USS Bennion

USS Bennion

USS Bennion

USA

III Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
4.7	4.7	4.7

Class:

PREMIUM

Destroyer

Purchase:Bundle or Gift

Description

The Fletcher-class, USS Bennion (DD-662), 1944 is a gift Rank III American destroyer with a battle rating of 4.7 (AB/RB/SB). It was introduced in Update 1.79 "Project X" as a Xbox One exclusive vehicle purchasable on the Microsoft Store.

As a Fletcher-class destroyer, the USS Bennion resembles its sister ships Fletcher and Cowell in terms of performance characteristics. The most distinctive differences the USS Bennion has compared to its sisters is its unique dazzle camouflage following the MS-32/13D design pattern. Compared to its closer relative, the Cowell, the Bennion possess an extra 5,000 rounds of 40 mm Bofors ammunition.

General info

Survivability and armour

As part of the Fletcher-class family, the USS Bennion's armour profile are not so different from its sisters, with armour plates covering the individual 127 mm gun turrets and primarily hull protection at the sides and roof.

Armour type:

• Antifragmentation armour
• Cast homogeneous armour
• Hardened armour

Armour	Bow (Slope angle)	Sides	Stern	Deck
Hull	N/A	13 mm (0-24°)	N/A	13 mm (85-89°)
Armour	Front	Sides	Rear	Roof
Turrets	3.2 mm Front 15 mm Gun mantlet	3.2 mm	3.2 mm	3.2 mm

Notes:

• The fire-control radar atop the bridge is covered with an antifragmentation armour with 19 mm thickness.
• Gun shields around the 20 mm Oerlikon autocannons are 12.7 mm thick.

Mobility

Mobility characteristic
Weight (tons)
2,924
Max Speed (km/h)
Mode	Stock	Upgraded
Arcade	58	79
Realistic/Simulator	56	65

Armament

Primary armament

127 mm 5/38 Mark 12 Dual Purpose gun (x5)
Turrets (Bow to stern)
	Turret 1	Turret 2	Turret 3	Turret 4	Turret 5
Vertical guidance	-15°/+85°
Horizontal guidance	±150°		±143°	±150°
Ammo capacity	1,800

Ammunition

Penetration statistics
Ammunition	Type of warhead	Penetration in mm @ 0° Angle of Attack
		1000m	2500m	5000m	7500m	10000m	15000m
127 mm AAC Mk.34	HE	54	49	40	36	36	36
127 mm Common Mk.32	SAP	125	100	70	50	38	25
127 mm AAVT Mk.31	HE-VT	54	49	40	36	36	36

Shell details
Ammunition	Type of warhead	Velocity in m/s	Projectile Mass in kg	Fuse delay in m:	Fuse sensitivity in mm:	Explosive Mass in g (TNT equivalent):	Normalization At 30° from horizontal:	Ricochet:
								0%	50%	100%
127 mm AAC Mk.34	HE	792	25	0.4	0.1	3,220	+0°	79°	80°	81°
127 mm Common Mk.32	SAP	792	25	10	10	1,150	-1°	47°	60°	65°
127 mm AAVT Mk.31	HE-VT	792	25	0.0	0.1	3,220	+0°	79°	80°	81°

Secondary armament

40 mm Bofors Mk. I (x10)
Turrets (Bow to stern)
	Front port turret (x2)	Front starboard turret (x2)	Middle port turret (x2)	Middle starboard turret (x2)	Rear turret (x2)
Vertical guidance	-15°/+88°		-10°/+88°		-15°/+88°
Horizontal guidance	-150°/+90°	-90°/+150°	-180°/+20°	-20°/+180°	±180°
Ammo capacity	25,000

Belts

Belts	Shell composition	Combat usage
Universal	AP-T – HEF-T – AP-T – HEF-T
40 mm HE clips	HEF-T – HEF-T – HEF-T – AP-T
40 mm AP clips	AP-T – AP-T – AP-T – HEF-T

