

Placed in reserve after the war, Canberra was selected for conversion into the second guided-missile carrying warship in the USN fleet.

The ship entered service in 1943 and served in the Pacific theater of World War II until she was torpedoed during the Aerial Battle of Taiwan-Okinawa and forced to return to the United States for repairs. Canberra was the first USN warship named after a foreign capital city, and one of the few named after a foreign warship not captured in battle with a USN ship.

Originally to be named USS Pittsburgh, the ship was renamed before launch to honor the Australian cruiser HMAS Canberra sunk during the Battle of Savo Island. USS Canberra (CA-70/CAG-2) was a Baltimore-class cruiser and later a Boston-class guided missile cruiser of the United States Navy (USN).
