Porter-class destroyer

The larger destroyer leader type had been under active consideration since 1921. Indeed, the General Board recommended the construction of five of the type in that year. One factor in favor of leaders was the Navy's total lack of modern light cruisers, only partly alleviated by the ten {{sclass|Omaha|cruiser|0}} ships built in the 1920s. Naval historian Norman Friedman believed that the great number of {{sclass|Wickes|destroyer|5}} and {{sclass|Clemson|destroyer|2}}s hindered the U.S. Congress from purchasing new leaders. The General Board was very interested in equipping such a type with the new higher pressure and higher temperature steam propulsion equipment also proposed for the Farragut-class destroyers; this would extend the ships' range.Friedman, p.77 The London Naval Treaty and large French destroyers (France did not sign the treaty and built ships well in excess of its limits) seem to have become the tipping points, with the 1930 recommendations beginning the cycle to actually build ships.Friedman, p.79 The Geneva proposals for destroyers also seem to have influence the design, as the Destroyer Leader proposals limited themselves to 1,850 tons per the proposals; these tonnage limits were eventually included in the London treaty.

The Porters had the same propulsion technology as the immediately preceding Farraguts, with {{convert|400|psi|abbr=on}} steam superheated to {{convert|645|°F|abbr=on}}. The plant was somewhat larger than in the Farraguts, with designed horsepower increased from {{convert|42,800|shp|kW|lk=in}} to {{convert|50,000|shp|kW}}, resulting in a speed of {{convert|37|kn|abbr=on|lk=in}}.Friedman, pp. 84, 464 Along with the improved fuel efficiency resulting from superheated steam, the four boilers included economizers to further extend the ships' range by preheating incoming feedwater. The main steam turbines were manufactured by New York Shipbuilding in the case of the ships built by that yard. However, as in the Farraguts, the main turbines had single-reduction gearing and no cruising turbines, limiting their efficiency.[http://destroyerhistory.org/assets/pdf/generalinformationbooks/356porter_GIBook.pdf USS Porter, USS Selfridge, USS McDougal, and USS Winslow General Information Book with as-built data] at [http://destroyerhistory.org/ Destroyer History Foundation]

File:USS Phelps (DD-360) underway, circa in November 1944 (19-N-73964).jpg

There were extensive discussions about the armament, the 5"/25 caliber gun anti-aircraft (AA) gun being favored as being easy to work and train in a fast-moving and lively type of ship. The other candidate was the 5-inch/51-caliber surface type, being very powerful but all but useless against aircraft. It was a discussion made more interesting as the 5-inch/38-caliber dual-purpose gun became available in the early 1930s and the Ordnance Department favored it rather strongly. The 5-inch/38-caliber gun was simply a 5-inch/25-caliber gun with the same projectiles and a longer barrel, but significantly increased range against both air and surface targets. The class was originally built with eight Mk 12 guns in four Mark 22 single-purpose (surface action only) twin enclosed mounts; the single-purpose mounts were adopted to save weight.{{cite web |url=http://www.navweaps.com/Weapons/WNUS_5-38_mk12.htm|title=DiGiulian, Tony, 5"/38 (12.7 cm) Mark 12 at Navweaps.com |access-date=2007-08-29}} Anti-aircraft protection was provided by two quadruple 1.1-inch (28 mm) mounts; in the 1930s this was considered sufficient. Although the Porters had the same eight {{convert|21|in|mm|adj=on|0}} torpedo tubes as the Farraguts, a full set of reloads was carried. The class was initially equipped with the Mark 11 or Mark 12 torpedo, which were replaced by the Mark 15 beginning in 1938.{{cite web | title = Torpedo History: Torpedo Mk 11, Mk 12 and Torpedo Mk 15 | url = http://www.history.navy.mil/museums/keyport/html/part2.htm | access-date = 2015-07-07 | archive-date = 2014-09-15 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20140915054904/http://www.history.navy.mil/museums/keyport/html/part2.htm | url-status = dead }} The heavy armament proved top-heavy, and aircraft were becoming a greater threat, so during World War II on most of the class, mounts 51 and 54{{clarify|date=March 2019|reason=are these A, B, Q, X, or Y equivalents?}} were replaced with dual-purpose (surface action and air action) twin mounts, and the original 1.1-inch guns were replaced with 40 mm Bofors and 20 mm Oerlikons. In some ships, mount 52 was replaced by a quadruple 40 mm mount, and mount 53 became a single 5 in/38 cal dual-purpose mount. Additional 40 mm guns were added amidships along with 20 mm weapons. In most ships, four K-gun depth charge throwers were added to augment the as-built pair of depth charge racks. In some cases (DD-357, DD-359, DD-360) late in the war, the torpedo tubes, two K-guns, and one depth charge rack were landed, to accommodate additional light AA armament, for a total of sixteen 40 mm in three quadruple and two twin mounts and four 20 mm in two twin mounts.Bauer and Roberts, pp. 183-184Gardiner and Chesneau, p. 125Friedman, p. 219

