| USS Kearsarge (LHD 3) is
the third ship of the Navy and Marine Corps' all-new class of multi-purpose
amphibious assault ships. The warship's primary mission is the embarkation,
deployment, landing, and support of a Marine Landing Force. |
| Kearsarge and her sister ships are the first specifically
designed to accommodate new Air Cushion Landing Craft (LCAC) for fast troop
movement over the beach and Harrier II (AV-8B) Vertical/Short Take Off and
Landing (V/STOL) jets which provide close-in air support for the assault
force. The ship also accommodates the full range of Navy and Marine Corps
helicopters, conventional landing craft, and amphibious vehicles. |
| To carry out her primary mission, Kearsarge has an assault
support system that synchronizes the simultaneous horizontal and vertical
flow of troops, cargo, and vehicles throughout the ship. Two aircraft elevators
service the hangar and flight decks. Six cargo elevators, each 12 by 25 feet,
are used to transport material and supplies from her 100,000-cubic-foot cargo
holds throughout the ship, to staging areas on the flight, hangar, and vehicle
stowage decks. Cargo is transported to waiting landing craft docked within
the ship's 13,000- square-foot well deck by monorail. Helicopters in the
hangar, or on the flight deck, are cargo-loaded by forklift. |
| Off the landing beach, Kearsarge can ballast over 15,000
tons of seawater for trimming the ship during landing craft launch/recovery
operations in the well deck. |
| Kearsarge has medical and dental facilities capable of
providing intensive medical assistance to 600 casualties, whether
combat-incurred, or brought aboard ship during humanitarian missions, while
providing routine medical/dental care of all embarked ship and troop personnel.
Major medical facilities include four main, and two emergency operating,
four dental operating, rooms, x-ray rooms, a blood bank, laboratories, and
patient wards. In addition, three battle dressing stations are located throughout
the ship, as well as a casualty collection area at the flight deck-level.
Elevators rapidly transfer casualties from the flight and hangar decks to
medical facilities. |
| For the comfort of her 1,077 crew members and 2,074 embarked
troops, all manned spaces and berthing areas are individually heated and
air-conditioned. Crew and troop berthing are on the same deck level, with
galleys and messing facilities nearby. Berthing areas are subdivided to provide
semi-private spaces, without adversely affecting efficiency. Deck and wall
coverings are decorative, but also serviceable and easy to maintain. Mess
facilities facilitate rapid feeding in a restaurant atmosphere. On board
recreational facilities include a library, weight and recreation rooms, and
closed-circuit television facilities located throughout the ship. |
| Kearsarge's two propulsion plants - the largest currently
in operation in the U.S. Navy - generate a total of 400-tons of steam-per-
hour. The propulsion system develops 70,000 shaft horsepower, powering the
ship to speeds in excess of 24 knots. Kearsarge has a fuel distribution
system capable of receiving/transferring 360,000 gallons- per-hour. Her
electrical power subsystem develops 16,500 kilowatts of electrical power
for the ship - adequate electrical power to light 13,500 homes; and her 1,500
tons of air-conditioning equipment is sufficient to environmentally-control
a 32-story office building or 500 average-size homes. Kearsarge also
has the capability to create enough fresh water each day to supply the normal
needs of 7,800 people. |
| LHD 3 was built at Ingalls Shipbuilding in Pascagoula, Mississippi,
using revolutionary modular construction techniques, which produced a ship
that was approximately 77 percent complete when launched. Modular construction
of the ship in five sections, featured extensive pre-outfitting of machinery,
hardware and equipment prior to those sections being joined, and the hull
closed. |
| Kearsarge was built using more than 21,000 tons of steel,
400 tons of aluminum, 400 miles of electrical/electronic cable, 80 miles
of piping and tubing of various types and sizes, and 10 miles of ventilation
ducting. In preparation of her launch on 26 March 1992, more than 16,000
gallons of paint were applied to the ship's exterior hull. |
| She was christened Kearsarge on Saturday, 16 May 1992,
at Ingalls Shipbuilding by Mrs. Alma Powell, wife of General Colin L. Powell,
USA, former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. As ship's sponsor, Mrs.
Powell broke a bottle of champagne across the bow, officially christening
the ship. |
| Kearsarge joined the Fleet 16 October 1993, during
commissioning ceremonies in Pascagoula, Mississippi, and is home ported in
Norfolk, Virginia. |
USS Kearsarge (LHD 3) Specifications
|
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Displacement (LT):
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Light 28,233
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Full Load 40,500
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Dimensions (feet):
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Length 844
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Beam 106
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Draft 27
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Height from water line to top of mast: 137 ft
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Main Engines: Turbines, 2 Shafts (70,000 SHP)
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Boilers: 2 (600 PSI Each)
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Speed: 24+
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Aircraft: 42 (CH-46) Helicopters and Harriers
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Landing Craft: 3 Air-Cushioned Landing Craft (LCAC)
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Missiles:
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2 NATO Sea Sparrow Missile Systems
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2 Rolling Airframe Missile Systems
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Guns:
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3 Phalanx Close-In Weapons Systems(CIWS)
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5 .50-caliber machine gun mounts
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4 25mm chain gun mounts
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Complement:
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