Q&A · 4:07:35-4:07:58

A higher cruiser limit produces a 22,000-25,000-ton Des Moines

A brief design estimate scales the Des Moines class from a larger interwar heavy-cruiser baseline.

Cruisers Des Moines Class Heavy Cruisers Live Q&A Naval Treaties Ship Design US Navy

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Question

Would a 22,000-25,000-ton Des Moines make sense if the US heavy-cruiser line began from a 15,500-ton treaty limit?

Short answer

Yes; that displacement range is plausible within a few thousand tons.

Notes

A higher treaty ceiling would normalize larger hulls, machinery spaces, protection, and magazines before the wartime design evolved. Des Moines could therefore grow into the low-to-mid 20,000-ton range without becoming an implausible departure from the preceding cruiser line.