{{USS|McDougal|DD-358|2}}, {{USS|Winslow|DD-359|2}}, and {{USS|Moffett|DD-362|2}} were among the five destroyers and two cruisers that supported the Roosevelt-Churchill conference at Placentia Bay near Argentia, Newfoundland that resulted in the Atlantic Charter in August 1941. {{USS|Selfridge|DD-357|2}} and {{USS|Phelps|DD-360|2}} were in port during the attack on Pearl Harbor on 7 December 1941 and engaged enemy aircraft. The class served in the Battle of the Atlantic, in the Pacific War, and escorted convoys in the Americas. Phelps was at the Battle of the Coral Sea and the Battle of Midway, scuttling the disabled aircraft carrier {{USS|Lexington|CV-2|2}} with torpedoes at the former battle and picking up some of the crew from the sea following the orderly ship abandonment. Balch rescued survivors of the aircraft carrier {{USS|Yorktown|CV-5|2}} at Midway. While operating out of Trinidad in the Caribbean, Moffett assisted in sinking two U-boats, {{GS|U-128|1941|2}} and {{GS|U-604||2}}. Notable engagements for other ships of the class included the invasion of Guadalcanal and the Marianas campaign. By September 1944 the class was concentrated in the Atlantic. {{USS|Porter|DD-356|2}} was the class's only loss, in the Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands on 26 October 1942. {{USS|Selfridge|DD-357|2}} lost her bow to a torpedo in the Naval Battle of Vella Lavella on 6 October 1943, but was repaired. McDougal and Winslow were reclassified as AG-126 and AG-127 in September 1945 and modified for anti-kamikaze research in a similar configuration to {{sclass|Gearing|destroyer|0}} radar picket destroyers. All except Winslow were scrapped shortly after the war; Winslow remained in service as a training ship until 1950 and was scrapped in 1959. Winslow was the longest serving by far of all destroyers commissioned in the 1930s and the last by far to go to the ship breakers.

• {{sclass|Somers|destroyer|1}}

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{{reflist}}

• {{cite book | last = Bauer | first = K. Jack | author-link = K. Jack Bauer | author2=Roberts, Stephen S. | title = Register of Ships of the U.S. Navy, 1775-1990: Major Combatants | publisher = Greenwood Press | year = 1991 | location = Westport, Connecticut | isbn = 0-313-26202-0 }}
• {{cite book | last = Friedman | first = Norman | author-link = Norman Friedman | title = US Destroyers: An Illustrated Design History | publisher = Naval Institute Press | year = 2004 | location = Annapolis | isbn = 1-55750-442-3 | edition = Revised }}
• {{cite book | last = Gardiner | first = Robert | author2=Chesneau, Roger | title = Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1922-1946 | publisher = Conway Maritime Press | year = 1980 | location = London | isbn = 0-83170-303-2 }}
• {{cite book| title=U.S. Warships of World War II |author=Silverstone, Paul H. |publisher = Ian Allan Ltd |location = London |year=1965}}
• {{DANFS}}

{{commons category|Porter class destroyers}}

• [http://destroyerhistory.org/goldplater/porterclass/ Porter-class destroyers] at [http://destroyerhistory.org/ Destroyer History Foundation]
• [http://destroyerhistory.org/assets/pdf/generalinformationbooks/356porter_GIBook.pdf USS Porter, USS Selfridge, USS McDougal, and USS Winslow General Information Book with as-built data] at [http://destroyerhistory.org/ Destroyer History Foundation]
• [http://destroyerhistory.org/goldplater/ "Goldplater" destroyers] at [http://destroyerhistory.org/ Destroyer History Foundation]
• [http://destroyerhistory.org/goldplater/1850ton/ 1850-ton leader classes] at [http://destroyerhistory.org/ Destroyer History Foundation]
• [http://www.destroyers.org/Class/c-Porter.htm Tin Can Sailors @ Destroyers.org - Porter class destroyer] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151124172016/http://www.destroyers.org/Class/c-Porter.htm |date=2015-11-24 }}
• [http://www.navsource.org/archives/05idx.htm NavSource Destroyer Photo Index Page]

{{Porter class destroyer}}

{{WWII US ships}}

Category:Destroyer classes