I don't know how many members are still interested in the happenings 70 years ago, so let's start with a brief regulation: For the first 3 days, Each one can only post one ship, it can be from PT-109 to battleships or carriers. I'll start with the most dramatic of them all(personal opinion), the Hood. H.M.S. Hood, sunk May 24, 1941, in battle with the Bismarck, carrying over 1,400 souls with her off Denmark Strait. I have to remind you that these pictures are often regarded by their sites as valued objects and hates people to link, so better make your own screen-shots.
USS Indianapolis (CA-35) was a Portland-class cruiser of the United States Navy. She holds a place in history due to the circumstances of her sinking, which led to the greatest single loss of life at sea in the history of the U.S. Navy. On 30 July 1945, shortly after delivering critical parts for the first atomic bomb to be used in combat to the United States air base at Tinian, the ship was torpedoed by the Imperial Japanese Navy submarine I-58, sinking in 12 minutes. Of 1,196 crewmen aboard, approximately 300 went down with the ship. The remaining crew of 880 men faced exposure, dehydration and shark attacks as they waited for assistance while floating with few lifeboats and almost no food or water. The Navy learned of the sinking when survivors were spotted four days later by the crew of a PV-1 Ventura on routine patrol. Only 316 sailors survived. Indianapolis was the last major U.S. Navy ship sunk by enemy action in World War II.
Robert Shaw in Jaws........ btw,I was never able to understand: a ship could evade submarine by zig-zaging, what's the theory in that? could NoJuan or some member explain? tks.
ADMIRAL GRAF SPEE (December 13-17, 1939) The German 16,200 ton battleship, was named after World War I hero Graf Maximilian von Spee (1861-1914). It was damaged during the Battle of the River Plate off the coast of Uruguay, in which the British cruisers Exeter, Ajax and the New Zealand manned light cruiser Achilles took part. The ship was forced to take refuge in the neutral port of Montevideo where she was granted only a temporary stay. During the battle, the first naval engagement in World War II, 72 British sailors were killed and 36 men killed from the Graf Spee. During her war cruise of 77 days, theGraf Spee had sunk nine merchant ships totalling 50,000 tons. The battleship was scuttled by her crew on the 17th, soon after she left port. The ship was blown up by her own torpedoes which were rigged to explode after her crew had been taken off. Rather than see the ship humiliated in defeat, Hitler had ordered her destruction. Her commander, Captain Hans Langsdorff, who never willingly gave the Nazi salute, committed suicide three days later. (He is buried in the German Cemetery in Buenos Aires) During her short career the Graf Spee had sunk nine ships totalling 50,089 tons. These were the steamships Clement, Newton Beach, Ashlea, Huntsman, Trevanion, Africa Shell, Doric Star, Tairoa, and Streonshalh.
Thanks, and that's what somebody had told me, because it takes quite a while for the torpedo to reach its target, but someone else had told me that the zig-zag could fool sonar, but unable to explain the theory, and that was what puzzled me.
^ Read This: http://www.history.navy.mil/library/online/warinst-7.htm Evasive Action (Zig-Zagging) However, Does Not defeat sonar. "Single ships of any speed zigzag in dangerous submarine waters. Low-speed ships use very little rudder and a zigzag plan with short legs. The primary purpose is to reduce the accuracy of torpedo fire, rather than to evade the submarine, since evasion is not feasible."
^ We're talking WWII Here, Not Modern Day. They didn't have Missiles that would be effective against ships at all and they didn't have Sonar Guided Torpedos until Very late in the war. Also, ICBMs (what you linked) Are Not used against ships, they have specifically designed Anti-Ship Missiles today. They also Now have Counter-Measures for Missiles but even they are only so effective. According to the Navy they are very effective, but they really aren't as effective as they would have us believe. MK 15 Phalanx Close-In Weapons System (CIWS): http://www.fas.org/man/dod-101/sys/ship/weaps/mk-15.htm Ultimately, the most effective Defense is a Good Offense, especially when talking about Navy Ships. That's why they usually travel in Large Groups with air support.
Well if someone is going to drop a nuclear warhead on you then it's pretty good offensive Check this out from same link I posted
Of course the early torpedoes were a joke compared to modern weapons, the swordfish from Ark Royal mistook Sheffield as Bismarck, launched 11 torpedoes and none made a hit, and they didn't even have to face any AA fire. The single torpedo that hit and jamed Bismarck's port propeller and rudder(from Victorious's swordfish) and sealed her fate is a total fluke. If the Indy had adopted a zig-zag, the ship and those good man might not have perished......