The first USS Chicago was a protected cruiser[1] of the United States Navy, the largest of the original three authorized by Congress for the "New Navy." She was launched on December 5, 1885, by John Roach & Sons of Chester, Pennsylvania, sponsored by Edith Cleborne (daughter of Navy Medical Director Cuthbert J. Cleborne) and commissioned on April 17, 1889, Captain Henry Bellows Robeson in command.
The Chicago operated along the east coasts of North and South America and the Caribbean as the flagship of the Squadron of Evolution—and later as the flagship of the North Atlantic Squadron—until 1893. After taking part in the International Naval Review in Hampton Roads in April, she left New York on June 18, 1893, to cruise in European and Mediterranean waters as the flagship of the European station. During this period, the ship was commanded by Alfred Thayer Mahan, who was already famous as a naval strategist. Chicago returned to New York on March 20, 1895, and was placed out of commission there on May 1.
Recommissioned on December 1, 1898, Chicago made a short cruise in the Caribbean before sailing for the European Station on April 18. She returned to New York on September 27, participating in the naval parade and Dewey celebration of October 2, 1899. Chicago sailed from New York on November 25 for an extended cruise as the flagship of the South Atlantic Station until early July of 1901, then as the flagship of the European Station. With the squadron, she cruised in northern European, Mediterranean, and Caribbean waters until August 1, 1903, when she proceeded to Oyster Bay, New York, and the Presidential Review.
From December 3, 1903, through August 15, 1904, Chicago was out of commission at Boston, undergoing repairs. After operating along the northeast coast, the cruiser departed Newport News on November 17 for Valparaíso, Chile, arriving on December 28. On January 1, 1905, she relieved the armored cruiser New York as the flagship of the Pacific Squadron and, for three years, operated off the west coasts of North and South America, in the Caribbean, and to Hawaii. In 1906, she played a key role in the evacuation of San Francisco during the Great Earthquake and Fire. This ship's removal of 20,000 refugees to Tiburon was unparalleled and unsurpassed until the 1940 evacuation of Dunkirk.
On January 8, 1908, Chicago departed San Diego for the east coast and, in May, joined the Naval Academy Practice Squadron for the summer cruise along the northeast coast until August 27, when she went into reserve. Chicago was recommissioned the following summer (May 14 - August 28, 1909) to operate with the Practice Squadron along the east coast, then returned to Annapolis. On January 4, 1910, she left the Academy for Boston, arriving on January 23. She then served in the reserve with the Massachusetts Naval Militia until April 12, 1916, and with the Pennsylvania Naval Militia from April 26, 1916, to April 1917.
On April 6, 1917, Chicago was placed in full commission at Philadelphia and reported to Submarine Force, Atlantic (COMSUBLANT) as flagship, commanded by future Admiral Thomas C. Hart. On July 10, 1919, she departed New York to join Cruiser Division 2 (CruDiv 2) as flagship in the Pacific. She was reclassified CA-14 in 1920 and then CL-14 in 1921. From December 1919 to September 1923, she served with SubDiv 14 as a tender at the Submarine Base, Pearl Harbor.
Chicago was decommissioned at Pearl Harbor on September 30, 1923; served as a receiving ship there until 1935; renamed Alton on July 16, 1928, and reclassified IX-5 to free the name for USS Chicago (CA-29); and sold on May 15, 1936. Alton foundered in mid-Pacific in July while being towed from Honolulu to San Francisco.
USS CHICAGO (CA-29)
USS Chicago was a Northampton class heavy cruiser of the United States Navy that served in the Pacific Theater early in World War II. She was the second U.S. Navy ship to be named after the city of Chicago. After surviving a midget submarine attack at Sydney Harbour and serving in battle at the Coral Sea and Savo Island in 1942, she was sunk by Japanese aerial torpedoes in the Battle of Rennell Island in the Solomon Islands on January 30, 1943.
In February of 1932, Chicago conducted gunnery exercises with other ships of the Scouting Force preliminary to Fleet Problem XIII off the California coast. The Fleet was based on the West Coast after that and, until 1934, operated in the Pacific, from Alaska to the Panama Canal Zone and the Hawaiian Islands.
In October 1933, Chicago collided with the British freighter Silver Palm in dense fog off Point Sur, California. Three officers aboard Chicago were killed in their quarters during the collision, and an enlisted man's arm had to be amputated as well. Silver Palm penetrated around 18 feet into the cruiser's port bow, forward of the Number 1 gun mount. At the time of the incident, the damage was estimated to be around $200,000 ($4,775,000 - 2024).
In 1934, the annual fleet exercises were held in the Caribbean, followed in May of 1934 by the Presidential Fleet Review in New York Harbor. The Scouting Force operated along the east coast and in the Caribbean until October and then returned to base at San Pedro, California. Chicago was one of six ships to receive the new RCA CXAM radar in 1940. Chicago continued to operate out of San Pedro until September 29, 1940, when she sailed to Pearl Harbor.
