Tennessee was one of the US Navy's most balanced battleship designs for its period. Her turbo-electric propulsion, four triple 14-inch turrets, and 8,000-nautical-mile endurance are set against a modest 21-knot speed. The principal reservation is the 14-inch battery. In the counterfactual offered here, a 15-inch Tennessee could have ranked among the best battleships and might have encouraged the US and Royal navies to standardize on that calibre instead of moving to 16-inch weapons. At Pearl Harbor, bombs, fire, and wrecked neighboring ships trapped rather than destroyed her. After repair, ships of this type spent much of the war delivering heavy naval gunfire for amphibious forces instead of seeking a decisive fleet battle.
Chapter · 1:26:42-1:35:09
USS Tennessee as a balanced standard battleship
USS Tennessee combines turbo-electric drive, twelve 14-inch guns, long range, and a robust hull that survived Pearl Harbor and became an amphibious fire-support platform.