Search results

  1. WI: USN torpedo problems resolved pre-war?

    The Pacific War COULDN'T have been a bigger catastrophe for Japan even if it was fighting TODAY'S U.S. military, it could just be a faster one. In this case the biggest difference would be an earlier beginning of the starvation of the Japanese civilian population as American sub attacks become...
  2. Type XXI U-boats in early 1943

    The allies win the war, probably sooner than IOTL Now, add in no Enigma breakthrough, just a bit less bad German luck at Stalingrad in September 1942, King getting more of his way in the War Planning department and... The allies win the war. Of course in this scenario we nuke Berlin...
  3. Pacific War Redux

    You are right. I am revving back up. :D BTW: The Montana hull form was an excellent basis for a carrier design, even if converting partly completed BB to CV was a REALLY bad idea. They used the base shaping almost unchanged for the Midways. Thanks for the kind words at the end of your post.
  4. WI: Kriegsmarine continues construction of surface ships

    In 1941 the U.S. build time for a Gato Class sub was ~15 months, by late in the war a Balao was taking around 7 months. A Bagley Class DD took 23 months for the U.S. to construct in 1935, a Fletcher Class was 16 months in 1941. Submarines were in the ~$2.4 million dollar range, Fletcher Class DD...
  5. What's the Longest the US Can Stay in Vietnam?

    Determined by what? Military force? At least to the present day, likely well into the late 21st if not 22nd Century. Political will? 1975, maybe 76.
  6. Hitler's War By Harry Turtledove

    Turtledove is now simply a turtle. Even the basic set-up for the story stinks. He has gone to this well too often.
  7. Deep Blue Fleet

    So, just to be sure I understand this - Yamamoto 1. invents the fission process despite being dead two years before it ever existed. 2. Invents the new chemical processes necessary to build the implosion system. 3. Invents the Atomic Pile, followed by a breeder reactor 4. Creates a economy...
  8. The Battle of Wake Island

    There were no such aircraft available at Pearl. After the attack, outside of the aircraft on-board Enterprise and Lexington this was the total Strength of carrier capable aircraft in flyable condition on Oahu: Fighters - NONE Dive bombers - 14 (including USMC aircraft) Torpedo Bombers - None...
  9. The Battle of Wake Island

    Why yes, yes it is.:D One of MANY great lines from the movie.
  10. The Battle of Wake Island

    It is also worth noting that the North Pacific is a REALLY bad place to operate in winter. On December 11 the Lexington Task Force had tried to refuel at sea (nobody much wanted to actually go INTO Pearl Harbor at this point) and the weather had been soo bad that they had been forced to enter...
  11. The Battle of Wake Island

    Radar up and working on the 7th (actually the 8th on Wake) would have helped, but would not have been a miracle. What was actually needed was something close to a "Hot Pad" alert with at least two fighters up on patrol and the rest on Ready 5, Ready 15, and Ready 30 status. That is, of course...
  12. Earlier U.S. entry into WW2

    Not going to happen. The U.S. lost the Reuben James on October 31st, which was AFTER a U-boat put a torpedo into the Kearney on October 17th. Two attacks in less than two full weeks didn't do the trick, and that was AFTER the attack on the USSR. Now if U-203 had managed to pot the Texas in...
  13. The Battle of Wake Island

    The Lexington was very low on fighter aircraft with only 16 F2A Buffaloes embarked & Saratoga was sent out with just 10 F4F Wildcats (and 16 VMF-211 Buffaloes meant for Wake) leaving the two American decks with just 26 fighters total that could return to the carrier after launching. Both...
  14. M1 Abram in battle vs Soviet Tanks

    Not quite to the reportable, but instructive of the original poster.
  15. M1 Abram in battle vs Soviet Tanks

    The Soviets did indeed rely in having an abundence of reseve formations. The had "A", "B", and "C" divisions. The "A" were active forces with the best gear, the "B" was both active formations along lower threat axis (aka The 'Stans) and in parts of the Pact along with recent reservists (akin to...
  16. M1 Abram in battle vs Soviet Tanks

    One thing that everyone (including me, and I should know better) has overlooked so far as this thread as moved away from the original question is that, for all their weaknesses, the Soviets had a *&%#load of tanks, which provided a quality that was very useful in their mobbing capacity. Now...
  17. Carrier based A-10

    The A-10 is a single role aircraft, with a decent secondary role as a Sandy escort. That role is killing tanks. There are fairly few tanks at sea, and everything bigger than a rowboat also sports a SAM launcher. The A-10 could, in the proper circumstances, have been a very effective ship...
  18. Modified WW2 aircraft

    The Italian efforts suffered because of the overall economy of the country. Even more than Japan, Italy had no business playing at the same table as the UK/U.S./USSR, the country simply didn't have the ante. Paul Kennedy, in his excellent The Rise and Fall of Great Powers (an excellent, albeit...
  19. M1 Abram in battle vs Soviet Tanks

    The NATO Council and SACEUR are the ones who hald that position, both at the time, and in later interviews. While the European forces were solid, they were not at the qualitiative advantage that existed by the second half of the 1980s. Additionally, while it may be understandably distasteful...
  20. The Rats of Singapore

    So is Adam.
Top