During the next 14 months, Chicago operated out of Pearl Harbor, exercising with various task forces to develop tactics, cruising formations, and cruising to Australia and the west coast.
When the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, Chicago was at sea with Task Force 12, and the Force immediately began a five-day sweep in the Oahu-Johnston-Palmyra triangle to intercept the enemy. The Force returned to Pearl Harbor on December 12; from December 14 to 27, Chicago operated with Task Force 11 on patrol and search missions.
On February 2, 1942, Chicago departed Pearl Harbor for Suva Bay, where she joined the newly formed ANZAC Squadron, later redesignated as Task Force 44. During March and April, the cruiser operated off the Louisiade Archipelago, covering the attacks on Lae and Salamaua, New Guinea. In a position to intercept enemy surface units that attempted to attack Port Moresby, Chicago also provided cover for the arrival of American troops on New Caledonia.
On May 1, Chicago was ordered from Nouméa to join Commander Southwest Pacific. On May 4, she supported Yorktown in her strike against the Japanese on Tulagi, Solomon Islands, during the Battle of the Coral Sea. On May 7, she proceeded, with the Support Group, to intercept and attack the Japanese Port Moresby invasion group. The following day, the group underwent several Japanese air attacks, during which Chicago suffered several casualties from strafing but drove off the planes and proceeded ahead until it was clear that the Japanese Force had been turned back.
On the night of May 31, while in port in Sydney Harbour, Australia, Chicago fired on an attacking Japanese midget submarine. Chicago's captain, Howard D. Bode, was ashore when his ship opened fire. After coming back aboard on his gig, he initially accused all the officers of being drunk. Shortly afterward, the presence of the submarine was confirmed. Three Japanese midget submarines had attacked Sydney Harbour. One became entangled in an antisubmarine boom net, and two could pass through. One was then disabled by depth charges, but the other managed to fire two torpedoes at Chicago. One torpedo passed near Chicago and destroyed another vessel nearby, while the second torpedo failed to detonate and skidded ashore onto Garden Island.
During June and July of 1942, Chicago continued to operate in the Southwest Pacific. From August 7 to 9, she supported the initial landings on Guadalcanal and others of the Solomon Islands, beginning the U.S. counter-offensive against Japan. On August 9, she engaged in the Battle of Savo Island. Early in the engagement, a hit from a Japanese destroyer's torpedo caused minor damage to the ship's bow. Hit by a Japanese destroyer torpedo, Chicago fought damage while continuing to engage until contact with the enemy was lost. Capt. Bode's actions during the engagement were questioned in a subsequent inquiry headed by Admiral Hepburn. Though the report was not intended to be made public, Bode himself learned of its implications and shot himself on April 19, 1943, dying the following day.
After Savo Island, Chicago was repaired at Nouméa, Sydney, and San Francisco, where she arrived on October 13.
Early in January 1943, Chicago departed San Francisco, action-bound once more. On January 27, she sailed from Nouméa to escort a Guadalcanal convoy. On the night of the 29th, as the ships approached that bitterly contested island, Japanese aircraft attacked the Force, and the Battle of Rennell Island was underway. During the attacks, two burning Japanese planes silhouetted Chicago, providing light for torpedo attacks; two hits caused severe flooding and loss of power. By the time the attack ended, fine work onboard had checked Chicago's list. Louisville took the disabled ship in tow and was relieved by the Navajo the following morning. During the afternoon, the Japanese attacked again and, despite heavy losses, managed to hit the disabled cruiser with four more torpedoes, which sank her in the Solomon Sea.
The Japanese widely publicized the results of the engagement, claiming to have sunk a battleship and three cruisers, while only Chicago and a destroyer, USS De Haven (DD-469), were lost. The U.S. did not initially report the loss of Chicago to the public for some time, with Admiral Chester Nimitz—commander in chief of Allied Pacific forces—threatening to "shoot" any of his staff who leaked the loss to the press. Details of the battle emerged in U.S. newspapers as early as February 16, 1943.
Chicago received three battle stars for World War II service.
USS CHICAGO (CA-136)
USS Chicago was a Baltimore class heavy cruiser laid down by the Philadelphia Navy Yard on July 28, 1943, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Launched on August 20, 1944, she was sponsored by Mrs. Edward J. Kelly, wife of the Mayor of Chicago, Illinois, and commissioned at the Philadelphia Navy Yard on January 10, 1945, Captain Richard R. Hartung, USN, in command.
