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The Korean War provided what was thought to be a final operational hurrah for the Iowa-class battleships, the largest and heaviest ever built by the U.S. Navy.
Despite being larger and more heavily armed, the Montana-class would likely be ineffective in modern conflicts, particularly against a technologically advanced adversary like China.
In the early 1940s, the U.S. Navy planned for the Montana-class battleships, departing from earlier compromises seen in the North Carolina, South Dakota, and Iowa classes. Designed without the constraints of naval treaties, the Montanas were to be the ultimate battleships, prioritizing firepower and armor over speed and being unable to pass through the Panama Canal,
As part of the naval mobilization in the Korean War, USS Iowa (BB-61) was reactivated in July 1951, and she sailed for Korean waters in March 1952.