Comments by "Big Blue" (@bigblue6917) on "Drachinifel" channel.

  1. A bit of film trivia. The actor who played the captain of the Prince of Wales in the film Sink The Bismarck, Esmond Knight, was a gunnery offices aboard the Prince of Wales and saw Hood explode. Just after that he was wounded by shrapnel which resulted in the permanent lose of sight in one eye but he received a series of treatments from Dr Vincent Nesfield designed to restore sight to his remaining eye. The treatment was a great success, restoring much of Knight's sight in that eye.
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  2. Some years ago the Royal Navy and the US Navy were taking part in a joint exercise when one RN ship went to refuel with a US ship. The captain of the RN ship got a message from his admiral as to why he was using a US ship and replied that they gave Green Shield Stamps.
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  3. The British man and his shed. Wife: what did you do today, dear. Husband: I was in the shed and I just knocked up a couple of monitors for the Royal Navy. Wife: that's nice dear. Husband: got one up to 8 knots. Surprised all them who were sailing their little boats in the boating pond.
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  4. There is a rumour that the Japanese were preparing to launch a kitchen sink at the Birmingham, the only thing they had not thrown at her, when the Birmingham herself blew up Japan's only remaining kitchen sink before the plan could be carried out.
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  5. Antony Preston should have outlined his criteria and then measured his choices against it. Imagine if this had been a thesis he had done for his university. They would have thrown it out so fast it would have burst into flames from the friction with the air.
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  6. Not only do you get an education about naval ships and warfare you get an education about the British sense of humour
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  7. The Italian navy and the Italian airforce were not on speaking terms. The German navy struggled to get anything out of the German airforce and the Japanese airforce and navy were openly hostile to each other. Makes you wonder why they needed to involve anyone else.
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  8. As soon as I heard it was for the Baltic Fleet I realised she was being up armoured to make her binocular proof.
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  9. Nelson and Rodney always looked to me like very aggressive supertankers.
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  10. I wonder if they considered a shore bombardment version calling it HMS Trebuchet. Now that would be old school.
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  11. Hit by a torpedo. Captain: Anyone hear anything. First Officer: No sir. Just our guns firing. Captain: Good. Well keep shooting then. Later First Officer: I say, sir we seem to be taking on water and it means we can no longer hit the enemy. Captain: Can we not sail a bit closer. First Officer: Not really, Sir Captain: Well we had better head for home then.
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  12. A Russian warship that escaped the Japanese. Worth preserving just for that
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  13. Ironically once Charles II was dead and his brother James chased off we ended up with the Dutch William of Orange as king. One of Britains better periods of history.
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  14. Well at least he was constant.
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  15. I have read something of these pirate slavers. For many piracy was a side issue with slavery being the main reason for the attacks. Apparently they raided as far north as Iceland, enslaving an entire village. They did the same in Ireland taking most of the population of a village into slavery. Only two of those taken made it back home. In the 16th century slave ships in the English Channel were taken with attempts to raid towns and villages on the English coast. And, of course the Mediterranean islands such as Malta were frequently raided along with European countries with a Mediterranean coastline. None of this was new. Piracy in the Mediterranean had been a huge problem for the Romans and remained so until they sent out their navy to kill, capture or drive off the pirates. The irony here is that many of the slaves taken by the pirates were actually sold in Roman slave markets.
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  16. How do you get into a fight with a destroyer and it ends up absconding with a large piece of your armour?
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  17. On 4 July, Roosevelt told the French ambassador that he would have done the same as Churchill.
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  18. Unless your Japanese in which case it's a small torpedo firing a smaller torpedo. Then they and the Germans just dispensed with the submarine and sat in the torpedo. I mean. I have heard of simplifying things but next step is a dingy, a paddle and a very stern letter.
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  19.  @AdamMGTF  In the UK and America when you bought petrol, gas in the US, you were giving stamps which could be exchanged for items in a catalogue. Things like drinking glasses and such. In the US the were called Green Stamps and when the idea came to the UK the were called Green Shield stamps. They were normally given out with each gallon of petrol, so you can imagine how many you would get if you filled a warships fuel tanks.
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  20. Brings a whole new meaning to just taking it out for a spin.
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  21. I can just imagine the scene in the shipyard. Foreman: Boss I think there is a problem with these guns. The're a bit big. Boss: Just hit it with a hammer. Foreman: We did that. Boss:And Foreman:We broke the hammer. Boss: Oh. Well it's the navies problem now. We did all we could.
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  22. There is a rumour that at one point they put the captain in front of a firing squad and missed.
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  23. These videos are like British buses. You what for ages and then three turn up at once. 😄
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  24. Many fish were extremely pleased by the none appearance of the binoculars of doom.
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  25. as is often said, don't all good stories include pirates.
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  26. We've all heard of something being a bullet magnet, but, with the possible exception of Admiral Halsey, you don't usually get a storm magnet.
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  27. Thanks for the video. I have seen photographs of German tanks after the D-Day bombardment. Sixty ton Tiger tanks laying upside down like they had been thrown around by some giant toddler. Not a place you would have wanted to be at the time.
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  28. How about Graf Spee. The admiral was killed at the Battle of the Falkland Islands while his namesake ship sank in the River Plate. Not far from the Falklands. Interestingly one of the German ships sunk at the Battle of the Falkland Islands was called Scharnhorst.
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  29. Not only was she in many of the battles of WW1 she survived with barely a scratch, metaphorically, when others around her were lost. If any ship deserved the epithet 'Lucky' it was certainly HMS New Zealand.
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  30. War is hell. Cake or no cake.
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  31. With speed like that you half expect a photograph of the ships captain water-skiing behind her. It would be interesting to do a counterfactual special were France and Italy fight each other in the Mediterranean unsupported by any allies set in the mid to late 1930s.
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  32. I'm just surprised that the Russians did not use it as target practise. It's not that they didn't need the practise.
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  33. A ship designed by a committee. Avoided WW1 then sunk by both sides in WW2. All things considered maybe the new name should have been the Prodigal Son
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  34. I think the fact that there was a discrepancy between his dead reckoning and the navigation beacons should have alerted him to the fact that there was a possible problem. And, like squadron 12, he should have slowed down to assess the situation. The fact that he dismissed the beacons information because he believed it was unproven technology was, I believe, the wrong decision. For one thing he could have provided useful information to help prove that either the technology worked or that it needed further work. As it turned out it did work and men died because of poor decision making.
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  35. Actually not the first nor last time. An American pilot shot down a Japanese pilot during WW2 while he, the American pilot, was floating down to earth in his parachute. This was the same Japanese pilot who had had shot him down and was intent on finishing the job. The Japanese pilot flew up next to the US pilot and was hanging in midair so he could take a look at the man he was about to kill. The US pilot pulled out his pistol and fired at the Japanese pilot and killed him. When taken prisoner the US pilot was given the opportunity to take his own life by his captors because they had a good idea what would happen to the pilot but turned it down. As it turned out he did survive being a POW and went back to the US. So I see your balloon and raise you a parachute.
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  36. To be fair the big names were matched with big ships. You could hardly have a minesweeper called Iron Duke while having a battleship called Sweet Pea.
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  37. At Jutland. Every captain on both side. 'So, how do we get hold of the Maori kit then.
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  38. The fact that the explosives failed to go off when they should have done had a much greater impact than Britain could have hoped for. Then there is the drain on German resources which were much needed elsewhere.
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  39. I had read about the battle before and I seem to remember watching a documentary about it. But I very much enjoyed hearing about it again. Two of my late fathers old brothers sailed on those Arctic convoys. Not a place I'd choose to be. To the best of my knowledge neither of them was torpedoed. The irony here is that my fathers eldest brother was and he was in the army on a troop ship.
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  40. Sounds like he'd do well today.
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  41. The trawler was manned by trawlermen from Hull. There is a monument on Hessle Road in Hull to those who died on the trawler. Hessle Road was where most trawlermen came from.
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  42. I once heard someone on the radio say that no small dog thinks it's a small dog and that they all think they are big dogs. Turns out the same applies to small warships.
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  43. Just imagine flying off the G6 and losing power just as you came off the end and landing on the turret with your full bombload.
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  44. Nice of Nelson to support HMS Africa's battle with the Franco-Spanish fleet.
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  45. Amongst the photographs taken in Normandy there is one I particularly remember. It was a 60 ton Tiger tank resting upside down on its turret like a discarded toy. This was curtasy of one of the battleships taking part in the shore bombardment.
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  46. Somewhat ironically it was the threat of a invasion of Norway in 1944, led by the British 4th Army, that tied up a quarter of a million Germans, many of whom could otherwise have been used in France. But in 1944 the 4th Army did not exist. Except as part of a planned deception to make the Germans think the Allies were going to invade Norway.
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  47. That was excellent. It filled in a number of gaps in my knowledge of the Royal Navy in the 19th century. I knew the first steam ship predated the Battle of Trafalgar. It was built in Scotland and was used on a canal I seem to remember. It's effect was such that there was talk of Richard Trevithick building number of steam ships to tow fireships which would be used to attack the Franco-Spanish fleet. The plan was stopped because Trevithick did not think it was viable at that time. I remember reading about an incident which happened in 1821 when a ship approaching the Isle of Mann was spotted with smoke billowing skyward. Realising there was a fire onboard a number of ships set sail to go to the rescue only to have it sail straight passed them. The smoke was from a steam engine.
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  48. On the upside you can catch your supper and wash your laundry at the same time.
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  49. A couple more Mogami's and the US Navy could have stayed at home.
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  50. Depth charges on a battleship? I bet the crew who manned were not over worked.
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  51. She was the model for the Königin Luise, in the film The African Queen. The actor Peter Bull, who played the captain of the Königin Luise, had actually served as an officer in the British Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve in WW2 where he had achieved the rank of Lieutenant-Commander and was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross.
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  52. It's interesting how many ships make this last break for freedom, looking at you Warspite.
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  53. What with the Poles and the Bismark and the Norwegians and the Scharnhorst, it's like having nautical terrors snapping at Germany's heals.
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  54. Interesting about pre WW1 colour schemes. Prior to WW1 the Great Eastern Railway, which covered East Anglia, painted its passenger locomotives royal blue. But when war broke out this colour was no longer available because it was being used by the Royal Navy. So all locomotive were painted what could be described as battleship grey. You would have thought that is the colour the navy would have used to camouflage their ships but no. Having said that there is no record of a German warship firing on an Great Eastern locomotive, so as a camouflage scheme it did work.
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  55. A battleship designed for a war which was over before they were built. And decision making which would make the late 19th century early 20th century French look quite decisive.
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  56. We had the same problem with the Vanguard. Keel laid in 1941 but not completed until 1946. All dressed up and no where to go.
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  57. I'm sure he could have done with Warspite that night
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  58. You may not realise this but we could hear the voice in your head during this recording.
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  59. So Italy supplied a warship to the Soviets just before the Germans, Italy's ally, invaded the Soviet Union. That's got to be an interesting conversation. Germany: You did what? Italy: We just delivered a warship to the Soviet Union. Germany: But we are just about to invade the Soviet Union. Italy: Well you never mentioned you were going to invade the soviet Union. Germany: Yes. Well. We wanted it to be a surprise. Italy: What. It was the Soviet Unions birthday or something.
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  60. And can we look at your nice warships as we have had to transfer some to the U-Boat service. What do you mean there in Scapa Flow.
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  61. Capitan, iceberg ahead. And it's launching aircraft. What!
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  62. As its covering several hundred years I think that's not bad.
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  63. Charybdis and Scylla. You would not want to get caught between them two. Unless, of course, you were sailing on HMS Argon
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  64. The ships on being shelled and on fire. They just missed a rocket exploding. And the men sort out the stereo system. Sounds about right.
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  65.  @T.S.Birkby  A fellow Futurama fan. I knew there was something I liked about you.👍
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  66. It has to have been an interesting time for naval ship building. USN: the good news is we've built our new warship. The bad news is the RN have just built Dreadnaught
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  67. This is why some people should not be left unsupervised. They get all giddy and start doing silly things. That's when the adults have to take their crayons off them.
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  68. I have a feeling it cheered up the Japanese Navy as well
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  69. Well they wanted to leave the Empire. You can't have everything.
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  70. Only if they could catch a really, really really big wave.
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  71. You have to wonder where the world would be without a man and his shed.
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  72. Does this mean that Germans really do have a sense of humour
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  73.  @jwenting  Torpedoes are like fine wine. Need to mature awhile before using them.
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  74. What ever you put up in the video about what they would have looked like we all know they would have been changed umpteen times before the French navy got them. Interesting ships though
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  75. No fish were struck by pairs of binoculars during the making of this video.
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  76. Looking at the model of Queen Elizabeth I think most of us can only dream that we could build something like that.
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  77. You get the feeling his biggest disappointment was running out of ammo.
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  78. Somewhat ironic as many of the Icelanders ancestors were Vikings and not above piracy.
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  79. Politics. He was well connected politically
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  80. I think it was a cunning plan to confuse the Russian.
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  81. These stories of people or machines going through a war without so much as a scratch are always amazing. It's like the various Gods of War pick one out to always be in the thick of the fighting but never touched by it.
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  82. Just imagine what damage eight or ten of them would have done in those night actions at Guadalcanal.
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  83. The German ships were obviously confused by what the New Zealand's captain was wearing which resulted in them failing to take her on.
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  84. Like the question about the washing. You can just imagine on the bridge of a warship. "Captain sir. A signal from the flagship." "What does it read," says the captain. "England expects every man to do his laundry."
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  85. Guys we all know you are not complaining. You are, like me, thinking "oh good two hours of Drachinifel ." I'll get the coffee started. 😄👍
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  86. Actually the British 4th Army was planned it invade Norway and the German spy network in Britain knew about this and informed the Germans. As you will probably know the German spy network in Britain was being run by Britain who had totally taken it over. And the 4th Army did not actually exist in reality. This ruse kept about 200,000 Germans in Norway.
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  87. It's their own fault. We all know you need at least an 11 inch or bigger for Venus. When the comedian Spike Milligan was on a troopship to North Africa in WW2 they came under air attack which lasted until it was pointed out that the local seagulls were actually neutral.
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  88. He must have influenced the US somewhat as their early tanks such as the M-3 where covered in machine guns. Even the driver had two hull mounted 30 calibre MGs which he aimed by rotating the tank. Must have been fun for the gun crew when they were about to fire the 75 millimetre gun only to find the driver swing the hull around because he had a target.
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  89. If you are Japanese I think you call them something to be avoided.
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  90. Secretary Dobbin: We have seventy ships Congress: Good Dobbin: But only forty are seaworthy. Congress: Not so good. Dobbin: And that forty will need three month to get ready. Congress: Oh... Dear
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  91. Baron Georg von Trapp, of The Sound of Music fame, was a successful U-Boat commander in the Austro Hungarian navy of WW1. Somewhat ironically his first wife was Agatha Whitehead, the granddaughter of Robert Whitehead the inventor of the modern torpedo. The same torpedoes which would be used to sink British ships, amongst others, during the war. Trapp's first command was the U-boat U-6 which was launched by Agatha.
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  92.  @davidrenton  She was still getting a refit at the time.
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  93. Damn the stealth fighter jets. Where's my beer.
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  94. The man who painted names on the sides of ships must have been pleased they used initials for that bit.
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  95.  @MrRikersBeard  Bit of a surprise for the Somali pirates
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  96. If you were in charge of an enemy ship and came across Decoy wouldn't you be worried what you were being decoyed in to.
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  97. One of the interesting things with a transitional period is all the ideas tried out. One of the downsides for those trying these ideas is how quickly the are surpassed.
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  98.  @nickgaskell6743  Yep. I knew about that one.👍😊 Got to have been a bit odd for both of them. The actor Jon Pertwee served onboard Hood but and was transferred off the ship for officer training shortly before she was sunk. He Later, he was attached to the highly-secretive Naval Intelligence Division working alongside future James Bond author Ian Fleming.
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  99. LVTs were used by British troops during the Suez Crisis. The troops in one such craft found their LVT was moving ahead of the others and wondered why. It was not until the LVT got on land and came under fire that they discovered why it moved so fast. It turned out the crew had removed the LVTs armour in order to get ashore quicker. So once on land thoughts and prayers and hopes and dreams was all the armour they had.
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  100. Having sunk the only US warship lost in WW1 by use of a mine she herself is lost to a mine. Well. Turnabout is fair play.
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  101. Sometimes if you stop and think you catch yourself thinking that a young person could have been watching two men at Kitty Hawk and live long enough to watch two men at Tranquility Base. As far as technology goes that is one giant leap for mankind. Another thought for you. The Battle of Trafalgar, one of the greatest battles of the age of sail, took place after the first steam powered boat had sailed on a canal in Scotland. In fact there was a proposal to use steam powered ships to tow fireships to attack the Franco-Spanish fleet before Nelson's action. Which, if successful, could have resulted in the Battle of Trafalgar never having taken place.
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  102. Looking at the armored trains of this time I was struck by the cross over between the armour on river boats and the armour on the trains. So you will see the use of cotton bales to protect some Confederate trains and railroad rails one some Federal trains.
