The battleship that once transported Joseph Stalin, Winston Churchill, and President Franklin D. Roosevelt to a conference between them over World War II is preparing to depart on its farewell trip.
The 887-foot U.S.S. Iowa is currently in route to become an interactive naval museum, some 25 years after it was removed from active service in the Iran-Iraq War.
The war ship that escorted Kuwaiti oil tankers from the Persian Gulf through the Strait of Hormuz in the late 1980s is now its route to south California after years of ageing in the “mothball fleet” of the San Francisco Bay area.
Battleship: This month, the 887-foot U.S.S. Iowa is reviving for what will probably be her last trip before becoming a floating museum in Los Angeles.
Blasting: In December 1987, while on duty in the Persian Gulf, the battleship USS Iowa discharges its 16-inch cannons.
The 58,000-ton battlewagon is now undergoing refurbishment in preparation for its May 20 tow through the Golden Gate and subsequent several hundred miles south to the Port of Los Angeles in San Pedro. The Port of Richmond, where “Rosie the Riveters” built ships in the 1940s, is not distant from this location.
The ship, which is equipped with nine 16-inch cannons, will be converted into an interactive naval museum there.
The Iowa was formally turned over from the U.S. Navy to the nonprofit Pacific Battleship Center on May 1. The center has been working to restore the warship in preparation for her new use.
Restoration: A crane on a floating barge lifts a 60-foot mast onto the battleship for reattachment at the end of last month
Renovation: In order to have the ship ready for commissioning at its new museum, it has been made spic and span.
John Wolfinbarger, 87, of San Martin, California, who served on the USS Iowa for nearly two years in the middle of the 1940s, said, “This means everything – it’s going to be saved.” Wolfinbarger recently started offering public tours of the historic ship while repairs were being completed.
Watching the mast be reattached, he said, “When it gets down to San Pedro, it’s going to be the happiest day of my life, like coming home!”
The flagship battleship of her class, dubbed “The Big Stick,” has been anchored in the neighboring Suisun Bay, amid the freezing and foggy conditions, with other abandoned vessels, for the last ten years.
This spring, workers began scrubbing and painting the Iowa’s exterior, replacing the teak deck and reattaching the mast in preparation for the museum commissioning on July 4.
New life: The battleship that once carried President Franklin Roosevelt to a World War II summit to meet with Churchill and Stalin has been given a fresh lick of paint
Unique: The battleship is the only one to have a bathtub, which was put in for President Franklin Roosevelt
Jonathan Williams, executive officer of Pacific Battleship Group, has been overseeing the project, which will exceed $4 million upon completion.
Williams credited his dedicated his staff and volunteers, along with the financial contributions from the state of Iowa, for making the restoration possible.
‘The U.S. Navy, MARAD (United States Maritime Administration) and the crew that mothballed the battleship over the past 22 years did an excellent job and kept the heart and soul of Iowa alive,’ said Williams.
‘Things are on track and we are following our schedule as planned,’ he added. ‘We are trying to make sure nothing is missed as the process is complex.’
The fast Iowa-class battleships, ordered by the Navy in 1939 and 1940, could travel at a speed of 33 knots.
Veteran: John Wolfinbarger, who served on the battleship USS Iowa in the Pacific during World War II for nearly two years, watches as a crane lifts a 60-foot mast onto the historic ship
The Iowa, first commissioned in 1943 and again in 1951 and 1984, saw duty in World War II and the Korean War. It took part in escorting tankers in the Persian Gulf during the Iran-Iraq war before being decommissioned in 1990.
During World War II, when transferred to the Pacific Fleet in 1944, the ship shelled beachheads at Kwajalein and Eniwetok in advance of Allied amphibious landings and screened aircraft carriers operating in the Marshall Islands.
It was one of two ships of its class camouflaged during World War II- and it also was the only one with a bathtub, which was put in for President Roosevelt.
The Iowa also served as the Third Fleet flagship, flying Adm. William F. Halsey’s flag as it accompanied the Missouri at the Japanese surrender in Tokyo Bay.
A dark part of the ship’s history took place in 1989, when 47 sailors were killed in an explosion in the No. 2 gun turret.
After the blast, the Navy alleged a crewmember caused the explosion as a result of a failed relationship with another male crewmember. A follow-up investigation found the explosion was most likely the result of human error.
Impressive: The ship’s nine 16-inch guns will be one of the main attractions for visitors to the floating museum
Historical: A crewman aboard the battleship in December 1987 is silhouetted during duty in the Persian Gulf with the aircraft carrier USS Midway in the background
Most visitors are immediately drawn to the sight and firepower of the Iowa’s nine16-inch guns, which could send an armor-piercing shell the weight of a small car 24 miles.
When the ship was modernized during the 1980s, it was outfitted with Tomahawk cruise missiles, Harpoon anti-ship missiles and Phalanx gun mounts. It was also one of the first ships outfitted to carry a drone for reconnaissance flights.
Future plans for the Iowa include an interactive tour experience that will allow the visitor to experience what life at sea was like during active duty. Among the highlights will be viewing the inside of one of the main gun turrets, seeing the 17.5-inch armored conning station on the bridge and viewing Roosevelt’s stateroom.
There will also be tours of secondary weapons, missiles, engineering, armor and special spaces. An ADA accessibility plan calls for an elevator to be installed from the main deck to one below for access to the main exhibit areas. The museum is scheduled to open on July 7.
