---

Ship History

The USS Indianapolis (CA-35) was a Portland-class heavy cruiser of the United States Navy. Launched in 1931 and commissioned the following year, she served as the flagship of Scouting Force 1 for eight years. During World War Two, she participated in the New Guinea campaign, the Aleutian Islands Campaign then was the flagship in 1943 and 1944 for Admiral Spruance in the battles of the central Pacific. She then joined the Fast Carrier Task Force, and supported the landings on Iwo Jima and Okinawa.

After the Okinawa landings, the Indianapolis was responsible for transporting the uranium and parts for the "Little Boy" nuclear device from San Francisco to Tinian, where the Enola Gay would later launch from when bombing Hiroshima. During this crossing of the Pacific, she set the speed record for San Francisco to Pearl Harbor, a record which still stands today.
After delivering her cargo, she sailed to Guam, then departed Guam towards Leyte. On the way to Leyte, the Indianapolis was intercepted by the Japanese submarine I-58, and torpedoed and sunk after just 12 minutes.

The survivors of the sinking were subjected to harsh conditions for nearly four days. There were few lifeboats and life jackets, and many of the crew were left floating in the sea. Of the roughly 900 who survived the sinking, only 316 survived. They lost their lives to lack of food or water, or worse, shark attacks.

Due to the rapidness of the sinking, the navy did not learn of the sinking immediately. It was also not reported when she did not arrive at Leyte as scheduled, further delaying the navy's response. The survivors were finally spotted by the pilot of a PV-1 Ventura on a patrol flight, and then picked up by ships.

After the war, the Captain of the Indianapolis, Charles McVay, was court-martialled by the Navy, who had a surprise witness in the Captain of the Japanese submarine, Mochitsura Hashimoto. McVay was convicted of hazarding his ship, however his sentence was remitted by Admiral Nimitz. He later committed suicide 1968.

The court-martial was controversial at the time, and Hashimoto had said that nothing Cpt. McVay could have done would have saved his ship. In 2000, a congressional resolution signed by President Clinton cleared his name of any wrongdoing.

---

The ship is built to full, accurate (built off US Navy plans and surviving photographs of the real ship) 1:1 scale with full interior (to the extent of the limitations of the scale).
She is built to specifications of February 1945.

Special thanks to Volke for the renders.

---

Interior Photos

---

---