WesWorld

Landing Ship, Infantry, United States LSI laid down 1938

Displacement:
993 t light; 1,018 t standard; 1,079 t normal; 1,127 t full load

Dimensions: Length overall / water x beam x draught
261.88 ft / 260.00 ft x 40.00 ft x 5.50 ft (normal load)
79.82 m / 79.25 m x 12.19 m x 1.68 m

Armament:
1 - 3.00" / 76.2 mm guns in single mounts, 13.50lbs / 6.12kg shells, 1938 Model
Dual purpose gun in deck mount
on centreline aft
2 - 1.10" / 27.9 mm guns (1x2 guns), 0.67lbs / 0.30kg shells, 1938 Model
Anti-aircraft guns in deck mount
on centreline forward, all raised guns
4 - 1.10" / 27.9 mm guns (2x2 guns), 0.67lbs / 0.30kg shells, 1938 Model
Anti-aircraft guns in deck mounts
on side, all aft, all raised mounts - superfiring
4 - 0.50" / 12.7 mm guns in single mounts, 0.06lbs / 0.03kg shells, 1938 Model
Machine guns in deck mounts
on side ends, evenly spread
Weight of broadside 18 lbs / 8 kg
Shells per gun, main battery: 300

Armour:
- Gun armour: Face (max) Other gunhouse (avg) Barbette/hoist (max)
Main: 0.50" / 13 mm 0.50" / 13 mm -
2nd: 0.50" / 13 mm 0.50" / 13 mm -

- Conning tower: 1.00" / 25 mm

Machinery:
Diesel Internal combustion motors,
Geared drive, 2 shafts, 1,075 shp / 802 Kw = 13.00 kts
Range 4,000nm at 10.00 kts
Bunker at max displacement = 109 tons

Complement:
93 - 122

Cost:
£0.230 million / $0.918 million

Distribution of weights at normal displacement:
Armament: 2 tons, 0.2 %
Armour: 4 tons, 0.4 %
- Belts: 0 tons, 0.0 %
- Torpedo bulkhead: 0 tons, 0.0 %
- Armament: 2 tons, 0.2 %
- Armour Deck: 0 tons, 0.0 %
- Conning Tower: 2 tons, 0.2 %
Machinery: 29 tons, 2.7 %
Hull, fittings & equipment: 457 tons, 42.4 %
Fuel, ammunition & stores: 86 tons, 7.9 %
Miscellaneous weights: 500 tons, 46.4 %

Overall survivability and seakeeping ability:
Survivability (Non-critical penetrating hits needed to sink ship):
3,284 lbs / 1,490 Kg = 243.3 x 3.0 " / 76 mm shells or 1.4 torpedoes
Stability (Unstable if below 1.00): 1.12
Metacentric height 1.6 ft / 0.5 m
Roll period: 13.4 seconds
Steadiness - As gun platform (Average = 50 %): 79 %
- Recoil effect (Restricted arc if above 1.00): 0.01
Seaboat quality (Average = 1.00): 1.58

Hull form characteristics:
Hull has a flush deck
Block coefficient: 0.660
Length to Beam Ratio: 6.50 : 1
'Natural speed' for length: 16.12 kts
Power going to wave formation at top speed: 33 %
Trim (Max stability = 0, Max steadiness = 100): 50
Bow angle (Positive = bow angles forward): 5.00 degrees
Stern overhang: 0.00 ft / 0.00 m
Freeboard (% = measuring location as a percentage of overall length):
- Stem: 21.50 ft / 6.55 m
- Forecastle (20 %): 12.00 ft / 3.66 m
- Mid (50 %): 12.00 ft / 3.66 m
- Quarterdeck (15 %): 12.00 ft / 3.66 m
- Stern: 12.00 ft / 3.66 m
- Average freeboard: 12.76 ft / 3.89 m

Ship space, strength and comments:
Space - Hull below water (magazines/engines, low = better): 61.9 %
- Above water (accommodation/working, high = better): 197.6 %
Waterplane Area: 8,040 Square feet or 747 Square metres
Displacement factor (Displacement / loading): 186 %
Structure weight / hull surface area: 43 lbs/sq ft or 209 Kg/sq metre
Hull strength (Relative):
- Cross-sectional: 0.95
- Longitudinal: 1.78
- Overall: 1.01
Hull space for machinery, storage, compartmentation is excellent
Room for accommodation and workspaces is excellent
Ship has slow, easy roll, a good, steady gun platform
Excellent seaboat, comfortable, can fire her guns in the heaviest weather

Note: draft is average at light ship, with the ballast tanks pumped out. WIth those tanks full, average draft increases to 10.5 feet, while speed decreases to 12 knots and sea-keeping drops to 1.17.

The LSI can be considered a smaller brother of the LST, with a similar (though smaller) bow ramp. The LSI is intended to carry infantry and man-portable support weapons, though it can carry small vehicles and guns on the upper deck and land them via the 10' wide bow ramp.

It looks to me more of a large LSM than an LSI, quite frankly; LSIs displaced about five to ten times more and, least from what I've found, were only used by the Brits and Canadians. (The closest US equivalent was the Attack Transport.)

Historically, yes, the US didn't use the classification, and the LSM is kind of a smaller, open decked version of what I've designed here. The US attack transports are NOT what I'm doing here, though, this ship is designed, like an LST, to beach itself and land troops. It has the bow doors and ramp like an LST, unlike the LCI, so it can carry things larger than an individual infantryman can carry and so it can land it's troops if necessary under fire. The LST is kind of the closest thing I could think of to what I wanted, that's why I referred to it. This ship, unlike an attack transport or troopship, is not intended to carry it's cargo of troops onboard for long distances, but it is expected to carry them for distances further than an LCVP or an .LCP(L).

I'm intrigued as to all these assault craft the US is building (or going to). They're rather specialised craft and not of much use for anything else. Unless you're really planning a big amphibious assault I don't really see the point in investing heavily.

Quoted

Originally posted by Red Admiral
I'm intrigued as to all these assault craft the US is building (or going to). They're rather specialised craft and not of much use for anything else. Unless you're really planning a big amphibious assault I don't really see the point in investing heavily.

There is a place 90 miles from Key West that serves some nice Mojitos.

If memory serves, the US, Atlantis, and Iberia have a nonaggression pact in the Caribbean regions. I'd also think that with the increased isolationism of the US in the past four years (even more than historical), initiating such a conflict would cause something of a political... upheaval.

Quoted

Originally posted by perdedor99
There is a place 90 miles from Key West that serves some nice Mojitos.

That seems the only place the US is likely to stage an amphibious assault on, but it's politically unlikely.

Maybe they're just making preparations for when they have to take back their canal from the communists.

Quoted

Originally posted by Brockpaine
If memory serves, the US, Atlantis, and Iberia have a nonaggression pact in the Caribbean regions. I'd also think that with the increased isolationism of the US in the past four years (even more than historical), initiating such a conflict would cause something of a political... upheaval.

Costa Rica makes for a nice vacation spot and the beaches in the Pacific coast are beautiful. Nice location to put a couple of Hilton Resorts after the new administration lands in the beaches.

Heh, I'm not going to comment on possible uses for assorted landing ships any more than to say that while the Long administration is not as outward looking as the Roosevelt administration was, it does have eyes.

Hm, so the US has eyes for acquisitions, eh???

Or it's getting prepared in case it needs to re-acquire things, or it's just covering it's bases. Any or all of those..... maybe.