 A model of a Montana-class battleship, 1944
| |
| Class overview | |
|---|---|
| Name | Montana-class battleship |
| Builders | |
| Operators |  United States Navy |
| Preceded by | Iowa class |
| Succeeded by | None |
| Planned | 5 |
| Completed | 0 |
| Cancelled | 5 |
| General characteristics (Design BB67-4) | |
| Type | Fast battleship |
| Displacement | |
| Length | 921 ft 3 in (280.8 m) loa |
| Beam | 121 ft 2 in (36.9 m) |
| Draft | 36 ft (11 m) |
| Installed power |
|
| Propulsion |
|
| Speed | 28 knots (32 mph; 52 km/h) maximum |
| Range | 15,000 nmi (17,300 mi; 27,800 km) at 15 kn (17 mph; 28 km/h) |
| Complement |
|
| Armament | |
| Armor |
|
| Aircraft carried | 3 × floatplanes |
| Aviation facilities | 2 × aft catapults for launch of seaplanes |
The Montana-class battleships were planned as successors of the Iowa class for the United States Navy, to be slower but larger, better armored, and with superior firepower. Five were approved for construction during World War II, but changes in wartime building priorities resulted in their cancellation in favor of continuing production of Essex-class aircraft carriers and Iowa-class battleships before any Montana-class keels were laid.
Their intended armament would have been twelve 16-inch (406 mm) Mark 7 guns in four 3-gun turrets, up from the nine Mark 7 guns in three turrets used by the Iowa class. Unlike the three preceding classes of battleships, the Montana class was designed without any restrictions from treaty limitations. With an increased anti-aircraft capability and substantially thicker armor in all areas, the Montanas would have been the largest, best-protected, and most heavily armed US battleships ever. They also would have been the only class to rival the Empire of Japan's Yamato-class battleships in terms of displacement.
Preliminary design work for the Montana class began before the US entry into World War II. The first two vessels were approved by Congress in 1939 following the passage of the Naval Act of 1938. The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor delayed the construction of the Montana-class. The success of carrier combat at the Battle of the Coral Sea and, to a greater extent, the Battle of Midway, diminished the perceived value of the battleship. Consequently, the US Navy chose to cancel the Montana-class in favor of more urgently needed aircraft carriers as well as amphibious and anti-submarine vessels.
Because the Iowas were far enough along in construction and urgently needed to operate alongside the new Essex-class aircraft carriers, their orders were retained, making those completed the last US Navy battleships to be commissioned.