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To: xkaydet65

I agree, but the Sumner and Gearing were much more heavily armed with dual 5” turrets, whereas the Fletcher had only single turrets.

I think, as an amateur historian, that the single most important advantage we had was probably the radar directors in the main batteries, without which air power and superior numbers of adversary surface forces may have likely changed the outcome. This proved to be a heavy, if not decisive advantage in several surface engagements in the Second World War.

Superior US military technology. Nothing like it.


38 posted on 04/24/2013 9:53:34 AM PDT by Wildbill22 (They have us surrounded again, the poor bastards- Gen Creighton Williams Abrams)
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To: Wildbill22
I think, as an amateur historian, that the single most important advantage we had was probably the radar directors in the main batteries...

That's also the picture I get. Particularly, the radar gun direction trumped the Japanese long-lance torpedo beyond some point. There was one battle around the Solomons in which a couple of Japanese destroyers all but wiped out a U.S. fleet including cruisers with those torpedoes. After the Americans perfected the radar gun control, that didn't seem to happen any more.

42 posted on 04/24/2013 10:31:40 AM PDT by varmintman
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To: Wildbill22

Early fire control radar was actually inferior to Japanese optics, especially at night in the Solomons. As for the Sumners, the fwd dual turrets made theships front heavy and made them poor sea boats. When most were modernized under FRAM conversion theB turret was removed and replaced with an ASW like hedgehog and weapon Alfa.


43 posted on 04/24/2013 11:46:56 AM PDT by xkaydet65
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