The Battleship USS Iowa (BB-61) “The Big Stick”

During World War Two the US Navy built 4 of the 45,000 tonne Iowa Class Battleships to dominate the oceans and Axis navies. Having visited three of the sister ships in 2013: USS New Jersey (BB-62 in Camden, New Jersey), USS Missouri (BB-63 in Pearl Harbour, Hawaii ) and USS Wisconsin (BB-64 in Norfolk, Virginia) I needed to complete the set and visit the class…

The Battleship USS Missouri (BB-63) “Mighty Mo”

The USS Missouri (BB-63) is an Iowa Class Battleship launched January 29th, 1944 and commissioned on June 11th, 1944. She served in the US Navy until 1955 when she became part of the ready reserve “Mothball Fleet” but was recommissioned in 1986 and went back into service until 1992. At 270.4 metres (887.3 feet) in length with a displacement of 45,000 tonnes she is a big…

“The Big J” – USS New Jersey

In my endless quest to see everything I have ever been interested in since I was a kid, I recently walked across the Ben Franklin Bridge over the Delaware River from Philadelphia, PA to Camden, NJ to see the mighty Iowa Class Battleship the USS New Jersey (BB-62) known as “The Big J“. She served from 1942 to 1991…