As a fan of battleships I much enjoyed this presentation, especially the excellent and descriptive photographs. Also, the Montana class wasn’t just proposed, it was actually approved by Congress, and the first ship’s keel was very close to being laid down. U.S. Navy photo. All content provided on the mathscinotes.com blog is for informational purposes only. First, though, we have to introduce... As some of you may recall, the first edition of this page featured a three-way race between Bismarck, Yamato and Iowa. The Yamato-class vessels were huge at 72,000 tons and carried nine 18-inch guns. And now the moment we'e all been waiting for. The IJN Shinano was to be the final vessel of the Yamato class but she was converted to an aircraft carrier (and subsequently sunk by a submarine). The particular piece of armor tested was the 26-inch frontal armor for one of the Shinano’s 18-inch turrets. Most of the Shinano’s armor had already been built when the conversion was ordered and the U.S. Navy found some of it in storage after the war. (Source). Figure 1: Sailors on the 14-inch guns of the USS Texas, the last remaining dreadnought. Torpedos may have been a weak spot just like on Iowas – but Iowa did not carry many of those. Once you assume that, the ship with the most hits will win. © Mark Biegert and Math Encounters, 2020. Figure 3 shows the selection of shells available to an Iowa-class battleship. In the Middleweight category, South Dakota comes out on top again, followed again (though more distantly this time) by Richelieu. (Battleship images scanned from Gibbons, "The Complete Encyclopedia of Battleships.") A Panama Canal expansion project was started in 1939 roughly the same time the Montana-class ships were designed. While the British battleships couldn’t score a killing blow on the Bismarck, they did reduce the Bismarck to an inoperable wreck that was finally scuttled by her crew to prevent capture. MIDDLEWEIGHT CHAMPION is pretty much the same, except that it goes to a battleship which at least pretended to pay lip service to the provisions of the Washington and London Naval Treaties. American secondaries and AAA were awesomely effective. Why not try and foment an 'International Incident' with every possible member of the European Community? In addition, the two ships, due to their size, speed, and power, visibly embodied Japan's determination and readiness to defend its interests against the western powers, especially the United States. It … This entry was posted in Uncategorized by John Anderson. This was the thickest armor ever made for a warship and it was speculated that the Yamato’s armor was impervious to the 16-inch shells of American battleships. Anyway, we'll start with an examination of three vital areas: who's got the most powerful guns, the best designed protective armor scheme, and the most accurate fire control. The U.S. Navy shot it point blank with a 16-inch shell. This concept was exemplified during the sinking of the German battleship Bismarck by the HMS King George and HMS Rodney in 1941. The Iowa-class probably couldn’t sink the Yamato but its 16-inch shells would have wrecked the Yamato’s superstructure and rendered her equipment inoperable. All right, then, now that we have the Heavy- and Middleweight Champion prizes awarded, let's take a look at the other categories that go into the Best All-Around competition. Upon completion, the battleships represented the epitome of Imperial Japanese naval engineering. Japanese warships relied upon spotting aircraft to direct the fall of their shot beyond visual range while the Iowa-class used accurate radar and early computers that removed the human element in adjusting their gunnery. A heavy cruiser 8-inch shell is included in the photo (far right) to show that battleship shells are in a different category of size from that of a cruiser. See the scoring system page for a more detailed discussion of this question. Name * Email * Website. Carriers, particularly the Essex long hull class, were the new capital ship for all intents and considerations. The Montana-class would have retained 16-inch guns but would carry twelve of them and would be comparable in size and displacement to the Yamato. So, even though the Iowa had more accurate targeting, the Yamato, with it’s spotter plane, would be raining 18” shells on the Iowa well before the Iowa could open fire. Two vessels were completed and saw active service during World War II. That was taken into consideration, when they chose the width of the ships. Return to previous page. Well, that sort of wraps it up. Figure 2: Battleship Shell Size Comparison. The IJN Yamato was the lead ship of her class. The Nuclear shells were a much later cold war development. Let me first say, that I love the Iowa class battleships. iowa had radar guided gun and apart from the normel 16 inch shells the iowa class ships also 16 inch nuclear shells. They were not in service during world war two. As some of you may recall, the first edition of this page featured a three-way race between Bismarck, Yamato and Iowa.I received quite a volume of e-mail from overseas (including some from Germany, surprise, surprise...) debating various points of contention. She is a great example of a WW1-era warship. Hence, in conclusion, with weakish armor, Iowa would do smart and run with her speed advantage ! And so, armed with new reference books, back-issues of Warship International, and unpublished source works, I proceed to stick my neck way out by