In company with Alfred A. Cunningham, the cruiser departed for the Caribbean on May 7, en route to the Pacific Ocean. Designed to operate offensively with strike and amphibious forces, Chicago spent her transit time conducting various anti-air drills, gunnery exercises, and radar tracking training. After refueling at San Juan, Puerto Rico, on May 11, the ships spent three days conducting gunnery practice before departing for Colon, Canal Zone, on May 15. With transit complete the next day, the ships arrived at Pearl Harbor on May 31.
Following another period of gunnery, day battle, anti-aircraft, and shore bombardment exercises off Kahoolawe Island, the cruiser departed for Eniwetok, Marshall Islands, on June 28. In company with North Carolina, Chicago arrived at the atoll on July 5 and immediately refueled from Pan American. Underway that same day, with Stockham added for an antisubmarine screen, the ships joined Rear Admiral Radford's Task Group north of the Mariana Islands on July 8.
Added to the anti-aircraft screen, Chicago guarded the Task Group's carriers as they conducted airstrikes against the Tokyo Plains area, Honshū, Japan, on July 10. After refueling on July 12, the Task Group returned to the Japanese coast and launched airstrikes against airfields, shipping, and railways in the northern Honshū and Hokkaidō areas the next day.
On July 14, in company with South Dakota, Indiana, Massachusetts, Quincy, and nine destroyers of Rear Admiral Shafroth's bombardment unit, Chicago closed northern Honshū to bombard the Kamaishi industrial area. The cruiser joined the battleships in firing on the ironworks and warehouses. Although heavy smoke obscured the target from the cruiser's spotting planes, the combination of pre-plotting the target through photo-reconnaissance and radar positioning data allowed Chicago's guns to start fires in numerous buildings, several large warehouses, and nearby oil tanks. The cruiser's secondary battery guns began firing on a Japanese destroyer-escort-type vessel. The escort was straddled and hit by 5 in shell fire, started smoking, and retired into the harbor. The Task Force retired, leaving the port under a pall of black smoke.
Chicago operated as "a temporary seaplane carrier" the following day when Iowa transferred her S.C. Seahawk floatplanes to the cruiser. The crew could still launch a Seahawk from the catapult for spotting services by hanging one plane over the side with the crane. After replenishment operations on July 16, the cruiser resumed screening the carriers as they launched airstrikes over the Tokyo Plains, northern Honshū and Hokkaidō, and the Kure-Kobe area over the next two weeks.
On July 29, in company with King George V and several American battleships, Chicago participated in a night shore bombardment mission against the port of Hamamatsu. Using radar and assisted by spotting planes dropping flares and rockets, the ships fired at bridges, factories, and the rail yard for about an hour. Rejoining the Task Group five hours later, Chicago once again screened the carriers as they launched airstrikes against the Tokyo-Nagoya area.
Operations with the carriers, including diversions to the south to avoid a typhoon, continued until August 9 when Rear Admiral Shafroth's bombardment unit returned to Kamaishi. The battleships, joined by Chicago, three more heavy cruisers, and a Royal Navy light cruiser detachment, delivered another two-hour bombardment of the town before returning to the carrier task forces.
For the next six days, the cruiser screened the carriers as they launched continuous strikes against the Japanese Home Islands until August 15 and the Japanese armistice. Chicago remained with the carriers until August 23, when she departed for Japan. Anchoring in Sagami Wan on August 27 and then moving to Tokyo Bay on September 3, the cruiser supported unloading supplies and equipment for Third Fleet occupation forces.
After transferring 47 men and the Marine Detachment for duty at Yokosuka Naval Base, the cruiser remained in port until October 23, when she got underway for the demilitarization of the Izu Islands. Over the next twelve days, inspection teams helped the Japanese garrison on O Shima and Nii Shima demolish gun emplacements, artillery, ammunition, and other military equipment on the islands. Three days later, on November 7, the cruiser got underway for San Pedro, California.
After arrival on November 23, Chicago received an overhaul at the San Pedro Naval Shipyard before returning to the Far East. Underway on January 24, 1946, the cruiser arrived in Shanghai on February 18 for occupation duty. She remained there until March 28 as the flagship of the Yangtze Patrol and then sailed to Sasebo, Japan, where she became the flagship of Naval Support Force, Japanese Empire Waters. The cruiser visited several other ports in Japan before clearing for the west coast on January 14, 1947. Moved to Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, the heavy cruiser was placed out of commission in reserve on June 6, 1947.
On November 1, 1958, Chicago was reclassified CG-11 and towed to San Francisco Naval Shipyard for a five-year conversion to a guided-missile cruiser. Begun on July 1, 1959, the entire superstructure was removed and replaced with new aluminum compartments, modernized electronic systems, and an improved Naval Tactical Data System (NTDS) equipped combat information center. A representative of the latest technological focus on guided missiles, Chicago was refitted with Tartar and Talos SAM stowage, loading, launching, and guidance systems. Two triple torpedo tubes, an ASROC launcher, 5 in/38 cal guns, and antisubmarine helicopters rounded out the cruisers' modifications.
