Comments by "" (@BobSmith-dk8nw) on "Guadalcanal Campaign - The Big Night Battle: Night 2 (IJN 3(?) : 3 USN)" video.

These battles were where Halsey was very important. He sent his ships in and took the Japanese on. His ships suffered a lot of casualties - but - as the video stated - the USN could replace what it lost - and the IJN could not. That - and he kept Henderson Field from being bombarded - again. Here it should be remembered - that Henderson Field had been bombarded by Battleships in the past - and still managed to bring itself back on line. So - IF the Japanese had managed to bombard it - again - there is no guarantee how much damage they would have done. Still, having NO damage done to that airfield was much batter and their aircraft would wreak havoc on the Japanese. For the four ships that beached themselves - they were also in range of American Artillery - which blasted them and the area around them so that while a number of the troops they carried got off - even the supplies that were unloaded from the ships - were vulnerable where they sat on the beach. The end result being - that Guadalcanal would go on to become known to the Japanese as "Starvation Island". Later, when Halsey would have trouble with the weather and the source of his nick name ... these battles kept him from being relieved. .
3