#Japanese Cruiser Mogami
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Japanese heavy cruiser Mogami underway in 1935
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Craptastic design aside, the Hippers are a total basket case of a class. The 5 planned/2 cancelled/1 retired number gives you some of the picture but not all of it.
They were a uniquely heterogeneous class. Refits can cause classes to diverge over time, though the maximum 8-year lifespan here is a little short for that (another clue). Instead, the Hippers have uniquely variable hull dimensions; 21.3-22 meter beam variance, 195-210m lengths.
But the service lives are where the stupid really kicks off.
Admiral Hipper: did so bad in the Battle of the Barents Sea Hitler ordered the entire surface navy to be scrapped. Scuttled May 1945.
Blucher: sunk by a Norwegian surface battery manned by old dudes and teenagers in her very first combat mission in a darkly comedic clusterfuck
Seydlitz: left incomplete, then attempted as an aircraft carrier conversion, again left incomplete, and scuttled 1945.
Lutzow: left incomplete, sold to the Soviets, renamed Petropavlosk, sunk in 1942, raised later that year, renamed Tallinn, used as a floating barracks and then broken up in the 1950s
Prinz Eugen: suggested by Drachinifel to have parasitically absorbed the entire class's luck, she survived (somehow) the Battle of the Denmark Strait and the Channel Dash. Torpedoed but repaired, she survived the war and was taken by the USN as a war prize, USS Prinz Eugen.
Then blown up in nuclear testing in 1946.
A five-ship cruiser class, where all five were sunk at some point, is quite the dubious achievement. But an achievement nontheless. Only the Japanese come close with the Myoko/Takao classes (3/4 sunk) or particularly-cursed Mogamis (4/4).
But I think the Kriegsmarine wins the "rolls worst cruisers ever, asked to leave" contest. They should be proud! This is the worst anybody's done it, maybe ever.
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USS Helena (CL-50) was a Brooklyn-class light cruiser built for the United States Navy in the late 1930s, the ninth and final member of the class. The Brooklyns were the first modern light cruisers built by the US Navy under the limitations of the London Naval Treaty, and they were intended to counter the Japanese Mogami class; as such, they carried a battery of fifteen 6-inch (150 mm) guns, the same gun armament carried by the Mogamis. Helena and her sister St. Louis were built to a slightly modified design with a unit system of machinery and an improved anti-aircraft battery. Completed in late 1939, Helena spent the first two years of her career in peacetime training that accelerated as tensions between the United States and Japan increased through 1941. She was torpedoed at the attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941 and was repaired and modernized in early 1942.
After returning to service, Helena was assigned to the forces participating in the Guadalcanal campaign in the south Pacific. There, she took part in two major night battles with Japanese vessels in October and November 1942. The first, the Battle of Cape Esperance on the night of 11–12 October, resulted in a Japanese defeat, with Helena's rapid-fire 6-inch battery helping to sink a heavy cruiser and a destroyer. The second, the first night of the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal in the early hours of 13 November, saw a similar defeat imposed on the Japanese; again, Helena's fast shooting helped to overwhelm a Japanese task force that included two fast battleships, one of which was disabled by heavy American fire and sunk the next day. Helena sank a destroyer and damaged several others in the action while emerging relatively unscathed. During her tour in the south Pacific, she also escorted convoys carrying supplies and reinforcements to the Marines fighting on Guadalcanal and bombarded Japanese positions on the island and elsewhere in the Solomons.
Following the American victory on Guadalcanal in early 1943, Allied forces began preparations to advance along the Solomon chain, first targeting New Georgia. Helena took part in a series of preparatory attacks on the island through mid-1943, culminating in an amphibious assault in the Kula Gulf on 5 July. The next night, while attempting to intercept a Japanese reinforcement squadron, Helena was torpedoed and sunk in the Battle of Kula Gulf. Most of her crew were picked up by a pair of destroyers and one group landed on New Georgia where they were evacuated the next day, but more than a hundred remained at sea for two days, ultimately making land on Japanese-occupied Vella Lavella. There, they were hidden from Japanese patrols by Solomon Islanders and a coastwatcher detachment before being evacuated on the night of 15–16 July. Helena's wreck was located in 2018 by Paul Allen.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Helena_(CL-50)
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Also on ROF, Northampton-class had the same ROF as Japanese Heavy Cruisers (3 to 4 rounds a minute) while having 1 less gun total than the Myoukou, Takao, and Mogami-class. The ships with the murder-rape ROF were the St. Louis-class at 8 to 10 (or more in exercises) rounds a minute, which Helena has in game. navweapsDOTcom/Weapons/WNUS_6-47_mk16DOTphp#gunnote1
ORLY
http://navweaps.com/Weapons/WNUS_8-55_mk9.php
"At the Battle of the Java Sea in February 1942, USS Houston (CA-30) was able to maintain a ROF of 5 - 6 rounds per minute during the early part of the battle, possibly through the use of "cue-balling" techniques."