Designed to provide long-range air, surface, and sub-surface defense for task forces, Chicago was recommissioned at the San Francisco Naval Shipyard on May 2, 1964, and was assigned to Cruiser-Destroyer Flotilla Nine, Pacific Fleet. Preliminary acceptance trials were conducted throughout the summer until September 2, when Chicago officially joined the 1st Fleet as an active unit. Following sonar calibration and deperming (broad-scale adaptation of demagnetization of a ship) in Puget Sound, the cruiser arrived at her homeport of San Diego, California, to begin weapons systems qualifications. Examination and evaluation of the new missile systems were completed by December 2, following successful trials at the Pacific Missile Range off southern California.
On January 4, 1965, the cruiser shifted to Long Beach, California, to begin a series of shock tests off San Clemente Island. Equipment tests, as well as damage control exercises, were completed by mid-January. Chicago then departed the area for San Francisco for alterations, receiving upgraded Tartar missile systems and improved electronics. The warship returned to San Diego on April 17.
For the next two months, Chicago continued shakedown training, engineering, navigation, seamanship drills, and missile and electronic exercises. The cruiser began Talos fire control developmental testing in mid-June with the Naval Electronics Laboratory. This, along with later tests, examined guidance improvements and experimented with missile replenishment at sea.
During fleet exercise "Hot Stove" in August–September, Chicago practiced anti-air and ASW operations, including firing ASROC and tube-launched torpedoes against submerged "enemy" submarines. Following an ECM exercise, Chicago participated in a competitive missile firing exercise and won a gold Missilery "E" for her Tartar battery. During the first week of October, the warship participated in another anti-air exercise, this time shooting down two high-speed, high-altitude drones with Talos and Tartar missiles.
After a cruise to Hawaii from October 19 to November 3, during which the cruiser practiced tactical data-sharing training with Kitty Hawk and Mahan, the ship finished out the year conducting tests and exercises in the San Diego area. Local operations continued in the spring, including more missile evaluation tests through February 1966. Returning to San Diego on March 4, the ship underwent operational readiness, technical proficiency, boiler, electronics, and nuclear warfare acceptance inspections. In April, the warship participated in Exercise "Gray Ghost," where the cruiser operated as tactical flagship for the anti-air warfare commander, Rear Admiral Elmo R. Zumwalt, Jr.
On May 12, 1966, Chicago got underway for her first Vietnam deployment. After stopping at Pearl Harbor and Yokosuka, where a new radar antenna was installed, the ship arrived at U.S. Naval Base Subic Bay on June 12. Picking up her helicopter detachment, the cruiser departed the next day for duty with Task Force 77 at Yankee Station in the Tonkin Gulf.
On June 15, Chicago, call-sign "Red Crown" began evaluating the concept of radar surveillance of all U.S. Navy air operations over designated areas of the Gulf and North Vietnam. Known as PIRAZ, for "positive identification and radar advisory zone," the initial duties of tracking friendly aircraft were expanded to include Air Force planes, controlling barrier combat air patrols, advising support aircraft, and coordinating strike information with the Air Force reporting center at Da Nang, South Vietnam. On July 5, a Sikorsky SH-3 Sea King search and rescue helicopter operating from Chicago rescued an A-4E Skyhawk pilot from Constellation who had ejected off the coast of North Vietnam on July 4. After a port visit to Hong Kong, where the ship had to avoid a typhoon on July 17, the cruiser returned to Yankee Station on July 29. One night at Yankee station, Chicago came under attack by high-speed surface targets patrol craft and sent its escort destroyers to interdict. Chicago safely egressed at flank speed.
On her second PIRAZ tour, in early August, Chicago assumed the duties of an anti-air warfare commander for short periods and demonstrated a C.G.'s ability to track complex air operations. After a practice, Talos missile shot off Okinawa on August 27, and a short visit to Keelung, Taiwan, the ship returned to her station on September 7. The cruiser, expanding air duties once again, soon became the primary source for MIG warning information and assumed surveillance responsibility for the North Vietnamese-Chinese border. On her fourth PIRAZ tour, from October 25 to November 12, the cruiser helped improve these procedures, particularly in the area of joint Air Force-Navy cooperation.
En route to Sasebo via Subic Bay, the cruiser stopped at the Okinawa Missile Range to fire two more practice missiles on November 18. Arriving in Japan on November 19, the ship visited Yokosuka before departing for home on November 27. Sailing in rough seas, the ship completed the non-stop voyage on December 7. The cruiser remained at San Diego for the remainder of the year.
