REVELL USS ‘LONG BEACH’ - A UNIQUE VESSEL IN KIT FORM
Mat Irvine reports The USS Long Beach is another recent Revell-Germany issue in its Classic Kits range. The Long Beach is a significant ship in that it was the first - and still only - nuclear-powered cruiser, the first all-new cruiser built for the US Navy after WWII, and the first that was armed primarily with guided missiles, though she did have two 5-inch guns amidships and could launch torpedos. Long Beach was also the only one ever built in her class, so therefore remains unique. Regulus 2 cruise missile The Revell kit dates from 1960, the year after the real ship was launched and features two nuclear reactors, one for each propeller shaft, and three types of missile. There are twin launchers forward for the medium-range surface-to-air (SAM) Terrier, one twin launcher aft for the long-range Talos SAM, while amidships is a Regulus 2 cruise missile, positioned on a launcher ready for takeoff. It’s not clear that the real ship actually carried the Regulus, but it certainly looks ...