The 5 inch 54 caliber gun aboard Sterett is a MK 42 Dual purpose mount. It is manned by a crew of 14 and was capable of firing 20 rounds per minute to a range of 26,000 yards (about 13 nautical miles). The projectiles weighed in at 70 pounds. It was capable of being fired in either local or remote control.
Sterett's 5 inch gun mount was acquired during construction from stock originally destined for one of the aircraft carriers under construction. The mount had been setting in storage out in the weather during carrier construction. The plans for the carrier were changed to incorporate the Basic Point Missile Defense System in place of her 5 inch guns. This freed up the gun for Sterett. Due to the fact that the mount was neglected for so long, once aboard Sterett it proved to be a little less than reliable. A lot of the micro-switched and electrical components were intermittent. The rapid fire mode for this mount often went Boom - click. The mount was given the nickname of "One Shot Annie". Throughout the mount's life span as equipment was gradually replaced, the mount became more and more reliable. During pre-decommissioning, Sterett's mount was removed. There are rumors that it was shipped to the German Navy. This is still unconfirmed.
The original configuration of the mount had two operator domes atop it. Each dome was for one local control operator. Also atop the mount was a cone shaped antenna. In the course of evolution, the starboard bubble (control station) was removed.
Sterett's Mount 51 was responsible for the sinking of two high-speed surface contacts during the Battle of Dong Hoi in April of 1972.
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