Key Points – The USS Texas (BB-35), a New York-class battleship serving in both World War I and World War II, was once dubbed the “most powerful weapon in the world.”
-It played a crucial role in WWII, escorting Atlantic convoys and providing vital naval gunfire support for amphibious landings at Normandy, Iwo Jima, and Okinawa.
-Beyond its distinguished combat service, the USS Texas was a pioneering platform, serving as a testbed for anti-aircraft guns, early aircraft launching systems, and some of the first shipborne radar systems used for tracking and fire control, influencing future naval warfare and warship design.
Meet Battleship USS Texas:
The “most powerful weapon in the world” in 1914 are the words used to describe the famous USS Texas, a massive US Navy New York-class battleship that served in both WWI and WWII.
The ship, now a museum ship was designated as a “flagship” ship of the US Fleet from 1922 to 1941.
Famous for “shelling” German-held beaches in the Normandy invasion, the ship also escorted war convoys across the Atlantic.
It even shelled the Nazi-aligned Vichy France by attacking enemy forces in North Africa.
The USS Texas war contribution, however, was not limited to Normandy and the Atlantic but was transitioned to the Pacific to provide suppressive Naval fire during the famous Battle of Iwo Jima and Okinawa.
Battleship USS Texas: Where Will the Ship Finally Rest?
There is ongoing discussion and concern about exactly where the famous museum ship should be docked.
However, relocating the ship will not change its status as a successful historical platform or its inspiring role as a museum.
Pioneering Battleship
Apart from its distinguished service in the wars, which has been regarded as highly significant if not virtually unprecedented, the USS Texas served as a “test-bed” prototype platform for anti-aircraft guns and launching aircraft, according to a historical essay from the Historic Naval Ships Association.
It is interesting and significant to analyze the clear extent to which the integration and application of these weapons influenced future maritime warfare in several key respects.
The ship was among the first to implement radar systems to track air and surface threats to direct gunfire and range systems.
With production-level radar, the ship helped pioneer anti-aircraft warship defense, which has proven to be critical in the decades that followed.
Massive Warship Modernization
In a tactical sense, the trajectory of deck-mounted gunfire – like from a USS Texas – is quite significant as it has evolved from “area” suppressive fire to what is now much longer-range, precision-guided ship-fired guns and missiles.
However, the fundamental premise of deck-mounted area fire is still relevant, as US Navy warships still operate with deck-integrated 5-in guns.
Initially, the tactical importance of surface-to-shore suppressive fire cannot be underestimated, as it proved crucial to efforts to soften German defenses during the Normandy invasion.
Incoming shells, if even unguided, were used to blanket areas with fire to damage, decrease, or destroy well-fortified German positions on the beaches and in bunkers. Area fire is the concept, as munitions overwhelm enemy areas with a high volume of suppressive fire. This is also used to help maneuver formations, much like artillery is used for land war in Combined Arms operations; ship gunfire was used to enable Marines better to land and advance on the beaches when invading Nazi territory.
This performance in WWII Europe is a significant reason why the USS Texas was quickly sent to the Pacific in 1944, as it provided life-saving suppressive fire for the famous and ultimately successful US Marine Corps amphibious assault in Iwo Jima.
This proven tactical advantage continued to inform the development of large warships. While big-gun, heavy battleships may not be part of the current US Navy fleet, they undoubtedly contributed to the maturation of deck-mounted guns now firing from destroyers, cruisers, and other warships.
In more recent years, the Navy has been experimenting with various kinds of new ammunition and fire control technology to increase range and introduce precision fire. There is still a key place for “area” fire in today’s threat environment, as it can be helpful against small boat swarms on the ocean’s surface or even drone swarms attacking from the air.
These threats, which have only grown more significant in recent years, suggest that there is still a tactical need for “area” fire and precision.
Within the last decade, the Navy has been experimenting with GPS-guided 5in and 6in rounds from its warships to triple the range of attack and introduce a previously unprecedented measure of precision.
About the Author: Kris Osborn
Kris Osborn is President of Warrior Maven – Center for Military Modernization. Osborn previously served at the Pentagon as a highly qualified expert in the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Army—Acquisition, Logistics & Technology. Osborn has also worked as an anchor and on-air military specialist at national TV networks. He has appeared as a guest military expert on Fox News, MSNBC, The Military Channel, and The History Channel. He also has a Masters Degree in Comparative Literature from Columbia University.
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