USS Galveston (CL-93/CLG-3) was a light cruiser of the United States Navy that was later converted to a guided missile cruiser. She was launched by William Cramp & Sons Shipbuilding Company, Philadelphia 22 April 1945, sponsored by Mrs. Clark Wallace Thompson. The cruiser's construction was suspended when nearly complete on 24 June 1946; and the hull assigned to the Philadelphia Group of the Atlantic Reserve Fleet. She was reclassified CLG-93 on 4 February 1956; then reclassified to CLG-3 on 23 May 1957; and commissioned at Philadelphia 28 May 1958.

1958–1960

Refit as a Galveston-class guided missile light cruiser, the warship departed Philadelphia on 30 June 1958 for builder's trials out of Norfolk, Va., in the Virginia Capes area, that included "highly successful" tests of her new Talos missile and tracking gear. The Talos supersonic surface-to-air missile was 38 ft long, weighed nearly 3,000 pounds (1,400 kg), and was powered by a novel 20,053 lbf ramjet engine, plus a solid-fuel rocket booster. With a range of over 65 miles (105 km) for early variants, and over 100 for later ones, and speeds of up to Mach 4, it was designed to destroy enemy aircraft at high altitudes using either a conventional or atomic warhead. She finished out the year with operations in the Norfolk area.

The 1963-1964 Far East tour was commemorated in the large back patch on the G-1 flight jacket worn by lead Tom Cruise in the 1986 film Top Gun. Retired U.S. Navy Commander Michael Dahm theorizes the patch may have been a reference to real U.S. Navy pilot Harry J. Post, commanding officer of the Navy's first Fighter Weapons School. Post had been the only naval aviator on board on the tour.

<gallery>

File:USS Galveston (CL-93) at Cramp shipyard 1946.jpg|USS Galveston (CL-93) at the Cramp shipyard, 1946.

File:USS Galveston (CLG-3) underway 1959.jpg|USS Galveston (CLG-3) after her conversion, 1959.

File:USS Galveston (CLG-3) underway in 1963.jpg|Galveston in 1963.

File:USS Galveston (CLG-3) in San Francisco Bay c1965.jpg|Galveston in 1965.

File:USS Galveston (CLG-3) bombarding shore 1965.jpg|Fire support off Vietnam, 1965.

</gallery>

References

  • Galveston Shipmates Assn. with Reunion Information
  • history.navy.mil: USS Galveston
  • hazegray.org: USS Galveston
  • "The Cruiser With The Supersonic Sting." Popular Mechanics, January 1959, pp.&nbsp;140–142.