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  103. It was the explosion aboard the French flag ship Orient which led to the poem Casabianca, more usually know by the first line 'The boy stood on the burning deck.' The boy, Giocante de Casabianca, being the 12 year old son of the ships captain, Louis de Casabianca. The father had to attend to a problem below deck and told his son to wait on deck until he returned. After the explosion and fire many sailors were abandoning the ship but young Giocante refused to join them because his father had told him to wait there until his return. Unfortunately this led to his death. the author of the poem, Felicia Dorothea Hemans, was herself only only five at the time of the battle but it made such an impression on her that she later wrote the poem.
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  104. I had read about the USS England but a story well worth repeating. Got its war sorted out early. It would be interesting to do a video on Captain Fredric John 'Johnnie' Walker and his exploits as a sub hunter. He came up with a rather clever plan to get around the limitations of the depth charge and losing contact with the enemy submarine when the ship passed over it. He would use one stationary ship to illuminate the submarine with its sonar while two more slow moving ships were directed to the spot where the submarine was. The fact that they moved slowly meant that the first time the submarines crew were aware of the ships presence was when they heard the depth charges hitting the water. And even if the submarine escaped damage it was still being tracked by the stationary ship, so contact was never lost.
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  105. No that's just a sailing seagull. You can tell by the fact that it just flew away.
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  106. Just like the declaration of war the flight plan paperwork was delayed.
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  107. Pirates. That would make a good story
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  108. Two carrier videos. And it's only Saturday. Couldn't get the aircraft to land because of the fog. Bet you could get a fleet of London taxi cabs in there thought.
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  109. I think you would need an entire fleet of Porters to match the Russian 2nd Pacific fleets.
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  110. I thought prisons rather then hotels. Hotels at this time tended to be a bit more ornate whereas prisons were more functional. And remembering that some warship hulks ended up as prison ships maybe they were built with that future in mind. The Marceau was named after the great French naval hero Marcel Marceau and had the reputation of being the quietest ship to go to sea. Unfortunately she was lost at sea with all hands when it turned out they were actually drowning and not just waving. Having said that she did get a standing ovation from the rest of the fleet. The Gauloises is the only example of a French Navy ship being sponsored by a tobacco company. Looking at the early ships it was like they were being designed by a committee, or several committees, who had heard a warship described to them but never actually seen one. Then when they finally get the hang of it up pops the Dreadnought. Not a case of better late then never.
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  111. Cometh the hour cometh the man. And Walker was that man.
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  112. Germany 1945. Sir we are running out of rocks
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  113. Thanks for that. The Essex had quiet a long service history which says much for its design. I know about the F11F Tigar shooting itself down. A French pilot did something similar doing a missile test. He fired his missile then dived down before levelling out. At this point he had overtaken his missile which locked onto his aircraft and shot it down. As far as I remember he did eject safely.
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  114. Can't wait for the USS Stewart's biography. USS Stewart: Life as a Double Agent.
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  115. You know that thing we normally avoid. The spray from the battleship. Let's use it to put out the fire.
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  116. First question from the recruitment officer, how's your bladder control. Thanks, Drach. At 6-2 I have a feeling we would spend most of our time in the infirmary with concussion.
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  117. Sorry but he has said on a number of occasions he doesn't do cold war ships because much of it is still classified.
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  118. Of course it would have been a simple job. Couple of days tops. Is it just me or do you get the feeling that the person behind the plan had no idea what was involved.
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  119. Actually I thought he would have a Texan accent because with that moustache he reminds me of an old town sheriff.
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  120. In WW1 the Royal Navy mounted some of their guns on railway carriages and used them on the Western Front. But after a while they were "gifted" to the British Army, much to their displeasure as they did not wont them either. In 1918 two 14 inch guns were mounted on rail carriages to be used in the 100 Days campaign which would see Germany surrender. The two guns were operated by 471 Siege Battery and were known as "HM Gun Boche Buster", operating near Arras with First Army, and "HM Gun Scene Shifter", operating near Bethune with Fifth Army. King George V personally oversaw the firing of the first shell by Boche Buster and the first shell fired from it heavily damaged a railway junction at Douai and became known as "The King's Shot"
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  121. Up to 1914 the British railway company Great Eastern Railway (GER), which served Norfolk, Suffolk and Essex, painted their passenger locomotives royal blue. But when war broke out the Royal Navy requisitioned is paint which meant that the passenger locomotive were left in their undercoat paint scheme which, oddly, was battleship grey. To the best of my knowledge the Germans never fired on a GER locomotive believing it to be a Royal Navy warship. Nor, I believe, was any Royal Navy warship not fired on in the mistaken belief that for some reason a GER locomotive was out in the middle of the North Sea.
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  122. Gun maker: which type of guns do you want. French: All of them.
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  123. Well, as we have just seen, the Bearn was not the swiftest ship in the French navy
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  124. One of the ships in the convoy was the San Demetrio which was damaged and abandoned by its crew. She was then reboarded by its crew the fires were put out and sailed home. The story of what happened to her saw made into a film in 1943 called San Demetrio London
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  125. The Japanese admiral must have thought he'd kicked a hornets nest. He must have wondered what he had gotten himself into. And it's interesting how often it's the smaller ships which see the most action. I have a feeling that when they are looking for people to crew them the word pugnacious come up a lot.
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  126. If it had been a French cheese it would bring a whole new meaning to "shooting the Brie's"
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  127.  @princeofcupspoc9073  yes but the Baltic fleet struggled with imaginary torpedo boats. Just think of what would happen against a real one.
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  128. Well, you know how it is. You start off with twin turrets. Then you think if I can have twins I can have triple turrets. Then it's quads. Just be thankful it doesn't look like a floating hotel
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  129. Or a blacksmith if you play Skyrim.
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  130.  @jonsouth1545  I think you may be referring to the actor Peter Butterworth and the film was The Wooden Horse. He was at the camp but was not deemed suitable to be in the film. Interestingly the Germans never had any problem with him being there.
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  131. I was trying to find the military records of my paternal grandfather who fought at the Somme and Passchendaele but they were also destroyed during the Blitz.
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  132.  @Loweko1170  that's always possible and happens more times then you think. Problem is that in the long run his reputation suffers and it effects future sales.
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  133. If the Kommuna could talk Drac could have a whole new series of videos because once again it's the little ships who have the most interesting stories.
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  134. So there I am busy doing important work. Up pops a video from Drach. Well. it's only a couple of minutes long. Not like it's his Sunday Drydock which often means me taking a lunch break half way through. Okay then. I'll watch it. Having watched it, back to work. No wait. Another video from Drach. Well I can take another few minutes off. Then up pops a third and fourth video. Again only a mater of moments so why not. So having watched them I am now sat here trying to remember what the hell it was I was doing.
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  135. As a warship she was terrible but as a hotel she was in the Michelin Guide with two stars.
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  136. Do you think they sruck to naval tradition and gave it a burial as sea.
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  137. For the Monitor with it's revolving turret firing as the target came into view I thought Pop goes the Weasel would be a good theme to play.
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  138. Some of these old girls are to stubborn to sink. 'Listen, I survive the Japanese I can survive you.'
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  139. Actually one of the main problems with the Comet was that the holes for riveting were punched rather that drilled. This caused fractures which were made worse by the pressurisation of the aircraft and led to failures. Many aircraft before this period flew at lower levels and therefore did not need pressurising. It was only with jet passenger aircraft flying much higher that this became a problem.
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  140. Wrong navy. That was the Russian navy who only passed through the North Sea on the way to its doom against the Japanese.
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  141. Yes well. I don't see them trying that again.
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  142. Did nobody mention to the Soviets that it's supposed to be bad luck to change a ships name.
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  143. Something for your next Alternative History. I have a scenarios with regards Midway and Hawaii. Firstly Attack Pearl Harbour as before, this time making sure they destroy the fuel storage tanks. Then fall back on Midway to support the invasion forces. The advantage of this is that the US Navy is going to have to sort out its ships before it can intervene and without fuel it is not going to be able to go very far. You could put a submarine screen between Midway and Hawaii to act as an early warning for the carriers ind any ships trying to intervene. Then after the Japanese take Midway it can then be used it as a jumping off point for Hawaii. This would have put Hawaii in range for an invasion fleet and with many US Navy ships out of commission or possibly having to pull back to the mainland there would be less opposition. Japanese submarines positioned to the east of Hawaii could deal with any warship coming or going with a priority in sinking tankers. Then the third stage would be the invasion of Hawaii. The advantage with this scenario is you will not need to split your forces as at the Battle of Midway. Yes it will be in two parts initially but the attack on Midway will involve all of the forces as no diversion would be needed. Done quickly enough there would be little time for the US forces to recover from the attack on Pearl Harbour. Though it would be a major commitment from Japanese forces it would prove much harder for America to be the threat it became to Japan.
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  144. Thanks for that. Very enjoyable. I found the sinking interesting and it shows how often it is not just one thing but a series of steps which can lead to disaster. Yes the torpedo running low caused the initial problem, but other things such as not being able to contact the engine room, lack of auxiliary power and so forth made the situation worse. Anyone of those things not happening cold have made a big difference. It is a pity the one of the new carriers was not called Arc Royal. It's a very long established name in the Royal Navy and it would have been nice to see it return.
    21
  145. Apparently this only happened when they were going down hill. 😄
    21
  146. Before WW2 the Germans wanted to know what the line of tall masts along the English coast were for. Thinking they may be being used for radar they flew their Zeppelin out into the English Channel and north into the North Sea. The Zeppelin was carrying equipment which was to check out whether these masts were being used for radar or not. At no point did they pick up anything from these masts and it was not until they flew over land that the RAF finally scrambled aircraft to intercept the Zeppelin. The Germans concluded that whatever these masts were for it was not radar. What they did not realise was the entire flight into the English Channel and up the North Sea had been seen by the British who had decided no to respond to it so as not to show its hand with regards to the radar. It was only after they crossed the coast that aircraft were scrambled on the basis that by that point the Zeppelin would have been seen from the ground. The reason they did not pick up the British radar was it was being operated on a wave length and the Germans could not detect that wave length. I have wondered if this was the first use of electronic intelligence gathering.
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  147. You get the feeling Orion and Neptune loved chasing the Italians around the Med. They must have been very disappointed when Italy surrendered.
    21
  148. See. You thought you were here to learn about naval history. But there is the added bonus of learning British humour.
    21
  149. I have known people where that would have been a help. At least for us on the outside.
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  150. The lads were just passing so we thought we'd pop in and see how things were going.
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  151. Well need to know about their pirate adventures
    21
  152.  @andrewgause6971  I must admit that writing that all men are born equal while keeping slaves has led me to the same conclusion
    20
  153. As we know this was something of a trend with America at that time. As you probably know that one US ship even throw potatoes at a Japanese submarine that got to close. So giving them more dakka made them more effective. And also stopped them getting hungry while watched their next meal float away.
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  154. We should all be given T-Shirt which says 'I Survived The Patreon Drydock' 😀
    20
  155. Hi. Yes. You know all the things we tell you about not having fires onboard your tar-coated wood and canvas ships, especially with all that gun powder. Well we've been thinking and we now think it could be a good idea. I can go do what with the rudder.
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  156. You can just imagine the reaction of the crew when it turns out the new owner is now the old owner. Captain. Guess what men. Crew. Oh, not again. The again, imagine your a captain of a French ship during the Franco-Prussian War realising have familiar that Prussian ship is.
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  157.  @RCAvhstape  Thanks for that. Air America worked with the CIA but was not part of the CIA. Lots of people assume that they were part of the CIA, myself included, but the were civilian contractors. Interestingly their aircraft belonged to the USAF.
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  158. As a Frenchman it's the way he wanted to go.
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  159. I was trying to think of the Japanese word which means horse and rider are as one. In this case Nelson and frigate are as one.
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  160. Education about warships and the Britsh sense of humour. What more could you want
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  161. This is one of three history channels I subscribe too. The other two are Mark Felton who covers tanks and The History Guy who does some really good videos on forgotten history. Having a great day today as all three posted.
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  162. Well it is not unusual for soldiers to want to take a local treasure home with him. And after 70 years together they both made a good choice.
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  163. Definitely unusual behaviour for people in the armed forces. Fitting out with unofficial equipment and weapons. Nope. No one else would do that.
    19
  164. You mentioned the speed of the Albacores being so slow that a destroyer passed them. Well this reminded me of something I read about British aircraft in the early part of WW1. They were so slow that on occasion while flying westward to return to their airfields they would be flying into a head wind which could be anything up to 10 MPH faster then they could fly. So in effect they were flying backwards. The only way they could make any headway was to tack across the wind like a sailing ship.
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  165. I was thinking about French warships a few weeks ago when I found a YouTube video about a floating hotel that was originally sat over the Great Barrier Reef some years ago. You have to wonder what they would have finally looked like once they were finished.
    19
  166. Now have a vision of Ancient Greek philosophers having a knock down drag out fight about how to say the name of a mythical Greek hero
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  167. I know how you feel. Who would have thought Hollywood would get history so wrong. Makes you doubt other historical films they have made.
    18
  168. Must admit when you said 'one problem with French Naval design' my eyebrows were raised somewhat. 31 naval ministers in thirty years. Having said that that is about the same number of Italian governments in the last thirty years.
    18
  169. Still the same feeling of an enjoyable Saturday morning but with ships.
    18
  170. Submarine come cruiser come carrier. It's a one ship navy. One theory is she was sunk by one of her crew who was a Vichy supporter. Though how you would prove that without any proof I don't know. And no one has put forward any evidence, such as one of the crew telling his loved ones what he intended, it will just remain a 'man in the pub' claim.
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  171. Personally I'm not surprised. Giving such delightful news just before Christmas is not uncommon. Happy Christmas, your fired.
    17
  172. Just as the captains of these ships thought there was a chance of surviving the war suddenly there appears a very large fan and a mountain of manure. USN: An early Christmas present for you boys. IJN: But we don't celebrate Christmas USN: You will this year.
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  173. Just because your a pirate does not mean you can't look good.
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  174. Goes down to about 15-20 French revolutions on Sundays and Holy Days
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  175. Thanks for that. I always say if I've learnt something new I've had a good day and today I have definatelly learnt something new.
    16
  176. He'd not read the memo
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  177. I have read that the infantry was disappointed when they were out of range of the battleships guns. Being able to neutralise the enemy with a 15 inch shell
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  178.  @steveb6103  Of course. Interesting how you bump into like minded people on the better history channels
    16
  179. Why send a warship instead of a tug? Being how the tug was designed for such things and the crew was more experienced in such matters.
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  180.  @GBDanner96  The Russian fleet is even more nervous if the Kamchatka is with them.
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  181. I always thought they were designed by people who never actually saw a battleship.
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  182. It did remind me of something I came across with fighter pilots in the days before missiles about being greatly out numbered. It did not matter how many there were only one could get behind you.
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  183.  keith moore  I was going to suggest Rust Bill got a hobby but I think this is it.
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  184.  @mordicuspb  Well it's not like the French had colonies, such as French Algeria or French Indochina, or setting up an Emperor in Mexico with the French Army, or French West Africa. Otherwise they would have a dirty colonial past. And we would not want that would we.
    15
  185.  @jamesbrown4092  I think that only applies to dogs and submarines
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  186.  @rring44  I get the feeling that the machinery in a Nelson would sink the La Fantasque by shear weight alone.
    15
  187. I've long said if you want excitement in the navy go for a small ship. Them big ones look good but the small one a like terriers nipping at the heels of the enemy. I wonder if the dockyard had a new bow on standby just in case.
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  188. Nope. Just the usual lame troll.
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  189. Sunk by your own sides mine. Not their finest hour.
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  190. The one time the torpedoes not exploding was a blessing not a curse.
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  191. Japanese pilots. The original one trick ponies
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  192. Does what it says on the tin
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  193. When the Stovepipe hat was introduced one man was convicted of scaring the horses with his hat. Bet you didn't know horses were fashion conscious.
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  194. Apart from exploding guns they seem to have led a somewhat charmed life. Except that bit at the end when they came to the attention of the USN aircraft.
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  195.  @CSSVirginia  Britain had been fighting ethnic Chinese communists in the jungles of Malaya for 12 years, in the Malayan Emergency, which came to an end in 1960. So they did have some experience of jungle warfare through senior NCO's, officers and long term enlistment soldiers still available. Also jungle warfare would still be part of the training offered to many soldier. And the British Army had the excellent Centurion which had also been supplied to Australia. The extra manpower would also have been a great help as well obviously. As for the airforce the Canberra bombers, which were also supplied to the Australians fighting in Vietnam, would have been greatly appreciated. I have read that American Forward Air Controllers loved working with them. It would have been interesting to have seen what the Blackburn Buccaneer would have done there. Look out for film of them flying at Red Flag here on YouTube. They normally flew between 5 and 20 feet above the ground. Of course there was the Special Forces, the SAS and SBS as well as other elite groups. Hope that helps. 👍
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  196. The doctor asked the sailor what happened. The sailor said the blast effected his a*sehole and testicles . Rectum, said the doctor. Rectum, said the sailor. It nearly blew them off.
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  197.  @zakofrx  Even the cute ones kill you if annoyed. Are we still talking about the wildlife or the people
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  198. Travelling instantly in all directions. Rather detrimental to moral.
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  199. Originally, yes. But during tests the wine kept floating off and the mistress said "you'll not get me in one of those things," but in French, and went home to her husband.
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  200. I saw one some years ago and I was surprised how big the Swordfish is in real life. I was so impressed I went out and bought the Airfix model.
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  201.  @stephanfritz2933  I had the very same thought. Drink it first, then fight.