Anti-aircraft armament

20 mm Oerlikon Mk.II (x7)
Turrets (Bow to stern)
	Front port turret	Middle port turret	Front starboard turret	Middle starboard turret	Rear port turret	Rear starboard turret	Rear stern turret
Vertical guidance	-80°/+65°	±100°	-65°/+80°	±100°	±180°
Horizontal guidance	-4°/+50°
Ammo capacity	16,800

Torpedo armament

533 mm steam turbined Mk.15 torpedo (x10)
Mode	Mass (kg)	Maximum speed in water (km/h)	Travel distance (km)	Depth stroke (m)	Arming distance (m)	Explosive type	Explosive mass (kg)
Stock	1,559	83	5.50	1.0	50	TNT	224
Torpedo mode		62	9.15

Special armament

• Without load
• 6 x Mk.6 mortar depth charge

Usage in battles

Describe the technique of using this ship, the characteristics of her use in a team and tips on strategy. Abstain from writing an entire guide – don’t try to provide a single point of view, but give the reader food for thought. Talk about the most dangerous opponents for this vehicle and provide recommendations on fighting them. If necessary, note the specifics of playing with this vehicle in various modes (AB, RB, SB).

Pros and cons

Pros:

• Dual-purpose 5-inch guns
• Access to proximity-fuze shells for anti-aircraft duties

Cons:

• More protected only against fragmentation and shrapnel than against shells

History

The Fletcher-class destroyers were conceived as a 2,100 ton class destroyer following the underwhelming construction of the Benson and Gleaves-class destroyers that could not equip a total of five 5-inch guns and ten torpedoes. The design was approved in 27 January 1940 by the Secretary of the Navy, Charles Edison, with construction plans expanded after the Battle of France in Europe when Congress passed the Two-Ocean Navy Act on July 19th, allowing for the construction of 115 destroyers. The Fletcher-class destroyers began construction in October 1941, with eleven shipyards involved in their production. By the war's end, 175 Fletcher-class destroyers were produced.

The USS Bennion was first laid down on 19 March 1943 at the Boston Navy Yard, named after Captain Mervyn S. Bennion, who was killed during the Japanese Pearl Harbor attack on 07 December 1941 while commanding the USS West Virginia battleship. The destroyer, christened by Bennion's widow, was launched on 04 July 1943, and following sea trials was commissioned into service on 14 December 1943 with Joshua W. Cooper in command. The USS Bennion was put into service in Destroyer Squadron 56 in Destroyer Division 111.

USS Bennion left for the Pacific on 03 March 1944, conducting training around Pearl Harbor until May 29th. From then, the USS Bennion joined the Pacific War as as a fighter director and radar picket ship and saw action at Saipan, Tinian, Guam, Peliliu, Philippines, Leyte Gulf, Iwo Jima, and Okinawa. At Leyte Gulf, the USS Bennion was involved in the Battle of Surigao Strait, where it assisted with the sinking of the Japanese battleship Yamashiro. For the USS Bennion's actions off of Okinawa, the destroyer received eight battle stars and a presidential unit citation.

After the war, the USS Bennion was sent to the Puget Sound Navy Yard on 21 October 1945 before being decommissioned on 20 June 1946 and became part of the reserve fleet. USS Bennion was stricken from the register on 15 April 1971 and was sold in 30 May 1973 and broken up for scrap.

Media

Excellent additions to the article would be video guides, screenshots from the game, and photos.

See also

• Fletcher (DD-445): Sister ship, the lead ship of the Fletcher-class
• Cowell (DD-547): Sister ship

External links

• [History Central] USS Bennion DD 662
• [Navsource.org] USS BENNION (DD-662)

Boston Navy Yard
Gun Destroyers (DD)
Fletcher-class	USS Bennion · JDS Yūgure (DD-184)*
	*USS Richard P. Leary in Japanese service