Bruships 146: Naval History Questions, Boxes Getting Packed & Lego Getting Built

HMS Africa, the 64-gun ship whose independent action at Trafalgar made her appear to be a much larger threat.

Yes. From about 1855 onward, Bessemer steel increasingly replaced iron in later nineteenth-century shipbuilding.

No. They passed trials built around obsolete armor standards, so the tests did not prove they could defeat contemporary protection.

Not by a known formal order; its commander appears to have been chosen in part because he was temperamentally inclined to remain cautious.

It could batter the cog from well beyond any useful response, but would not necessarily destroy it with a single instantaneous hit.

Probably a broadly similar force, while the United States would have entered the conflict less organized and less prepared than it was in 1812.

It might have tried, but in 1940 Germany lacked the later occupation force and would face hostile Italian forces, a vulnerable North African position, and competing preparations in the east.

For twin 14-inch guns, roughly a 35,000-ton King George V-sized hull could theoretically support the arrangement, with growth needed for better performance.

Because invention was only the first step; Japan lacked the industrial infrastructure to manufacture and deploy the technology at Allied scale.

Yes. A modest figurehead placed away from the sensor arrays should have little practical effect on radar performance.

Probably, but the same disaster could obstruct the base and invite another strike; safety changes to Roma would also delay the urgently needed replacement.

Start with the Haynes Mosquito workshop manual, then use Martin Bowman's books and the Brooklands compilation for broader coverage.

The Dutch, while stressing that none of the period's submarines were actually comfortable.

Preferably nuclear power; otherwise a large gas-turbine plant broadly comparable to that of the Queen Elizabeth-class carriers.

Only with enough purpose-built naval turrets, barrels, and follow-on equipment for a class; spare 15-inch mountings were what made Vanguard the quick practical design.

Shell manufacture and filling were handled by a wide specialist network rather than simply by the gun foundries, including the Royal Arsenal, National Filling Factories, and later Royal Ordnance Factories.

The transition centers on the 1949 Daring class, but it was gradual: later ships and patrol craft could retain hammocks, and sailors sometimes chose them even when bunks were available.

A single casting is preferred, followed by substantial milling and finishing because the propeller will not emerge from the mold precise enough for service.

Not all three, but an air group of about 72 aircraft could approach the combined strike potential of Glorious and Illustrious.

The number and capacity of available shipyards, many of which were already operating at full output.

The historical programs show the answer: the United States could build them, but repeated cancellations and congressional constraints made continuity the central problem.

Yes, but the trigger would be the German building program itself, allowing Britain to begin its response before the ships entered service.

Specialist books give figures, but the numbers conflict and may represent different sources or stages of the proposed design.

There was no universal figure: about 37 feet was a practical US limit for the Panama Canal, while British limits depended on different canals and dockyard access.

No. Channel patrol would normally be a destroyer or flotilla mission within the Home Fleet, not a cruiser-squadron task.

The campaign would become overwhelmingly favorable to Britain through vastly greater air, radar, command, and lift capacity, although integrating 1982 aircraft and Chinooks would still require practical adaptation.

It would also affect Edinburgh, but the largest consequence would come only if later Royal Navy cruisers copied the fifteen-gun layout.

Probably another development of the twelve-gun 16-inch concept first, with an 18-inch class possible later if foreign construction and Congress justified the extra development.

The on-air recollection assigns the star-shell illumination to the 4-inch secondary guns rather than the 6-inch main battery.

Possibly, but treaty limits and development capacity made an existing 8-inch gun more practical than creating a new intermediate weapon.

A few frigates and useful anti-privateer work, plus morale support, but not enough naval power to transform the war.

They could deliver powerful long-range support from San Carlos, with fewer but vastly more destructive rounds and a major morale effect against fixed defenses.

It could have preserved larger yards able to compete for major commercial work and supported a much larger carrier-centered Royal Navy.

British intervention would likely deter further entrants; Italy is the main uncertain exception because hostility to Austria conflicted with the danger of fighting Britain.

Fit the Blackburn Skua with a substantially more powerful engine, improving its fighter performance while retaining its useful dive-bomber role.

They would influence treaty baselines and demand a much larger RAN; wartime employment would likely emphasize Mediterranean, fleet, and carrier-escort duties over commerce raiding.

It could have created useful coastal-convoy escorts, but Britain would first have had to turn its coordinating coastguard into a seagoing service more like the US Coast Guard.

Probably not. The cruisers would inherit a capital-ship rate of fire and threat profile without the protection needed to survive capital-ship attention.

Probably not. Britain deliberately limited the war to avoid unnecessary destruction and political disruption within NATO.

In Britain, because creating the necessary Australasian industrial base would make each ship several times more expensive.

Very broad and shallow, probably with many twin 15-inch mounts and possibly wing turrets to keep the battery from becoming too top-heavy.