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  202.  @flaviosalatino8192  It was a development of the Blacker Bomber which led to the PIAT and also the Hedgehog so within the timescale.
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  203. Thanks for the video. I had not realised how far back the torpedo boats and destroyers went. Older then you think. I found the fact that some boats used railway engines very interesting as the London North Eastern Railway built the experimental locomotive W1 class in 1929 using two Yarrow boilers which were built by the John Brown shipyard. Whatever its benefits as a ships engine they did not translate into a locomotive engine and she was taken into the LNER's Doncaster Works in 1936 and rebuilt with a conventional boiler.
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  204. That line drawn under the Anglo German race looks like it was a bit squiggly in places.
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  205. Just as all those fine people were lined up to make all those conflicting changes to the design of these ships someone, quite inconsiderately, started a world war. Have these warmongers no thought for the feelings of others who are trying to produce the finest warship come floating hotels in the world. I see you have been doing your somewhat adequate impression of Isambard Kingdom Brunel again. Well, I can understand the stresses and strains of being in lockdown can be a bit much on a fellow but what about the effects on your good lady wife. What about the ma'am sahib. How do you think she will feel walking into a room and finding that instead of her doting husband she see a man with disillusions of grandeur dressed as a long dead 19th century half Frenchman. So be a good chap and save all the dressing up nonsense for the office party where people will be to drunk to notice.
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  206. Interesting thoughts there, machaman13. But if the relationship between the US and UK is strained there is the possibility that the UK would renew its relationship with Japan, which was only ended at the insistence of the US. This would leave the UK to concentrate on Germany and Italy and Japan could carry on in the Western Pacific knowing that the UK will not intervene and with no need to stretch their resources all the way down to Australia. They take the Dutch East Indies and get the oil they need. And as we both now see the losers here will the US as the one thing they feared was a strong Japan in the Western Pacific. And that is the one thing they now have.
    13
  207.  @jonsouth1545  I think you mean Peter Butterworth and the film was The Wooden Horse😊👍
    13
  208. Does that make Mark Felton the Drach of the land?
    12
  209. I have often said timing is everything. If they had met a couple of hour later or war had been declared sooner the Goeben's history would have been much shorter.
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  210. If the turn had been made just 30 seconds sooner the result would have been totally different.
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  211. Getting the hang of Portuguese there, Drach. You're becoming multilingual.
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  212. Whiteheads daughter was the first wife of Baron von Trapp, of the Sound of Music fame. He became famous in WW1 as a submarine captain for the Austro-Hungarian Navy, where he sank a number of ships including some British ones.
    12
  213. I had wondered why the Western Allies gave the Russians the unfinished German aircraft carrier. They obviously realised that it only realistically value it had was as scrape. This also explains why the Russians never got the hang of carriers. You do have to wonder why they were trying for a High Seas Fleet Mk2. Even with Plan Z they were never going to be in a position to seriously threaten anyone else. And with the airstrike capability from carriers and land based aircraft they could no longer expect to hide in port. U-Boats and Commerce raiders would have been a far better bet for taking on the Allies. This was recognised in WW1. Some of the most effective German commerce raiders of WW2 were the disguised armed merchant ships. And it would have been much more cost effective. You could build a fleet of converted merchant ship raiders from those you captured. Just have a couple of supply ships carrying some guns and other equipment. Capture a ship. Refit it and then send it out to raid. Plan Z was a wishlist vanity project.
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  214. I came across a YouTube video several months ago which was made by one of the officers who worked on righting the Oklahoma. He was serving on the ship when the attack happened and he mentions the fact that on the Saturday the captain had ordered all portholes and bulkhead doors opened ready to work on her on the Monday. So when she was hit the ship had no way of controlling, let alone, stopping the flooding. I found it an excellent video and well worth watching.
    12
  215. Cuirass de croissant. i'd like to see them dip that in their coffee.
    12
  216.  @TheReaper569  In the UK and America when you bought petrol, gas in the US, you were giving stamps which could be exchanged for items in a catalogue. Things like drinking glasses and such. In the US the were called Green Stamps and when the idea came to the UK the were called Green Shield stamps. They were normally given out with each gallon of petrol, so you can imagine how many you would get if you filled a warships fuel tanks.
    12
  217.  @iatsd  What hind sight. This is what the 12 squadron did. And Drach did ask us to give our own thoughts which is what I did. Maybe instead of trying to rush to you 'smart' retort you should have listened to what he asked.
    12
  218.  @bluemountain4181  This is true. In fact I was thinking how we accept new technology rather more readily then in the past. British troops in the First Gulf War were told not to rely on GPS but that is exactly what they dd. Travelling at high speed in fog when you are using dead reckoning is never a good idea.
    12
  219. My thoughts exactly.
    11
  220. Never upset a pensioner. They are feisty, probably know more then you and have nothing to lose. Oh, and they enjoy teaching you whippersnappers a lesson.
    11
  221.  keith moore  You have begged for British help on more then one occasion. Vietnam for example.
    11
  222.  @tisFrancesfault  You mean it saw a number of useful words and decided to use them. Sounds like smart thinking to me.
    11
  223.  @sarjim4381  The had some well trained pigeons.
    11
  224. Having read about both the voyage of the Emden and the escape of part of her crew then I would definitely say both events are worth a video each.
    11
  225. You get the feeling it will either clear any blockage or bung you up.
    11
  226. How long you been saving that joke. 😄
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  227. I assume you mean before they got to the drawing board. 🍷🍷🍷
    11
  228. I was involved in the making of a number of videos about the history of the local fishing industry which included Royal Navy signallers replacing the radio operator on some trip in order to take photographs of the Soviet Northern Fleet. In these cases they were real trawler, unlike the Soviet trawlers, which did fish often in the area where the Soviet fleet sailed. If a trawler got a bit close to the fleet it would be chased off but usually they kept their distance. And as the only equipment carried on these trips was the camera and a long lens dropping it overboard before being boarded was simple.
    11
  229. I did know about this idea and the test in the Canadian lake. I seem to remember someone has found the remains of the test "ship". A very interesting idea but an example of not taking the obvious route of building escort carriers and having longer ranged aircraft.
    11
  230.  @brianensign7638  to paraphrase one man's privateer is another man's pirate
    11
  231.  @steventhompson399  I did read that some one million Europeans were taken into slavery
    11
  232.  @LazyTestudines  That's why Congress keeps cutting the funding. Those imaginary torpedo boats can't sink any American warships if the USN doesn't build them.
    11
  233. I think the phrase you are looking for is 'she's a tough old bird.'
    11
  234. Fisher to parliament. Oh come on. Just one little tiny battleship. Please, please please please please. Parliament. All right. But just the one. Fisher. Just popping out to see the Australians and New Zealanders.
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  235.  @sirmalus5153  Esmond Knight was a highly regarded actor of both stage and screen, which is obviously what you saw shining through.
    11
  236.  @ussenterprise3156  that definitely had a machine spirit.
    11
  237. Samuel L. Jackson voicing the Dutch admiral. That has got to be different. The word f*ck is said to be of Dutch origin so its use would be quite plausible to have Mr Jackson doing the voice. What's the Dutch for mother? 😊👍
    11
  238.  @Edax_Royeaux  wasn't he using the mark one self loading rock thrower. Known as the arm.
    11
  239. Real friends should be truthful with each other. Unlike Dalan who got caught flat out lying to the British
    11
  240. Not as big a discovery as people think. Between the discovery of how to make fire, then how to make bread and finally how to make beer, it was 200,000 years before we could have a BBQ
    10
  241.  @nathanbrown8680  There was a troopship in the Med and the AA guns were manned by the troops being transported. Unfortunately they were a bit trigger happy and the captain had to announce over the tannoy that the local seagull population was in fact neutral.
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  242. I know the Japanese were very strict on sticking to orders. I have come across references to Japan attacking Russian, Soviet, positions using an artillery barrage and infantry attack even though the Russians had moved out of those positions before the attack started. The were ordered to attack those positions so they did so. During WW2 a clash between a British and Japanese patrol resulted in the Japanese patrol being whipped out. Captured documents revealed not only the route of the patrol and its objectives, but also that if they failed to complete all of their objectives then other patrols would be sent out on the same route at the same time until all the objectives were achieved. So the following night British set up an ambush along the route and sure enough along came the Japanese and again the patrol was whipped out. This happened on a number of nights until someone higher up asked why they had not received a report from the patrol. It was only now having found out no one was returning from the patrols were they finally stopped.
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  243. Next Drydock is the film Raise the SMS Scharnhorst. It's a sequel to Raise the Titanic.
    10
  244. The one time you wanted the damn thing to live up to its reputation and it failed to do so.
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  245. Because of the lack of superstructure I got the impression there had been some confusion in the drawing office and someone had mistakenly picked up plans for a destroyer.
    10
  246. Well as the French sailors spent most of their time ashore it's not like they were using them.
    10
  247. The RAF left one Tallboy behind. Just in case Lutzow made a return. Soviet pilots pretending to be Spanish. Then North Korean and possibly North Vietnamese. It would be interesting to see their passports.
    10
  248. I have read that the spigoted mortar, which was the basis for the Hedgehog used in WW2, was used by the Germans as a trench mortar in WW1. Blacker, who came up with the Blacker Bomber spigoted mortar which led to the Hedgehog, may have known about the German spigoted mortar and if so then Germany was indirectly for the Axis submarine losses to the Hedgehog.
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  249. Another excellent video. Thanks. I must admit that I find the notion that aircraft from different wings cannot serve on the same carrier is frankly ridiculous. It's like the Japanese were trying to sabotage themselves.
    10
  250. The reason you never hear Drachinifel say it is because even he goes not know how to.
    10
  251. Destroyers seem to be the Swiss Army Knife of many navies
    10
  252. Was that Japanese ship just very lucky and was she a luck vampire draining every other ships luck? I say this because she seems to be a curse for everyone else.
    10
  253.  @Historyguy-xu5ht  Something often missed is the fact that between Denmark and Norway Germany had lost half its navy, something followers of this channel would have know. So trying to protect the invasion fleet would have been an impossible task.
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  254. I mentioned about those early handguns being used at the Battle of Agincourt. some genius thought I meant a modern style handgun.
    10
  255. Not just at sea. Many people thought the American Civil War would be won with just one battle. What they failed to realise was that there would be many other battle before that one was reached. WW1 and WW2 would be over by Christmas, was the thought at the start of those two wars. Problem was that was Christmas 1918 and 1945.
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  256.  @anthonybanchero3072  It could not have been easy. Especially as it was one of the last things he saw of the battle
    10
  257.  @bkjeong4302  As the British had more ships at sea the following day then in the battle that was obvious a failure for the Germans
    10
  258. That was the one who supports a certain Dutch football team
    10
  259. Just a quick note for those who have not seen it yet. One of the USN's new carriers is to be named USS Doris Miller after the black American sailor who was awarded the Navy Cross for his actions at Pearl Harbour.
    9
  260. Talk about going full circle. The man who commanded the first ship to sink a Japanese vessel had to sink that very ship himself.
    9
  261. Comes under claimed but did not actually control. And still doesn't
    9
  262.  @mateusbragarezende725  in Monty Python's The Life of Brian Jesus was misheard by someone when he said blessed are the peace makers. It was thought he said blessed are the cheese makers.
    9
  263. Actually the original Argentinian plan was for the invasion to be later in the year because Margaret Thatcher was getting rid of the carriers Britain had. But things were turning from bad to worse for the Argentinian government at home so, out of what can only be described as a blind panic, the invasion was brought forward. So they invaded with Britain still owning the carriers. And if it was not for the British admiral telling Thatcher that she had to do something, her and John Nott the defense minister were running around like a couple of wet hens, they would have gotten away with it.
    9
  264.  @onewhosaysgoose4831  I could not have said it better myself.
    9
  265.  @ringowunderlich2241  Well as it's Norway Winter there was as cold as the Russian Front. Plus the Norwegians did have their own resistance just in case the Germans felt they were missing out. But compared to Russia it was not what you would call a difficult posting.
    9
  266. Actually the army was using railway guns with ex navy battleship barrels on them. Having said that they did originally belong to the Royal Navy. But the total lack of ocean got to much for the navy and they left them for the army to play with. 'Oh thanks.' Said the army. 'Just what we wanted.'
    9
  267. Now that was a Five Minute Guide. Definitely top of my list.
    9
  268. Thanks for the video. I knew she has sunk at Pearl Harbour then refloated but not what happened to her subsequently. So it was very interesting to find out what a big part she played during the war.
    9
  269. They were very resourceful.
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  270. So John Paul Jones, the missing sixth Beetle, was never up for a Mister Popularity Award. You know you have problems when your own side is taking potshots at you.
    9
  271.  @Cid1758  this can be said of any historian no matter which country they come from or what language they speak
    9
  272. British railways also preferred South Wales coal for the same reasons.
    9
  273. I think they took that as a challenge rather then a warning.
    9
  274. He ran out of Iron Bru
    9
  275.  @petersouthernboy6327  I was thinking of all those long lance torpedoes hitting to water in the opening of the attack. That's got to cause some major headaches.
    9
  276. Fully agree with you.
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  277. For future reference the term roundhead was only used in part of London and then only for a brief time. So if you turned up outside of London during the civil war no one would know what you are talking about. If they did know what you were talking about and were part of the parliamentarian army then do not be surprised if they decided to show you the business end of whatever weapons they were carrying as it was a derisory term. In the same vain do not call the royalists cavaliers as this would also be met with anger. The term cavalier referred to the Spanish cavalry which had a reputation for what we today would call war crime. I did read of one warship which was steering to the fall of shot. Unfortunately it just so happened that one of the turrets on the enemy ship had not adjusted to the new position so the ship was hit. Interestingly during the Battle of Britain the idea came about that if your caught out in the open during a bombing raid the best place to be was inside one of the bomb craters as the chances of a bomb landing in the same crater is very small. Unfortunately more than one crater was hit a second time, or near enough to be deadly. Also jumping into a hole were high explosives have just detonated is not a good idea. Especially in areas where there is chalk just below the surface such as in Kent. A number of people suffered from very bad burns until it was stopped.
    9
  278. I think they should have shoved Beatty into one of those guns with his flag officer in the other and fired them at the Germans.
    9
  279. Well lets not forget that America was happy trading with both side during WW1. In fact when America did finally join the war they ended up supplying their own army with rebarreled Lee Enfield rifles rather then stop production to make the Springfield rifles.
    9
  280. I very much enjoy these short videos. History in a nutshell. And I have to add that I think you should have used your own voice from the start. Sounds very much like you know what your talking about. Much better then the ZX81 voice.
    9
  281. Turns out there was a sale on funnels and they bought more then they intended. We all do it. Well not on funnels, obviously.
    8
  282. If you think about it one shell killed the equivalent to one and a half battalions/regiments
    8
  283. Makes you wonder about the standards of training for British and German crews.
    8
  284.  @IanSinclair77  I think you will find one of two Australian truck drivers will dispute the notion that they don't go backwards
    8
  285. Rex's Hangar and Drachinifel. And it's not yet Christmas.
    8
  286. By the sounds of it she certainly had her share of spinach.
    8
  287. As I've often said. If you want an eventful life in the navy pick one of the smaller ships.
    8
  288.  @andrewgause6971  defend the the military. Don't you have to fund it first
    8
  289. Look, they tried their hardest. Okay. But they changed the plans so many times the perfectly fine ridiculousness got lost in the process. I mean it can happen to anybody. Well anyone who was French between 1880 and 1910. Give or take.
    8
  290.  @DERP_Squad  Same with the Normandy/Calais deception. Interesting that they chose the 4th Army for the Norway deception. The Germans would have known this was the army that defeated them in France in 1918.
    8
  291. Interest video. Especially with regards to influence in the design. Started off Italian but ended up with a Warspite look to it. They were a bit like that with their tanks during this time.
    8
  292. Different requirements. Not many kamikaze attacks in the Med.
    8
  293.  @FallenPhoenix86  As there are still several months to go you may want to hold off on that
    8
  294. I thought the idea of peace being negotiated in 1919 interesting as there was an international peace movement which had gained the backing of US President Wilson. If the Germans had not returned to unrestricted U-Boat warfare and brought America into the war then there is every possibility that peace talks would have brought about an end to the war, which means no Hitler and possibly no Soviet Union. Now that is an alternative history.
    8
  295. Thanks for this video. I knew something about what happened but not the details which you have provided.
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  296. No one tell the Dutch navy that timing is everything.
    8
  297. From what I have read by 1944 the German economy may well have collapsed leaving Germany not being able to go to war. This could well have left Hitler as a footnote in history.
    8
  298.  @rictusmetallicus  For a nation which came up with the phrase 'more bang for a buck the US took their eye of the ball for that one.
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  299. See, that's why they told you not to undo that big nut on the bow.
    8
  300.  @rogersmith7396  Bit like being called Karen in America
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  301. Are you absolutely sure about that.😊
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  302. I have read several accounts of this battle and watched at least one documentary on it and I have to say this version is definatelly the best I've come across by far.
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  303. I have sometimes wondered what happened to the old robot voice. Is it in a cupboard somewhere next to a rather battered old Commodore 64 and a ZX 80 who's rubber keyboard is worn out. It will be on an antiques show in about twenty years time. This was owned by that Drach guy. You know. The one who bought out YouTube before disappearing into the virtual Bermuda Triangle on World of Warship. To busy talking and not watching where his ship was going.
