The Iowa-class battleships, which were built between 1940 and 1944, were the most expensive warships in the United States Navy at the time, costing $100 million each, or $1.65 billion today. These 45,000-ton behemoths required almost 3 million man-hours to design and over three years to construct.
What You Should Know About The Battleship: The Iowa-class battleships, which were built between 1940 and 1944, were the most expensive warships in the United States Navy at the time, costing $100 million each, or $1.65 billion today. These 45,000-ton structures required almost 3 million man-hours to design and over three years to construct.They were heavily armed, swift, and designed to last, serving in WWII, Vietnam, and even the 1980s.
-While they have subsequently been decommissioned and converted into museum ships, their legacy as naval power icons lives on, demonstrating the enormous expenditure and creativity that led to their creation. History remembers them as being well worth the money.
How the United States Built the Most Expensive Battleships of WWII.
The United States Navy has spent $120 billion so far on the construction of a fleet of Ford-class aircraft carriers. Indeed, the Ford class is the most expensive battleship ever built, costing more than $13 billion per ship.
However, aircraft carriers have not always been the most expensive ships in the Navy’s arsenal. Before the price of carriers skyrocketed following World War II, the battleship was the most exorbitantly expensive vessel – and, indeed, the hallmark of the United States Navy. The Iowa class battleships were the most expensive and significant of all.
Paying for the Iowa class.
“Each of the United States Navy’s four Iowa-class battleships, which were constructed between 1940 and 1944, cost around $100 million per ship – or more than $1.65 billion in today’s money,” Peter Suciu, writing for The National Interest, said. That’s less than one-tenth the cost of one Ford-class carrier, which is reasonable by modern standards. However, by 1940s standards, the Iowa was extremely expensive, costing more than any other ship built up to that period.
In addition to being a significant financial expenditure, the Iowa class required a significant time effort. Consider how much time it took to just draft the Iowa plans. “In total, it took 3,432,000 man-hours – more than 206 years of draughtsman hours – to complete the final design,” Suciu stated in his article. “The total completed plans reportedly weighed 175 tonnes, 30 inches in width and are 1,100 miles long when laid out.”
Of course, the boat itself still had to be built.
Building the Iowa class
The work would not be inexpensive. The Iowa would be 860 feet long fully completed. That’s 200 feet longer than the last South Dakota-class battleship. “That allowed for additional space to be devoted to the ship’s engine,” he said, “enabling the new class to be truly fast, reaching a top speed of 32.5 knots, which enabled the battle waggons to protect the U.S. fast carriers.”
It took two years and eight months to build each Iowa ship. Tens of thousands of Americans took part in the shipbuilding effort. The Brooklyn Navy Yard, the largest employer in New York during the war, employed 71,000 workers, many of whom were dedicated to the construction of the Iowa-class.
The men and women of the Brooklyn Navy Yard built 45,000-ton icons. The ships, which were highly armed and armoured, were built to last, as evidenced by the fact that the numerous Iowa-class warships were regularly recommissioned during their careers, including the Vietnam War and the 1980s.
Today, all Iowa-class vessels have been decommissioned. Many are museum artefacts, demonstrating a huge commitment in money and effort nearly 90 years ago.
Overall, given the number of comebacks these battleships have made throughout the years, I believe history thinks they were worthwhile.
About The Author
