RevRick
Posts: 2617
Joined: 9/16/2000 From: Thomasville, GA Status: offline
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depending on the port. if you have three DD's tied up at the dock, and if the port has any restrictions on entrance and egress (as in narrow inlet, minefields, coral reefs, sandbars, rock outcroppings, etc) the cans are not going to simply throw the lines on the pier and scamper out. PT's moight be able to do that, but it takes a larger ship a little time to get underway and get into clear maneuvering water with some sea room - as much as on the order of twenty or thirty minutes - in which time the speed is limited and the area in which the ship can steam may be even more limited. Thrown in a few other ships, as in a tanker or a lighter alongside, and a few ships in anchorage or also tied up in a nest, (which means you may have to turn the ship around on its screws) and this becomes a navigational nightmare for a ship handler. It is the most vulnerable time for a ship to air attackof any kind, especially a ship which has as its primary defence speed and maneuverability. Could very well be that if a Patrol bomber caught a DD tied up to a pier that it could drop one down the tube on it. And if it is refueling, there are all kind of combustibles around, as well, primarily partially filled fuel tanks.
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