    8
  304.  @luisnunes2010  The victor does not leave the battlefield to the loser. The Germans failed in their aims an then ran for home.
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  305. The carry torpedoes but are below the waterline.
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  306. (Insert puzzlement and then the exclamation 'Oh.' 'You mean __________.')
    8
  307. Good job the Royal Navy didn't turn up with Warspite. That would have changed history😀
    8
  308.  @cyndrynn  Nearly?
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  309. It's just like his special on Thunderchild. You listen to it and half of your brain knows its fictional but because it Drach the other half is thinking this sounds so real.
    7
  310.  @psikogeek  I doubt it. As it says in the song "anything you can do I can do better." So everyone else would have been building their own, better, version. But the other problem was that naval air power was the big thing is WW2. You can have as many big guns as you like and as much belt armour as you want but a bomb dropping through your deck was going to ruin your day. Yes they could have thickened the deck armour, but improving bombs was easier then then constantly upgrading the deck armour. And acoustic torpedoes like those used by the Germans would have stopped it dead in the water. The problem then is that having built the ship there is a tendency to keep it out of harms way. It has cost you much in time, effort, money and resources and you are loathed to put it at risk. So it just sits there unused. And remember what happened to the Tirpitz.
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  311. A five minute guide which takes just under one hour nine minutes. Well you have to admit value for money. Interesting about the problems with Room 40. In order to protect the fact the British had cracked the Enigma Codes during WW2 information passed on to commanders in the field could not be too precise. The problem was that it was often so vague as to be useless and therefore ignored.
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  312.  @William-Morey-Baker  I have read about it. Maybe we should have all stayed home and sent the Emus to the Western Front in WW1. Looks like they would have done a better job
    7
  313.  @Welshman2008  I like your style
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  314.  @46bovine  Drach mentions that one of the battleships got hitby a torpedo but dispite having a 90 ft hile in its side they carry on fighting until the list becomes so bad the no longer get the range.
    7
  315. Well he managed both. His destroyer was swift and the bow got broke
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  316.  keith moore  Bit of a side hustle going on there.
    7
  317. I have a feeling that was never said in German.
    7
  318. The .22 calibre rifles would have been for training purposes
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  319.  @propellhatt  The Kamchatka. The only ship both sides wanted to sink
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  320. Something never change.
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  321. Aircraft Irritating Units. Sounds like they needed to see the MO.
    7
  322.  @lamwen03  Rationing did not finally come to an end until the summer of 1954. When sweets, candy, came off rationing there was a rush to buy them. This resulted in them being put back on ration again and a large number of people feeling decidedly queasy.
    7
  323. Thanks for the video. Definitely a part of the war usually overlooked. I was always told that bananas were not imported because they were banned rather than because they were not a priority crop.
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  324. Who said you have to pick. Just sit back and enjoy. 👍
    7
  325. The Germans originally viewed the Operation Sea Lion as nothing more than a river crossing but on a larger scale. Once they realised that there was more more to crossing the English Channel then they first imagined more was added but I could not see how the Germans ever thought it would work. Especially when compared to what the Allies had to do four years later with the various types of craft needed. I suppose this is what happens when when you are only used to land based warfare.
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  326. Triple stack gun pyramid. That's got to be interesting when it fires broadside. Try keeping that stable.
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  327. The Fighting Captain. That is how I became aware of Walker
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  328. I've seen the film several times, usually on a Saturday afternoon when there was nothing worth watching on the other channels. This was long before YouTube where I am now spending time watching a video about the San Demetrio,
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  329.  @Emdiggydog  That may be to do with the fact that he ordered Australian troops under his command to defeat the Japanese troops they were fighting at whatever cost. They were fighting in a fetted swamp attacking well built defenses while he was sat in a nice clean office in Australia.
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  330. I thought Dwarven Bread was more of a weapon then a food. Plus if you are hungry it does encourage you to try other things before you eat it. Such as the corpse which has been rotting in the sun for several days and covered in flies.
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  331.  Sean M  John Ford, who became an admiral, would often humiliate Wayne about that. In fact the credits to one film listed everyone's service rank except Wayne who was listed as Mr.
    7
  332. Oddly enough they have a soot spirit. Left over from the days of steam possibly
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  333. I think its called a confused outcome
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  334. Well. It's less messy then goat entrails.
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  335.  @Calum_S  Me too.
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  336. The British did hide its submarines in Malta during WW2 by simply submerging them in the harbour during daylight hours and then bringing them back to the surface after dark. They were tied up to the harbour wall during the night and would submerge in the same spot during daylight.
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  337.  @GR46404  he does know his subject.
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  338.  @Macca17  She was seeing torpedoes while still in harbour.
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  339. You think Bismarck may have been right. He said a war with Britain would lose them their overseas possessions.
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  340. Can I just point out that I do not think you are giving the French enough respect for their ships. It is difficult to fire on a ship if you keep averting your eyes or suffer bouts of hysterical laughter, which is obviously what happened everytime you saw a French warship. So maybe they are boxing clear with there designs.😊
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  341.  @herbertgearing1702  I think the Japanese know all about Australia. Especially as they now also play rugby
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  342. I assume you are now settling in your new abode and have so far remained squirrel free.
    6
  343.  @rocketguardian2001  Do you think you cat may contain the returned spirit of John "Cat's Eyes" Cunningham. The famed RAF nightfighter pilot.
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  344.  @USSAnimeNCC-  Not quite but the First Americans did originally come from the same region, though not actually related.
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  345. History does have these evolutionary technological outbursts which can set your head spinning.
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  346. Naval use of the Bouncing Bomb. Barnes Wallis Developed an anti ship version of the Bouncing Bomb called the Highball which was fitted as a pair underneath a Mosquito bomber. He even developed a bomb sight for it. You put in the length of the ship kept to a set speed and height and when the two markers on the sight lined up with the bow and stern you dropped your bomb. One advantage was it could skip over anti torpedo netting. It was to be used against the Tirpitz but by the time it was ready for use the Tallboy had sunk the Tirpitz and the other proposed targets were either no longer available or were considered impractical. America did test the Highball, which they called the Speedee bombs but stopped testing when the A 26C being used dropped the bomb to low which caused it to take the tail off the A 26 killing the crew.
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  347. If you put this in with all of his other wayward statements it can be seen for what it is. Michell was correct by accident rather than design and therefore he gets no credit for what he said. As for the battleship we should remember that the US, British and Japanese navies were all ready involved in it replacement with the aircraft carrier. Which was nothing to do with Michell. In fact if Michell had his way there would have been no US Navy carriers.
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  348. I'm wondering with name plates that long did they add to the thickness of the ships armour.
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  349. Thanks, Drach, for an excellent video. All things considered this does look like the most plausible scenario.
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  350. @Karl Dubhe This is true but submarines are still called boats despite the fact many are now bigger then heavy cruisers. 😊
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  351. In that case we are expecting a full report of what happened. And no you can't use Wikipedia as there was no internet back then.
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  352. There are rumours that some of it is still out there somewhere even today.
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  353. Finally. Someone who had a good word for the US bureau of audience.
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  354.  @andrewfanner2245  Some interesting ideas. I was thinking more of a war just between the French and Italians rather than include others. That way I think it would exclude Germany. You could possibly have the war starting in 1936 while German is still fighting in Spain and not in a position to intervene on land. Isn't war complicated. I just wanted to see how the two respective navies would fair. And now we have to change the whole of history.
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  355. Interesting fact but the ones you missed was that they were younger, fitter and better trained then we are. So I think the Germans can sleep easy tonight.
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  356. Does look suspicious, doesn't it.
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  357. Loading up with pigeons. You get the feeling this lacked ambition. And the poor old crew suffering from Bombja ve. That feeling you've been bombed before.
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  358.  @neiloflongbeck5705  Sometimes even on the first date.
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  359.  @lamwen03  According to Charles de Gaulle France liberated itself. So I'm not sure what everyone else was doing. Standing back in admiration and amazement probably.
    6
  360. Yes but they got a good deal on funnels.
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  361. I remember that film. My son kept running around shouting Slash the Zeros. 😊
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  362. Are you keeping up with all the designations he asks. It's a Saturday. I am in need of refreshments, coffee specifically. And then I find there is an exam. Pretty damn sneaky if you ask me.
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  363. most days it's just easier to start with Plan B
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  364. Smaller bouncing bombs carried by the Mosquito were tested in an attempt to use them against the Tirpitz. As with the dams they would have skipped over the torpedo nets.
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  365. Actually my archaeology tutor did find such a boat and it now resides in our local museum.
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  366.  @dbodesign6494  we could also include those who's interference with the French Army before and during the Battle of France which gave victory to the Germans in WW2. I have a feeling you you would need a very large fleet of them.
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  367.  @nitsu2947  A mess room is where the crew ate their meals.
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  368.  @Trek001  Thanks Trek. I did know about Ludovic Kennedy and his father, but it's good to be reminded of it.
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  369. Yes but does not include the football scores.
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  370. I can see why they wanted to keep quiet about what happened during this battle. It's bad enough a family losing its son, or sons, without the fact it was possibly due to your own side mistakenly shooting at the ship they were on. The voice to text was very good for the most part. As to any mispronunciations yesterday I was watching a man mispronounce Hebrides. So even us humans need help.
    6
  371.  @elpatron7916  Why. What difference does their religion make. Americans were Christian but also bought, sold and kept slaves.
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  372. I think he is taking advantage of us all being stuck inside our homes.
    6
  373.  @brianreddeman951  or a picture of the bow of the Dreadnought
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  374. Make some interesting Five Minute Guides
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  375. I have heard of getting your retaliation in first but this was a case of getting you Revenge in first. And considering all of the damage she caused and those ships she sank or left in too bad a condition to survive the storm I think any victory the Spanish claimed over the Revenge was somewhat pyrrhic.
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  376. Sorry Guys. I'm just late. Been one of those days. 🙁
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  377. I knew there was clashes between Red and White Russians after the war and the Royal Navy was involved but I did not know the details. I know British and American troops were sent there. I also knew that there was a problem with some British troops not wanting to fight in Russia. Partly because they had had enough and wanted to go home and partly because they did not want to die fighting to help businesses who were owed money get it back. A small number of British troops did destert
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  378.  @Thirdbase9  He's not sure
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  379. Misread the title I thought it was SMS Mackeson which sailed with her sister ship SMS Guinness.
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  380. I second that
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  381. The word come from the Latin Pirata, pirate, corsair, sea robber. This in turn comes from the Greek peiratēs which literally means one who attacks (ships).
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  382. True
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  383. I understand he had a conveyor belt on the bridge which was full of binoculars so he was ready to launch a fresh pair at any time.
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  384. Definitely agree with you here.
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  385. Did America look at France for inspiration here.
    5
  386.  keith moore  American on at least two occasions asked Britain to supply soldiers to fight in Vietnam. This was because US generals wanted British troops fighting there. Johnson even came to the UK to ask. So whether it was you personally who was asked is irrelevant. America did ask Britain to send troops.
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  387. That's what I always pronounced it. If you keep saying dee-do it sounds like a Greek police car.
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  388.  @22NF2  Only if the Kamchatka is nearby. Or if you are a fish with a fear of the sudden arrival of the binoculars of doom.
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  389.  @clothar23  I think those who served under Admiral Halsey in the Third Fleet may disagree somewhat. They discover how breezy it could get in the Pacific.
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  390.  @Dave_Sisson  On more then one occasion during the Crimean War Lord Raglan, who had served in the Napoleonic War, sounded the alarm upon seeing French troops thinking they were attacking. Old habit die hard. And if Britain had not declared war on Germany in WW1 they were going to blame Britain for any defeat by the Germans. And after their defeat in WW2 they did blame Britain. Despite them being in charge. So blowing up their navy is just part of the fun. On the two hundredth anniversary of the Battle of Trafalgar some senior French officers were taken around HMS Victory. On seeing some cannon balls one French officer asked if those were the ones used at the battle. A British Royal Navy officers said no you've still got those.
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  391. I did read that it was thought that electric razors would jam German radio guided weapons. It was thought they gave off a signal which would cause the jamming. You could just imagine the captain ordering his men to start shaving the minute a German bomber was spotted. Whether it would have worked I very much doubt. But they would have been the most clean shaven shipwrecked mariners in history.
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  392. To me it suggests that actually operating a carrier was beyond them and this was the best use they could come up with. Short sighted to say the least considering the problems they have with their aircraft carriers
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  393. That's Germany's fault. They will hang around in the cold North Sea instead of the Med where it's warmer.
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  394. Thanks for that. You have definitely filled a gap in my knowledge. As with aircraft submarines came along in leaps and bounds, as did anti-submarine warfare. You have to wonder how long all this would have taken during peace time.
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  395.  @longi625  If it works why change it
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  396. I forgot to mention about ramming. I seem to remember video of a Russian ship ramming a US Navy ship back in the 80s. I am sure I have seen the video on YouTube.
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  397.  @glenchapman3899  No that's what I call a good shot.
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  398. Bring out the comfy chair.
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  399. Some interesting thoughts there, Sar Jim
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  400. The second, and less well know, victory involving Trafalgar.
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  401. You have to wonder what she sailed like in rough seas.
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  402. Why histriographer rather then the usual historiographer. While I'm here I would like to say how much I enjoy your videos. Always very interesting, informative and witty. Also, since you have gone human, spoken with a great deal of authority.
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  403. This vagueness when passing on information carried on into WW2. Montgomery had this problem in North Africa and he decided to just ignore any information passed on to him from Bletchley Park. Crete was lost for the same reason as the information passed to those involved was so meaningless that it was of no help. If sufficient information had been given to those in charge the Germans would have been defeated. It makes you wonder why, between the wars, people from intelligence and the armed forces did not sit down and work this out.
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  404. I am looking forward to the USS TЯUMP. The problem could be secure communications for the Twitter account.
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  405. Attacking Hawaii on a Sunday. Not very sporting. Good job no one else thought of that. Imagine the effect it would have had.
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  406.  @2384SKIPPER  You get the feeling someone was stood there with a box full of nuts thinking it's like building flatpack furniture. There's always something left over.
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  407. Well it doesn't happen to often. And you can always re-watch it a later.
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  408. When it come to submariners bragging rights having a train on your list of kills will take some beating.
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  409. On a Saturday I like them to be about 30 minutes. Gives you enough time to drink your coffee at leasurely pace.
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  410.  @simonwaldock9689  True. That's why they first thing his army did when they took the capital city was head straight for the national bank and take all the money. You do realise that this makes WW2 the worlds biggest bank heist
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  411. No one can accuse you of not appreciating some of the better things in life.
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  412. That's not a euphemism by any chance.
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  413. I like it.
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  414. Drach's US Navy's Fleet Problems. There's too many bloody fleet problems.
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  415. Now it all makes sense
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  416.  @bkjeong4302  somewhat ironic that it was the Russians who were on a suicide mission against the Japaese.
    5
  417.  @hekatoncheiros208  I have read about him. Raided parts of Ireland's cough Coast ass well as England's Wwst Country. Ironic that Robert Newton used a West Country accent when he played Longjohn Silver
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  418. Okay. I've binge watched all of the Drydock and I am now up to speed. You may proceed from here.👍😊
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  419. Good news. I still have use of my legs. Though other parts of me, that bit I sit upon, have gone numb. I may be mistaken but I seem to remember Drach being concerned because he original planned these to be only 30 minutes and they had climbed up to 40 minutes. Little did we know at the time that this was just training for the endurance we would face in the months to come.
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  420.  @MrMattumbo  Well zigzagging will throw off the Japanese subs.
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  421. Maybe it should be featured when we have a ships dog video.
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  422. von Trapp's first wife was Agathe Whitehead. Agathe's grandfather was Robert Whitehead of Whitehead torpedo fame.
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  423. Interesting what you mentioned about tank rounds and why they would be less effective on battleships. I had recently wondered about them and I did think the would be less effective then on a tank. So thanks for confirming that. I note that shaped charges are used on torpedoes but as these would strike a ship below the waterline I assume there main effect was flooding rather then destruction and the purpose of the shaped charge was to punch a hole in the ship.
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  424.  @josephkarl2061  It is rumoured that they invented the catwalk. Though some say this is just some confusion about walking the plank
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  425. It is going to be hugely interesting to see what else they find.
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  426. And Scylla
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  427. One of the joys of the internet.
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  428.  @ThugShakers4Christ  Do we mention the what America did to the Indians
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  429. In WW2 the Allies experimented with air fuel bombs using coal dust. The dust was released before the explosive was detonated. But it turned out it was not as easy to detonate the coal dust as you might expect, what with needing the right mixture of air and coal dust.
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  430.  @vic5015  America should be praised for keeping some of their ships but the choice does at times leave something to be desired.
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  431. Just think of everything passed five minutes as a bonus.
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  432. A very interesting video. I must admit I could not see how the decisive battle was going to be a war winner. Especially against the US. It was a bit like a lion taking on an elephant. Whatever the lion thought it could do you know that at some point the elephant would win.
    4
  433. 8 views, 12 comments and 102 likes. Well we all know how good his videos are. Even people who haven't seen it like it and will say so.
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  434.  @Zarcondeegrissom  Didn't they try the diesel-electric engines on the elephant, I seem to remember. Not what you would call a roaring success.
