CUS Drummond (DDL-1945)

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The Drummond class were conceived as escorts to the big Roosevelt class aircraft carriers. Originally the design was a slightly enlarged and more capable Lawson type. As things do this design grew and grew and at BuDes (Bureau of Design) the type became known as Pinochio. The eventual finished design gave the dilemna of what to classify the type as. By armament types and numbers the ship was a destroyer while in size the ship was as big as a lot of light cruisers. Eventually they were given the nomenclature as Destroyer Leaders.

With the eight 4.5" automatic guns as main armament the Drummond class was nearly as capable an AA ship as the Anchorage class, what made it more so was the fitting of the new twin 3" automatic AA guns. With the better RADAR control for these weapons the Drummond's were probably more accurate. In ship to ship duels the Drummonds firepower would come into its own again. Against larger targets the CUA designers finally went back to a full torpedo armament on these ships. Fitting four quadruple mountings on the type for a total of 16 tubes per ship. Anti-submarine had a set of Hedgehog ahead throwing mortars on either side of the bridge, with depth charge racks and throwers at the stern of the ship.

The first four ships were completed in January 1945 and were dispatched to train with the Roosevelt which was going through its final working up regime off Hawaian waters. New ships arrived to complete the new Taskforce which then sailed for the Okinawa campaign.

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