cells) capable of firing Standard surface-to-air missiles, Evolved Sea Sparrow missiles and Tomahawk
BGM-109 Tomahawk
The Tomahawk is a long-range, all-weather, subsonic cruise missile. Introduced by General Dynamics in the 1970s, it was designed as a medium- to long-range, low-altitude missile that could be launched from a surface platform. It has been improved several times and, by way of corporate divestitures...
cruise missiles, two Harpoon Missile Quad-Canister Launchers, two MK 32 Mod 14 Three-Barrelled Torpedo Tube Mounts, two Mk 15 Mod 12 Phalanx Close-In Weapons System mounts, antisubmarine rockets, one Mk 36 Mod 2 Super Rapid Blooming Chaff System, and passive detection systems. The antisubmarine warfare suite consists of a trio of underwater surveillance equipment: hull mounted sonar, acoustic array sonar towed system, and two SH-60B LAMPS Mk III helicopters.
Propulsion
Four powerful gas turbine engines (LM 2500) propel Port Royal with 80,000 shaft horsepower at speeds greater than 30 knots. Two five-bladed controllable reversible pitch propellers (17 foot diameter) and two rudders assist in rapid acceleration and deceleration.Sensors
- AN/SPY-1B(V) Multi-Function Radar (Four Mounts)
- AN/SPS-49(V)8 Air Search Radar
- AN/SPS-55 Surface Search Radar
- AN/SPS-64(V)9 Navigation Radar
- AN/SPQ-9 Gun Fire Control Radar
- AN/SPG-62 Illuminators (Four Mounts)
- AN/SQQ-89A(V)15 Sonar Suite
- AN/SLQ-32A(V)3 Electronic Warfare Suite
Navy Area Theater Missile Defense
USS Port Royal (CG-73) and are the original cruisers for the Navy's Linebacker program (Milestone Phase I, II and III), which provided theater ballistic missile defense capability, as test platforms to detect, track, cue, intercept, and interact with other national assets to shoot down ICBMs. The vessel's Aegis and Stand Missile Tracking systems have been upgraded with "long range surveillance and track (LRS&T)", and the ships were outfitted to carry the modified SM-2 Block IVA TMD. As of 2009, USS Port Royal along with USS Lake Erie and are the only three s to be equipped for the Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense Program. Port Royal participated as a tracking ship during operation "Stellar Athena" FTM 12 on Jun 22, 2007 off of Hawaii. The Lake Erie continues its role, but the Port Royals role has been taken by the USS Hopper.Laser
Originally, Port Royal was to be outfitted with the experimental shipboard mounted HELWEPS (High Energy Laser Weapon System). Based on a megawatt-class deuterium/fluorine chemical laser, HELWEPS would have replaced the standard 5-inch forward gun. HELWEPS was to have been used to destroy missiles up to about 4 km away, or to burn out electro-optical sensors about 10 km away. The outfitting, scheduled to occur in Port Hueneme, CaliforniaPort Hueneme, California
Port Hueneme is a small beach city in Ventura County, California surrounded by the city of Oxnard and the Pacific Ocean. The name derives from the Spanish spelling of the Chumash wene me, meaning "Resting Place". The area was discovered by Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo in the mid 16th century...
in 1994 was cancelled, along with all plans to install HELWEPS on Ticonderoga-class cruisers.
Operations
Port Royal deployed from December 1995 until May 1996 as part of the battle groupCarrier battle group
A carrier battle group consists of an aircraft carrier and its escorts, together composing the group. The first naval task forces built around carriers appeared just prior to and during World War II. The Imperial Japanese Navy was the first to assemble a large number of carriers into a single...
Carrier Group Seven. The CVBG was participating in Operation Southern Watch
Operation Southern Watch
Operation Southern Watch was an operation conducted by Joint Task Force Southwest Asia with the mission of monitoring and controlling airspace south of the 32nd Parallel in Iraq, following the 1991 Gulf War until the 2003 invasion of Iraq.-Summary:Operation Southern Watch began on 27 August 1992...