    4
  435. I had forgotten about John Ericsson. He designed one of the locomotives entered into the Rainhill Trials for the Liverpool and Manchester Railway in 1829. He was obviously more successful at ships then he was at railway locomotives.
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  436.  @Philip271828  Actually yellow was for the 'go faster stripe' down the side.
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  437. I originally also thought that but part of the aim is to get in quick, hopefully without being detected, launch torpedoes, then get the hell out of there. Wiggling about while trying to aim at your target without the enemy firing back is definatelly not something you'd want to do. So being able to have some control over the torpedo is a great advantage. I have read several accounts by people who fought in MTB/PT boats and it was harder to hit a target then you might think. So being able to just point and shoot is a big advantage. A little side note I hope you may find interesting. Captain Peter Dickens, the great grandson of the author Charles Dickens, served on British Royal Navy MTBs during WW2.
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  438. Almost continually I would have thought.
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  439. Sounds like a knife fight in a barrel in the dark.
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  440.  @HEDGE1011  The best propeller driven aircraft came just at the end of WW2 at the very same time jets were coming into service. I am subscribed to Ed Nash's channel and many of his videos cover this very subject. I should take a look if you haven't already done so as I think you will enjoy it.
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  441. Definitely a destroyer captain.
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  442. Mines working fine
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  443.  @Downloadguy1995  And how are they about not using a capital letter at the beginning of the name.😮
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  444. As a thought, I think we should be awarded a medal for surviving Drydock 088. And in the tradition of such things we should all be given survivors leave.
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  445.  @MARGATEorcMAULER  Waiting for your contribution😂
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  446. Thanks for that. I had heard about the monitors but i did not know any real details. Many of those spare guns were used as rail guns in WW1 by the Royal Navy who were trying to find a use for them. Then they generously gave them to the British Army, who really did not want them either. I think some survived until WW2 when, out of complete desperation post Dunkirk, they were brought back into service until equipment levels were brought back up again.
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  447. Think you find that is no unique around here. 👍
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  448. You're drooling on your keyboard again.😛
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  449. I have the feeling that Halsey did a Mark Clarke and went for the glory rather then following orders. In both cases it led to the deaths of many Allied soldiers and sailors.
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  450. God bless her and all whose bowels and bladders held out.
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  451. I feel you have underplayed what happened to the Hull trawler fleet. The British trawler Crane was sunk, and its captain and first mate were killed. Four other trawlers were damaged, and six other fishermen were wounded, one of whom died a few months later. The Hull Town Docks Museum does have part of one of the trawlers which was hit and there is a statue on Hessle Road in Hull were many of the trawlermen lived. The statue is modelled on the dead fisherman George Henry Smith. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dogger_Bank_incident
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  452.  @samholdsworth3957  said Nelson
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  453.  @obelic71  Only on a diet of strong beer and fish and chip
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  454.  @truckerallikatuk  the crew could as well. Though how emotional you can get with you body disintegrated is hard to establish
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  455. Russia seems to have a problem with aircraft carriers.
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  456. As it is British I assume we are talking about using surface to air missiles rather than having it for anti tank use.
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  457. Are we counting her service with the Russian navy once, twice or three times. Once for her original service. Second when she was returned and third when she went from the Russian Imperial service to the Soviet navy.🤔 For a small ship life can get very confusing.
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  458. The incident with the Colombian destroyer reminded me of the last broadside fired by a Royal Navy ship. The ship, sorry I have forgotten its name, was due to come out of service, and being the last ship capable of firing a broadside she sailed out into the English Channel to do just that. So there she is out in the English Channel and just as she fired her last broadside a Russian warship sailed out of a nearby fogbank. The Russian captain must have wondered what was going on, serves them right for skulking about in fogbanks, but obviously realising it was not a good place to start an incident and decided discretion was the better part of valour and left the British to their own devises. One for the Q&A. Did the navy use super heated steam like they did on locomotives. Super heated steam, for those who have not heard of it, is where the steam is heated up by sending it through pipes back through the boiler to increase its temperature and therefore its power.
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  459. German Empires 4, German Reichs 3. German Empire goes through to the Knock out stage.
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  460. I assume there will be one on the Emden. The German Navy did better at raiding during both world wars.
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  461.  @RCAvhstape  The History Guy is the one. Mark is also another one I follow.
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  462.  @Anacronian  Someone stolen his sweetroll. 😊
    4
  463.  @jeffreyskoritowski4114  Actually piss warm beer if you were lucky. Much of it could have been at sea for some time before the crew got to it. It made tequila with a worm in it look like they were not really trying.
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  464. With all those changes in ownership there must have been a lot of flags in her flag locker.
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  465. In the early part of the war German U-Boats were also slow in submerging as they were not expecting to meet aircraft. It was only after they started to be subject to air attacks in the Atlantic did the realise they needed to dive more quickly.
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  466. Royal Navy guns were used as railguns in WW1. In fact at first they were usually manned by the navy until they decided to go back to sea when they bequeathed the guns to the army. Though the army was not as enthused by the receiving of this gift as as the navy was in the giving of it.
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  467.  @bluemarlin8138  Thanks. I did know about the Japanese using mattresses on their carriers. I felt sorry for the poor sailors whose mattress came back full of bullet holes and bomb splinters.
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  468. I'd like to know that as well.
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  469.  @Alex-cw3rz  Looked good but went to seed so very quickly. But it was the salad days of the Japanese Navy.
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  470.  @hernerweisenberg7052  That was my reference to Halsey, Herner. I think he went through two Typhoons. The British warships were better at seakeeping then many of their US counterparts. The Royal Navy having to deal with the North Atlantic. There was a storm on night in the Pacific which the Royal Navy and the US Navy fleets sailed through together. In there morning the US Navy asked the Royal Navy how they had faired with the storm. The reply was what storm.
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  471. One thing you can say about these five minute videos, you certainly get your monies-worth
    4
  472. Looking at the Admiral Kuznetsov aircraft carrier it is nice to know the old pre WW2 Soviet standards are still maintained. What with it's setting fire to itself and needed to be escorted by a flotilla of tugboats. Plus having its own crane on the flight deck, just in case. And the only floating dock big enough to take her has sunk. And she is back in dock again for more repairs. Apparently the cost of repairs is the same as its scrap value. Though there would be a saving in tugs and cranes and floating docks.
    4
  473.  @karlvongazenberg8398  Thanks. I had forgotten about that. And I thought the Swiss had problems with four official languages.
    4
  474. Q&A I do wonder why the pre WW2 Russians and Germans did not have an agreement about building warships like the did with tanks. Both would have benefited and the Germans could have started building their ships sooner. I would be interested in your thoughts on the matter.
    4
  475. Never understood the thinking behind the ram. It's not like they went the whole hog and included oars instead of steam engines. If you're close enough to ram the other ship then you are better off just shooting them.
    4
  476.  @s.31.l50  worth the wait though
    4
  477.  @Historyguy-xu5ht  Those German barges sat so low in the water even a moderate sea state would have sunk many of them. Half a dozen destroyers traveling at high speed would have caused havoc without even firing a shot.
    4
  478. The way they kept changing the specs was almost French. I was waiting for a floating hotel to turn up with a couple of 4.5 inch guns and some Bofors
    4
  479. Interesting new music. Thought for a minute I was in an American speakeasy at three in the morning. 😄👍 The Russians seem to be very hit and miss with their ships, what with these circular ships and their aircraft carriers. While at the same time building some decent warships. You have to wonder what Peter the Great would have made of them.
    4
  480. Definitely 👍
    4
  481. Looking at how these things worked I think he would have ran out on deck and found three AA gun mounts where he should have stood.👍
    4
  482.  @colbypupgaming1962  Barbering is a cutthroat business
    4
  483. Pleased you said that as I was just thinking the same. Did Corporal Jones have a branch of his family living in Russia. The Joneskis. What's the Russian for 'Don't panic chaps'
    4
  484. I have long wondered how different WW2 would have been if the R class submarine had been developed further. Being able to hunt German U-Boats transiting though the Bat of Biscay would have changed the Battle of the Atlantic.
    4
  485. Always more Dakka Dakka
    4
  486. To me Leyte was a campaign not a battle and the same with the Battle of France. Waterloo was a battle and part of the 100 Days Campaign. As for America joining WW1 on the German side. The Germans were on the edge of collapse during the Passchendaele campaign and if was not for the unseasonable bad weather the war would have ended in 1917.
    4
  487.  Niek Vels  difficult to duck anything that size
    4
  488.  Sean M  Sean. Ford filmed on Midway Island during the Japanese attack. Footage you see of Midway was his.
    4
  489. Having the black heart of a pirate was a usually requirement for joining destroyer. Which is what made them so good. And not just the Royal Navy. The US navies Taffy 3 had their share as the Japanese found out.
    4
  490.  Charles McCarron  The war criminal is the French admiral who was lying to his own government
    4
  491. Marathon? That's for lightweights. Fastest marathon runners do it in about two and a half hours. Drach was talking about how the lack of war in Europe would effect the Japanese attacking America at that point.
    4
  492.  @rudolfpeterudo3100  Thanks, Rudolf. 👍😊
    4
  493.  @brianreddeman951  at that time it would only work on Italian submarines 👍
    4
  494. You let your pizza burn! Just as we were starting to like you as well.😄
    4
  495. Seems to have quiet a few with you on that.
    4
  496. I did mention Johnnie Walker on the USS England video. He trained in antisubmarine warfare before the war so he hit the ground running once they finally let him loose. He'd be worth a five hour video on his own.
    4
  497. Just something you may find interesting. There is a British film called The Ship Which Died Of Shame (1955) which is about people using a WW2 MTB to run smuggling trips to the continent post war. Back in the late 60s there were two brothers who ran a caravan site on the Norfolk Broads and they owned a WW2 MTB which was kept on Oulton Broad. And, as you've probably guessed, they were using it to smuggle goods from France. They were eventually caught and sent to prison. I knew about this because my parents had a caravan on the site and one day received a letter telling them the site had been closed and they had to move the caravan. Interestingly the fact that they were smugglers suddenly explained a lot, such as how come the small bar was always so well stocked.
    3
  498. My ex boss once asked me the date WW2 started. So I told him and out of curiosity asked why he needed to know. That was the day his parents were married, he replied. So I said I don't think you can blame your parents for the start of WW2. Not a man with a great sense of humour he looked somewhat perplexed at my answer.
    3
  499. I have heard of built in obsolescence but these ship were obsolete by the time they were built. Interestingly while watching this video Shirley Bassey's song 'Wrong Way To Do It, kept running through my mind. I wonder why.
    3
  500. I did watch a documentary about the raising of the Maine and they thought it was a fired which had caused the explosion.
    3
  501.  @sillypuppy5940  Do you think they could get one of those ROV's to follow the trail.
    3
  502. A five minute guide which is nearly five minutes. What is the world coming to
    3
  503. A long a varied career for the class.
    3
  504. @Jeremy Jones Usually a bit more rough and tumble when we get to chatting.
    3
  505. Am I right in thinking these were better then the German battleships?
    3
  506. Having a passing interest in etymology I happened to look up the word bloke, where I discovered that it was used by WW1 Royal Navy crews in reference to the ships captain, though with a capital B. The Bloke. I wondered if you had ever come across such a reference to RN WW1 captains
    3
  507. Moore sometimes Britsh humour can escape others. The reference, as you have probably now realised, is a comment on the number of AA guns cared on the ship.
    3
  508.  @MoA-Reload...  Thanks. I'd not come across that before. Definitely a buttock clenching moment.
    3
  509. I think we are just pleased the robot voice was having the day off.
    3
  510. You're going to have to get some sleep you know. 😴👍
    3
  511. I have always thought it was a mistake to release film footage of the Panjandrum. Imagine if it was kept a secret and and information of it had been feed back to the Germans. The amount of time, materials and money the Germans would have wasted trying to come up a counter to them only to find they were not used.
    3
  512. Probably trying to launch a missile at a particularly large rat it's seen.
    3
  513. Some time ago I came to the conclusion that the Japanese should have left America alone and not attack Pearl Harbour. They had enough to do elsewhere without adding America to its list.
    3
  514. I heard he had paid off the squirrels. It turns out that they are happy to be paid peanuts.
    3
  515.  @Phaaschh  we should have gotten together. I built the Airfix Swordfish. We could have set something up with some hooks and some cord to recreate the fateful attack which jammed the steering 👍
    3
  516. A partial role reversal during WW1 was the Royal Naval Division which fought at Antwerp in 1914 and at Gallipoli in 1915. It was made up of Royal Navy and Royal Marine reservist and volunteers who were not needed for service at sea. On the 19th July 1916, following many losses among the original naval volunteers, itwas transferred to the British Army as the 63rd (Royal Naval) Division and fought as part of the British Army on the Western Front for the rest of the war. The Royal Navy mounted a number of heavy guns on railway gun carriages for use in France during WW1. These were later 'gifted' to the British Army. Gifted means the Royal Navy wanted rid of them and the British Army got them even though they did not want them. I believe in this case the operation of the guns was transferred to the army and no naval personnel went with them. And not forgetting aviation. When the Royal Air Force came into being in April 1918 all Naval Air Service was transferred to the Royal Air Force.
    3
  517. Now you mention it, yes.
    3
  518. I would think the Royal Naval Reserve as RFA is Royal Fleet Auxiliary which acts as support for the Royal Navy.
    3
  519.  @johnmcmickle5685  The problem there is that everyone else would be going the other way
    3
  520.  keith moore  One of my favourite jets is the F4 Phantom. It also did not have graceful lines but it was extremely capable of dealing with the enemy,
    3
  521.  @sircashew1097  Seems to be sadly lacking of late
    3
  522.  @scribejackhammar  I think he has in the past, though that was some time ago.
    3
  523. ​ @DERP_Squad  True but by putting that number to this "planned" invasion many senior German officers would have faced the real 4th Army in 1918. It would have a psychological effect. I am not sure which army you think is unlucky. The German soldiers in Norway would have known about what was happening on the Eastern Front and were probably glad to be out of it. The British 4th Army is the one which led the 100 Days Campaign in 1918 which led to the end of the war. That was unlucky for the Germans and left them in such disarray that they could not organise an armistice for two days. Otherwise the war would have ended on the 9th November instead of the 11th.
    3
  524. Well, it's not like they were using them for anything useful.
    3
  525. War declared does sound like a cricket game. War was declared and both teams went for lunch. Actually there is some dispute as to whether war was declared by Britain and if so by whom. Though the British government decided that Britain was going to war no one can remember making a formal declaration, or who did declare it. There is some thought that Sir Edward Grey, Bt Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs may have been the one who did it, but he may have just told the press. To put this into some sort of context Germany's Hamburg Shipping Line was still advertising trips to Germany in the British press for sometime after war was declared, and there were newspaper advertisements for British people to apply to a German music academy. No one at that time actually thought it would end in fighting.
    3
  526.  @andrewp8284  I see where you're coming from here but we both agree Drach said it with a touch more finesse
    3
  527.  @ottovonbismarck2443  spilled your coffee. Being blown up by a Japanese torpedo would have been less distressing
    3
  528. Somewhat ironic when you realise how many words in Western European languages have their origins in Latin And Greek
    3
  529. Designed by a plumber.
    3
  530. Can you just let them know not to put so many guns so high up
    3
  531. What is it with Germany trying to build the biggest war machines. Had Hitler invented the Top Trumps card game but could not sell it until Germany had the biggest aircraft, ships, tanks, guns et cetera. Or was Hitler compensating for something. I must admit to being staggered when I first read that German scientists and engineers would be sent to the Eastern Front when projects were cancelled. It's like no one was thinking about the countries future needs. There was a high ranking meeting in the spring of 1943 where defence projects which would not be finished within a year were cancelled and many of the scientists and engineers were shipped off to the Eastern Front. Then a year later there was this realisation that many of the projects they cancelled were after all needed. Such as the surface to air missiles needed to take on the waves of USAAF B17s and B25s.
    3
  532. Is it true that half the storage on the Kamchatka was taken up with binoculars which is why the rest of the fleet didn't just sink her.
    3
  533. I had to stop and think for a minute. They have battleships in the World Of Warcraft. My partner is pleased when she gets a new mount. Wait 'til she gets a warship.😮
    3
  534. The Germans found out about dive time. When they designed their pre-war U-Boats because they did not envision them facing aircraft. So the dive time was something like two minutes. If you spot an aircraft and it's seen you then two minutes meant there was a good chance you would be bombed.
    3
  535. Went to the Med and melted
    3
  536.  @DIREWOLFx75  There was a lot of muddled thinking back then
    3
  537. I think this was all started by the Russians because we all laughed at the Kamchatka.
    3
  538. When your biggest enemy is your own fellow countrymen then why take on the Allies. You've got enough to do without bringing in outsiders.
    3
  539.  @Mishn0  I was more looking at the connection between the way both ships and trains were similarly armoured. I had not known about the use of cotton bales in New Orleans so thanks for that.
    3
  540.  @AdamosDad  To the best of my knowledge Britain is the only country to pay off its debts for WW2.
    3
  541.  Joel Smith  We had something similar with light and narrow gauge railways some years ago. They would advertise a service to be run once a week and then it would be cancelled at last minute. Mostly it was because they just did not have enough traffic to make it worth while running the train. Ironic as most of these are now tourist attractions and run full in the summer time.