See the definition here: http://www.navweaps.com/Weapons/Gun_Data_p3.php
"Cue Balling - One of the major "sailor alts" (see below) used to increase the rate of fire of 8 inch (20.3 cm) guns on US cruisers of the World War II period. This involved using the rammer at high speed to strike the projectile and bat it into the breech. This meant that the rammer did not have to extend and retract past the much shorter and thus faster acting powder bag ram position. This unofficial loading method increased the ROF of these weapons from the standard 3 RPM up to 5 or 6 RPM, a significant improvement. The fact that the gun crews were able to do this on a regular basis and not damage the mechanisms is a credit to the designers of the mountings, who over engineered them to be resistant to such abuse."
So basically they put the WWII Northampton in the game with the pre-war peacetime regs ROF but without the pre-war 1930s torpedo armament. The elevens can eat my shorts.
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Today, USS Johnston, Gambier Bay, St. Lo, and Samuel B. Roberts are sunk by the Japanese Centre Fleet. Together with them go Kumano, Haguro, and Tone.
Just a few hours prior, battleships Fuso and Yamashiro, cruiser Mogami, and destroyers Michishio, Yamagumo, and Asagumo were sunk by Admiral Jesse Oldendorf's heavyweight fleet that had six battleships in it, five of which had been at Pearl Harbor.
Just a few hours later, Zuikaku, Chitose, Chiyoda, Zuiho, Tama, Akizuki, and Hatsuzuki are sunk by Halsey's TF 38.
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Japanese cruiser Suzya, Mogami class, starboard view, 1938. Suzya was sunk by TBM Avenger aircraft at the Battle of Leyte Gulf (Battle off Samar) on October 25, 1944. Halftone copy from the files of the Department of Naval Intelligence, June 1943. [3276 x 2072] Check this blog!
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https://pacificeagles.net/the-battle-of-midway-mikumas-nightmare/
The Battle of Midway: Mikuma's Nightmare
When word of the American attack in the Kido Butai, and the subsequent destruction of the Kaga, Akagi and Soryu, made its way back to Admiral Yamamoto aboard his flagship Yamato, he was stunned. Information from captured American aviators also revealed the array of forces that the Japanese were up against for the first time – three carriers operating in two groups. Electing to re-organise his forces, Yamamoto temporarily suspended the invasion of Midway, ordering the attack transports to withdraw to the west, and ordered the two carriers involved in the Aleutians operation to head south with all possible speed to reinforce Nagumo’s Kido Butai. As part of this redeployment the 7th Cruiser Division – Kumano, Suzuya, Mogami and Mikuma, plus destroyers Asashio and Arashio – was ordered to close on Midway and carry out a bombardment. Rear-Admiral Takeo Kurita was in charge, his flag flying from the Kumano.
At the time Kurita received his new orders his ships were 400 miles from Midway, necessitating a high-speed run in to the island in order to deliver the bombardment before the inevitable attack by American aircraft. Even so the shelling would have to be delivered in daylight, a highly dangerous undertaking with US Navy carriers in the vicinity. The cruisers went to maximum speed and soon left their escorting destroyers behind. Meanwhile the submarine I-168 was ordered to deliver her own bombardment to keep the island occupied whilst Kurita approached.
In the early hours of the 5th of June, more messages reached Yamamoto – these making clear the hopelessness of the Japanese position. The captain of the Akagi requested permission to scuttle his ship, her situation being completely hopeless. This request seems to have shocked Yamamoto, who soon after ordered the cancellation of the Midway operation and the recall of all forces. However, the message that was intended for Kurita’s 7th Cruiser Division was mistakenly sent to the 8th Cruiser Division, a mistake that was not rectified for several hours. By the time the recall message was received at about 0200 on the 5th, Kurita was just 90 miles from Midway.
Collision at Sea
Just moments after changing course to withdraw to the east, a lookout aboard the Kumano spotted the silhouette of the submarine Tambor. Orders for an emergency turn were flashed to the cruisers astern but the Mikuma, third in line, made a 90-degree turn instead of a 45-degree turn as ordered. Mogami, last in line, turned as ordered but soon the shape of the Mikuma ahead loomed in the darkness ahead, too late for any kind of evasive manoeuvre. Mogami rammed her sister just aft of the bridge, puncturing Mikuma’s oil tanks and causing fuel oil to leak into the sea. Mogami’s bow was badly crushed, almost all the way to her forward turret, which severely curtailed her speed. Kurita assessed the situation and, aware that he had been spotted by the Tambor and that American air strikes could be expected soon after dawn, elected to detach the destroyers Asashio and Arashio to escort the cripples whilst the Kumano and Suzuya escaped at high speed.
The Tambor’s report of ‘many ships’ so close to Midway brought the predictable response – it suggested that the Japanese might still be trying to force a landing. Other American submarines in the area were ordered to close in to protect Midway, and bombers on the island were readied for attacks. To the north, Spruance copied the dispatch and turned his two remaining undamaged carriers south, ready to assist if needed. Twelve B-17s took off from Midway just minutes after the message was received, but they failed to find the twin cripples and returned empty-handed. Soon afterwards a PBY made contact and gave an accurate position report but identified the vessels as ‘two battleships’ – a mistake which was to cause considerable confusion for the next two days.