, but was deployed to the South China Sea
South China Sea
The South China Sea is a marginal sea that is part of the Pacific Ocean, encompassing an area from the Singapore and Malacca Straits to the Strait of Taiwan of around...
in March 1996 to act as a stabilizing force the Third Taiwan Strait Crisis
Third Taiwan Strait Crisis
The Third Taiwan Strait Crisis, also called the 1995–1996 Taiwan Strait Crisis or the 1996 Taiwan Strait Crisis, was the effect of a series of missile tests conducted by the People's Republic of China in the waters surrounding Taiwan including the Taiwan Strait from July 21, 1995 to March 23, 1996...
. During this deployment, Captain Richards transferred command to Captain Gary Roughead
Gary Roughead
Gary Roughead is a retired United States Navy four-star admiral who last served as the 29th Chief of Naval Operations from September 29, 2007 to September 22, 2011. He previously served as Commander, U.S. Fleet Forces Command, from May 17, 2007, to September 29, 2007. Prior to that he served as...
on 21 January 1996. Following her first deployment, Port Royal became the first US Naval cruiser to integrate women into the crew.
Port Royal deployed with Nimitz battle group for participation in Operation Southern Watch
Operation Southern Watch
Operation Southern Watch was an operation conducted by Joint Task Force Southwest Asia with the mission of monitoring and controlling airspace south of the 32nd Parallel in Iraq, following the 1991 Gulf War until the 2003 invasion of Iraq.-Summary:Operation Southern Watch began on 27 August 1992...
from September 1997 until March, 1998.
Port Royal deployed with the John C. Stennis battle group, participating in Operation Southern Watch. Leaving in January 2000, she returned to Hawaii early after sustaining damage to her port shaft and Hub during pursuit of a vessel suspected of smuggling Iraqi oil in violation of U.N. sanctions. She returned in June and then in August went into drydock for repairs and upgrades.
Port Royal deployed early Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor, known to Hawaiians as Puuloa, is a lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. Much of the harbor and surrounding lands is a United States Navy deep-water naval base. It is also the headquarters of the U.S. Pacific Fleet...
on 17 November 2001 to join the John C. Stennis battle group on deployment in support of Operation Enduring Freedom.
Port Royal deployed with Expeditionary Strike Group-One (ESG-1) in support of the Global War on Terrorism (GWOT) from 3 September 2003 until 11 March 2004. This was the very first deployment of an Expeditionary Strike Group.
Port Royal deployed with Peleliu Expeditionary Strike Group-Three (ESG-3) in support of the Global War on Terrorism (GWOT) from 27 February 2006 until 5 August 2006.
On 6 January 2008 the destroyer , the USS Port Royal and the frigate were entering the Persian Gulf through the Strait of Hormuz
Strait of Hormuz
The Strait of Hormuz is a narrow, strategically important waterway between the Gulf of Oman in the southeast and the Persian Gulf. On the north coast is Iran and on the south coast is the United Arab Emirates and Musandam, an exclave of Oman....
when five Iranian boats approached them at high speed and in a threatening manner. The U.S. ships had been in the Arabian Sea
Arabian Sea
The Arabian Sea is a region of the Indian Ocean bounded on the east by India, on the north by Pakistan and Iran, on the west by the Arabian Peninsula, on the south, approximately, by a line between Cape Guardafui in northeastern Somalia and Kanyakumari in India...
searching for a sailor who had been missing from the USS Hopper for one day. The US Navy says the Iranian boats made "threatening" moves toward the U.S. vessels, coming as close as 200 yards (182.9 m). The U.S. Navy allegedly received a radio transmission saying, "I am coming at you. You will explode in a couple of minutes." As the U.S. ships prepared to fire, the Iranians abruptly turned away, the U.S. officials said. Before leaving, the Iranians dropped white boxes into the water in front of the U.S. ships. The U.S. ships did not investigate the boxes. Officials from the two nations differed on the severity of the incident. The Iranians claimed they were conducting normal maneuvers while American officials claimed that an imminent danger to American naval vessels existed.
