USS Iowa (BB-61) was the lead ship of her class of battleship and the fourth in the United States Navy to be named in honor of the 29th state. Owing to the cancellation of the Montana-class battleships, Iowa is the last lead ship of any class of United States battleships, and was the only ship of her class to have served in the Atlantic Ocean during World War II.
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During World War II, she carried President Franklin D. Roosevelt across the Atlantic to Casablanca en route to a crucial 1943 meeting in Tehran with British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and Soviet leader Josef Stalin. She has a bathtub — an amenity installed for Roosevelt, along with an elevator to shuttle him between decks.[1]
During World War II, she carried President Franklin D. Roosevelt across the Atlantic to Casablanca en route to a crucial 1943 meeting in Tehran with British Prime Minister Winston Churchill and Soviet leader Josef Stalin. She has a bathtub — an amenity installed for Roosevelt, along with an elevator to shuttle him between decks.[1]
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When
transferred to the Pacific Fleet in 1944, Iowa shelled beachheads at
Kwajalein and Eniwetok in advance of Allied amphibious landings and
screened aircraft carriers operating in the Marshall Islands. She also
served as the Third Fleet flagship, flying Adm. William F. Halsey's flag
at the Japanese surrender in Tokyo Bay. During the Korean War, Iowa was
involved in raids on the North Korean coast, after which she was
decommissioned into the United States Navy reserve fleets, better known
as the "mothball fleet."
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She was reactivated in 1984 as part of the
600-ship Navy plan, and operated in both the Atlantic and Pacific Fleets
to counter the recently expanded Soviet Navy. In April 1989, an
explosion of undetermined origin wrecked her #2 gun turret, killing 47
sailors.
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Iowa was decommissioned for the last time in 1990, and was initially struck from the Naval Vessel Register in 1995. She was reinstated from 1999 to 2006 to comply with federal laws that required retention and maintenance of two Iowa-class battleships. In 2011, Iowa was donated to the Los Angeles-based non-profit Pacific Battleship Center and was permanently moved to the Port of Los Angeles at Berth 87 and was opened to the public on 7 July 2012 to serve as a museum and memorial to battleships.
Iowa was decommissioned for the last time in 1990, and was initially struck from the Naval Vessel Register in 1995. She was reinstated from 1999 to 2006 to comply with federal laws that required retention and maintenance of two Iowa-class battleships. In 2011, Iowa was donated to the Los Angeles-based non-profit Pacific Battleship Center and was permanently moved to the Port of Los Angeles at Berth 87 and was opened to the public on 7 July 2012 to serve as a museum and memorial to battleships.
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