Starting in January of 1967, the cruiser settled into the busy training, exercises, and inspections routine. Underway for such widely divergent responsibilities as providing guest cruises for the Secretary of the Navy, serving as First Fleet flagship, and air warfare exercises with USS Constellation, the cruiser spent the first five months of the year off California's coast. Chicago conducted experimental Talos missile tests against surface targets in April and May to demonstrate missile versatility.
Following readiness inspections, the cruiser departed June 6 for an Alaskan cruise with Commander First Fleet. Arriving in Juneau, Alaska, on June 10, the ship officially visited that city before returning to San Diego eleven days later. After another fleet exercise in July, where Chicago's Talos battery scored a direct hit on a drone at a range of 96 miles, the cruiser spent August conducting official visits to Seattle, Washington, Vancouver, and Esquimalt, British Columbia.
Assigned to tender availability on September 1, the ship received boiler and other repairs and inspections from Isle Royale before departing for another WestPac deployment on October 11, 1967. After leaving Pearl Harbor on October 18, the warship assisted in vectoring aircraft to the site of a Navy F-8 Crusader crash site, successfully rescuing the pilot. Arriving at the Gulf of Tonkin station three weeks later via Yokosuka, Okinawa, and Subic Bay, the ship relieved Belknap and began PIRAZ duties on November 12. These responsibilities improved over the past year, including radar surveillance, coordinating barrier CAP and rescue operations, providing MiG and border warnings, and various communication and real-time data-sharing services.
After a visit to Hong Kong from December 16 to 21, the cruiser moved to Subic Bay for an import availability period completed on January 3, 1968. Chicago steamed to Singapore for a short rest period before returning to the PIRAZ station on January 13. On January 28, following the seizure of Pueblo by North Korea, the cruiser steamed to the Sea of Japan to help coordinate air activities for the carriers of Task Force 71. On February 7, as the crisis eased, Chicago departed to resume PIRAZ duties in the Gulf of Tonkin.
Following two more PIRAZ cruises, Chicago departed Subic Bay on May 1 and arrived in San Diego on May 15 via Guam and Pearl Harbor. After a brief diversion to the Pacific Missile Range to conduct experimental aircraft tracking and missile firings, the cruiser entered Long Beach Naval Shipyard on July 1 for a regular repair period, followed by machinery and electronics sea trials and inspections for the remainder of 1968.
On January 31, 1969, Chicago concluded her missile systems qualifications tests, including a Talos test firing against a missile drone, before departing for her third cruise to the Western Pacific on February 13. The cruiser underwent ten days of upkeep and type training at Subic Bay before assuming duties as PIRAZ ship on March 11. Twelve days later, the ship began additional Search and Rescue (SAR) duty in the Gulf. This involved maintaining two helicopters at the patrol station to provide rescue coverage for Naval aircraft reconnaissance missions.
On April 17, Chicago was ordered to proceed to the Sea of Japan, off Korea, for duty with Task Force 71. In response to the shooting down of an EC-121 Warning Star by North Korean fighters on April 14, which killed all 31 personnel on board, the Task Force patrolled the Sea of Japan during the crisis that followed. The cruiser provided PIRAZ and screening duties for the carriers and their constant air patrols until April 27, when the ship departed for upkeep at Sasebo, Japan.
Following repairs, Talos and Tartar missile tests at the Okinawa missile range, and picking up a group of midshipmen at Da Nang on May 23, Chicago conducted another long PIRAZ/SAR tour from May 23 to July 1. After upkeep at Yokosuka, a visit to Hong Kong, and a typhoon evasion, the cruiser returned to the Gulf of Tonkin on August 1 to continue radar surveillance, electronic countermeasures, and missile screen duties. Departing on August 25, the cruiser returned via Subic Bay, Guam, and Pearl Harbor to San Diego on September 17.
After a leave and upkeep period, followed by a tender availability for installing Zuni chaff dispensers, the cruiser finished the year conducting routine inspections, local training exercises, and operations at the missile test range. Author T. J. Jackson Lears was a communications officer aboard Chicago. Still serving as the United States First Fleet flagship for Vice Admiral Isaac C. Kidd, Jr., Chicago began the new year quietly, with team training at the Fleet Antisubmarine Warfare school in San Diego. Several fleet exercises, two missile firing tests, and inspections filled the months until June 12, 1970, when the cruiser underwent a two-week repair and alteration period. All four Talos fire control systems were upgraded to include anti-ship targeting, and an experimental video target tracker was installed. Communications security, nuclear safety, operational readiness inspections, and final engineering checks were completed by the end of August.