2009 grounding
On 5 February 2009, at 9 p.m. the Port Royal ran aground about a half-mile south of the Honolulu International AirportHonolulu International Airport
Honolulu International Airport is the principal aviation gateway of the City & County of Honolulu and the State of Hawaii and is identified as one of the busiest airports in the United States, with traffic now exceeding 21 million passengers a year and rising.It is located in the Honolulu...
's Reef Runway. The ship had just come out of a dry dock after undergoing maintenance and was undergoing its first sea trials. No one was injured in the incident and no fuel was spilled. On 9 February 2009, the Port Royal was pulled off the rock and sand shoal at around 2 a.m. No one was injured during the recovery effort. Captain John Carroll was relieved of his duties and, along with the ship's executive officer and three other sailors, subsequently disciplined for dereliction of duty and improperly hazarding a vessel. Carroll had been the Commanding Officer of the Port Royal since 23 October 2008. RDML Dixon R. Smith, who was aboard the ship assumed temporary command on that day, and on 9 February, Captain John Lauer III, an official in Smith's Naval Surface Group Middle Pacific, assumed command.
The warship suffered heavy damage to the underwater bow sonar dome and to its propellers and propeller shafts and was drydocked for repairs. Captain Neil Parrott was assigned to preside over the investigation into the grounding. On February 18, the ship entered Dry Dock Number 4 at Pearl Harbor. The Navy estimated that repairs would cost between $25 and $40 million. The ship left dry dock on September 24, 2009 but needed several more weeks of repair and assessment before returning to duty.
2011 deployment
The ship deployed for the first time since the grounding in June 2011. The cruiser departed on a seven-month deployment to the Western Pacific and Middle-East.In fiction
In the Tom ClancyTom Clancy
Thomas Leo "Tom" Clancy, Jr. is an American author, best known for his technically detailed espionage, military science, and techno thriller storylines set during and in the aftermath of the Cold War, along with video games on which he did not work, but which bear his name for licensing and...
novel Debt of Honor
Debt of Honor
Debt of Honor is a novel by Tom Clancy. It is a continuation of the series featuring his character Jack Ryan. In this installment, Ryan has become the National Security Advisor when the Japanese government goes to war with the United States...
, Port Royal is mentioned as one of the escorts for the . She serves as a landing platform for Army RAH-66 Comanche helicopters after a special operation.
In the Tom Clancy
Tom Clancy
Thomas Leo "Tom" Clancy, Jr. is an American author, best known for his technically detailed espionage, military science, and techno thriller storylines set during and in the aftermath of the Cold War, along with video games on which he did not work, but which bear his name for licensing and...
novel Executive Orders
Executive Orders
Executive Orders is a political and military thriller novel by Tom Clancy. It was published in 1996, and is a canonical part of the Jack Ryan universe.-Plot summary:...
, Port Royal is one of the missile cruisers escorting Task Force Comedy to the conflict between the UIR and other Persian Gulf states.
In the Patrick Robinson novel Nimitz Class
Nimitz Class (novel)
Nimitz Class is a naval thriller published in 1997 by Patrick Robinson. It is the first book in the series which features admiral Arnold Morgan and Ben Adnam. It is stylistic similar to Tom Clancy, particularly The Hunt for Red October.-Plot summary:...
, Port Royal is part of a CVBG that is attacked by a rogue Kilo-class
Kilo class submarine
The Kilo class is the NATO reporting name for a naval diesel-electric submarine that is made in Russia. The original version of the vessels were designated Project 877 Paltus in Russia. There is also a more advanced version, designated as Improved Kilo in the west, and Project 636 Varshavyanka in...
submarine
Submarine
A submarine is a watercraft capable of independent operation below the surface of the water. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability...
in an attempt to destroy the USS Thomas Jefferson.