5-inch/54-caliber Mark 16 gun

5"/54 caliber gun Mark 16
A 5"/54 caliber Mark 16 gun on Midway.
TypeNaval gun
Place of originUnited States
Service history
In service1945 – 1993: USN 1945-1980, JMSDF 1958-1993
Used byU.S. Navy and Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force
Wars
Production history
DesignerBureau of Ordnance
Designed1940
Produced1945 – 1959
Specifications
Mass5,361 lb (2,432 kg) (without breech)
Barrel length270 in (6.9 m) bore (54 calibers)

Shell70 lb (32 kg) Mark 42 armor-piercing
Caliber5 inches (127 mm)
Elevation−10° to +85°
Traverse−150° to +150°
Rate of fire15–18 rounds per minute
Muzzle velocity2,650 ft/s (810 m/s)
Effective firing range19,000-yard (17,374 m) at 20° elevation
Maximum firing range
  • 25,909-yard (23,691 m) at 45° elevation
  • 51,600-foot (15,728 m) at 85° elevation (anti-aircraft ceiling)

The 5"/54 caliber Mark 16 gun (spoken "five-inch-fifty-four-caliber") was a late World War II–era naval gun mount used by the United States Navy, and later, the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force. These guns, designed originally for the Montana-class battleships and then the abortive CL-154-class cruisers, were to be the replacement for the 5"/38 caliber secondary gun batteries then in widespread use with the US Navy.