Slitherine

quote:

ORIGINAL: crsutton

When you look at the photos of the secondary gun deck, you really get a feel for how obsolete she was by 1944. Looks more like a Spanish American War ship when seen from that deck. Still, she could throw some shells and that served a purpose.

quote:

ORIGINAL: castor troy

quote:

ORIGINAL: crsutton

When you look at the photos of the secondary gun deck, you really get a feel for how obsolete she was by 1944. Looks more like a Spanish American War ship when seen from that deck. Still, she could throw some shells and that served a purpose.

exactly my thought when looking at the pictures, she just doesn't look like something to be used in WWII. Really wonder if it made any sense, there was enough of everything else around that could have been used. There were those old, slow BB but she was ancient already. Pretty much like the Schleswig Holstein, opening fire on the Westerplatte 33 years after comissioning.

Wasn't Texas comissioned around roughly the same timeframe? And then you see her having quite an intense duty in WWII, being part of Torch, Overlord, etc.

quote:

ORIGINAL: CV 2

I dont understand why they keep them in the water. They should dig a hole and put them to rest on land. It would save a lot in rust repair. The U505 for example (granted much smaller than a BB) cost $250,000 for repairs in 1953 and then went on display - outdoors - in Chicago. Over 50 years later, in 2004, they made repairs for the weathering damage and moved it inside.

Seems to me thats where they should put their money. Building a building to house it in and get it out of the salt water and weather.

quote:

ORIGINAL: CV 2

I dont understand why they keep them in the water. They should dig a hole and put them to rest on land. It would save a lot in rust repair. The U505 for example (granted much smaller than a BB) cost $250,000 for repairs in 1953 and then went on display - outdoors - in Chicago. Over 50 years later, in 2004, they made repairs for the weathering damage and moved it inside.

Seems to me thats where they should put their money. Building a building to house it in and get it out of the salt water and weather.

quote:

ORIGINAL: castor troy

quote:

ORIGINAL: crsutton

When you look at the photos of the secondary gun deck, you really get a feel for how obsolete she was by 1944. Looks more like a Spanish American War ship when seen from that deck. Still, she could throw some shells and that served a purpose.

exactly my thought when looking at the pictures, she just doesn't look like something to be used in WWII. Really wonder if it made any sense, there was enough of everything else around that could have been used. There were those old, slow BB but she was ancient already. Pretty much like the Schleswig Holstein, opening fire on the Westerplatte 33 years after comissioning.

Wasn't Texas comissioned around roughly the same timeframe? And then you see her having quite an intense duty in WWII, being part of Torch, Overlord, etc.

quote:

ORIGINAL: crsutton

quote:

ORIGINAL: castor troy

quote:

ORIGINAL: crsutton

When you look at the photos of the secondary gun deck, you really get a feel for how obsolete she was by 1944. Looks more like a Spanish American War ship when seen from that deck. Still, she could throw some shells and that served a purpose.

exactly my thought when looking at the pictures, she just doesn't look like something to be used in WWII. Really wonder if it made any sense, there was enough of everything else around that could have been used. There were those old, slow BB but she was ancient already. Pretty much like the Schleswig Holstein, opening fire on the Westerplatte 33 years after comissioning.

Wasn't Texas comissioned around roughly the same timeframe? And then you see her having quite an intense duty in WWII, being part of Torch, Overlord, etc.

Oh, I suppose it was just typical military planning. What seemed like a good idea in 1942 was probably rendered obsolete in 44. I suspect that the military thought that there was a great need for these old BBs for future fire support so they raised the dead from Pearl Harbor and keep some of these old girls in service for that purpose. However, in 1942 when they were planning for 1944, nobody really had an idea of how refined and effective close air support would become in 2 years. And once the process of re-floating and rehabbing old BBs started, it was hard to reverse. Probably did not need them but the US had the economic reserves to do it so why not? They certainly did not hurt the war effort.

I am just speculating here but it make sense.

quote:

ORIGINAL: geofflambert

quote:

ORIGINAL: crsutton

quote:

ORIGINAL: castor troy

quote:

ORIGINAL: crsutton

When you look at the photos of the secondary gun deck, you really get a feel for how obsolete she was by 1944. Looks more like a Spanish American War ship when seen from that deck. Still, she could throw some shells and that served a purpose.

exactly my thought when looking at the pictures, she just doesn't look like something to be used in WWII. Really wonder if it made any sense, there was enough of everything else around that could have been used. There were those old, slow BB but she was ancient already. Pretty much like the Schleswig Holstein, opening fire on the Westerplatte 33 years after comissioning.

