Hawaii Redux

So, taking the hangar bay drawing and laying it over the actual model, gives a good idea on the plan.

As you can see, the mooring stations will move to sponsons. With the turret and barbette removed, ordnance elevators are installed, and the aft mag group becomes the aviation mags and embarked troop (as needed) magazines. An additional elevator will take the weaps to the flight deck.

This should be a interesting conversion.  I have thought about doing the Iowa class conversion and have decided which of the three proposals I would od but got sidetracked onto other things.

This one I'll be watching.

Since I'm doing this as if it were the actual ship, and existing ship's systems must still be functional, the hangar bay floor would need to be some distance, between say five and eight feet in actuallity, above the main deck. That way, the hangarbay 'deck' is flat and parallel with the baseline / keel, and the ships systems that penetrate the main deck, ventilation and such, will still be able to be routed outboard as needed.

Getting started, I needed to cut away all of the 40mm and 20mm tubs on the main deck and any other obstruction that will not be covered by the hangar bay deck.

As part of the modernization, Hawaii will be getting a larger, enclosed bridge.

Playing with the pieces / parts, here's a bit of a teaser to what I'm thinking about; a modernized Alaska Class cruiser, USS Hawaii, CBV-3.

Question:  Did Hawaii have an armored conning tower?
They were deleting those in later vessels in favor of a CIC and to better use topside weight.

Remember that there will be a fire control computer on the 200 or 300 under all the Mk 37 directors, which was retained on all the Iowas for providing all-around antiaircraft direction.

yes it did. at the base of the 2 ladders in this link. https://www.navsource.org/archives/04/1203/04020304.jpg

Correct, directly below the centerline superstructure 40mm mount.

And yes also to the deletion of heavily armored conning positions as they add undue weight up high and were found to be not that functional.

With the bridge enclosure I'm doing, the 'story' is that the conning tower is removed and the bridge built. The conning tower showing in the photo (bridge is from a New Jersey kit) will be covered or removed. I was just seeing if I could fit it up.       More fun to come!

As this is a late 1970's build, I'm looking at a NTDS capable ship, especially in a command and control setting.

Still working on drawings, I'm debating relocating one of the B&A cranes to the port side, just forward of the elevator, as I will have to 'handle' the Admirals gig, which doesn't go in a davit. I'm also considering a RAS arrangement on the starboard side.  

An updated hangar bay drawing .  .  .  some of the fun parts on a rebuild like this is figuring our how and where to put hangar bay doors and fire doors, and make them fit into the overall scheme, and still have space to move aircraft around. Lots of busy work and thinking .  .  . now my brain hurts.