Italian cruiser Andrea Doria

Summary

Andrea Doria (C 553) was an Andrea Doria-class helicopter cruiser of the Marina Militare. Built by the Cantieri del Tirreno at Riva Trigoso (Liguria), it was named after the Genoese Renaissance admiral Andrea Doria.

Andrea Doria while launching a Terrier SAM in Sardinia in 1985, seen from the frigate Grecale.
History
Italy
NameAndrea Doria
NamesakeAndrea Doria
BuilderCantieri del Tirreno, Riva Trigoso
Laid down11 May 1958
Launched27 February 1963
Commissioned23 February 1964
Decommissioned30 September 1992[1]
FateScrapped
General characteristics
Class and typeAndrea Doria-class cruiser
Displacement6,500 long tons (6,604 t)
Length149.2 m (489 ft 6 in)
Beam17.2 m (56 ft 5 in)
Draught5 m (16 ft 5 in)
PropulsionSteam turbines, 4 boilers, 2 shafts, 60,000 shp (45 MW)
Speed30 knots (56 km/h; 35 mph)
Range3,500 nmi (6,500 km)
Complement485
Armament
Aircraft carried4 helicopters

History edit

Laid down in 1958, the ship was launched in 1962, and commissioned in 1964.[2]

Initially based at La Spezia, the ship participated in numerous military training exercise in the Mediterranean, and in humanitarian campaigns in Far East and in the Tyrrhenian Sea, such as the search for victims of the Ustica Massacre and recovery of homeless people in the port of Naples after the 1980 Irpinia earthquake.[1]

Later it was moved to Taranto as flagship of the 2nd Naval Division. It was decommissioned in 1992 after further operations, including support to the Italian mission in the Lebanon War and during the American Bombing of Libya (1986).[1]

References edit

  1. ^ a b c "Andrea Doria". Marina Militare official website. Archived from the original on 23 April 2012. Retrieved 5 October 2011.
  2. ^ "ANDREA DORIA - incrociatore". Gruppo di Cultura Navale. Retrieved 5 October 2011.

External links edit

  • Page at Gruppo di Cultura Navale website (in Italian)
  • Andrea Doria Marina Militare website
  •   Media related to Andrea Doria (553) at Wikimedia Commons