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USS United States (CVA-58)
Encyclopedia
USS United States (CVA-58), the third ship of the United States Navy
named for the nation, but canceled during construction, was to be the lead ship
of a new design of aircraft carrier
. On 29 July 1948 President Harry Truman
approved construction of five "supercarrier
s", for which funds had been provided in the Naval Appropriations Act of 1949. The keel
of the first of the five planned postwar carriers was laid down on 18 April 1949 at Newport News Drydock and Shipbuilding
. However, the program was subsequently canceled, the United States was not completed, and the other four planned carriers were never built.
s, as well as launching from the four catapults simultaneously. The construction cost of the new ship alone was estimated at US$190 million.
viewed United States as a challenge to their monopoly on strategic nuclear weapons delivery.
Swayed by limited funds and bitter opposition from the United States Army
and Air Force, Secretary of Defense Louis A. Johnson
announced on 23 April 1949 — five days after the ship's keel was laid down — the cancellation of construction of the United States. Secretary of the Navy John Sullivan immediately resigned, and the subsequent "Revolt of the Admirals
" cost Admiral Louis Denfeld his position as Chief of Naval Operations
— though atomic bombs soon went to sea on the aircraft carrier USS Franklin D. Roosevelt
in 1950.
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...
named for the nation, but canceled during construction, was to be the lead ship
Lead ship
The lead ship or class leader is the first of a series or class of ships all constructed according to the same general design. The term is applicable military ships and larger civilian craft.-Overview:...
of a new design 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...
. On 29 July 1948 President Harry Truman
Harry S. Truman
Harry S. Truman was the 33rd President of the United States . As President Franklin D. Roosevelt's third vice president and the 34th Vice President of the United States , he succeeded to the presidency on April 12, 1945, when President Roosevelt died less than three months after beginning his...
approved construction of five "supercarrier
Supercarrier
Supercarrier is an unofficial descriptive term for the largest type of aircraft carrier, usually displacing over 70,000 long tons.Supercarrier is an unofficial descriptive term for the largest type of aircraft carrier, usually displacing over 70,000 long tons.Supercarrier is an unofficial...
s", for which funds had been provided in the Naval Appropriations Act of 1949. The keel
Keel
In boats and ships, keel can refer to either of two parts: a structural element, or a hydrodynamic element. These parts overlap. As the laying down of the keel is the initial step in construction of a ship, in British and American shipbuilding traditions the construction is dated from this event...
of the first of the five planned postwar carriers was laid down on 18 April 1949 at Newport News Drydock and Shipbuilding
Northrop Grumman Newport News
Newport News Shipbuilding , originally Newport News Shipbuilding and Drydock Company , was the largest privately-owned shipyard in the United States prior to being purchased by Northrop Grumman in 2001...
. However, the program was subsequently canceled, the United States was not completed, and the other four planned carriers were never built.
Design
Early design discussions included debate on the aircraft carrier's mission. One view was that it could be built only for nuclear attack, against Soviet Union naval bases, using heavy bombers with a small hangar deck for a limited fighter escort and a small magazine for a small number of heavy nuclear weapons. Another plan was that it could be built with conventional attack capability with a large hangar deck for a large air wing and a large magazine. The nuclear attack supporters won in the initial design stage, but the design was modified to carry more fighters. The flush-deck United States was designed to launch and recover the 100,000 pound (45 t) aircraft required to carry early-model nuclear weapons, which weighed as much as five tons. The ship would have no island (command tower structure). It would be equipped with four aircraft elevators located at the deck edges, and four catapults, two at the bow with the outer ones at the deck edges staggered back. The carrier was designed for dual operations: landing at the rear of the ship and launching aircraft from the bow catapultCatapult
A catapult is a device used to throw or hurl a projectile a great distance without the aid of explosive devices—particularly various types of ancient and medieval siege engines. Although the catapult has been used since ancient times, it has proven to be one of the most effective mechanisms during...
s, as well as launching from the four catapults simultaneously. The construction cost of the new ship alone was estimated at US$190 million.
Proposed operations
United States was also designed to provide air support for amphibious forces and to conduct sea control operations, but its primary mission was long-range nuclear bombardment. That mission put the ship in harm's way long before construction began. The United States Air ForceUnited States Air Force
The United States Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the American uniformed services. Initially part of the United States Army, the USAF was formed as a separate branch of the military on September 18, 1947 under the National Security Act of...
viewed United States as a challenge to their monopoly on strategic nuclear weapons delivery.
Keel laid and cancellation
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
and Air Force, Secretary of Defense Louis A. Johnson
Louis A. Johnson
Louis Arthur Johnson was the second United States Secretary of Defense, serving in the cabinet of President Harry S. Truman from March 28, 1949 to September 19, 1950....
announced on 23 April 1949 — five days after the ship's keel was laid down — the cancellation of construction of the United States. Secretary of the Navy John Sullivan immediately resigned, and the subsequent "Revolt of the Admirals
Revolt of the Admirals
The Revolt of the Admirals is a name given to an episode that took place in the late 1940s in which several United States Navy admirals and high-ranking civilian officials publicly disagreed with the President and the Secretary of Defense's strategy and plans for the military forces in the early...
" cost Admiral Louis Denfeld his position as Chief of Naval Operations
Chief of Naval Operations
The Chief of Naval Operations is a statutory office held by a four-star admiral in the United States Navy, and is the most senior uniformed officer assigned to serve in the Department of the Navy. The office is a military adviser and deputy to the Secretary of the Navy...
— though atomic bombs soon went to sea on the aircraft carrier USS Franklin D. Roosevelt
USS Franklin D. Roosevelt (CV-42)
USS Franklin D. Roosevelt was the second of three Midway class aircraft carriers. To her crew, she was known as the "Swanky Franky," "Foo-De-Roo," or "Rosie," with the last nickname probably the most popular. Roosevelt spent most of her active deployed career operating in the Mediterranean Sea as...
in 1950.