Despite cutbacks substantially lowering her crew component, the cruiser sailed for Vietnam on September 9, 1970. Arriving at the station on October 3, Chicago conducted PIRAZ and search coordination duties with evasive maneuvering to avoid super typhoons Joan and Kate between October 14 and 26. After an October 27 refueling accident injured several men, Chicago left the Gulf of Tonkin on November 1 and arrived in Yokosuka on November 7. Chicago departed Yokosuka on November 17 and resumed PIRAZ station from November 20 to December 19. Chicago spent Christmas of 1970 in Hong Kong and celebrated the new year in Subic Bay. Chicago left Subic Bay on January 11 and resumed PIRAZ station until February 18. Chicago departed Subic Bay en route to San Diego on February 24, escorted by Knox. Knox rescued a Chicago sailor who jumped overboard on February 26. He thought it would get him discharged. After refueling in Guam on February 27, Knox lost power due to a JP-5 fire in engineering on March 3. Chicago took Knox in tow until a fleet tug arrived at the scene from Pearl Harbor on March 5.
Upon arrival in San Diego on March 11, the cruiser began a post-deployment leave and upkeep period. Supply replenishment, inspections, and a midshipmen's cruise in June and July were followed by exercises, inspections, and a dependent-guest cruise into October.
After a final readiness test and embarking five Secretary of the Navy guests, Chicago departed for another deployment on November 6, 1971. After a weekend stop at Pearl Harbor, where the passengers were debarked, the ship stopped at Guam and Subic Bay before arriving in the Gulf of Tonkin PIRAZ station on December 6. Chicago celebrated the new year in Singapore and briefly crossed the equator on January 4 for a line-crossing ceremony. Chicago then spent a week in Subic Bay before resuming PIRAZ station on January 18. Chicago launched four RIM-8H Talos-ARM anti-radar homing missiles against North Vietnamese shore-based radar stations in February and March, but no hits were registered. Radar surveillance and air coordination continued, except for a few days in Subic Bay in late February, until a visit to Hong Kong in late March. The cruiser set course for San Diego before being recalled to PIRAZ station on April 3, 1972, in response to the North Vietnamese Army's invasion of the south.
The scale of U.S. air operations increased dramatically as strike and interdiction missions, designed to restrict the movement of men and supplies, were conducted throughout North Vietnam. The cruiser monitored all aircraft flying over the Gulf, directed friendly CAP, and, despite intense electronic jamming, coordinated fighter escorts during the mid-April B-52 Stratofortress raids against the North Vietnamese. By maintaining a complete air picture, Chicago vectored damaged bombers around enemy missile sites, set up tanker rendezvous points for planes low on fuel, and directed helicopters on rescue operations. The cruiser also directed friendly fighters against North Vietnamese aircraft. In April and May, Chicago's air intercept controllers directed Navy and Air Force aircraft on CAP missions credited with 14 MiGs shot down. Among these was the second MiG downed by Navy aces Randy Cunningham and William P. Driscoll.
Chicago's forward Talos battery downed a MiG at long-range during the mining of Hai Phong harbor on May 9. Chicago and USS Long Beach were assigned to protect A-6 Intruder and A-7 Corsair aircraft mining Hai Phong harbor at low altitude during Operation Pocket Money. To avoid exposing F-4 Phantom fighters to North Vietnamese ground-based anti-aircraft defenses, these ships patrolling offshore were given a free-fire zone for Talos missiles to engage defending MIG fighters approaching the coast from Phúc Yên and Kép airfields near Hanoi. Chicago came under fire from North Vietnamese coastal artillery batteries but was able to maintain missile envelope coverage while moving out of gun range before suffering any damage. After a month of surveillance and directing airstrikes against Hai Phong harbor traffic, Chicago finally departed for San Diego on June 21, 1972.
Arriving home on July 8, the ship underwent a local availability before entering Long Beach Naval Shipyard on August 25 for a Complex Overhaul. During this refit, Chicago received new digital fire control systems, replacing the old analog computers, installed new missile launchers, and expanded her electronics equipment.
On May 15, 1973, Chicago began conducting six months of sea trials, tests, and training evolutions. New equipment and combat coordination procedures were also implemented, extending the cruiser's operational readiness date to December 14. Finally, after refresher training, fleet exercises, and weapons loadout, the cruiser departed for another WestPac deployment on May 21, 1974. After arrival at Subic Bay on June 15, the ship prepared for an extended cruise with Fanning, George K. MacKenzie, and Passumpsic. Designed to counter the Soviet Navy's presence in Somalia and Aden on the Indian Ocean, the low-key port visits were intended to demonstrate that "the Indian Ocean is not a Russian lake."
Departing Subic Bay on June 25, the squadron passed through the Straits of Malacca on July 2 and arrived at Karachi, Pakistan, six days later. Underway on July 13, Chicago and her escorts began a month-long at-sea period, "showing the flag" in the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Aden, before arriving at Mombassa, Kenya on August 9. A week later, the squadron conducted a diplomatic port visit to Port Louis to influence Russian negotiations for basing rights in the Mauritius Islands. Toward this end, Chicago embarked several Mauritian government officials on August 21 for a two-day cruise to Rodrigues Island. Departing on August 23, the ships returned to Subic Bay via Singapore for upkeep on September 11.