A burning Mikuma under attack as a destroyer stands by
Next to launch from Midway were six SBDs and six SB2Us from VMSB-241, lead by Capt. Marshall Tyler. The Marines soon spotted a heavy oil slick and followed it all the way to the Japanese cruisers. The SBDs elected to attack the Mogami, but all of their bombs missed due to the cruiser’s heavy anti-aircraft fire. The SB2Us, having been delayed after sighting and investigating a submarine, arrived a few minutes later and selected the Mikuma as their target. Again anti-aircraft fire was intense and the leading Vindicator, flown by Capt. Richard Fleming, was hit and ploughed into the sea. A myth has persisted the Fleming crashed his aircraft onto the Mikuma, but in fact his SB2U crashed into the sea not far from the cruiser. Shortly after the Marines departed, eight B-17s attacked the two cruisers with limited results. Mogami and Mikuma limped on.
Spruance meanwhile had to contend with several possible targets. The report of ‘two battleships’ 125 miles from Midway (actually Mogami and Mikuma) was soon followed by an accurate report of ‘two cruisers’ (Kumano and Suzuya) further to the west of Midway , but the most enticing was a report of a ‘burning carrier, 2 battleships, 3 cruisers’ to the west of Task Force 16. This was the Hiryū, still afloat and potentially a threat. Spruance decided to attack it rather than the reported ‘battleships’. This triggered a dispute within Spruance’s staff over which bombs the SBDs should carry – Capt. Miles Browning, Spruance’s chief of staff, wanted heavy 1,000lb bombs, a marginal prospect for a target 270 miles away given the SBD’s limited fuel capacity. McCluskey, Gallaher and Shumway argued against this and Spruance agreed, delaying the launch until the distance to the target had closed and substituting 500lb bombs instead. The strike was not launched until 1500.
By this time, the Hiryū had already slipped beneath the waves of her own volition, unseen by either Japanese or American eyes. The only ship in the vicinity was the destroyer Tanikaze, which had been sent back to search for survivors and if necessary deliver the coup de grace on the carrier. Whilst engaged in this task the destroyer was bombed by B-17s which mistakenly reported the little ship as a ‘cruiser’. The Enterprise strike flew out 315 miles without finding a target, but on the return leg they came across the Tanikaze. One squadron of SBDs attacked, but thanks to superb ship-handling none of the bombs hit home, and the only damage sustained by the plucky destroyer was due to near misses that killed six of her crew. One of the attacking SBDs was shot down by Tanikaze’s anti-aircraft crews. The bombers returned to their ships as darkness was falling, necessitating the switching on of each carrier’s lights to bring them in safely. Meanwhile, the two damaged cruisers and their escort continued west at 12 knots through the night.
Strike
First thing the following morning, at 0500, a search of 18 SBDs was launched from the Enterprise to cover the area to the west of Task Force 16. One of these aircraft sighted the Mikuma and consorts about 130 miles away, but the contact report was garbled in transit and was received by Spruance as a cruiser, 3 destroyers and carrier. A second SBD accurately reported the presence of the cruisers but with a different position, which suggested two different formations of enemy ships in the vicinity. The Hornet launched a strike of 28 SBDs supported by 8 F4Fs. Shortly after their departure, the erroneous report of a carrier was corrected leaving the Hornet group to concentrate on any surface warships they encountered. They came across the Mogami and Mikuma two hours after launch. The pilots identified Mikuma as a battleship – the Mogami was now slightly shorter than her sister having crushed her bow, which presumably caused the confusion. The SBDs gained good attack position and rolled in, claiming half a dozen hits. Mogami took the brunt, suffering a direct hit on her number 5 turret which caused heavy damage to the stern of the ship. Another bomb struck near her torpedo stowage area, but her damage control officer had jettisoned the volatile torpedoes the day before and damage there was minimal. Mikuma also took two hits which caused severe damage, and the Asashio took a damaging hit on her stern area. One Dauntless was shot down.
The Enterprise strike followed at 1045 – 31 SBDs, 12 F4Fs, plus 3 TBDs with orders not to attack if there was any sign of life amongst the target’s AA crews. This strike had orders not to attack the cruisers, but instead concentrate on the reported battleship contact thought to be a few miles ahead. This strike sighted Mogami and Mikuma but continued west, searching for the ‘battleship’. After a futile search, the SBDs turned back to go after the original group – by now the only Japanese ships within range. This latest attack concentrated on the Mikuma, which suffered five more hits by 1,000lb bombs, some of which caused terrible damage. The cruiser’s torpedo area was struck and several of the ‘fish’ exploded – Mikuma’s damage control team having elected not to jettison these weapons as Mogami’s had. One SBD attacked the Mogami and struck her amidships, causing more grievous damage. Arashio and Asashio both suffered a thorough strafing attack by the F4Fs.
A shattered Mikuma following at least 11 bomb hits
A second Hornet strike was launched at 1445. By this time Task Force 16 had closed the enemy to the point that pilots at altitude could see both their own carriers and the burning enemy formation simultaneously, they were so close. In this attack the Mikuma again bore the brunt, being hit by as many as six 1,000lb bombs which left the cruiser a wreck from stem to stern. Mogami suffered another hit, and the Arashio was also hit on the stern – this bomb killed several Mikuma survivors that the destroyer had picked up. Spruance, still unsure of the identity of the targets, sent two SBDs with photographers to finally make a positive identification of the ships. These planes took detailed shots of the now derelict Mikuma, which were developed the next day and positively revealed her identity as a Mogami-class cruiser. Mikuma finally succumbed to her injuries after sunset and sank.
