Japanese attrition depended on forces using the breadth of the ocean to avoid detection, but surface ships lacked the hills and vegetation available to guerrillas ashore. Submarines could exploit depth and underwater terrain, yet a deep valley might restrict their ability to hear distant ships or introduce confusing acoustics. Submarines were therefore not the automatic first and only attrition weapon. American cruisers combined aircraft reconnaissance with long-range gunfire spotting to find and engage the enemy before a close fight. That method reflected an American preference for expending materiel rather than people, making the scout aircraft part of both the search plan and the cost-exchange strategy.
Notable Point · 1:39:31-1:42:01
Why submarines alone could not replace cruiser scouts
The sea offered few hiding places to surface raiders, while underwater terrain could also hinder submarines, leaving aircraft reconnaissance and long-range spotting central to American attrition planning.