USS Albany (CA-123)

For other ships with the same name, see USS Albany.

"CA 123" redirects here. For the highway in California, see California State Route 123.

Albany during her visit to Copenhagen in June 1951
History
United States
Name	Albany
Namesake	Albany, New York
Builder	Bethlehem Steel Company, Quincy, Massachusetts
Laid down	6 March 1944
Launched	30 June 1945
Sponsored by	Elizabeth F. Pinckney
Commissioned	15 June 1946
Decommissioned	30 June 1958
Reclassified	CG-10, 1 November 1958
Recommissioned	3 November 1962
Decommissioned	1 March 1967
Recommissioned	9 November 1968
Decommissioned	29 August 1980
Stricken	30 June 1985
Identification	Callsign: NHRF Hull number: CA-123
Motto	Assiduity
Honors and awards	See Awards
Fate	Scrapped, 12 August 1990
Badge
General characteristics
Class and type	Oregon City-class heavy cruiser
Displacement	13,700 tons
Length	673 ft 5 in (205.26 m)
Beam	70 ft 10 in (21.59 m)
Draft	26 ft 4 in (8.03 m)
Speed	32.6 knots (60.4 km/h; 37.5 mph)
Complement	1,969 officers and enlisted
Armament	9 × 8-inch/55-caliber guns 12 × 5-inch/38-caliber guns 40 × 40 mm guns 20 × 20 mm guns
General characteristics
Class and type	Albany-class guided-missile cruiser (1962–1980)<
Displacement	17,500 tons full load
Length	673 ft 5 in (205.26 m)
Beam	70 ft 10 in (21.59 m)
Draft	26 ft 11 in (8.20 m)
Propulsion	Geared turbines, 120,000 shp (89,000 kW)
Speed	32.5 knots (60.2 km/h; 37.4 mph)
Complement	1,010 As flagship with staff embarked 1,205
Armament	2 × 5-inch/38-caliber guns 2 × Mark 12 RIM-8 Talos missile launchers 2 × Mark 11 RIM-24 Tartar missile launchers 1 × Mark 16 RUR-5 ASROC launcher 6 × torpedo tubes (two triple mounts)
Aircraft carried	None

USS Albany (CA-123) was a United States Navy Oregon City-class heavy cruiser, later converted to the guided missile cruiser CG-10. The converted cruiser was the lead ship of the new Albany guided missile cruiser class. She was the fourth ship to carry the name Albany.

The ship was laid down on 6 March 1944 at Quincy, Massachusetts, by the Bethlehem Steel Company, launched on 30 June 1945, sponsored by Mrs. Elizabeth F. Pinckney, and commissioned on 15 June 1946 at the Boston Navy Yard.

Service history

Following outfitting and a shakedown cruise in the vicinity of Casco Bay, Maine, Albany began operations along the east coast of the United States punctuated with cruises to the West Indies. During the ensuing months, the cruiser made a number of voyages for the purpose of training naval reservists and NROTC midshipmen. Albany continued to perform such duty until 11 September 1948, when she stood out of Chesapeake Bay for her first tour of duty with the American naval forces operating in the Mediterranean Sea, recently made a permanent establishment as the 6th Fleet. That deployment set the tone for the next decade. The cruiser alternated five assignments to the 6th Fleet with operations along the east coast of the United States and in the West Indies and made three cruises to South American ports. During one of the South American voyages, Albany carried the official United States representative to the inauguration of the President of Brazil in January 1951.

For two years, stretching at least until the autumn of 1955, Albany served as flagship for Commander, Battleship-Cruiser Force, Atlantic.

Conversion to guided missile cruiser

On 30 June 1958, Albany was placed out of commission at the Boston Naval Shipyard to begin conversion to a guided missile cruiser. On 1 November 1958, she was redesignated CG-10. The warship spent the next four years at Boston undergoing very extensive modifications as part of the conversion; stripped down to her hull to be fitted with a new superstructure. Albany was recommissioned at Boston on 3 November 1962 with Captain Ben B. Pickett in command. For almost five years, she alternated deployments to European waters – both to the Mediterranean Sea and to the North Atlantic – with operations along the east coast and in the West Indies. During that time, the cruiser visited many foreign ports and participated in a number of exercises with units of friendly navies. On 1 March 1967, she was decommissioned at the Boston Naval Shipyard once again to undergo extensive modifications. Some 20 months later, on 9 November 1968, Albany was placed back in commission at Boston with Captain Allan P. Slaff in command. In 1973, the ship was again decommissioned for overhaul at the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard. It was recommissioned in May 1974 and homeported in Norfolk, VA under the command of Captain John J. Ekelund. Shortly thereafter, it became the flagship of the 2nd Fleet.

Between 1976 and 1980, Albany was the flagship of the 6th Fleet, and homeported in Gaeta, Italy.

Decommissioning and disposal

Albany was decommissioned on 29 August 1980 and laid up on the Elizabeth River across from the Norfolk Navy Yard. She was stricken from the Naval Vessel Register on 30 June 1985, but she remained at her berth and held for possible donation as a museum ship in her name sake city for a further five years. Though there was serious interest in saving the ship, a feasible museum and financial plan was never realized, and she was sold for scrapping on 12 August 1990.

Commemoration

A portion of Albany's bow resides at the Albany County Fairgrounds in Altamont, New York.

The original 14-foot-long (1:48 scale) brass model of the ship built by the United States Navy to help determine where antenna arrays would go on the actual-size ships was restored in 2013 and is on display at the Albany Heritage Area Visitors Center. USS Albany's bridge equipments like the ship wheel, clock, window, telephone, dining silver sets, items from crew members, shipbuilder plaque, bell, and more are all on display at USS Albany Heritage Exhibit.[1]

Awards

• Navy Unit Commendation with 2 awards
• Navy "E" Ribbon with 3 awards
• World War II Victory Ribbon
• World War II Occupation Medal with "Europe" clasp
• National Defense Service Medal with 2 awards

Battenburg Cup

Gallery

• USS Albany lifecycle
• 
  Albany at Fore River Shipyard on 30 June 1945.
• 
  HO3S landing on turret of Albany in c1951.
• 
  Albany at Copenhagen in June 1951.
• 
  Albany anchored off Cannes in 1954.
• 
  Albany at Boston Naval Shipyard in 1959.
• 
  Albany in Boston Harbor on 26 November 1968.
• 
  HMS London, USS Albany and USS Lawrence anchored at Malta in 1971.
• 
  USS Albany and USS Columbus at Naval Station Roosevelt Roads, Puerto Rico in 1972.
• 
  USS Little Rock and USS Albany docked at the refueling pier at Gaeta, Italy in 1976.

Bibliography

• Wright, Christopher C. (1977). "The Tall Ladies...Columbus, Albany & Chicago". Warship International. XIV (2): 104–134. ISSN 0043-0374.

Further reading

• Albany (Ship : CA-123). USS Albany CA-123: Mediterranean Cruise of 1951. [Place of publication not identified]: [publisher not identified], 1951. OCLC 30880411
• Albany (Ship : CA-123). The USS Albany: 1955 Mediterranean Cruise. [Place of publication not identified]: [publisher not identified], 1955. OCLC 30881092

External links

• USS Albany Association homepage
• Photos of Albany
• Naval Vessel Register entry for Albany
• Entry for Ekelund Range

 This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be found here.