Spruance continued to chase the Mogami until it became clear that she was entering the umbrella of Japanese bombers based on Wake. Mogami escaped to Truk, where she was patched up and sent back to Japan for extensive repairs that lasted 8 months. She was eventually converted into a hybrid cruiser-carrier, her shattered aft turrets replaced with a small flight deck capable of housing a dozen seaplanes. Task Force 16 then broke off to head to a fuelling rendezvous, and eventually, Pearl Harbor. The Battle of Midway was over.
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Deep-sea explorers find sunken warship from key WWII battle
https://sciencespies.com/environment/deep-sea-explorers-find-sunken-warship-from-key-wwii-battle/
Deep-sea explorers find sunken warship from key WWII battle
In this Oct. 7, 2019 image taken from underwater video provided by Vulcan Inc., the Japanese aircraft carrier Kaga is shown in the Pacific Ocean off Midway Atoll in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands. Deep-sea explorers scouring the world’s oceans for sunken World War II ships are honing in on a debris field deep in the Pacific. Weeks of grid searches around the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands already have led the research vessel the Petrel to one sunken battleship, the Kaga, and it’s investigating this week what could be another. (Vulcan Inc. via AP)
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Deep-sea explorers scouring the world’s oceans for sunken World War II ships are focusing in on debris fields deep in the Pacific, in an area where one of the most decisive battles of the time took place.
Hundreds of miles off Midway Atoll, nearly halfway between the United States and Japan, a research vessel is launching underwater robots miles into the abyss to look for warships from the famed Battle of Midway.
Weeks of grid searches around the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands already have led the crew of the Petrel to one sunken warship, the Japanese aircraft carrier Kaga. This week, the crew is deploying equipment to investigate what could be another.
Historians consider the Battle of Midway an essential U.S. victory and a key turning point in WWII.
“We read about the battles, we know what happened. But when you see these wrecks on the bottom of the ocean and everything, you kind of get a feel for what the real price is for war,” said Frank Thompson, a historian with the Naval History and Heritage Command in Washington, D.C., who is onboard the Petrel. “You see the damage these things took, and it’s humbling to watch some of the video of these vessels because they’re war graves.”
Until now, only one of the seven ships that went down in the June 1942 air and sea battle—five Japanese vessels and two American—had been located.
In this Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2019, photo, Vulcan Inc. director of subsea operations of the Petrel, Rob Kraft looks at images of the Japanese aircraft carrier Kaga, off Midway Atoll in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands. Deep-sea explorers scouring the world’s oceans for sunken World War II ships are honing in on a debris field deep in the Pacific. The research vessel called the Petrel is launching underwater robots about halfway between the U.S. and Japan in search of warships from the Battle of Midway. (AP Photo/Caleb Jones)
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The expedition is an effort started by the late Paul Allen, the billionaire co-founder of Microsoft. For years, the crew of the 250-foot (76-meter) Petrel has worked with the U.S. Navy and other officials around the world to find and document sunken ships. It is illegal to otherwise disturb the underwater U.S. military gravesites, and their exact coordinates are kept secret.
The Petrel has found 31 vessels so far. This is the first time it has looked for warships from the Battle of Midway, which took place six months after Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor and left more than 2,000 Japanese and 300 Americans dead.
The attack from the Japanese Imperial Navy was meant to be a surprise, a strike that would give Japan a strategic advantage in the Pacific. It was thwarted when U.S. analysts decoded Japanese messages and baited their enemy into revealing its plan.
In this Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2019 photo, Vulcan Inc. director of undersea operations for the Petrel, Rob Kraft, left, and the Naval History and Heritage Command’s Frank Thompson, left, look at footage of the Japanese aircraft carrier Kaga, off Midway Atoll in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands. Deep-sea explorers scouring the world’s oceans for sunken World War II ships are honing in on a debris field deep in the Pacific. The research vessel called the Petrel is launching underwater robots about halfway between the U.S. and Japan in search of warships from the Battle of Midway. (AP Photo/Caleb Jones)
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As Japanese warplanes started bombing the military installation at Midway Atoll, a tiny group of islands about 1,300 miles (2,090 kilometers) northwest of Honolulu, U.S. forces were already on their way to intercept Japan’s fleet. U.S. planes sank four of Japan’s aircraft carriers and a cruiser, and downed dozens of its fighter planes.
One of the American ships lost was the USS Yorktown, an aircraft carrier that was heavily damaged and being towed by the U.S. on the battle’s final day when it was hit by torpedoes. The other, the USS Hammann, went down trying to defend the Yorktown.
Retired Navy Capt. Jack Crawford, who recently turned 100, was among the Yorktown’s 2,270 survivors.
Japanese dive bombers left the Yorktown badly damaged, with black smoke gushing from its stacks, but the vessel was still upright.
This June 4, 1942 file photo provided by the U.S. Navy shows Japanese Type 97 shipboard attack aircraft from the carrier Hiryu amid heavy anti-aircraft fire, during the torpedo attack on USS Yorktown (CV-5) in the mid-afternoon. Researchers scouring the world’s oceans for sunken World War II ships are honing in on debris fields deep in the Pacific. A research vessel called the Petrel is launching underwater robots about halfway between the U.S. and Japan in search of warships from the Battle of Midway. (U.S. Navy via AP, File)
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Then the torpedoes hit, Crawford told The Associated Press by telephone from his home in Maryland.
