RangerJoe -> RE: Air Losses (11/16/2020 6:25:10 PM)
|
quote:
ORIGINAL: witpqs quote:
ORIGINAL: BBfanboy quote:
ORIGINAL: Bif1961 there is an exception made for naval 4EB bombers as they were specifically trained in low level bombing of target at sea but in general B-24s and B-17 squadrons were not trained to drop individual bombs on naval targets at low level. I have a very interesting book, "Above and Angry Sea," United States Navy PB4Y and PB4Y-2 squadrons in operations Pacific between Oct 44 to Aug 45. It is a very interesting read and it is loaded with pictures and stats. At least one IJN DD was sunk in "The Slot" by a B-17 during the Guadalcanal campaign. The DD captain was furious because "they always miss!". I don't know what altitude it was flying at the time. They were pretty high at the time, but I don't recall the actual altitude. The real thing in that case is that the DD was stopped alongside or near a disabled ship. The captain's decision motivated by complacency brought on by the fact that high-flying B-17's, with crews untrained in naval bombing, "always missed!". [:D] quote:
As witpqs hints, skill is a big factor. I have found that early on my B-17s get no hits at all on ships at sea, but as they gain experience and train/develop the NavB skill, they start getting hits on the easier targets. I let them go as low as 8K feet to be above light AA range. Probably the Mutsuki : quote:
. . . 12 July 1942, Mutsuki was reassigned to the IJN 8th Fleet and participated in the bombardment of Henderson Field on 24 August 1942.[7] During the Battle of the Eastern Solomons on 25 August 1942, Mutsuki was sunk in an attack by USAAF B-17 Flying Fortress bombers while assisting the damaged transport Kinryu Maru, 40 miles (64 km) northeast of Santa Isabel island. . . . Mutsuki took a direct bomb hit in her engineering section, killing 41 crewmen and injuring 11 more. Yayoi took on the survivors, which included her captain, Lt. Cdr. Kenji Hatano.[ https://infogalactic.com/info/Japanese_destroyer_Mutsuki
|
|
|
|