The Hero of Midway: The Story of the USS Arizona and her experiences in WW2

Kissinger

Banned
The Second World War began on September 1st, 1939 and ended six years later. As the Japanese ended their resistance effective August 9th, 1945 a lone grey WW1 battleship sailed into Tokyo bay for the final formalities of surrender, something Isorokou Yamamoto knew had to be done to save the people from more atomic horrors that would not fully develop for years. He then saw from the dock where the PT boat would carry him and the emperor to the surrender ship a sight that made him realize who set up these arrangments, Admiral "Bull" Halsley had struck again by sending a Battleship that had survived his mighty fliers at the Coral Sea, the archaic but invincible USS Arizona, The Hero of Omaha when she launched a lucky shell into a bunker where two MG-42's were slaughtering soldiers as they got out, other nicknames included the "avenging angel" for sinking three cruisers that had been in the Java Sea, and finally "Lexingtons angel" for saving the carrier at the Coral Sea allowing her to assist the Yorktown, Enterprise, and Hornet eradicate 4 Japanese carriers. Yamamoto looked on the ship and saluted her, he knew that the single atomic bomb at Hiroshima was nessecary to save lives but somehow he felt that Arizona had shortened the war and lessened casulties, he couldnt explain it.
 

Kissinger

Banned
Adûnakhôr said:
So, instead of a battleship, its an aircraft carrier?
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No she misses Pearl Harbor and at the Coral Sea some of the Japanese strike forces attack her giving warning to the Wildcats who were at a too low an altitude to intercept in OTL. The Arizona survives and becomes a hero.
 

Kissinger

Banned
La Rouge Beret said:
So TTL Arizona ends up comparable to the illustrious HMS Warspite?
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Yes. She is also made a museum and makes people think three time about how "Weak" the battleship is. She has a carrier named after her, our USS Forrestal and the Admirals revolt does not occur due to a mass compromise on both sides.
 

mattep74

Well, just have the bombs that struck Arizona land somewere else or hit in a wrong angle and have Arizona go Californias way. Damaged, but repaired to make a impact
 

Kissinger

Banned
basileus said:
*Hypocrisy alarm bell ringing*
*Geiger counter ticking wildly*
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I know, the fightings been mostly over on seas due to Arizona sinking cruisers at the Java sea which make the Japanese think thrice about the Salvo Island Massacre and thus dont do it which allows Guadacanal to be won earlier and easier. Yamamoto has become more depressed and has acticevly called for peace until he was sent to Nagasaki to be detained and the Japanese war leaders deployed to, hehehehehe, thats right Hiroshima.
 

Hyperion

Banned
I realistically don't see Arizona being able to be at Java Sea, Coral Sea, and Midway all three.

Another thing to consider, had a real heavyweight battleship been at Java Sea, and especially if Arizona had radar onboard, she would have had the longest range gunfire of any ships in the battle. It's likely if she was at Java Sea and managed to damage or sink any Japanese ships, you've pretty much butterflied away Coral Sea and Midway.

Now one thing to modify Coral Sea if you want a battleship there, perhaps look at sending the USS North Carolina to the Pacific somewhat sooner. Originally the ship was perfectly ready for combat, but was kept in the Atlantic until the summer of 1942 to watch for the German battleship Tirpitz. Historically, the ship arrived on the Pacific side of the Panama Canal on June 10, four days after Midway.

Another alternative might be to send her around the beginning of April, at the same time as the USS Hornet arrived in the Pacific. Unlike the Arizona, the North Carolina would be much better suited for faster operations and keeping up with the aircraft carriers, and would have radar and a far, far superior antiaircraft system onboard.
 

Kissinger

Banned
Hyperion said:
I realistically don't see Arizona being able to be at Java Sea, Coral Sea, and Midway all three.

Another thing to consider, had a real heavyweight battleship been at Java Sea, and especially if Arizona had radar onboard, she would have had the longest range gunfire of any ships in the battle. It's likely if she was at Java Sea and managed to damage or sink any Japanese ships, you've pretty much butterflied away Coral Sea and Midway.

Now one thing to modify Coral Sea if you want a battleship there, perhaps look at sending the USS North Carolina to the Pacific somewhat sooner. Originally the ship was perfectly ready for combat, but was kept in the Atlantic until the summer of 1942 to watch for the German battleship Tirpitz. Historically, the ship arrived on the Pacific side of the Panama Canal on June 10, four days after Midway.

Another alternative might be to send her around the beginning of April, at the same time as the USS Hornet arrived in the Pacific. Unlike the Arizona, the North Carolina would be much better suited for faster operations and keeping up with the aircraft carriers, and would have radar and a far, far superior antiaircraft system onboard.
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Thanks for that, I enjoy criticism as it helps me get better or in some cases point out my superiority over you. I am an SOB but I dont care.
 

Hyperion

Banned
Kissinger said:
Thanks for that, I enjoy criticism as it helps me get better or in some cases point out my superiority over you. I am an SOB but I dont care.
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Your basic idea of a timeline is pretty good overall. In fact, I've been debating a similar idea of a timeline with a battleship at Coral Sea with a POD around Pearl Harbor.

After reading your TL, I might try to get something out in the next couple of weeks.
 

Kissinger

Banned
Hyperion said:
Your basic idea of a timeline is pretty good overall. In fact, I've been debating a similar idea of a timeline with a battleship at Coral Sea with a POD around Pearl Harbor.

After reading your TL, I might try to get something out in the next couple of weeks.
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The only ship I can see arriving unscathed is Arizona or Nevada though. Good luck.
 

sharlin

Banned
Long range guns at Savo won't help. That battle was a close quarters massacre and if the Arizona was caught flat footed like the rest of the US/RAN cruisers were she'd be torpedo bait and I doubt any ship of her era could survive more than perhaps two long lances hitting her.
 

Clipper747

Banned
All of the battlewagons at Pearl were outdated by '41. They wouldn't have survived a clash with the IJN surface fleet. Insufficient armor, insufficient anti torpedo blisters, old fire control, no radar, ineffective antiaircraft defense.
 
Pyeknu494

Pyeknu494

Clipper747 said:
All of the battlewagons at Pearl were outdated by '41. They wouldn't have survived a clash with the IJN surface fleet. Insufficient armor, insufficient anti torpedo blisters, old fire control, no radar, ineffective antiaircraft defense.
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Unless you do an earlier POD when all the battlewagons before the North Carolina-class ships were upgraded in the same or similar fashion to the Italian Conte di Cavour and Andrea Doria classes in the early 1930s (as a Depression Era make-work project perhaps?).
 

Perky50

. get the story rolling , I'm always intrigued by a new rendition. To each his own .... Looking forward to hearing what you have to say!​
 
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