Her complete air group, especially Gannet early warning and Phantom fighters, would have made it much harder for Argentine aircraft to reach the British fleet.

They were very good general-purpose fleet destroyers, comparable in broad purpose to many successful British wartime designs.

Without treaty pressure, Britain would be more likely to continue with larger Belfast-type Town-class cruisers that the Admiralty already liked.

The Kiel Canal, at roughly 9.5 meters or 31 feet of maximum draft among the major canals discussed.

The battery is not enough information; speed, draft, machinery, fuel, protection, and mission equipment also determine the ship's size.

Chatfield's claim to credit for naval aviation looks different when archival evidence restores Reginald Henderson's omitted contribution.

No. Flooded powder is a write-off because drying does not make its behavior reliable or safe in the gun.

The clearest possible effect is a different surface-fleet and cruiser policy; a specific shipbuilding program cannot be inferred from the answer.

Not necessarily; the answer depends on displacement, stability, cost, completion time, and which risks the designers were willing to accept.

Treaty tonnage made the lighter, denser conventional system more attractive, despite the damage tolerance offered by turbo-electric drive.

Around 1932, at an approximate sustained rate of eight cruisers per year.

The discrepancy remains unresolved; the higher figure probably follows published histories, but the stream does not identify evidence that reconciles it with the wreck.

They would probably be faster, need more specialist crew, and adopt CATOBAR operation with F-35Cs rather than remain STOVL carriers.

There is no fixed duration without assumptions about effort, personnel, technical decisions, testing, and luck.

American losses would probably rise, but the number and wider battle outcome depend on deployment, training, formation, and attacker response.

Add roughly 10-15 percent to the machinery weight, which could translate into several hundred to a few thousand tons depending on the ship.

That framing is misleading: navies move through cycles, and their capability often depends more on sustained government attention than on a permanent institutional ranking.

He explicitly names Warspite, Iron Duke, Tiger, and Spitfire, but does not complete the fifth cruiser choice on air.

The 3-inch shell, according to the on-air memory check.

Probably. Other Oscar II boats were retained or modernised, and Russian practice favors extending the service of usable hulls.

A fighter if jets were delayed, or more plausibly a twin-engine carrier radar aircraft once jets took over the fighter role.

Funnels and many deck penetrations could disappear, layouts could change radically, and closed-loop submarines would become possible, but battleship-submarine hybrids would still carry severe compromises.

It is dangerous if it reaches the target, but long underwater navigation and seabed hazards threaten it, while interception requires rare anti-torpedo weapons and favorable geometry.

British traditions center on rum, tea, and cocoa; American and Australian habits on coffee, soft drinks, and ice cream; French and Italian practice on wine; Dutch practice on coffee and beer.

Potentially useful for on-call fire support, but not useful enough to justify rebuilding doctrine and support systems around an obsolete type.

Probably not quickly: Germany initially lacked enough submarines, and the early attack could have prompted Fisher and Jellicoe to introduce convoys sooner.

It would probably select another engine or aircraft rather than sustain the maintenance burden, especially when a reliable alternative was available.

No. Safe speed is limited by underwater navigation and topography, while high speed also increases noise and reduces the time available to avoid hazards.

The answer depends on the entire carrier group, not the hull alone; integrated aircraft, escorts, sensors, and defenses are the real system an attacker must defeat.

The warship ordering a lighthouse to change course is naval folklore whose many variants collapse under basic navigation and source checks.

Almost not at all; they would remain air-defense pickets, but might run out of missiles sooner if the magazine served both roles.

Germany would recover an experienced, inventive commander and highly trained crews, with possible effects on cruiser operations and interwar naval leadership.

It could not simply add an equal fleet because existing Japanese construction, especially Yamato and Musashi, already consumed the available industrial capacity.

Very little; the 10-inch cruiser would already cover so much of the role that a 12-inch design would lack enough differentiation.

The likely result is a strong public outpouring and a later popularity boost, provided the wound did not impair his health or royal duties.

They would probably shift into second-line duties while newer heavy cruisers assumed the leading role.

Probably none; ships first ordered in 1941 would still be under construction in 1942.

The Royal Navy's operational analysis valued 6-inch volume of fire, while the US preference shifted toward that same solution as carrier escort became more important.

Not officially under the treaty system, but its rapid post-1937 call for 25 capital ships indicates that unofficial planning had been done.

Fisher wanted evocative names and was adept at getting them because he understood ship names as part of the Navy's public image.

Larger monitors were physically possible but lacked a clear advantage; Swedish NEMO-equipped mortar boats are the closest modern counterpart.

Greater machinery power density, revised armor layout, and much better fire control.

Give crews a more capable aircraft that can still perform the demanding low-level work they value; the Merlin's successor will face the same test.

The collective names reflect a deliberate political strategy: ships tied to prominent places and titles acquire advocates and become more difficult to cancel.