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Throughout the Cold War, the Iowa class was occasionally reactivated or considered for modernization. After providing gunfire support in Korea, in the late 1950s and early 1960s the Iowa class was considered for modernization to guided missile battleships because they were large hulls not being used for anything else. The New Jersey was brought back again for a year of service in Vietnam, once again providing gunfire support. In the 1970s the ships were considered for modernization as hybrid Marine assault ships (complete with removal of the rear turret and construction of a helicopter/VTOL facility in the rear), and in the 1980s the entire class was modernized and brought back into service one last time in order to counter the Soviet Kirov class battlecruisers. Iowa and Wisconsin were kept in reserve status until 2006 in the event heavy gunfire support was once again required. The ships are still highly valued in some circles for their armor and armament, because the ability to construct battleship type armor and armament simply doesn't exist anymore.

Looking at the Cold War history of the Iowa class (and sometimes the North Carolina and Alaska classes), the actual and theorized uses of the ships (and battleships in general) is primarily focused around their heavy gun armament. Secondly, they were seen as large hulls not being used for anything else, and thus capable of being converted into missile ships, amphibious assault ships, battlecarriers, and other roles. Lastly, they were seen as useful because they were built to withstand heavy gunfire, with most modern ships having little to no armor.

I don't think that the heavy guns or armor of a battleship are that useful in a modern naval warfare environment, and I think that a battleship sized hull is probably too much ship for the modern era (in addition to having antiquated technology), but what do you think? Could other ships or technologies have taken over the role of the Iowa, or at least have taken away the real world (if not theoretical) role of a battleship in modern warfare? Did the Navy really need the Iowa class to counter the Soviet Kirov battleships? Could the Strike Cruiser or even the Long Beach have filled the role of the Iowa class?
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