Wasn't Texas comissioned around roughly the same timeframe? And then you see her having quite an intense duty in WWII, being part of Torch, Overlord, etc.

Oh, I suppose it was just typical military planning. What seemed like a good idea in 1942 was probably rendered obsolete in 44. I suspect that the military thought that there was a great need for these old BBs for future fire support so they raised the dead from Pearl Harbor and keep some of these old girls in service for that purpose. However, in 1942 when they were planning for 1944, nobody really had an idea of how refined and effective close air support would become in 2 years. And once the process of re-floating and rehabbing old BBs started, it was hard to reverse. Probably did not need them but the US had the economic reserves to do it so why not? They certainly did not hurt the war effort.

I am just speculating here but it make sense.

I'm not sure it got old so fast. BB support could be awesome, and the very last thing the allies needed to train their CV bomber crews to do was attacking ground targets. I wouldn't give them up for anything. Plus, I'd rather have one of those old battlewagons come under attack from the air than any type of carrier.

quote:

ORIGINAL: crsutton



Ground support is basically what they were doing in the last six months of the war. And were getting very good at it. Especially the boys on the CVEs.

quote:

ORIGINAL: msieving1

quote:

ORIGINAL: castor troy

quote:

ORIGINAL: crsutton

When you look at the photos of the secondary gun deck, you really get a feel for how obsolete she was by 1944. Looks more like a Spanish American War ship when seen from that deck. Still, she could throw some shells and that served a purpose.

exactly my thought when looking at the pictures, she just doesn't look like something to be used in WWII. Really wonder if it made any sense, there was enough of everything else around that could have been used. There were those old, slow BB but she was ancient already. Pretty much like the Schleswig Holstein, opening fire on the Westerplatte 33 years after comissioning.

Wasn't Texas comissioned around roughly the same timeframe? And then you see her having quite an intense duty in WWII, being part of Torch, Overlord, etc.

Texas was commissioned March 12, 1914, so she was less than a year older than HMS Queen Elizabeth and about two years older than USS Nevada. She didn't receive as extensive an update as those ships, but she was very useful for shore bombardment. She was roughly equal in combat power to the British R class battleships, though those ships were a little newer.

There's no comparison to Schleswig Holstein, which was a pre-dreadnought battleship about half the size of Texas. Although Schleswig Holstein was only six years older than Texas, she was obsolete before she was commissioned.

quote:

ORIGINAL: castor troy

quote:

ORIGINAL: msieving1

quote:

ORIGINAL: castor troy

quote:

ORIGINAL: crsutton

When you look at the photos of the secondary gun deck, you really get a feel for how obsolete she was by 1944. Looks more like a Spanish American War ship when seen from that deck. Still, she could throw some shells and that served a purpose.

exactly my thought when looking at the pictures, she just doesn't look like something to be used in WWII. Really wonder if it made any sense, there was enough of everything else around that could have been used. There were those old, slow BB but she was ancient already. Pretty much like the Schleswig Holstein, opening fire on the Westerplatte 33 years after comissioning.

Wasn't Texas comissioned around roughly the same timeframe? And then you see her having quite an intense duty in WWII, being part of Torch, Overlord, etc.

Texas was commissioned March 12, 1914, so she was less than a year older than HMS Queen Elizabeth and about two years older than USS Nevada. She didn't receive as extensive an update as those ships, but she was very useful for shore bombardment. She was roughly equal in combat power to the British R class battleships, though those ships were a little newer.

There's no comparison to Schleswig Holstein, which was a pre-dreadnought battleship about half the size of Texas. Although Schleswig Holstein was only six years older than Texas, she was obsolete before she was commissioned.

hmm, guess I'll have to look her up a little closer. Thanks for the info, didn't know she was of the age of QE and Nevada. She just looks so damn old (not now, on pics of the 40's already), wonder if it was her design?

All those bolts, the look, to me, she's looking more like a monitor of the late 19th century, not something that would fight in the same war as an Iowa class BB. Being equal to the British R class ships is the biggest surprise to me, thought she would have only been some aged floating gun tubes not being able to deal with a modern heavy cruiser.