Following a visit to Hong Kong in early October, the cruiser spent the next month conducting training and fleet exercises in the Philippines area until getting underway for Guam on November 17. After a week at Apra Harbor, the ship departed for San Diego on November 29. Arriving home on December 14, the ship remained in port for leave, repairs, and upkeep into March 1975. Technical inspections and equipment modifications, interspersed with a visit by a delegation of French officials, lasted until April, when the ship conducted interim refresher training in the southern California operating areas.
Following a series of missile tests in late May and fleet exercises with Pacific naval units, the cruiser visited Seattle for the Fourth of July celebrations. After a visit to Vancouver the following week, Chicago returned to San Diego to begin overhaul preparations. From September 9 to October 24, the cruiser underwent a major restricted availability as repairs were conducted to fuel tanks, boiler casings, and the main propulsion plant. Additional upkeep, tender availability, and type training continued through the new year as the cruiser prepared for another deployment. In February of 1976, personnel in the Operations department underwent extensive team training in anti-air, antisubmarine, and electronic warfare in preparation for a fleet exercise in March. The "Valiant Heritage" exercise occurred from March 2 to 11 with forces from Canada, the United Kingdom, New Zealand, and the United States.
Following a month in port and several service inspections, Chicago left San Diego on April 13 to deploy to the Western Pacific. Sailing with an amphibious group, the cruiser conducted multi-ship exercises before and after Pearl Harbor and arrived at Yokosuka on May 3. Task group exercises with Midway, "Multiplex 2-76" from May 19 to 25, and "Multiplex 3-76" in the South China Sea from June 4 to 7, and port visits to Subic Bay and Keelung occupied Chicago through June. After a midshipmen cruise from Yokosuka to the Philippines in early July, the cruiser began an import period until August 2.
On August 4, the cruiser participated in "Multiplex 1-7T", followed by a successful missile firing exercise off Poro Point, Luzon on August 7. Returning to Subic Bay for two weeks of upkeep, the cruiser sailed for Hong Kong on August 22. Arriving three days later, after avoiding a third typhoon, the ship spent six days in that liberty port. Leaving Hong Kong on August 31, Chicago joined rendezvous with Enterprise for a war-at-sea exercise until September 8 before returning to Subic for a lengthy upkeep period. Repainting the exterior and interior improvements lasted until September 27, when the cruiser got underway for home. Stopping at Guam on October 1 to refuel and Pearl Harbor on October 9 for a dependents cruise, the ship finally returned to San Diego on October 16.
The cruiser remained in port, receiving boiler repairs and equipment upgrades, until February 23, when the ship began post-repair sea trials and crew training. Following inspections and an ordinance loadout at Seal Beach on March 3, Chicago started a regular training schedule out of San Diego. These exercises, including helicopter pad training, simulated missile and torpedo attacks, and similar drills, continued until September 6, when the ship got underway for her eighth WestPac tour.
Chicago arrived in Subic Bay on September 30, after multi-ship exercises that included four missile shots while underway, to begin a series of operations with the 7th Fleet. Missile shots and convoy exercises off Mindoro, a barrier exercise off Buckner Bay, and visits to Yokosuka, Keelung, and Hong Kong lasted until late November. On December 4, the cruiser began operations in the Sea of Japan after a rendezvous with Kitty Hawk. Helicopter and underway replenishments were interrupted two days later when the formation was circled by two Soviet Tupolev Tu-16 "Badgers," but exercises continued until December 8. Departing the area, Chicago steamed south to Subic Bay for sonar exercises with Queenfish, arriving at Singapore on December 23. After the holidays, the cruiser moved to Pattaya Bay, Thailand, on December 30.
Departing on January 4, 1978, the cruiser visited Subic Bay and Hong Kong before starting a month of exercises in the Philippine Sea. Gunfire exercises, helicopter operations, and other drills, including a real man overboard rescue on February 28, lasted until March 4, when Chicago moored at Manila. After repairs and upkeep, the ship steamed for Guam on March 16, arriving five days later to refuel before arriving in Pearl Harbor on March 31.
After returning to San Diego on April 7, the ship remained in an upkeep status until July 24, 1978, when the cruiser moved to Long Beach to start a regular overhaul. Repairs at the Long Beach Naval Shipyard lasted until October 18, when the cruiser conducted two days of sea trials. Finishing work continued until October 25, when Chicago departed the shipyard. After two days of operations with England and Darter, the cruiser moved back to San Diego to begin a regular schedule of training exercises. These short cruises, concentrating on gunnery and underway training, lasted through February 1979. Several propulsion and electronic service inspections were also conducted. On March 5, during exercises off southern California, the cruiser also earned her eleventh consecutive Missile "E."