    3
  542. Sorry, Sir. The list was the only casualty
    3
  543. This may be true. But which one would you sooner be in if they faced off with each other.
    3
  544. There has been talk of the return of Q-Ships in the fight against modern pirates.
    3
  545.  @vaclav_fejt  You know he's going to take that as a challenge, don't you.
    3
  546. When the Maine was raised a not long ago it showed signs of there being an undetected fire and it is thought that it was this which caused the explosion.
    3
  547.  @MagnoliaNox  This is so very true. Talent means having a natural ability, but that still means they have to learn all the same skills as everyone else.
    3
  548. Intense3295 is correct. People are confused what the word talent means. It means having a natural ability at something, but they have to learn the same skills as you will. So I urge you to carry on with your struggles with USS New Jersey because as your skill level increases so will you confidence. Good luck
    3
  549. I am sat here, reading your comments and a coffee at hand. No picture of Admiral Horthy though there is a Wikipedia article with his picture.
    3
  550.  @comentedonakeyboard  Really trips of the tongue that one.
    3
  551. The rumour is he walks on water. This means that not only does he not swim but he also gets to dodge the Japanese Long Lance torpedoes.
    3
  552. A five minute guide which take 2 hours and 33 minutes. And the Dry Dock which was supposed to be less the and hour now takes over four hours. I am not complaining about the subject matter but maybe we should have an interlude like they used to have at the Cinema. So we can relieve our bladders and take in nourishment. Failing that anyone know where I can buy a commode. 🤔 Anyway. I really enjoyed this video and I look forward to more of them.
    3
  553.  @andrewfanner2245  That would have added a whole new problem with air-fuel explosions.
    3
  554. Interesting to think of not just the ships but what use was planned for them and how they were used
    3
  555. You have to wonder how many Japanese crewed them know them from WW2
    3
  556. I had read about the fire on USS Forrestal some time ago so it has been interesting to hear you talk about WW2 fire control by the USN. One of the things that surprised me was that one of the pilots died in his aircraft which caught fire. I wondered why he did not use his ejection seat to get away from the fire. I know it would have meant him going into the sea but he surely had a better chance there in he did in his aircraft.
    3
  557.  @PNurmi  Looking at her I would have thought the death and injuries toll would have been much higher. So thankful for that mercy
    3
  558. I think I could have done about 1 in 4 at a pinch.
    3
  559. Not what you'd call a luck class. At least not when it involved aircraft and torpedoes.
    3
  560.  @jimtaylor294  Trebuchet's sister ship
    3
  561.  @colormedubious4747  Third in the Trebuchet class
    3
  562. You weird person you 😊👍
    3
  563. Too much Bovington! We really don't need that sort of negativity in our lives.
    3
  564. My thoughts exactly
    3
  565. I watched the Highball video and you have got to wonder the effect it would have had on an enemy warship. Not only could the Mosquito come in fast, 365 MPH was given for the first film clip, but trying to shoot at a fast moving aircraft when you can see that bomb coming your way would need nerves of steal.
    3
  566. First
    3
  567. Designers. We need to to take the quart known as the Town Class and put it in the pint pot known as the Crown Colony Class. Should be easy enough.
    3
  568. Was that the first time they used them or when the Japanese used them in WW2
    3
  569. France. Building strange and ridiculous warships, so you don't have to. I would have liked to have seen the four quad turret version. Just to have seen how quickly it could spin on itself when a broadside was fired.
    3
  570. If you want action and excitement go for small boats and ships. I had to chuckle with your remark about listing to port as I was thinking the same thing as you read the list of awards.
    3
  571. Timing was not on their side.
    3
  572. Always had a soft spot for the Counties.
    2
  573. NAZI Germany was not led by the best and the brightest. In the spring of 1943 they held a meeting in which they decided that any project to be used for the defence of Germany and would not be completed in 12 months was to be halted as they were winning the war. Amongst projects which were stopped were those surface-to-air missiles they tried to rush into service later on. Even more shortsighted was the fact that many of the scientists and engineers on those cancelled project rather than being used on other projects were sent to the Eastern Front. Then in mid 1944 when they discovered that Lancaster bombers where being fitted with radar to improve bomb aiming they decided to reenstat many of those projects , including the surface-to-air missiles; and bring back those scientists and engineers who were still alive from the Eastern Front. All too late
    2
  574. Are miracles scheduled 👍
    2
  575. The Great Eastern would have been excellent as a supply/troop transporter as she was designed to travel non-stop from Britain to Australia. So as long as you could sort out the escort she would have been a one ship convoy.
    2
  576. In voice only.
    2
  577.  @Foxttellio  Of, I don't know. Not sure I'd want to go to America for the cricket. And they seem to have totally confused rugby and football. Actually one of the best laughs I've ever had was during an American football game. The kicker for one team came on the field to kick the ball down the field which was caught and returned by a running back on the other team. With only the kicker to beat he all but ignored him. But that was his biggest mistake as the kicker came across and floored him. The running back, from his position on the ground, looked at the kicker in total disbelief. That should not have happened. Of course the running back had never heard of Australia rules football otherwise he'd have played more attention.
    2
  578. Argus and Enterprise are both well traveled names
    2
  579.  @stephenpickering8063  Thanks for reminding me. I had forgotten about that. I remember some years ago there was a documentary about Room 40 which mentioned that. You can just imagine if that was real. The fog clears to find your ship on top of a mountain in Norway. The captain looks round and says' Oh, schitt.' 'Hans.' 'Check that chart again will you.'😀
    2
  580.  @Wallyworld30  I think we are all surprised they didn't do just that.
    2
  581.  @Zarcondeegrissom  Not sure how be a threat something you can out walk would be.
    2
  582.  @VersusARCH  Shared honours
    2
  583. For a country that prides itself on its panache it sort of took a nose dive with ship designs around this period. Something which stuck me was the similarity here with the ship token from the game Monopoly, Maybe the next ship to be designed was an aircraft carrier based on the Top Hat. Maybe for the Russian Navy and based on the Russian circular hull design.
    2
  584.  @virusguy5611  Yes but it was not his idea to send it to sea. You have to wonder what was in the mind of the person who decided to send it to sea.
    2
  585. One way around that would be to still keep it at the end but include a time stamp to show when it started.
    2
  586. So at 50 MPH for the Hood. So fast enough for the crew to go water skying.
    2
  587.  @georgebizos944  Bullet proof Emus
    2
  588. That is nothing compared to what you would hear from the Poles. As to how they would perform, what's the polish for 'Ramming Speed'.
    2
  589. As suicide attacks go that one was definitely a winner. Not only did it destroy the lock gate it took a number of Germans with it.
    2
  590. I think there is a very good chance Germany would have suffered an economic implosion before the mid forties. Remember their economy was so shaky that after the fall of France many trucks were sold off and the army was told to use horse drawn vehicles. And during Operation Barbarossa parts of the German advance was halted because of fuel shortage. They were so short of money that one of Germany's priorities during an invasion of a country was to get hold of any gold and foreign currency held by the state bank. So Plan Z would never have been completed even without war starting in 1939.
    2
  591. I think we've all had this problem.
    2
  592.  @mikehall4121  The ultimate fait of so many U-Boats.
    2
  593. I live just a few minutes walk from his home.
    2
  594.  @NickPoeschek  Thanks. I have built kits in the past but my talent never quite reaches my expectations
    2
  595. It would be very difficult for the submarine to sneak up on anybody with the support ship following it around.
    2
  596. Warships, military aircraft, tanks and steam locomotives. I knew there was something, somethings, I like about you. 👍
    2
  597.  @tomdolan9761  This is true. To be fair though everyone was unaware what the Royal Navy was doing. And, of course, there long lead time to building a ship. So when Dreadnought turned up they would have been stuck with the choice of finishing their ship of scrapping it.
    2
  598. When you look at it this is no different to land based aircraft flying from different airfields to attack the same target.
    2
  599. Apparently the on last strike the German aircraft arrived to late to attack the bombers, this despite the fact the Germans had radar set up for just such an event. It later transpired that the radar had indeed spotted the bombers and well within time to intercept them. But the operator had delayed sending the warning so as to allow the British attack to succeed. He had decided he had had enough of the Nazis and wanted them to be defeated. And this was his way of helping to ensure that defeat.
    2
  600. I was looking at the Wikipedia page for the Mogami which mentions the Battle of Sundra Strait. The Magami sank some four Japanese transports and a minesweeper. One of the transports, the Ryujo Maru, was carrying Lt. Gen. Imamura, who had to jump overboard. He was later rescued by the crew of a small boat and taken ashore. He, unlike the Mogami, survived the war. I think I now see why the Japanese Navy and Army did not get on so well.
    2
  601. The Russians did have some problems with admirals dying at inconvenient times. Having lost its Pacific Fleet to the Japanese the Russians sent their Baltic Fleet to replace it. The problem was on the trip out there the admiral in charge died. It was decided for reasons of moral not to tell anyone. The problem was that amongst those they did not tell was the second in command. Who was blissfully unaware that he was now in charge. I am sure you can guess what happened. The Russians lots all eight battleships and over 5000 men while the Japanese post three torpedo boats and 116 men.
    2
  602. They did tend to stick to sailing around the coast rather then crossing the Med because if there was a storm you had a better chance of either finding a sheltered harbour or, failing that, running your ships ashore and waiting for the storm to pass. As the Romans were new to being a naval power the did not understand about sticking to the coast and just thought they could sail across the Med like they would march their army across the land. Interestingly when Julius Caesar tried to invade Britain many of his ships were hit by the Autumn Equinox storms which often happen at that time of year. He managed to get enough ships together to get back to Gaul before trying again the following year. He landed at the same spot as the year before, got hit by the equinox storms yet again and then had to evacuate his troops yet again. For someone often fated as a great general he was a slow learner.
    2
  603. Facelift, fresh makeup and she out on the town again. It's the Hollywood look.
    2
  604. Thanks for that. I had heard about this but I did not know any details.
    2
  605. So a ship that was supposed to have a very short carrier ended up lasting into the 21st century. But we all know that happens more often then you would think.
    2
  606. To paraphrase 'he (she) also serves who stands and repairs others.'
    2
  607.  @bachelorchownowwithflavor3712  The greater the organisation the less detail seen by those at the top
    2
  608. Well the Germans would have been pleased to capture that.
    2
  609. Nelson's accent would be interesting. Lady Hamilton, despite how she was portrayed in the film 'That Hamilton Woman,' had a Lancashire accent. So should Nelson have been given a Norfolk accent.
    2
  610. USS Monitor was state of the art. I must have missed that day.
    2
  611. As we are enjoying the inclusion of naval aircraft how about a Wednesday Special on Captain Eric Brown. As a test pilot he flew more types and variants of aircraft than any other pilot. And also did 2500 deck landings, again higher then any other pilots. These records will now never be surpassed
    2
  612.  @kemarisite  You have to wonder what difference all these men would have made if they had been involved int the invasion.
    2
  613.  @joeschmalhofer6109  Not sure that is possible even now
    2
  614.  @patrick764  Pleased you could make it 👍
    2
  615.  @foo219  Well now's your chance to shine.
    2
  616. How would the war have been different if, for one reason or another, Britain and Japan had remained allies before and during WW2
    2
  617.  @cvproj  It's all that zen stuff. It still exists but in another reality. 😊
    2
  618. They way the specs kept changing was almost French. I was waiting for a floating hotel with a couple of 4.5 inch guns and some Bofors
    2
  619. Tell the truth. What you actually said was Oh great. Drachinifel 👍😊
    2
  620. first
    2
  621. Not sure why I did not mention it at the time but I think one of those floaty logs was discovered by my archaeology tutor.
    2
  622. Al Drach'sl pretence at gravitas lost in an instant.😊
    2
  623. I had come across the Blake but knew little about her. Bit of a game changer
    2
  624. That was excellent. I had not realised how short lived the class was.
    2
  625. Was the captain called Herman?
    2
  626. What ever you do change your signals officer.
    2
  627. Yes I also did a double take and wondered what had happened. Having done a one hour plus you went all giddy and tried to repeat this feat. Pity you ran out of steam at the end, need of a boiler refit I think. Having said that another 43 seconds would have given you a double ton. 👍
    2
  628. Better your pleased you no longer use the robot voice anymore.
    2
  629. Rather appropriate really
    2
  630. They look like the hull was upside down before they added the superstructure.
    2
  631.  @theduck3876 Unlike their navy they are definatelly in the big league when it comes to blowing shit up. 👍😄
    2
  632. I did read that a wife could legally have her husband declared dead if she had not seen or heard from him for three years and three months. Once that time period was up then she was free to remarry. It was something to do with how long Drake and his crew had been away before returning home. The French have won more wars then they lost.
    2
  633.  @Drachinifel  sorry I'm late in replaying, just catching up. I have seen both spellings but the shorter one only a couple of times and then connected with some sort of title. So I was curious as to why you were using that version. Anyway thanks for the reply
    2
  634. Interesting thought but would it be worth doing. What with the RN being in that area and the RAF could get some Beaufighters doing patrols with their 20 mm cannons and carrying rockets. That would really ruin your day.
    2
  635.  @lloydknighten5071  Maybe there is a sailors afterlife where they are all having a beer together along with the Arizona
    2
  636. Saw the logo and clicked on the video. Just as it was about to go to the video I had a brief glance at the ship name. Then had to wait to find out why the ship was named Roller Skate. Next time read first then click.
    2
  637. As well as Royal Marine and Naval Divisions fighting in France in WW1, many of the railguns were manned by the Royal Navy. The heavy calibre guns used, mostly various marks of the 9.2 inch, were usually supplied by the navy. The guns were later handed over to the British Army when the navy decided being on land this long was just not for them. The army was rather underwhelmed by the navies generosity.
    2
  638.  @TEHSTONEDPUMPKIN  Nice to see you too
    2
  639. I did read that the casualty rate on U-Boat crews was higher then amongst Japanese kamikaze pilots. At something like 90%.
    2
  640. Interesting to hear your thoughts on what would have happened if Britain had not joined WW1. One thing to remember is America was selling arms to both side for most of WW1. But without Britain needing to buy weapons from America the US would not have to money from them sales and Britain would have been in a much better position. As for Jutland. What victor runs away from the battlefield leaving it to there enemy if they had won. The Royal Navy was still there the following day ready to fight again, whereas the Germans had run back to port. As I say, no victor runs away from the battlefield leaving it to there enemy if they had won. The London North Western was big on double cylinders were used on its steam locomotives.
    2
  641. What was your first clue 😊👍
    2
  642. I wonder what Mr Wells would make of it.
    2
  643. A pot of coffee and Drach. Always a good way to start your day.
    2
  644. They did build a large clinker built ship. They took it out on a sea trial and it flexed so much that everyone on board was terrified it would fall apart and sink. They got it back to port where it never sailed again.
    2
  645. We sense a prequel in the offing
    2
  646. You have to wonder what the Germans thought about having to drag their poor relatives about with them.
    2
  647. Well, she may have been small but she was made of sterner stuff then some of her big sisters. I did know about the Laffey but I would like to know why so many aircraft were sent to sink her. It does look like someone got tunnel vision on this one.
    2
  648.  @ledichang9708  Interesting idea.
    2
  649.  @bluemarlin8138  That's probably why they only gave him the one pair.
    2
  650. Excellent educational quality
    2
  651. I did come across some information that prize money can still be paid out by the navy but the number of people who would receive a payment has expanded to include a large number of the naval personnel.
    2
  652. Interestingly there was a peace movement which was growing and involved US President Wilson. He was about to announce his involvement in it when the German telegram turned up along with the Germans saying they were going to use unrestricted submarine warfare. There is every likelihood that the peace process would have succeeded as by 1917 Britain and Germany were the only two countries still fighting. Because of the mutinies in the French Army the French would not attack the Germans, though they would defend themselves if attacked. And with the Americans declaring for the peace process the French could no expect help from the US. The US may have even stopped selling arms to both sides. The war would have ground to a halt and peace would have come about in 1918.
    2
  653.  @jacobhamselv  Considering how few true history videos are on YouTube it is bound to attract the attention of those with a genuine interest in history. So now you have been joined by 42K like minded people.👍
    2
  654. I watched a documentary where a pilot said that the reason you turned left because it was a natural instinct to push left rather then pull right. This applied to dog fighting as much as aborted carrier landings. The engines torque would also assist in this but that seems to have been a helpful advantage rather then anything else. Interestingly fighter pilots flying in Europe were told that if you had a Messerschmitt Bf 109 on your tail then turning right was better then turning left. The torque on the Bf 109's engine meant it did not react as quickly when turning right as Allied aircraft did.
    2
  655.  @Drachinifel  My partner is very fond of a biscuit with nut butter between the two biscuit. I had bought her a box of them and sent her a message letting he know. I had sent the message before realising that instead of nut butter it said but butter. She was highly amused.
    2
  656.  @Alex-cw3rz  I think you'll find that this just happens when it's curry night. A ships full of sailors after curry night and it has the same effect as nine 16 inch guns fired in a broadside.
    2
  657.  @luisnunes3863  maybe he's the god of rain but didn't know it.
