The United States Navy's Boston class were the first guided missile cruisers in the world. Both ships in this experimental class were originally heavy cruisers that had been decommissioned after World War II, but were redesignated as guided missile heavy cruisers (CAGs) and entered refit in 1952. The lengthy conversion and modernization project (aka SCB 48) involved replacing the aft triple 8-inch gun turret and its supporting structure with two twin launchers for Terrier anti-aircraft guided missiles. The forward two 8-inch gun turrets remained unchanged. The forward superstructure was modified to include the Terrier's associated radars and electronics, the aft superstructure was completely replaced, and the Baltimore class's two funnels were trunked to one.

Owing to the Boston class's experimental nature, the ships were only partially converted, with a full conversion to be carried out if the new weapon systems were successful. Had the ships been fully converted, the forward 8-inch turrets would have been replaced with additional Terrier launchers. were considered but ultimately rejected. In 1970 both Boston class ships were decommissioned for the final time, eventually struck from the Naval Vessel Register, and sold for scrap.

Ships in class

{| class="sortable wikitable"

!Ship Name

!Hull No.

!Converted at

!Laid down

!Launched

!Commissioned

!Decommissioned

!Fate

|-

|

|CAG-1

|rowspan=2|New York Shipbuilding Corporation

|30 June 1941

|26 August 1942

|1 November 1955

|5 May 1970

|Sold for scrap, 28 March 1975

|-

|

|CAG-2

|3 September 1941

|19 April 1943

|15 June 1956

|2 February 1970

|Sold for scrap, 31 July 1980

|}

See also

  • List of cruisers of the United States Navy

References

Notes

Sources

  • hazegray.org
  • US Naval Historical Center