Two boats you don’t see sailing together too often: Vikramditya (India) and Cavour (Italy) in the NAS for MALABAR 24 this week.
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Ship Photo of the Day
- Thread starter Randy Daytona
- Start date
Two boats you don’t see sailing together too often: Vikramditya (India) and Cavour (Italy) in the NAS for MALABAR 24 this week.
I can feel my intestines liquifying already.
Particularly funny to see the Romeo operating off a Soviet(-born) carrier. Much better looking than the Helix…
I was never clear how they were dealing with power, but they seem to make it work. The INN -60s still use the same 400hz power that we do.
January ‘89 - Spruance aground off Andros Island while Grasp (ARS-51) tries to heave her free with a towline.
I can’t quite make out the CO on the bridge reading the AW…”Another Skipper Relieved” section.
The aide they taught us to remember the day shape for “vessel aground” is: “Captain, XO, and Nav’s heads.”
A Baltimore class heavy cruiser, USS Saint Paul CA-73 fired possibly the last major salvo of WW2 on August 9th, 1945 at the iron works in Kamaishi. She fought on the gun line in Korea and Vietnam, being one of the last all gun cruisers until her decommissioning on April 30th, 1971.
Of note, while on the gunline in Vietnam, she used the Long Range Bombardment Ammunition (LRBA) projectiles developed in the "Gunfighter" program at Indian Head Naval Ordnance Station. These were Arrow Shells with a body diameter of 4.125" (10.4 cm) and a fin diameter of 5.0" (12.7 cm) which were sized to be fired from her 8" (20.3 cm) guns by using a sabot and obturator system. Tests with these in 1968 showed maximum ranges of 72,000 yards (66,000 m). USS St. Paul (CA-73) in 1970 conducted a two day bombardment mission against Viet Cong positions at ranges up to 70,000 yards (64,000 m). For reference, the standard 330 lb 8" shell of the heavy cruisers was good to 30,500 yards and the Iowa class battleships 16", 2,700 shells were good to 42,000 yards.
Length: 673 ft, 5in, Beam: 70 ft, 10 in Displacement: 17,000 tons at full load
Powerplant: 4 Babcock and Wilcox boilers generated 120,000 SHP for 4 screws and 33 knots
Main Armament: 9 (3x3) 8"/55 caliber,
Secondaries: 12 (6x2) 5"/38, 48 (12x4) 40mm Bofors, 24 single 20mm Oerlikons.
USS Saint Paul, She is configured with a helo deck which dates this image to her Vietnam War service.
Saint Paul fires her 8-inch 55-caliber (203-mm) guns at Chinese troops threatening the evacuation of United Nations forces from Hungnam, North Korea, in December 1950.
The destroyer USS Buck (DD-761), battleship USS Wisconsin (BB-64), and Saint Paul steam in close formation during operations off the Korean coast in 1952.
Saint Paul shelling Vietnam in 1969.
Of note, while on the gunline in Vietnam, she used the Long Range Bombardment Ammunition (LRBA) projectiles developed in the "Gunfighter" program at Indian Head Naval Ordnance Station. These were Arrow Shells with a body diameter of 4.125" (10.4 cm) and a fin diameter of 5.0" (12.7 cm) which were sized to be fired from her 8" (20.3 cm) guns by using a sabot and obturator system. Tests with these in 1968 showed maximum ranges of 72,000 yards (66,000 m). USS St. Paul (CA-73) in 1970 conducted a two day bombardment mission against Viet Cong positions at ranges up to 70,000 yards (64,000 m). For reference, the standard 330 lb 8" shell of the heavy cruisers was good to 30,500 yards and the Iowa class battleships 16", 2,700 shells were good to 42,000 yards.
Length: 673 ft, 5in, Beam: 70 ft, 10 in Displacement: 17,000 tons at full load
Powerplant: 4 Babcock and Wilcox boilers generated 120,000 SHP for 4 screws and 33 knots
Main Armament: 9 (3x3) 8"/55 caliber,
Secondaries: 12 (6x2) 5"/38, 48 (12x4) 40mm Bofors, 24 single 20mm Oerlikons.
