USS Galveston (CL-93) - 1958-1960

1958-1960

Refit as a Galveston-class guided missile light cruiser, the warship departed Philadelphia on 30 June 1958 for builder's trials out of Norfolk, Va., in the Virginia Capes area, that included "highly successful" tests of her new Talos missile and tracking gear. The Talos supersonic surface-to-air missile weighed nearly 3,000 pounds (1,400 kg), including a 40,000 horsepower (30 MW) ramjet engine; with a range of over 65 miles (105 km) and was designed to destroy enemy aircraft at high altitudes using either a conventional or atomic warhead. She finished out the year with operations in the Norfolk area.

Galveston arrived at San Juan, Puerto Rico on 16 January 1959, for training and evaluation operations in the waters of the West Indies. She successfully fired the first Talos missile ever shot at sea on 24 February 1959. Termed by Admiral Arleigh Burke as "the best antiaircraft missile in any arsenal in the world," the Talos sent its payload off in a trail of bright orange flame. Galveston reported the shot "hot, straight and normal" as she proudly proved her capability as one of the most mighty warships of the modern United States Navy. The cruiser set course for Norfolk on 17 March and a special yard period in the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard.

In July 1959, Galveston conducted shakedown and acceptance trials in the Virginia Capes area, followed by a refresher training cruise to waters off Cuba and the testing of her radar and communications in war games with the U.S. Air Force. On 4 January 1960, she departed Norfolk for a visit to Charleston, South Carolina, and operations off the Florida coast, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands. She then headed to her namesake city of Galveston, arriving on 16 February for a Silver Service presentation. Returning to Norfolk, the cruiser unloaded her ammunition for shock tests off the Bahamas, then entered the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard on 25 March 1960 for a yard period that extended into the fall. During this time the cruiser entertained more than 30,000 visitors. She headed for the Virginia Capes 24 October 1960, successfully completing her first missile transfer at sea.