“Bam! Bam! We get two torpedoes, and I know we’re in trouble. As soon as the deck edge began to go under, I knew . she wasn’t going to last,” said Crawford, whose later military career was with the naval nuclear propulsion program. He also served as deputy assistant secretary for nuclear energy in the Department of Energy.
The Yorktown sank slowly, and a destroyer was able to pick up Crawford and many others.
In May 1998, almost 56 years later, an expedition led by the National Geographic Society in conjunction with the U.S. Navy found the Yorktown 3 miles (5 kilometers) below the surface.
Crawford doesn’t see much value in these missions to find lost ships, unless they can get some useful information on how the Japanese ships went down. But he wouldn’t mind if someone was able to retrieve his strongbox and the brand-new sword he left in it when he and others abandoned ship 77 years ago.
In this Oct. 7, 2019 image taken from underwater video provided by Vulcan Inc., the Japanese aircraft carrier Kaga is shown in the Pacific Ocean off Midway Atoll in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands. Deep-sea explorers scouring the world’s oceans for sunken World War II ships are honing in on a debris field deep in the Pacific. A research vessel called the Petrel is launching underwater robots about halfway between the U.S. and Japan in search of warships from the Battle of Midway. Weeks of grid searches around the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands already have led the Petrel to one sunken battleship, the Kaga. (Vulcan Inc. via AP)
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He was too far away to see the Kaga go down.
A piece of the Japanese aircraft carrier was discovered in 1999, but its main wreckage was still missing—until last week.
After receiving some promising sonar readings, the Petrel used underwater robots to investigate and get video. It compared the footage with historical records and confirmed this week it had found the Kaga.
“On the occasion of the discovery of the Kaga, we send our thoughts and prayers to our trusted and valued friends in Japan,” said Rear Adm. Brian P. Fort, commander of U.S. Naval Forces in Japan. “The terrible price of war in the Pacific was felt by all our navies. From that painful lesson, we have become the closest of allies and friends committed to maintaining a free and open Indo-Pacific.”
The other three Japanese aircraft carriers—the Akagi, Soryu and Hiryu—and the Japanese cruiser Mikuma are still unaccounted for.
In this Oct. 7, 2019 image taken from underwater video provided by Vulcan Inc., the Japanese aircraft carrier Kaga is shown in the Pacific Ocean off Midway Atoll in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands. Deep-sea explorers scouring the world’s oceans for sunken World War II ships are honing in on a debris field deep in the Pacific. A research vessel called the Petrel is launching underwater robots about halfway between the U.S. and Japan in search of warships from the Battle of Midway. Weeks of grid searches around the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands already have led the Petrel to one sunken battleship, the Kaga. (Vulcan Inc. via AP)
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In this Oct. 19, 2018, photo, provided by John W. (Jack) Crawford III, retired Navy Capt. Jack Crawford poses for a photo at his home in Rockville, Maryland. Crawford, who recently turned 100 years old, served on the USS Yorktown during the World War II Battle of Midway and survived the Yorktown’s sinking. (John W. (Jack) Crawford III via AP)
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In this Tuesday, Oct. 15, 2019 photo, a memorial to the World War II Battle of Midway is shown on Midway Atoll in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands. A group of deep-sea explorers scouring the world’s oceans for sunken World War II ships is honing in on sonar readings of debris fields in the Pacific Ocean. A research vessel called the Petrel is launching underwater robots about halfway between the U.S. and Japan in search of warships from the Battle of Midway. (AP Photo/Caleb Jones)
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In this June 3, 2018, photo, provided by John W. (Jack) Crawford III, retired Navy Capt. Jack Crawford signs an autograph at the Battle of Midway dinner at the Army-Navy Club in Arlington, Va. Crawford, who recently turned 100 years old, served on the USS Yorktown during the World War II Battle of Midway and survived the Yorktown’s sinking. (John W. (Jack) Crawford III via AP)
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In this May 1942 file photo a Japanese heavy cruiser of the Mogami class lies low in the water after being bombed by U.S. naval aircraft during the Battle of Midway. Researchers scouring the world’s oceans for sunken World War II ships are honing in on debris fields deep in the Pacific. A research vessel called the Petrel is launching underwater robots about halfway between the U.S. and Japan in search of warships from the Battle of Midway. (AP Photo, File)
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In this June 4, 1942 file photo crewmen aboard the USS Yorktown battle fire after the carrier was hit by Japanese bombs, during the Battle of Midway. Later the vessel had to be abandoned and was sunk by a Japanese submarine torpedo hit. A group of deep-sea explorers scouring the world’s oceans for sunken World War II ships is honing in on sonar readings of debris fields in the Pacific Ocean. A research vessel called the Petrel is launching underwater robots about halfway between the U.S. and Japan in search of warships from the Battle of Midway. (AP Photo, File)
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In this Tuesday, Oct. 15, 2019 photo, the shoreline of Midway Atoll in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands is shown from a landing airplane. Deep-sea explorers scouring the world’s oceans for sunken World War II ships are honing in on a debris field deep in the Pacific. Weeks of grid searches around the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands already have led the research vessel Petrel to one sunken battleship, the Japanese aircraft carrier Kaga. (AP Photo/Caleb Jones)