USS Saint Paul, She is configured with a helo deck which dates this image to her Vietnam War service.
Saint Paul fires her 8-inch 55-caliber (203-mm) guns at Chinese troops threatening the evacuation of United Nations forces from Hungnam, North Korea, in December 1950.
The destroyer USS Buck (DD-761), battleship USS Wisconsin (BB-64), and Saint Paul steam in close formation during operations off the Korean coast in 1952.
Saint Paul shelling Vietnam in 1969.
One of the ships that had the greatest effects on WW2 and the legal aftermath was RMS Laconia, an armed Cunard ocean liner. While on a mission carrying 2,732 crew, soldiers and prisoners of war, the liner was torpedoed and sunk by U-156 on 12 September 1942 off the West African coast. The u-boat, seeing that it was a catastrophe, engaged in rescue operations and broadcast in English in the clear for assistance. Several other u-boats arrived and assisted. Flying Red Cross banners with survivors on the decks and towing lifeboats, the submarines were spotted by a US Army Air Corps B-24, who, after discussing with headquarters, disregarded the survivors and Red Cross flags, and began multiple attack runs. The next day, the same B-24 attacked U-506 which was carrying 191 survivors.
This incident caused the German navy to disregard all survivors (the Laconia Order from Admiral Doenitz) and begin unrestricted warfare. When the German use of submarines was brought up at Nuremberg after the war, this incident became more widely known.
Griz, with your background in history, hope you can add some more to this story.
en.wikipedia.org
RMS Laconia
Laconia's armament, such as this BL 6-inch Mk VII gun, made her a legitimate target
Shuttle service for shipwrecked persons from the Laconia between U156 (foreground) and U507 (background)
This incident caused the German navy to disregard all survivors (the Laconia Order from Admiral Doenitz) and begin unrestricted warfare. When the German use of submarines was brought up at Nuremberg after the war, this incident became more widely known.
Griz, with your background in history, hope you can add some more to this story.
Laconia incident - Wikipedia
RMS Laconia
Laconia's armament, such as this BL 6-inch Mk VII gun, made her a legitimate target
Shuttle service for shipwrecked persons from the Laconia between U156 (foreground) and U507 (background)
You nailed it pretty well. Interesting side notes…During the Nuremberg Trials Nimitz wrote a letter in defense of Donitz and his execution of unrestricted submarine warfare noting the U.S. did the same. Also, the AAC officer who ordered the attack later made it to brigadier general and was the top planner for the use of tactical nukes!One of the ships that had the greatest effects on WW2 and the legal aftermath was RMS Laconia, an armed Cunard ocean liner. While on a mission carrying 2,732 crew, soldiers and prisoners of war, the liner was torpedoed and sunk by U-156 on 12 September 1942 off the West African coast. The u-boat, seeing that it was a catastrophe, engaged in rescue operations and broadcast in English in the clear for assistance. Several other u-boats arrived and assisted. Flying Red Cross banners with survivors on the decks and towing lifeboats, the submarines were spotted by a US Army Air Corps B-24, who, after discussing with headquarters, disregarded the survivors and Red Cross flags, and began multiple attack runs. The next day, the same B-24 attacked U-506 which was carrying 191 survivors.
This incident caused the German navy to disregard all survivors (the Laconia Order from Admiral Doenitz) and begin unrestricted warfare. When the German use of submarines was brought up at Nuremberg after the war, this incident became more widely known.
Griz, with your background in history, hope you can add some more to this story.
Laconia incident - Wikipedia
View attachment 41865
RMS Laconia
View attachment 41867
Laconia's armament, such as this BL 6-inch Mk VII gun, made her a legitimate target
View attachment 41866
Shuttle service for shipwrecked persons from the Laconia between U156 (foreground) and U507 (background)
History is less forgiving of the B-24 crew and the operations officer who ordered the attack saying both were war crimes.
GroundPounder
Well-Known Member
Will be reading up on this event, never heard of it. On what has been presented here, kind of hard to agree with the attack taking place.
True, but I think people forget just how vicious WWII was - worse than WWI in terms of “hating the enemy.” But I fear this is what the next major war will be like and the nail biting “law of warfare” types will be shoved into the back seat.