Ship Photo of the Day

[Randy Daytona]

I didn't realize there was debate about it... you learn something new every day. When I read your original post, I was thinking in my head, "No, HMS Dorsetshire torpedoed her in the end..."

For the German side of the story (the Bismarck or any other war history), the problem I find with looking up the German side of WWI and WWII history is like 90% of the google hits are neo-Nazi websites and similarly kooky stuff. It's hard to sift through that stuff to find anything good. There is good material out there but it's more work to find it than stuff on any of the other major powers.

HMS Dorsetshire (Pennant #40), one of the 14 County Class heavy cruiser. Famous for firing the last torpedoes at the Bismarck (as well as over 250 rounds from her main guns), she was later sunk by Japanese dive bombers whose bombs hit the ships magazine. This attack by 53 D3A Val dive bombers hit the Dorsetshire 10 times with 250 lb and 550 lb bombs. Her sister ship Cornwall was hit by 8 bombs and sunk 10 minutes later in the same attack.

Length: 633 ft, Beam: 66 ft, Displacement: 13,640 tons
4 turbines produced 80,000 HP and gave 31.5 knots
Armament: 8 (4x2) 8"/50 calibre Mk VIII rifles throwing 256 lb shells out to 17 NM, 8 (4x2) 4"dual purpose guns, 24 2pounder AA guns
8 x 21" torpedo tubes
Commissioned: 30 September 1930, Sunk: 5 April 1942

Dorsetshire and Cornwall under heavy air attack by Japanese carrier dive bombers on 5 April 1942. Photographed from a Japanese aircraft.
Photo taken from a Japanese aircraft - Imperial Japanese Navy; this photo was captured by U.S. Forces on Attu Island, Alaska, in 1943 and became U.S. Navy photo

 

[danpass]

From a Fleet Week trip (Ft Lauderdale)

USS Wasp

USS James E Williams

 

[Gatordev]

This makes me wonder what DDG-95's 3-letter identifier is.

Also, wow, she looks rough.

 

[BigRed389]

This makes me wonder what DDG-95's 3-letter identifier is.

Also, wow, she looks rough.

It’s not JEW, unsurprisingly.

Yeah looks pretty rough for a -95. I do wonder if that’s an East vs West coast thing...East Coast ships always seem to look pretty rough.

 

[HAL Pilot]

Also, wow, she looks rough.

I bet the side against the pier looks freshly painted...

 

[nittany03]

Wonder if they pulled a Nimitz, and just painted up the side facing the pier really nice.

 

[Hozer]

HMS Queen Elizabeth pierside Charlie and HMS Monmouth, NS Mayport this morning. Couple of Brits in the surf lineup too...

 

[Randy Daytona]

Sept 9, 1942, the Japanese submarine 1-25 bombed the Oregon coastline with a floatplane attack (and later Fort Stevens with its main gun). An B-1 class, the submarine also attacked the tanker SS Connecticut which grounded itself in the Columbia River. I-25 also traveled throughout the Pacific, using its floatplane to recon Sydney, Melbourne, Wellington and Auckland. I-25 attacked and damaged several more tankers along the US West coast and also sunk the Soviet submarine L-16 before she was sunk by the USS Elliot in 1943.

Length: 356 ft, Beam: 30 ft, Displacement: 2,344 tonnes on the surface, 3,315 tonnes submerged
2 diesels gave 12,000 HP on the surface for 23.5 knots, 2,000 HP electrics gave 8 knots submerged
Armament: 6 x 21" torpedo tubes, 1 x 140mm main gun, 1 floatplane

Commissioned: 1941, Sunk: 3 September 1943

Sister ship I-26

Nobuo Fujita standing by his Yokosuka E14Y "Glen" seaplane.

 

[Flash]

HMS Queen Elizabeth pierside Charlie and HMS Monmouth, NS Mayport this morning. Couple of Brits in the surf lineup too...
View attachment 19765

Some Royal Navy sailors had a little bit too good a time in Jax.

 

[hlg6016]

Some royal Navy sailors had a little bit too good a time in Jax.

I didn't read about any deaths and nothing seems to have burned down.
Sounds like just another successful liberty period!

 

[nittany03]

Some royal Navy sailors had a little bit too good a time in Jax.

Yawn. Stupid sailor tricks are an international thing, it seems. Only six out of the whole crew, and only for garden-variety drunken shenanigans? Could be worse; you’re never going to get all the idiots beforehand.

 

[jmcquate]

HMS Queen Elizabeth pierside Charlie and HMS Monmouth, NS Mayport this morning. Couple of Brits in the surf lineup too...
View attachment 19765

Saw her leaving Norfolk from my hotel Sunday

 

[jmcquate]

Over produced, but at least the RN is getting back in the game.

 

[Randy Daytona]

USS Alabama (BB-60), one of the four South Dakota class battleships. Known as The Mighty A, she was temporarily assigned to the British Home fleet in 1943 before transferring to the Pacific for the remainder of WW2. She is now berthed as a museum ship in Mobile, right down I-10 from Pensacola. For all of you in flight school, it is well worth the trip to go see her, as well as the submarine USS Drum, numerous tanks and airplanes at Battleship Memorial Park.

