For nearly half a century, the battleship was the most powerful weapon on the ocean, deployed by the US Navy and many other fleets. However, their time seemed to be at an end when Japanese carrier-based aircraft destroyed so many at Pearl Harbor in 1941, ushering in the age of the aircraft carrier. Nevertheless, US battleships continued to serve with distinction in various roles throughout World War II and during the Cold War.Naval historian Ingo Bauernfeind tells the dramatic yet successful story of the US Navy’s battleships and battle cruisers by class, ranging from the early Dreadnought-type of the South Carolina-class to the gigantic but never-built Montana-class. This fully illustrated volume gives a clear overview of each ship’s career, its fate and highlights its significance in American naval history.Besides covering various battles in the Pacific, it also describes the important actions of US battleships providing shore bombardment during the invasions of Iwo Jima and Okinawa as well as during the D-day landings in Normandy, thus illustrating their contribution to Allied victory in World War II. Moreover, it covers the little-known actions of the Iowa-class during the Korean and Vietnam wars and even during Operation Desert Storm in 1991, when the modernized USS Missouri and USS Wisconsin fired guided missiles and operated drones in addition to the use of their historic 16-inch guns.This volume culminates in a guided tour through the mighty USS Missouri, an overview of the other seven preserved US battleships serving as floating museums for future generations, as well as a dive to the sunken USS Arizona and USS Utah at Pearl Harbor.Table of Contents Captain Ken Jordan, last XO of the USS MissouriIntroductionChapter 1 South Carolina-ClassChapter 2 Delaware-ClassChapter 3 Florida-ClassChapter 4 Wyoming-ClassChapter 5 Nevada-ClassChapter 6 Pennsylvania-ClassChapter 7 New Mexico-ClassChapter 8 Tennessee-ClassChapter 9 Colorado-ClassChapter 10 South Dakota-ClassChapter 11 North Carolina-ClassChapter 12 South Dakota-ClassChapter 13 Iowa-ClassChapter 14 Montana-ClassChapter 15 Alaska-Class BattlecruisersChapter 16 December 7, 1941 Twilight in Pearl HarborChapter 17 Battleships in Action in WWIIChapter 18 September 2, 1945 the War’s End in Tokyo BayChapter 19 US Battleships in the Nuclear AgeChapter 22 US Battleships in MuseumsChapter 22 Sunken WarriorsChapter 23 How a Battleship WorksChapter 24 USS Missouri A Guided TourBibliographyIndex

U.S. Battleships 1939-45: From Pearl Harbor to Operation Desert Storm (Casemate Illustrated Special) PDF

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