After a month-long pre-deployment period, the cruiser departed on May 30 for the cruiser's final cruise to the Western Pacific. Chicago escorted the aircraft carrier Kitty Hawk and her battle group to Pearl Harbor, conducting exercises with Jouett, Lang, and Wabash before steaming to Subic Bay on June 13. Fleet exercises off Okinawa and a port visit to Pusan, South Korea, followed by refugee surveillance in the South China Sea at the end of July. There, along with other 7th Fleet ships, she helped rescue Vietnamese refugees fleeing the mainland, picking up five herself.
Escort duties for Kitty Hawk continued through September when, on October 6, she sailed for Australia. On October 15, after memorial services for two cruisers lost in the Solomon Islands battles during World War II, Canberra, and the earlier Chicago, the cruiser began two weeks of exercises in the Coral Sea. After the exercise, involving seven U.S. ships and twenty Australian and New Zealand vessels, the ship visited Sydney, Australia, for a week-long port visit. Returning to San Diego on December 17 via Subic Bay and Pearl Harbor, the cruiser began preparations for inactivation.
A pre-decommissioning inspection classified the cruiser as unfit for further economical naval service due to the high cost of modernization required. On March 1, 1980, Chicago was decommissioned at San Diego. Towed to the Inactive Ship Facility at Bremerton, Washington, the ship was held in reserve until February 8, 1989. Stripped of equipment by August 11, the hulk was sold for scrap to Southwest Recycling, Inc., Terminal Island, California, on December 9, 1991. The anchor was saved and displayed at Navy Pier on November 11, 1995.
She was awarded the Meritorious Unit Commendation for developing the PIRAZ concept on her Western Pacific cruises in 1966 and 1967-68. In 1972, the cruiser was awarded the Navy Unit Commendation for Vietnam Service, the Arleigh Burke Fleet Trophy, and her seventh consecutive "E" for excellence in missilery.
USS CHICAGO (SSN-721)
USS Chicago is a Los Angeles-class submarine, the fourth ship of the United States Navy to be named for Chicago, Illinois. The contract to build her was awarded to Newport News Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company in Newport News, Virginia, on August 13, 1981, and her keel was laid down on January 5, 1983. She was launched on October 13, 1984, sponsored by Mrs. Vicki Ann Paisley, wife of Melvyn R. Paisley, Assistant Secretary of the Navy, and commissioned on September 27, 1986, with Commander Robert Avery in command.
In the summer of 2005, Chicago tested the Virtual Periscope. This system would allow submerged submarines to observe the surface above them without coming to a shallower depth, as traditional periscopes require. A small camera mounted on the submarine's sail uses the ocean's surface as a lens, collecting light from above the surface and refracting it below. High-speed signal processing software assembles an image of what is on the surface. The system's resolution does not allow ship identification, only indicating that something is on the surface. Objects 30 meters (100 feet) tall can be seen at about 1600 meters (one mile). Sufficient light is available when a camera is shallower than 30 to 60 meters (100 to 200 feet).
The mast found that Cima had been drunk and had acted in an "unbecoming" manner during a visit with NROTC midshipmen at Cornell University on March 10, 2010. Cima was temporarily replaced by Captain James Horten. On March 15, 2010, the sub's Captain, Commander Jeff Cima, was relieved of command after facing an Admiral's Mast.
After completing a two-year maintenance and upgrade period at Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard in October of 2011, Chicago arrived in April 2012 at her new homeport, assigned to Submarine Squadron 15, based at the Joint Region Marianas on the island of Guam.
The USS Chicago has earned multiple awards in its service life. Chicago has been awarded many unit awards, including the Navy Unit Commendation, three Meritorious Unit Commendations, and four Navy "E" Ribbon Submarine Squadron Battle' E's. Further, the Chicago has been awarded several campaign and service awards, including the Navy Expeditionary Medal, National Defense Medal, Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal, two Southwest Asia Service Medals, three Sea Service Ribbons, Kuwait Liberation Medal (Saudi Arabia), and the Kuwait Liberation Medal (Kuwait).
USS Chicago plays a prominent role in Tom Clancy's novel Red Storm Rising. USS Chicago is seen deploying elements of Task Force 141 in the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 mission "The Only Easy Day... Was Yesterday". USS Chicago is also featured prominently in the 2008 naval thriller Black Sea Affair by Don Brown.
[1] A protected cruiser is a type of naval cruiser of the late 19th century, known because its armored deck protected vital machine spaces from fragments caused by exploding shells above. Protected cruisers were an alternative to armored cruisers, with armor belts along the sides.