introducing three more players to the game: Richelieu, King George V, Vittorio Veneto, and South Dakota! The formerly manned ship was reborn as the prototype of a high-mobility combat system with complex autonomous navigation. And I have to admit, I learned a ton in the process. But if both ships were considered to be nominally obsolete, why bother ? Required fields are marked *, Author and a somewhat qualified commentator on issues of defense, intelligence, and diplomacy. With these prophetic words, I present my new, updated answer to the age-old question: which battleship was the best one out there? Your email address will not be published. Figure 2: Battleship Shell Size Comparison. Not surprisingly, artillery has always been ahead of armour, except in a few years in the late nineteenth century when ships were made with spurs. The U.S. Navy asked the same question after World War II and decided to find out. If this doesn't keep my e-mail In-Box full, nothing will! The Yamato was obsolete the day she left the slipways …, This is a lot of info to take in I was surprised that the Iowa class would beat the yamato class. The piece of armor tested by the navy is now on display at the Washington Navy Yard. BEST ALL-AROUND TREATY BATTLESHIP A very complex topic, all in all, and one which is impossible to answer conclusively. Most sources only mention the 1900 lb HC and 2700 lb armor-piercing variants, but you can see there were a number of other options. Yep, Yamato would come on top in mano-a-mano confrontation. While this showed that a 16-inch shell could penetrate the Yamato’s armor, it’s unlikely that it would have done so at distance. Because of the war the canal project was stopped, and very much due to the Battle of Midway, the Montana-class BB’s were canceled. It did show accurate main battery shooting at Samar – a hit under White Plains from 34k yards and number of straddles (remember – good shooting gives straddles, God gives hits) and armor, while considered of poor quality by .90 was still very heavy, both belt and deck. That's a really good question. A fully armed shell, even at a great range would wreak havoc on that armor. Also keep in mind, that these test shells were inert, missing the 750 lbs of high explosive that would normally be found inside them. Otherwise, great article, and fun read. I feel the same way about data science. Your email address will not be published. The USS Wisconsin was the fourth and final Iowa-class battleship completed. The Yamato-class was built for a different era of warfare. Figure 2 shows a "photoshopped" collection of different battleship shells with a person standing next to them to give a sense of scale. Both the IJN Yamato and Musashi were sunk in combat but there was a third vessel. Granted, that doesn’t guarantee hits, but longer range has always been an acknowledged advantage in gunnery. Standard U.S. Navy 16-Inch Gun. BEST ALL-AROUND BATTLESHIP gets awarded to the battleship which has the best blend of speed, firepower, armor, secondary and anti-aircraft armament, fire-control, and the whole ball of wax. An old battleship sailor serving as host on BB Wisconsin commented the BBs were past their prime for modern warfare. During some routine research on battleships, I encountered some photos on the web that I thought were worth sharing here. Shigeru Fukudome, chief of the Operations Section of the Imperial … Again, judges; your scorecards... GENERAL COMMENTS: Not surprisingly, Iowa is the winner in the Best All-Around competition. I do plan to travel in the next few years to the San Jacinto Battleground State Historic Site where she currently resides. Figure 1 shows the 14-inch guns of the USS Texas, which is the last remaining dreadnought. The carriage the gun is sitting on is the same size as a standard rail car. The owner will not be liable for any losses, injuries, or damages from the display or use of this information. Your email address will not be published. Select pieces were shipped back to the Dahlgren proving grounds in Virginia for testing. I am no expert, but let me play devils advocate; larger caliber guns = larger shells = more powder = higher exit velocity = longer range. The Iowa-class and Yamato-class battleships were the ultimate development of the battleship for the United States and the Empire of Japan. My hope with these photos is to give readers a feel for the size of these guns and their projectiles. BEST ALL-AROUND TREATY BATTLESHIP is awarded to the best all-around vessel which roughly conforms to the naval treaties cited above. (Wikipedia). In the Middleweight category, South Dakota comes out as the winner, though Richelieu is also a very strong contender, and has some slight advantages in terms of speed and underwater protection. All right, it's time to add up the points and see who comes out on top for both the Heavy and Middleweight categories. I can find only one, albeit disputed, mention of the effectiveness of these shells in combat because the Yamato-class ships saw so little combat. And yet, it is certainly true that certain of these vessels were better equipped to operate in the combat environment of World War II. They were cancelled in favor of the Midway-class aircraft carriers. Bookmark the permalink. A design model of the proposed Montana-class battleships. The IJN armor was inferior in many ways, both because of impurities(dirt mostly) and because of improper tempering/hardening procedures.
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