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In this Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2019 photo, Vulcan Inc. director of subsea operations of the Petrel, Rob Kraft, left, looks at a blueprint for the Japanese aircraft carrier Kaga, off Midway Atoll in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands. Weeks of grid searches around the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands have already led the crew of the Petrel to one sunken battleship, the Japanese ship the Kaga. This week, the crew is deploying equipment to investigate what could be another. (AP Photo/Caleb Jones)
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In this Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2019, photo, Vulcan Inc. director of subsea operations on the Petrel, Rob Kraft, left, looks at images of the Japanese aircraft carrier Kaga, off Midway Atoll in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands. Deep-sea explorers scouring the world’s oceans for sunken World War II ships are honing in on a debris field deep in the Pacific. Weeks of grid searches around the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands already have led the research vessel Petrel to one sunken battleship, the Japanese aircraft carrier Kaga. This week, it’s investigating what could be another. (AP Photo/Caleb Jones)
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In this Tuesday, Oct. 15, 2019 photo, a damaged World War II radar station is shown on Midway Atoll in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands. Deep-sea explorers scouring the world’s oceans for sunken World War II ships are honing in on a debris field deep near Midway in the Pacific. A research vessel called the Petrel is launching underwater robots about halfway between the U.S. and Japan in search of warships from the Battle of Midway. (AP Photo/Caleb Jones)
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In this June 4, 1942 file photo provided by the U.S. Navy shows the USS Yorktown listing heavily to port after being struck by Japanese bombers and torpedo planes in the Battle of Midway. Researchers scouring the world’s oceans for sunken World War II ships are honing in on debris fields deep in the Pacific. A research vessel called the Petrel is launching underwater robots about halfway between the U.S. and Japan in search of warships from the Battle of Midway. (AP Photo/U.S. Navy, File)
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This June 1942 file photo shows an aerial photo of a Japanese carrier maneuvering in a complete circle in an effort to escape in the Midway Islands, Hawaii. After the battle, the Army reported repeated bomb hits on the enemy carriers Kaga and Akagi, while the Navy, in listing results, said four enemy carriers were definitely sunk. A research vessel called the Petrel is launching underwater robots about halfway between the U.S. and Japan in search of warships from the Battle of Midway. (AP Photo/U.S. Army, File)
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This June 4, 1942 photo provided by the U.S. Navy shows a scene on the flight deck of USS Yorktown shortly after it was hit by two Japanese aerial torpedoes. Men are balancing themselves on the listing deck as they prepare to abandon ship. Researchers scouring the world’s oceans for sunken World War II ships are honing in on debris fields deep in the Pacific. A research vessel called the Petrel is launching underwater robots about halfway between the U.S. and Japan in search of warships from the Battle of Midway. (U.S. Navy via AP, File)
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In this June 4, 1942 file photo provided by the U.S. Navy the USS Astoria (CA-34) steams by USS Yorktown (CV-5), shortly after the carrier had been hit by three Japanese bombs in the battle of Midway. Researchers scouring the world’s oceans for sunken World War II ships are honing in on debris fields deep in the Pacific. A research vessel called the Petrel is launching underwater robots about halfway between the U.S. and Japan in search of warships from the Battle of Midway. (William G. Roy/U.S. Navy via AP, File)
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In this Oct. 7, 2019 image taken from underwater video provided by Vulcan Inc., the Japanese aircraft carrier Kaga is shown in the Pacific Ocean off Midway Atoll in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands. A research vessel called the Petrel is launching underwater robots about halfway between the U.S. and Japan in search of warships from the Battle of Midway. Weeks of grid searches around the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands already have led the Petrel to one sunken battleship, the Kaga. This week, it’s investigating what could be another. (Vulcan Inc. via AP)
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In this Oct. 7, 2019 image taken from underwater video provided by Vulcan Inc., the Japanese aircraft carrier Kaga is shown in the Pacific Ocean off Midway Atoll in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands. Deep-sea explorers scouring the world’s oceans for sunken World War II ships are honing in on a debris field deep in the Pacific. A research vessel called the Petrel is launching underwater robots about halfway between the U.S. and Japan in search of warships from the Battle of Midway. Weeks of grid searches around the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands already have led the Petrel to one sunken battleship, the Kaga. (Vulcan Inc. via AP)
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The Petrel crew hopes to find and survey all the wreckage from the battle, an effort that could add new details about Midway to history books.
Earlier this year, they discovered the USS Hornet, an aircraft carrier that helped win the Battle of Midway but sank in the Battle of Santa Cruz near the Solomon Islands less than five months later. More than 100 crew members died.
The Petrel also discovered the USS Indianapolis, the U.S. Navy’s single deadliest loss at sea.
Rob Kraft, director of subsea operations on the Petrel, says Allen gave him and his crew a mission to preserve history, educate people about the past and honor those who fought on these great ships. Allen died last year.
