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USS Kidd (DD-661) was part of the massive Fletcher class of destroyers, the most numerous American destroyers of the Second World War. She served in the Pacific from late in 1943 until she was badly damaged on 11 April 1945, and was ready to return to combat when the Japanese surrendered. She served in the Korean War, and remained in service until 1964 when she was finally decommissioned. She is now one of only four members of the class to survive and is a museum ship at Baton Rouge.
This book starts with an examination of the Fletcher class, including a look at their weapons, radar and other systems. We then move onto a history of the Kidd herself, including the refits and upgrades carried out during her carrier. Next comes a timeline tracing her history, from being laid down to 2023.
We then move onto the massive collection of plans. These are a mix of traditional 2D line drawings and computer generated 3D illustrations. In most cases we get the 2D and 3D version of the same plans on the same page, so we can compare the two.
Some of the 3D plans struck me as being expecially useful – in particular a series showing just the structure framework of the ship – the structural frames, longitudinal ribs connecting them and the vertical supports. This gives you an idea of just how complex a structure this ship was, and how complex it must have been to fit all of the required rooms and engineering spaces into this framework.
The combination of 2D and 3D versions of the same plan on the same page is very useful. The 2D plan contains more details along with the numbers for the key, while the 3D plan shows what that means in reality without having to be too cluttered with fine details. Sometimes it isn’t immediately obvious on the 2D plan exactly what is going on – especially in the more complex sections – but the 3D plans eliminate any confusion.
We get a wide variety of types of plans – views from above, side views and cross sections. These cross sections can be very revealing – those at frame 30 show that the crew bunks were directly above one of the shell stores! Admittedly in combat you wouldn’t expect to find many of the crew in bed, but it can’t have been terribly reassuring.
One of the most useful features of this book is that it goes beyond the sort of plans normally found in this sort of book – deck plans, side plans etc and on to detailed examinations of some of the smaller systems of the ship – there are detailed plans of the torpedo tubes complete with the firing position above, individual types of guns, radar systems or depth charge racks. This sort of detail is really useful and a great help in identifying similar features on photos of other ships.
This is a splendid piece of work, by far the most detailed examination of a single destroyer I have yet seen, and one that makes clear just how complex even these smaller warships were.
Section 1
- Introduction
- The destroyer USS Kidd (DD-661) – Technical description
- History of the Destroyer USS Kidd (DD-661)
Section 2 – Primary Views
Section 3 – The Drawings
A – General arrangements
B – Hull structure
C – Superstructure
D – Rig
E – Armament
F – Fire control and radars
G – Fittings
H – Boats
Author: Stefan Draminski
Edition: Hardcover
Pages: 336
Publisher: Osprey
Year: 2024