A few interesting tidbits that research revealed:
1) Torpedo defense was predicated upon a 700 lb warhead - the biggest Long Lance was over 1,000 lbs.
2) American battleships used a higher proportion of stronger, more expensive treated steel throughout the body of the ship that other nations simply could not afford
3) The weight of the main armament 16" shells continued to increase to up to 2,700 lbs - significantly more than Japanese or British 16" shells (2,200 lbs) or anyone's 15" shells (roughly 1,800 lbs), yet the United States went significantly smaller on secondary armament. Most navies used 6" secondaries firing 100-110 lb shells but the US chose a much faster firing, truly dual purpose 5"/38 calibre gun shooting 55 lb shells giving the US shells a vastly improved anti-aircraft defense. Only the Americans and the British had a proximity fuse, giving yet another quantum advancement in anti-aircraft defense. (Great wikipedia article on the secrecy involved with the fuse. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proximity_fuze The proximity fuze was one of the most important technological innovations of World War II. It was so important that it was a secret guarded to a similar level as the atom bomb project or D-Day invasion )

Length: 680 ft, Beam: 108 ft, Displacement: 45,200 tons at full load (the same width but 200 feet shorter than the Iowa class)
Engines: 130,000 HP gave 27.5 knots
Main armament: 9 (3x3) 16"/45 calibre Mark 6 rifles throwing 2,700 lb shells out to 23 miles,
Secondary armaments: 20 (10x2) 5"/38 calibre Mark 12 dual purpose guns firing 55 lb shells
48 (12x4) Bofors 40mm, 77 20mm Oerkilons.
Armor: Belt: 12", Turrets: 18", Decks: 1.5", 6", 1"
Commissioned: 16 Aug 1942, Decommissioned: 9 Jan 1947, Museum ship since 9 Jan 1965

HMS Malaya with South Dakota (BB-57) and Alabama (BB-60) following astern in May, 1943. The three ships are astern of the HMS Anson and are participating in British Home Fleet exercises.

Alabama (BB-60) taken 20 August 1943 during post refit trials off Norfolk.

The United States battleships Indiana (BB-58), Massachusetts (BB-59) and Alabama (BB-60) form a line ahead during target practice as seen from the South Dakota (BB-57), 1945.

But two historic veterans of WW II, theLexington (CV-16) & Alabama (BB-60) got together in the Gulf of Mexico over the weekend. The Lexington, still in service, was enroute to New Orleans for a visit, the Alabama was being towed to Mobile where she will be enshrined.

The rays of sunset shine off the Alabama (BB-60) in this 28 January 2004 photo.

 

[Pags]

USS Alabama (BB-60), one of the four South Dakota class battleships. Known as The Mighty A, she was temporarily assigned to the British Home fleet in 1943 before transferring to the Pacific for the remainder of WW2. She is now berthed as a museum ship in Mobile, right down I-10 from Pensacola. For all of you in flight school, it is well worth the trip to go see her, as well as the submarine USS Drum, numerous tanks and airplanes at Battleship Memorial Park.

A few interesting tidbits that research revealed:
1) Torpedo defense was predicated upon a 700 lb warhead - the biggest Long Lance was over 1,000 lbs.
2) American battleships used a higher proportion of stronger, more expensive treated steel throughout the body of the ship that other nations simply could not afford
3) The weight of the main armament 16" shells continued to increase to up to 2,700 lbs - significantly more than Japanese or British 16" shells (2,200 lbs) or anyone's 15" shells (roughly 1,800 lbs), yet the United States went significantly smaller on secondary armament. Most navies used 6" secondaries firing 100-110 lb shells but the US chose a much faster firing, truly dual purpose 5"/38 calibre gun shooting 55 lb shells giving the US shells a vastly improved anti-aircraft defense. Only the Americans and the British had a proximity fuse, giving yet another quantum advancement in anti-aircraft defense. (Great wikipedia article on the secrecy involved with the fuse. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Proximity_fuze The proximity fuze was one of the most important technological innovations of World War II. It was so important that it was a secret guarded to a similar level as the atom bomb project or D-Day invasion )

Length: 680 ft, Beam: 108 ft, Displacement: 45,200 tons at full load (the same width but 200 feet shorter than the Iowa class)
Engines: 130,000 HP gave 27.5 knots
Main armament: 9 (3x3) 16"/45 calibre Mark 6 rifles throwing 2,700 lb shells out to 23 miles,
Secondary armaments: 20 (10x2) 5"/38 calibre Mark 12 dual purpose guns firing 55 lb shells
48 (12x4) Bofors 40mm, 77 20mm Oerkilons.
Armor: Belt: 12", Turrets: 18", Decks: 1.5", 6", 1"
Commissioned: 16 Aug 1942, Decommissioned: 9 Jan 1947, Museum ship since 9 Jan 1965

HMS Malaya with South Dakota (BB-57) and Alabama (BB-60) following astern in May, 1943. The three ships are astern of the HMS Anson and are participating in British Home Fleet exercises.

Alabama (BB-60) taken 20 August 1943 during post refit trials off Norfolk.

The United States battleships Indiana (BB-58), Massachusetts (BB-59) and Alabama (BB-60) form a line ahead during target practice as seen from the South Dakota (BB-57), 1945.

But two historic veterans of WW II, theLexington (CV-16) & Alabama (BB-60) got together in the Gulf of Mexico over the weekend. The Lexington, still in service, was enroute to New Orleans for a visit, the Alabama was being towed to Mobile where she will be enshrined.

The rays of sunset shine off the Alabama (BB-60) in this 28 January 2004 photo.

How can you mention Alabama and not talk about her being the filming location of "Under Siege?"