    2
  658.  @stamfordly6463  That is entirely possible. As we know Bismarck was fitted with turtle back armoire which was well out of date by then. Which would suggest their skills were lacking
    2
  659. And the rum ration. That will confuse the USN as I understand they are dry ships.
    2
  660. I have seen an illustration of a British Fairmile D class MGB with what looks like the turret of an early WW2 tank with a 6 pr gun. This would make it the small boat version of a battlecruiser. America also looked at using the bouncing bomb. I have seen film footage of an American B-25 doing a test drop of a bouncing bomb. I was shown as part of a documentary about the raid on the German dams. Even before the bomb was dropped I could tell it would end badly as it was flying too low and sure enough the bomb bounced back up an took the tail of the B-25 off killing all on board.
    2
  661. The delights you get with time zones and sleep. Just a quick heads up, guys. We change to British Summer Time on the 31 March which means the clocks go forward an hour. Not sure if that effect the postings but I thought I'd let you know.
    2
  662.  @murderouskitten2577  but we all know about casement guns and rough seas. Great way tp get your boots wet
    2
  663.  @WALTERBROADDUS  They've obviously not told you. Everyday is National Coffee Day ☕☕☕☕☕☕☕
    2
  664. That's where I'd seen it before.😊👍
    2
  665. What?
    2
  666. No, sorry but I disagree.Anything good is worth waiting for.
    2
  667. With regard to various airforces being involved in their own countries naval airforce, I did read a book sometime ago by an RAF pilot who flew in the 20s and 30s as well as WW2 and he spent some time flying with the Royal Navy. Because carrier landings required specialist training he did find it difficult and was of a mind that the Royal Navy should have its own aircraft and pilots. Unfortunately I cannot remember the books name nor that of the author, but I did find his observations interesting because at that time I assumed that because as the navy had its own carriers they also had their own pilots. I did know about the RAF being made up of the Royal Flying Corp and the Royal Navy Air Service in 1918 but I had assumed that the Fleet Air Arm had been set up for carrier based aircraft and was not part of the RAF still. I then learnt through this book that the Fleet Air Arm did not become independent until 1937. All of this did effect the Royal Navy's aircraft choices up until that time.
    2
  668.  @Drachinifel  I would have though the effects of a HESH round on armour would have been devastating on a warship. What with all the splinters from the shattered armour. But as you say unless it hits something vital then its damage would be absorbed by the ship.
    2
  669. You had a question from a hotel. Wouldn't be French by any chance. Also was it based near, or possibly in, a French naval port. Just asking
    2
  670. Interesting about design Y. How different things could have been.
    2
  671.  @Joshua-fi4ji  Your right, Joshua. I meant the army and navy. And the Samaria clans were the origin of the rivalry which went as far as the assassination of the political leaders from each clan. As a country with so little in the way of natural resources the fact that they wasted so much on duplicating everything shows what can happen when stupidity overcomes common sense You have to wonder what Japan could have achieved were it not for these rivalries and had worked together. But I suppose this is what you get when you don't have anyone prepared to say no.
    2
  672. @Aqua Fyre The trick is that someone, usually the government, steps on and knock heads together. The only one capable of doing that was the emperor and even when he finally stepped in to end the war there were army officers prepared to defy him.
    2
  673.  @xsu-is7vq  This is true but with the lack of independent leadership there is no one to deal with the problem.
    2
  674.  @ottovonbismarck2443  I had to laugh at your remarks about the airforce and Germany not winning a war. Here's a thought for you. During the Franco-Prussian the French did use balloons and they lost. Whatever jinx France seems to have jinxed Germany. The Reggia Marina did have some very good officers but was to often hampered by the poor ones. They did not take up radar as early as others but their rangefinders were very good and each ship had plenty of them. The problem was quality control of the propellants. So an Italian warship could have shells exploding all around a Royal Navy ship very quickly but some shell from the same salvo dropped short while other overshot. And none hit the ship.
    2
  675.  @ottovonbismarck2443  At that point the RAF could do with all the help they could get and the Royal Navy's task was to use their ships to deal with the invasion. So the navy pilots flying with the RAF was a better use of their skill.
    2
  676.  @thewingedhussars459  famous last words, obviously 👍
    2
  677.  @calvingreene90  I think it was meant as a joke
    2
  678. Made me think of a tall drunk. Good field of view but libel to roll around a lot.
    2
  679. During the Copper and later Bronze Age British copper was seen as being not of a high enough quality for the making tools and weapons. So the copper used in Britain during that period was from places like France. And this is why we had enough copper for the Royal Navy to use on their ships.
    2
  680. I think we all do that Corey👍
    2
  681.  @Vespuchian  I should be careful with the old 'palm to forehead'. The way things are going you could be brain damage within a few hours.
    2
  682. I think they were probably as big but I think their flying characteristics left much to be desired.😊
    2
  683. I look at those cage masts and wonder how many sailors lost their lunch, and any other meals, on a particularly windy day. Bad enough on a tripod but at least they did not add to the swaying.
    2
  684. No. But I did. Coffee with a Hobnob please
    2
  685. Must say I like the new format.
    2
  686.  @tricap1542  You look after yourself. Up to 16,000 subscribers now. We don't want it falling to 15,999 do we. And I want to wish a Merry Christmas to you in return. And that also applies to Drachinfel, his family and all this rest of you whoever and wherever you are.
    2
  687. I thought he was. He's just subtle about it.
    2
  688. Interesting about the costs of government contracts. Some years ago I read about a documentary film maker who early in his career made a film for the then British government. But when he submitted his bill he was payed only half of it. When he asked about the full payment he was told that this was standard procedure pay only half because the government wanted to cut costs. By the time his next contract came around he had learned something from other film makers and submitted a bill which was twice what it cost to make. They again only paid half which meant he got this time he was paid in full.
    2
  689. It's interesting how often the smallest of things can shape the world. If Arch Duke Ferdinand of Austria had been taken on a different route after the failed first assassination attempt there would have been no WW1. Similarly if Yamamoto had lost one more finger how much more different world history would have been.
    2
  690. I very much found the photograph at 11:45 very interesting. In the early days of the railway one of the people who spoke against the railway did so because he said it would encourage people to move away from the coast which would mean they would not serve in the Royal Navy. But as your photograph shows the reverse is true. Many of those who served in the navy did not live near the cost.
    2
  691. You waited all those years until the invented computers and the internet. Now that's dedication
    2
  692.  @BobSmith-dk8nw  I think Tora Tora Tora is an excellent film. Closer to a drama documentary then a movie. You would have thought with all that was going on in the rest of the world they would have at least had a more, as you observed, 'ready to go' attitude. It looks more like they believed that the war would never happen to them. Having said that once they got themselves into gear the US armed forces made a good job of it.
    2
  693. Even at the end she was not going down without a fight. Love it.👍😊
    2
  694. Not sure where you live but its still Saturday in this part of the world. And will be for just under the next twelve hours. On the upside you've got Drydock to look forward to on Monday. 😊
    2
  695.  @the_undead  As some have been longer than that possibly the 'it end when it end' video.
    2
  696. Well the crew of the USS Forrestal had to learn that lesson during the Vietnam War.
    1
  697.  @empath69  That can be said about any government with a navy. Or any other force
    1
  698.  @bevpotter9938  True. But preserving Mary Rose and Warrior was a rather roundabout route.
    1
  699. I have a feeling the posies did not really help
    1
  700.  @richmcgee434  the five minute videos yes. Last week's 5 plus hours Drydock. Not so much.😮
    1
  701.  @christopherconard2831  I'm going to need considerably more coffee
    1
  702. One problem was that each country had its own agenda and was not averse to using these attacks to further that agenda rather then work with the others to stop the pirates.
    1
  703.  Michael Malloy  sorry I took that as read. Yes the Anzac, that Australia and New Zealand fought in Vietnam.
    1
  704.  @BOORAGG  yes but we did not ask for help
    1
  705. They like Mexican food. Okay 😀👍
    1
  706.  @Wallyworld30  Nice to know they had money to burn and material to waste. It's not like the German Airforce was flying around in clapped out aircraft that needed replacing or anything. Nor did the German Army need more Tigers or Panthers.
    1
  707.  @chrisangus7078  Actually the French have won more wars then they have lost. The problem with WW2 was interference by politicians. As always
    1
  708. May I suggest that the books are self published. There are a number publishers who would do this.
    1
  709. Christmas came early
    1
  710. When you look at history it can often be a small event which can make all the difference.
    1
  711.  @MoA-Reload...  thanks for reminding me. I have seen it and a couple of others as well as reading several accounts. But that was some time ago. Most accounts dealt more with the commandos whereas Drachs version concentrated more on the naval side which helped fill in the details from that aspect of the raid
    1
  712.  @ibeatyoutubecircumventingy6344  Not sure where any of that came from but if you think it would be different now then you are very much mistaken. If you think that British special forces are not the same now as they were then then you are totally deluded. Let's not forget that recently the British Royal Marine Commandos not only beat the US Marines on an exercise in the US, the US Marines home ground, they forced many of the marines to surrender.
    1
  713. I did watch the TV pictures as the Mary Rose was being lifted so I did see what happened to it. As I saw nothing fall off I assumed nothing tragic had happened to it. I play Skyrim on Steam and one of the mods I have is called Thunderchild. I helps your character with extra dragon shouts.
    1
  714.  @Philistine47  Ali Baba? Didn't he get caught trying to rob a bank? He was stood outside the vault door shouting 'Open Sesame.'
    1
  715. Definitely a missed opportunity
    1
  716. You have to wonder why no one added the flint lock sooner
    1
  717.  @silverhost9782  True.
    1
  718. You would not want to be on the receiving end of that lot coming down your ship. Really would ruin your day.
    1
  719. Admiral Marschall did better then a German paratroop officer who was to take part in the attack of the Dutch forts in 1940. They were under extremely strict orders not to talk about what they were doing and when it was discovered he had disobeyed those orders he was court martialed and shot.
    1
  720. Definitely horses for courses. British carriers would work well in the environment they were designed for as would the Americans. for where they were designed for. Having said that it would have been interesting to have seen an American carrier on an Arctic convoy.
    1
  721. Best five minutes I have spent in a while.
    1
  722. I had read about the use of electric razors as a way of jamming the German air to surface missiles but I must admit to being a bit skeptical about how useful it was. It would have been interesting to see the looks on the Germans faces when all those sailors suddenly decided to have a shave. Maybe what really happened was that the Germans were so stunned at the sight of all those sailors out on deck waving their electric razors that they just forgot to steer the missile.
    1
  723.  @philvanderlaan5942  oops😄
    1
  724.  @philvanderlaan5942  cheers from the 11 year olds
    1
  725. I believe that it is a requirement that you can only set fire to ships in a well ventilated space, such as the North Sea
    1
  726. I did come across a reference to the original gullwing version of Spitfire. I understand there was a problem with the fact that the wings would have been part of the radiator. Hot water from the engine would enter the wing where it would cool done enough to be reused. From what I remember, and it is some time since I read this, two of the problems with that idea is that having hot water and steam hitting cold water would probably resulted in the wings being blown off. And secondly, any hits on the wings could result in water escaping and the engine seizing up.
    1
  727.  @RCAvhstape  How about Mitsubishi who made the Zero. They, amongst other things, also make cars.
    1
  728.  @operkoi8954  Hands. Does that cruiser look familiar to you.
    1
  729.  @markbecht1420  Well Britain did accept delivery of some of them. though they were, by that point, a little worse for wear.
    1
  730.  @mjxw  A German pulled them over. 'Excuse me.' 'Can you point me in the direction of Stalingrad.'
    1
  731.  @Robert53area  'Her, Josepi.' 'does that 11 in gun look familiar to you.
    1
  732.  @markbecht1420  I did read that in the 1930s they would not have enclosed cockpits because they believed the best aerobatic aircraft did not have them.
    1
  733.  @RCAvhstape  They did have so good looking aircraft.
    1
  734.  @michaelpiatkowskijr1045  true. Makes getting back a bit of a problem
    1
  735. Interestingly the gun stabilizer on the US M-4 Sherman tank was also classified. Which meant tank crews were not allowed to know how to use them. This did not stop the cleverer tank crewmen to work it out. And those that did said they were happy with the stabilizer. This rest who never learnt how to use them just belittled the devise claiming it was not good.
    1
  736. Some years ago when the French Army received their new uniforms they actually had a fashion show with soldiers on a catwalk. So hipsters indeed.
    1
  737.  @matehavlik4559  As there was no war crimes committed then he cannot be a war criminal. You must be thinking about the Germans who sank at least two unarmed hospital ship full of wounded.
    1
  738.  @matehavlik4559 If that was food for thought you would die of starvation. They were not prisoners of war but enemy combatants. And to stop to take them on board would put his own ship at risk. Let us not forget that a German U-Boat sank two British cruisers while they stopped to rescue British sailors from a ship that the U-boat had sunk. So you can see why they would not wish to suffer the same fate picking up enemy combatant. And how little they cared about rescuing sailors from the sea.
    1
  739. I will avoid that, if you don't mind. My partner originates from the West Country and she takes a dim view of me doing that accent.
    1
  740. You noticed that too
    1
  741. Q&A Why Histriograher and not Historiographer. Also isn't Histriograher part of an official title. It would be interesting to know how you were given such a title
    1
  742.  @khaelamensha3624  Your welcome
    1
  743.  @phillip_iv_planetking6354  The English were supporting the Dutch because the Dutch wanted independence from Spain because of their treatment at the hands of the Spanish.
    1
  744. Could the Japanese have done a HMS Campbeltown on one or more Panama Canal lock gates on the 7th December 1941. I was thinking of them using merchant ships rather then warships and possibly under a false flag so as not to raise suspicions amongst the Americans on the canal.
    1
  745. American gun doctrine, they're cheaper by the dozen. Something which the still tried on they're early WW" tanks.
    1
  746. No. You leave it to me. I'll just take it into the shed. I fix it.
    1
  747. A thought about posters. Why not go through one of the sites such as Redbubble and get them to print and distribute them. It would be much easier and a lot cheaper as they are equipped to do this.
    1
  748. Talking of smuggling during WW2 reminded me of the 1955 film The Ship That Died Of Shame about a former WW2 British motor torpedo boat being used for smuggling from the Continent. Well some people must have seen that film and thought that was a good idea because that is exactly what they did. As in the film they eventually got caught and they spent sometime as guest in one of Her Majesties prisons. The MTB was based at the time at Oulton Broad on the Norfolk Broads.
    1
  749. One of mine also.
    1
  750.  @CaptainSloose  Cunningly disguised as trawlers.
    1
  751. I have on occasion wondered what US Navy admirals from that time would think if they knew how much the Congress pays for the navy today. There now follows the ghostly sound of the jaws of US Navy topbrass hitting the floor.
    1
  752. I think it was more a case of we were blissfully unaware of it's existence last time you were this early.
    1
  753. @Edward109 K So they could launch rockets, possibly. 😊👍
    1
  754. They destroyed several e-boats but missed all of the i-boats
    1
  755.  @silverfox575  As they were taking on the biggest battleship in the world I would think the last thing you could say was they had an inferiority complex.
    1
  756. I would keep the admin at the end but time stamp it for those who wished to view it without waiting to reach the end of the video.
    1
  757.  @Delgen1951  Not a job I'd volunteer for
    1
  758. So the choice is a cleaning production or a Dutch football team.
    1
  759. There was an idea during the Napoleonic War that the French were going to dig a tunnel under the English Channel and that the they could have used that to invade. To be fair to the French this seems to have been an English ideas which occasionally turned up when some newspaper editor wanted to increase sales. Not the sort of thing they'd do today, of course.
    1
  760. I think we now see why he used the robot voice. He is actually Alvin from Alvin and the Chipmunks.
    1
  761. Two quick points here. One, make sure when you are decorating your new home to make sure you have the windows open to increase ventilation so you do not inhale any of those nasty paint fumes. Secondly, you should stop drinking the "fortified" rum your great-great-grandfather left in the loft. I have read that the USS Second Amendment Rights only ever fired one broadside. Unfortunately due to an over zealous captain he ordered all guns were fired and not just those of the main armament, which resulted in the ship rolling over. But fortunately the force was such that the ship righted itself. Now it just so happened that while this rolling manoeuvre was taking place there just happened to be a shoal of tuna passing underneath the ship, most of which ended up on the deck. The Japanese ship, Most Honourable Combat, was nearby and offered assistance. When they came alongside they offered their help, by suggesting they combined their efforts and open a sushi bar in San Francisco, which they did. It was later bombed by the USAAF in revenge, it was claimed, for being left out of the deal. Oddly they claimed the attack was in a navigational error as they did not see the target and thought they were bombing in New Mexico. But witnesses said this cannot be true as San Francisco was light up like Christmas, mostly because it was Christmas. The USAAF said this saying it was not true and that any fool would have realised this incident was at the beginning of April. They also denied buying Royal Navy surplus fortified rum.
    1
  762.  @Aren-1997  That was Rahbar Al Haq complaining that Drach said war broke out rather then war was declared. He's a bit of a stickler for getting things right.👍
    1
  763. The Falklands invasion would never have taken place as Argentina was relying on there being no carriers. In fact if the military government had not brought the invasion forward the two carriers Britain had would have gone by the end of the year. Just imaging the Argentinians not only facing Harriers but also Buccaneers and Phantoms.
    1
  764.  @rednaughtstudios  As we saw what Sea Harriers did to A-4s maybe the wait would be worth it.
    1
  765. Damn. I was going to say last time I was this early Nelson was still a warship
    1
  766.  @davy1458  Actually the reason for two superstructures is to improve both ship and aircraft operation. And Britain is not the only country doing it.