“This originally started with his desire to honor his father’s service to our country,” Kraft said. “It really extends beyond that at this time. We’re honoring today’s service members, it’s about education and, you know, bringing history back to life for future generations.”
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Deep-sea explorers seek out sunken World War II ships
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Deep-sea explorers find sunken warship from key WWII battle (2019, October 18)
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Japanese heavy cruiser Mikuma burns after being battered by SBD "Dauntless" dive bombers during the Battle of Midway, June 6th, 1942. She and her sister Mogami had collided during the previous night, and were attempting to limp towards Wake Island when bombers from the U.S. carriers Enterprise and Hornet found them. Both cruisers were struck by multiple bombs, but the fires aboard Mikuma caused her torpedo tubes to ignite. The resulting explosion and fire crippled the ship, sealing her fate entirely. She was the last Japanese ship sunk during the Battle of Midway.
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Battle of Surigao Strait: Veterans recall horrors of World War II
#PHnews: Battle of Surigao Strait: Veterans recall horrors of World War II
REVISITING THE PAST. Retired Royal Admiral Guy Richmond Griffiths (left), 97, and David Henry Mattiskie, 96, (center) join the three-day commemoration of the 75th anniversary of the historic Battle of Surigao Strait, from October 23 to 25, 2019 in Surigao City. A floral offering at sea was placed near the area where the battle took place. (Photo courtesy of DOT-13 Information Office)
SURIGAO CITY -- Retired Royal Admiral Guy Richmond Griffiths and David Henry Mattiskie, both part of the Australian Navy when the World War II broke out, arrived in town to join the three-day commemoration of the 75th anniversary of the historic Battle of Surigao Strait from October 23 to 25, in this city.
The Australians were allied with the United States and the Philippines that fought the Imperial Japanese forces.
Griffiths, now 97 years old and Mattiskie, 96, flew back to the Philippines to join the event.
“War is a dreadful part of civilization,” Griffiths told PNA in an interview as he expressed gratitude to those who sacrificed their lives for the peace that nations and their citizens are enjoying nowadays.
“You come from peace and suddenly, somebody wants to create war,” Griffiths recalled the time when Japan declared war against the US and bombed Pearl Harbor and parts of the Philippines, particularly Davao.
He said war remains a horrible experience for humans as millions die and countries enormously devastated.
Griffiths said that at his age, he could not still understand what anyone would get from the death of millions of people "and the colossal devastations of countries and communities."
“My question is: what’s been achieved from these aggressions? Countries have to rebuild. Fathers, sons, daughters, and families were killed. It’s dreadful,” Griffiths asked.
He said the key to maintaining peace in the world today is mutual understanding and good relationships among nations.
“We need to talk to each other and maintain good relationships and understanding between people, rather than aggressive,” Griffiths said.
Early morning battle
Griffiths can still recall where he was positioned during the historic Battle of Surigao Strait that started the early morning of October 25, 1944.
He was on board the HMAS Shropshire, an Australian gun cruiser serving as Assistant Control Officer.
“On the morning of the 25th of October, we started firing just before 4 o'clock or at 3:56 in the morning,” Griffiths told PNA in an interview.
“When we were firing, I was the Assistant Control Officer. The firing was from down below but I could see all the firing that was going on,” he added.
Since it was still dark, Griffiths said all he could see from the distance are fires in Japanese ships that were badly-hit by torpedoes.
“One exploded. I could only see the explosions, the fire,” he said.
Mattiskie said he was at the bridge when the firing started.
“We were firing at 4 in the morning. I was on board the HMAS Shropshire. I was at the bridge at that time listening to what was happening. I knew that the Americans were also firing their torpedoes towards the enemy ships,” he said.
Griffiths said the firing stopped at past 4 a.m. “and that was the end of the battle.”
Six Japanese warships, under the command of Vice-Admiral Shoji Nishimura, were destroyed during the Battle of Surigao Strait: Fuso, Yamagumo, Asagumo, Yamashiro, Michishio, and Mogami.
Nishimura was among the more than 4,000 Japanese sailors who perished during the battle.
The historical account said 39 American sailors were also killed during the Battle of Surigao Strait. (PNA)
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References:
* Philippine News Agency. "Battle of Surigao Strait: Veterans recall horrors of World War II." Philippine News Agency. https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1084318 (accessed October 27, 2019 at 10:36PM UTC+14).
* Philippine News Agency. "Battle of Surigao Strait: Veterans recall horrors of World War II." Archive Today. https://archive.ph/?run=1&url=https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1084318 (archived).
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Why the Japanese attack failed was even easier to answer. The Japanese underestimated American power and resilience, as they had all through the war, and overestimated their own resolve. Bushido code was not enough against American technology and determination. Japanese gunnery and torpedo efficiency was far below the glorious standards of 1942. Even Japanese seamanship, as evidenced by the collision of Nachi and Mogami, was faulty. Nishimura and Shima did not coordinate their forces—they did not even seem to know where their own ships were. Probably the single most intelligent Japanese decision in the entire battle was Shima’s—to withdraw.In the distance, they could see the jagged flashes of lightning, an incoming squall in the dark. Just before the rain arrived, so did St. Elmo’s Fire, and the gun barrels and radio antennas on the PT boats crackled with blue sparks and streamers of static electricity.Then there was another lightning flash, and suddenly Lieutenant (j.g.) Terry Chambers, the executive officer of PT-491 saw them—a column of seven Japanese warships advancing in the dark, headed for Surigao Strait and the waiting U.S. Seventh Fleet. It was the extremely early morning of October 25, 1944, and two battleships and a heavy cruiser of the Imperial Japanese Navy were steaming toward what would become one of the most one-sided battles in naval history, and the last duel between battleships of the line.
from Yahoo News - Latest News & Headlines https://yhoo.it/2UweyN0
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Japanese cruiser Suzya, Mogami class, starboard view, 1938. Suzya was sunk by TBM Avenger aircraft at the Battle of Leyte Gulf (Battle off Samar) on October 25, 1944. Halftone copy from the files of the Department of Naval Intelligence, June 1943. [3276 x 2072] #HistoryPorn http://bit.ly/2QVKrNk
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The cruisers came down from Truk—Takao, Maya, Atago, Suzuya, Mogami, Chikuma, Chokai—the old pros, the big and veteran sluggers of Admiral Kondo’s 2nd Fleet. With them came light cruiser Noshiro, four destroyers and a sizable fleet train. They came into Rabaul on November 5 to refuel. They considered themselves safe. There were 150 planes on Rabaul’s fields. American bases were too far off. There were no American carriers at sea.
But Princeton and Saratoga had already raced up to Bougainville under cover of darkness. At nine in the morning of November 5 they began to fly off their planes—97 fighters and bombers-and three hours later a torrent of American aircraft thundered up St. George Channel, roared straight through the flak of the flatfooted enemy ships without breaking formation, and then broke off into small groups to begin their work. The 70 Japanese fighters already airborne to oppose them could not knock down more than 10 of them, and the damage to Kondo’s cruisers was enormous.
Not one ship was sunk, but few were left in fighting trim. Takao was torn apart at the waterline, Mogami was sent staggering back to Japan for repairs, Atago took three near-misses and a bomb fell down one of Maya’s stacks and exploded in her engine room. Meanwhile the lights Agano and Noshiro were also hit and destroyer Fujinami was holed by a dud torpedo and Wakatsuki ripped open by near-misses.
Then, as the Navy planes flew back to their mother ships, 24 Army Liberators and 67 Lightnings came winging over from New Guinea and the Woodlarks to pound the city itself and tear up the docks.
Yet, with the cruiser force out of action, and the naval phase of the counterattack now almost impossible, a portion of Hyakutate’s soldiers was still going to be sent down The Slot on the first run of the Tokyo Express in nearly a year.
Why?
Because the Rabaul planes sent out to hunt Princeton and Saratoga and their escorting warships thought they had found their quarry between Cape Torokina and the Treasuries. What they had actually found was one damaged LCT under the care of an LCI-gunboat and a PT-boat. The Japanese planes struck. The three little American ships not only beat them off but also shot a few of them down.
Next day the world heard this from Radio Tokyo: “One large carrier blown up and sunk, one medium carrier set ablaze and later sunk, and two heavy cruisers and one cruiser and destroyer sunk.”
It was the biggest lie of the Pacific War, the ultimate result of the Japanese custom of making reports wearing rose-colored glasses. Because of it the Tokyo Express sped down to Bougainville the night of November 6.
Four destroyers took 475 soldiers down to Koromokina Swamp, the place which would give its name to the brief, bitter battle in which they died.
Strong Men Armed, by Robert Leckie
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97 carrier aircraft from USS Saratoga (CV-3) and USS Princeton (CVL-23) carry out a destructive strike on a Japanese task force at Simpson Harbor, Rabaul, damaging the heavy cruisers Atago, Maya, Mogami, and Takao, the light cruisers Agano and Noshiro, and a destroyer for the loss of 10 aircraft. The U. S. Army Air Forces' Fifth Air Force follows up with a strike by 27 B-24 Liberators escorted by 67 P-38 Lighntings on Rabaul town and its wharves. A counterstrike by 18 Japanese Nakajima B5 N (Allied reporting name "Kate") torpedo bombers against the U. S. aircraft carriers mistakenly attacks a group of PT boats and a tank landing craft. The Japanese never risk heavy ships in the Solomon Islands again.
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It is difficult to reconstruct exactly which Japanese ship was responsible for the initial torpedo hits against “Hec” Waller’s Perth, as she had been targeted by no less than three other torpedo attacks—more or less at the same time—after she turned back to the northwest and began heading for Sunda Strait again. All these attacks were from IJN units to the west, between Perth and the strait’s northern entrance, and all fired their torpedoes on angles that sent their “fish” eastward.
Only Mogami’s Long Lance torpedoes were traveling to the south-southwest; and while these may or may not have impacted the Australian cruiser, they certainly found their mark among Imamura’s anchored convoy. At approximately midnight four Japanese transports, along with the minesweeper w-2, were torpedoed in the anchorage; all were sunk. Most ironically this included the command ship Shinshu Maru, which was carrying Lieutenant General Imamura and members of his Sixteenth Army staff among others.
In the Highest Degree Tragic: The Sacrifice of the U.S. Asiatic Fleet in the East Indies during World War II, by Donald M. Kehn
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