    1
  767.  @ottovonbismarck2443  pleased you enjoy it, Otto
    1
  768. Must admit I also thought that. Maybe that's what the crane is for so as they can hoist up the new candle. They invented the flamethrower to light the candle.
    1
  769. That would depend on which class you came from. In WW1 the average height for a British officer meant he was four inches taller then his men. If we assume the same was true of Austro-Hungarian officers then it is possible that some were walking around with heads bowed.
    1
  770. Erm. I thought you didn't do modern stuff.
    1
  771. Your mind works weird. I love it.👍😊
    1
  772. My late father had a friend who served in the post war British Royal Navy, my father was in the Royal Artillery at the time so he had yet to enjoy this beverage. They were to meet up so his friend saved up his rum ration for the occasion. They both spent the evening drinking this rum and my father said he had never felt so ill. Rum was, on occasion, issued to the British Army in France in WW1. The problem could be that if the supply sergeant was a teetotaller then you could be issued with powered soup instead.
    1
  773.  @ottovonbismarck2443  No it was the old one. Looks like you've given me an excuse to build the new one. My big problem now is that if anyone asked why I am building the Swordfish I have to explain Otto von Bismarck recommended it.
    1
  774. Something you missed with the Haldane mission and the German requirement that Britain should not declare war on Germany if it was technically not the aggressor. Britain did not declared war on German in support of France. It declared war on Germany for invading neutral Belgium. Which means that Germany was the aggressor.
    1
  775. It's interesting that the American ship was trying to dismast the British ship as this was a French tactic. The aim being to capture your opponent but at the same time having a ship which was sailable and could be brought back into service reasonably quickly. And replacing masts would be cheaper then repairing the hull. The problem with that is it is no good trying to immobilise your opponent if he is hell bent one killing your gun crews and disabling your guns. As both the French and Spanish found out at Trafalgar.
    1
  776. I did read of someone who was on a Thames Barge near the coast when it was sunk in 1940 and he was sucked down with the barge. Fortunately the barge was in shallow water and only went down some 50 feet. once the suction had been broken he swam back to the surface. In some circumstances life preservers could be deadly. During the evacuation of troops from Dunkirk a number of soldiers were killed by their cork life preservers. When they jumped into the water it would shoot up and in a number of cases broke the necks of the wearers. And a number of US troops died because they put their inflatable life preservers around their wastes instead of around their chests which resulted in the life preserver tipping them upside down and the soldiers drowned. Two of my uncles served in the merchant navy in WW2. To the best of my knowledge neither of them went for an unexpected swim. Which must have been a great relief as they did do those trips to Northern Russia in the middle of winter. Another uncle served in the British Army throughout the war and he did survive the troopship he was on sinking while in the Mediterranean. We are big on irony in my family.
    1
  777. When did we fight Canada?
    1
  778. Funnily enough I was recently watching a video about USN torpedo bomber attack with mark 13 torpedoes on a number of Japanese merchant ships trapped in a lagoon. Not one torpedo exploded and some even missed their target. They could not even shoot fish in a barrel Fortunately other aircraft in the attack did destroy the ships. I have to wonder why, once their failings had been exposed, they Bureau of Ordnance still held any sway over the failings of the torpedo. More importantly why heads did not roll. One way or another their incompetence cost many lives. Not just the submarine crews but also the lives of those who would not have died had the torpedo worked and sunk the Japanese warships.
    1
  779. If Britain had taken over Hawaii the whole history of WW2 would be totally different. There would not have been any attack on Pearl Harbour to draw the US into the war. Not to mention the fate of a future president of the US.
    1
  780.  @keysontrains538  Not a battleship
    1
  781. In an era of how to books and articles here's a how not to, as in how not to win a battle you should have won. Interesting about the ram bow. I had read some time ago that it was introduced in the west after the Japanese had fought a war with China where the Japanese had sunk many Chinese ships by ramming them. What the reports of these naval battles seem to have failed to mention, or people ignored, was that the Japanese were using modern steel warships whereas the Chinese ships were wooden junks. I am sure on in the photograph you used was the stern not the bow as you can clearly see the rudders. British warships seem to have favoured a rounded bow rather then the spike shown in the photograph. I think the idea is that it cuts rather then spikes the enemies ship. This, hopefully, would cut the enemies ship in two and avoid getting yourself caught on the enemies ship. Sinking it, yes. Sinking with it, no.
    1
  782.  @UnintentionalSubmarine  He was probably off on a wild goose chase for the Yamato.
    1
  783. They had quite a long career for something which started off with no prospects
    1
  784.  @liberalsockpuppet4772  Somethings are worth waiting for. You, of course, had USS England which didn't hold back when it came to sinking Japanese submarines
    1
  785. You must have been sat with the mouse button hovering over the notification bell
    1
  786. enough for a game of cards 👍
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  787. I did come across a video on YouTube of a former USN officer who took part in the salvage of one of the ships. It gives an interesting account of what it was like to carry out the salvage and the things they had to do to raise the ship. One thing I did find interesting was the contribution the ships captain made to the sinking of the ship this officer was on. Apparently on Saturday 6th December the captain had all the portholes and watertight doors opened ready of working on the ship on the Monday. So when she was hit during the attack there was nothing to stop the water flood the ship and sinking her.
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  788.  @pegzounet  If that was the plan it worked very well.
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  789.  @hirisk761  Shifting over land Viking style. I like it. As we both know if the Navy actually knew what they were doing they would have sent a tug. That's what they are there for. And this would not be the last time they did not listen. There was that incident where the USAF lost a nuclear bomb of the Spanish coast and the Navy was looking in the wrong area. They eventually found it, right where the locals had been telling them where it was. Some people never learn
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  790.  @grahvis  And its draft would have been much shallower then the warship.
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  791. Not usually mentioned but the original plan had them using oars as a backup. They planned to hire an all Greek crew and row it like a trireme. There was talk of having it as a quadrireme or even a quinquereme. But someone mentioned this would mean the ship would be full of oars and seaman. And who wants a ship like that
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  792. Considering that this was in the middle of the German Spring Offensive is may have been better to have mounted a full on landing. At the very least it would have forced the Germans to divert valuable troops are resources away from the front line and would have meant that attack would have ended sooner.
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  793.  @patchouliknowledge4455  Just joining in the fun. I know about the Russian admiral and his disposable binocular.
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  794.  @wesleygay8918  They were not to hand at that point.
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  795. So the army and navy refused to work together while simulating being the Japanese. Boy were they trying to make it as realistic as possible.
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  796. ​ @empath69  True, Jaded. My remark was aimed at the fact that they were so often in that unfortunate position. Something, as we know, the North Atlantic specialises in.
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  797. That's got to be confusing for the enemy. Having to report you are under attack by HMS Dreadnought. The'll probable cut his rum ration again.
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  798.  @chrissouthgate4554  And I was thinking the same for the battleships.
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  799. There was a reported blue on blue for a coastal command aircraft sink a RN submarine during WW2. The submarine was on the surface and near the British coast when it was spotted by the aircraft. There was a RN submarine which was to have transited that area but should have been clear of it by that time. The aircraft's captain believe that was not the a RN submarine but a German U-Boat decided to attack. They attacked the the submarine which was hit and then rolled over and sank. When he got back he reported the sinking but there was a problem. It turned out the RN submarine was reported missing. There was an enquiry where the pilot pointed out that the submarine he had sunk had a rust hull below the waterline whereas the RN submarine was new which meant there would have been no rust. His problem was that when it rolled over he was the only one who saw the the bottom of the submarine so no one else could confirm what he saw. He was court-martialled which ended his flying career. Skip bombing could be as dangerous for the aircraft and its crew as it was the enemy. One problem was that the first skip of bomb could skip higher then the hight it was dropped at. More than one aircraft was destroyed when it was hit by its own bomb which had skipped back up and hit the aircraft. And even near misses could cause some consternation especially to the tail gunner of one aircraft as it passed so close the airman claimed he could have reached out and touched it as it went passed. As to the ends of gun barrels being polished. There is a post WW2 story of senior British officer who insisted that all the artillery guns under his command, 25 pounders I believe, had the paint of the first six inches from the end of the barrel removed and polished when on parade. Whether it happened or not I do not know. But in the version I was told the barrels were brass which had to be polished every day. This leads me to think that if the story was true then we are looking at some sort of cap rather than brass as to the best of my knowledge the barrel of the 25 pounder was not made of brass. The thing that makes me doubt it is true is the fact that the gun had a muzzle brake. Which was not brass either.
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  800.  @jlvfr  Talk about going old school
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  801. It would be interesting to know what the ships motto was. What's the Latin for shell magnet.
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  802. Did the Italians also have a problem with their warships exploding at this time.
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  803. I did see a documentary about the loss of the Sydney and the search for the wreck. Shows what a simple mistake can lead to.
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  804. I'd like to know the answer to this as well. Best I can tell is that it is an older form of historiographer. I came across a reference to the author T.C. Smout who is the Scottish Histriographer Royal.
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  805.  @chemiker494  I am sure others do the same but my experience is not as extensive as yours 😊
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  806.  Jimmy De'Souza  Thanks for this Jimmy but I think you may have over thought this as it is just a joke, about British buses. 👍😊
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  807. I see what you did there. You drank coffee while watching a Drach video. I like your style
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  808. The British actor Micheal Hordern served in the Royal Navy and a Fighter Direction Officer, and then first lieutenant on board HMS Illustrious. Shortly after the departure of his immediate superior, he was promoted to lieutenant commander, I remember watching an interview with him and him describing the training he received for his role. It involved a number of cyclist riding around and each bicycle having a shield in front of it so the cyclist could not see where they were going. Each carried a radio and the trainee fighter direction office would use the radio to direct the cyclists so as to avoid collisions between each of them. It has been some time since I watched the interview but I seem to remember he had to sit on top of a very high step ladder or something similar so he could observe the cyclists and give them directions.
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  809. I had wondered about the Japanese doing a Saint Nazaire type attack on the lock gates. Not necessarily ramming the gates but if they used a cargo ship and got it as close as possible to the gates before blowing up the ship it could cause a fair amount of damage. It would have been a suicide mission but if it succeeded it could have seriously effected US Navy movement and forced many ships to go south adding weeks to the time it took to reach the US west coast.
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  810. Was Lord Cochrane the first special forces commander
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  811. Thanks for the video. Just shows that alternative history is not as simple and straight forward as people often think.
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  812.  @ROBERTNABORNEY  Thanks, Robert. I'd totally forgotten about Avalon Hill's Operation Sea Lion. Now you have mentioned it I do remember the bit about ignoring how they got there.
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  813.  @benwilson6145  Thanks for your comments, Ben. Something to add to the mix was the fact that if Germany had managed to get the south coast the plan was to set the sea on fire. So even if they had succeeded in crossing the Channel they would then have to face trying to land and disembark troops while their landing craft were on fire. There was a series of wargames back in the 1970s, I believe, which covered what would have happened if the landings had been successful. It came to the conclusion that the Germans would have been stopped before they reach London. Makes you wonder if Germany had gone ahead with Operation Sea Lion how this would have effected Operation Barbarossa. If Germany has troops in Southern England, which would need support from the Luftwaffe and the Kriegsmarine, how was Germany going to have the manpower and equipment to attack Russia. And as Germany logistics was always the orphaned child of the German armed forces they would have been struggling to keep one operation running let alone two.
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  814. I had read about it. The Germans seem to be far more successful with commerce raiders then the High Sea Fleet did with fighting the Royal Navy.
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  815.  @washingtonradio  thanks, Jay. The thing to remember is that this was a new form of warfare. Whereas the Britsh and Americans overplayed strategic bombing and its capabilities the Germans had reason to regreat not having that option. Especially at targets beyond the range of their twin engined bombers when they wanted to attack Soviet power generation plants. Today one aircraft can achieve what a thousand bomber raid would have been sent to do, and probably have failed. An insight into the thinking behind one person's motivations for mass bombing of German towns and cities in WW2 can be seen in the words of an American USAAF general, who said in 1945 what for most of the fifty years up to that point Germany had either been a threat to or at war with the rest of the world. And it was his aim they nevr would be again.
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  816. Bit of a mix blessing, Drax. Nice to have the income but now you have the chance to spend more time doing what you love. Naval history. And, if such an ambition exists, you will now have time to write that book you've been thinking about. Especially as you have a ready audience. Whatever happens I wish you that very best of luck.
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  817. They did have tactics for evading torpedoes so it would be logical that they practised them.
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  818.  @Bert2368  You wonder how, as the father of the Russian Navy, he would have reacted to these ships. After all he knew something about shipbuilding. I get the feeling he would not have been best pleased.
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  819.  @tholmes2169  That I agree with you on. Especially Warspite.
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  820.  @RCAvhstape  I forget which ship it was but one of those sunk at Pearl Harbor was refloated but sank on the way back to the US.
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  821.  @a6mzeke1  I may be wrong here but from what I understand coking plants would use the coal itself as a fuel.
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  822. Good question. I had thought about that myself
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  823.  @steveclarke6257  When Eisenhower was asked about him serving under MacArthur he said he learnt acting under MacArthur. I don't think Eisenhower had commanded anything bigger then a division before D-Day. But, as you pointed out, it was his skill as a diplomat which got him the job. He was what every CEO should be. Let the people who know the job get on with it. One irony about the US army after D-Day is how poor the supply chain could be. The irony is that Eisenhower was an excellent supplies officer.
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  824.  @mikearmstrong8483  I hope this it was a bit quieter.
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  825.  @phaasch  I did read an autobiography of an RAF pilot who served between the wars. He was seconded to the navy for a time and one thing I realised from his remarks is that navy flying is not the same as airforce flying and should be left to the navy. Having said that when both the RAF and RN flew Harriers RAF pilots did fly with the RN. I would not be surprised if the same happens now with the F-35s
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  826. Second
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  827. I have come across references to US Navy special forces divers swimming out of a torpedo tube when the submarine was under water. This was usually done by the diver climbing into the tube with his air tanks, the tube it then flooded and then to tube door is opened to let the diver swim out. Once out he would then put his air tanks on.
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  828.  @iansadler4309  Thanks, Ian. I had forgotten all about that. Interesting that they kept the New Model Armies red coat. Though, as I am sure you know, the guards regiments wore scarlet with a different arrangement of the tunics buttons to denote which regiment they are.
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  829. Not sure about the Tirpitz having fire control radar. In the spring of 1943, and with Germany believing it was winning the war, many military projects were cancelled, including those involving radar. So it is doubtful that they would have been spending money on a ship which rarely went into combat. The Germans got a huge shock when, in 1944, they discovered that the British had started putting radar on its Lancaster bombers to assist with navigation and targeting. As a side note many of the scientist, engineers et cetera who worked on those cancelled projects were sent to fight on the Eastern Front. They later had to bring back those who survived to work on other projects. Makes you wonder how they lost the war. Brigades of Royal Marines fought as infantry in many of the land battles in France during WW1. Oddly many armoured trains used by the British during the 19th century had their artillery pieces manned by the Royal Navy. You have to wonder what the Royal Artillery thought of this.
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  830. All that way only to find you were yesterdays man
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  831. @Fluesterwitz That is true. But neither Mr Smith or Mr Western, or Mr Gluck for that matter, were involved with Agincourt as far as I know
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  832. @Marginally Sapient Cactus Sounds safe to use.
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  833. Well it would give those commerce raiders something to think about.
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  834. Adverts, adblock, no probs,
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  835.  @boobah5643  This is true. Having said that sometimes they are the last line of defense such a Taffy 3
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  836. Sounds like my typical Saturday
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  837.  @thebonesaw..4634  This is true but he does have better optics.
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  838. I think Tora Tora Tora is an excellent film. Not a big fan of the Carlton Heston film Midway. Felt to much like flag waving rather then going for historical accuracy. Seen the trailers for the new version of Midway. Like the film Pearl Harbour I'll be giving it a miss.
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  839. You just take your eye off him for a few minute and up pops another video. Thanks 👍
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  840. I understand that for a pilot pushing the joystick left rather then right is more natural. So if a pilot comes under attack they are more likely to break left.
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  841. Okay it took me three goes to get to the end, including staying up until the the early hours of the morning for the last bit. I have seen an example of the first of the two mines. We had one locally which had a slot in it to collect money. I think the money raised went the orphans whose fathers had been lost at sea. I asked my mother what it was and she told me and explained how it worked. So, like any child, I started hitting the horns to see what happened. I was somewhat disappointed nothing happened. What happened to it I do not know for certain but I think it went for scrap.
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  842. So the Dreadnought won a close run race. What with the Satsuma and the South Carolina.
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  843. The Austro-Hungarian Empire did not posses any foreign territory but that was mostly down to the fact they could not afford the costs of conquering other lands, what with them being in a slow decline during the 19th century.
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  844. The trenches did run to the coast and there were German positions behind the lines
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  845. Is that the raid that took most of the people. Only two ever returned if that is the place. Just imagine if you had been away from home that day and everyone you knew was gone.
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  846. I think that covered all the bets
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  847.  @silverjohn6037  At one point the highest rank in the English Army was sergeant general.
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  848. Tough neighbourhood where you live.😀
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  849. You must be new here. Us old hands upvote while the intro music is playing. Don't worry. You'll get the hang of it👍😀
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  850. Videos going the same way..
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  851. Well at least you have finally decided to call HMS Ajax by how it was called by the Royal Navy rather then a Dutch football team. It does not matter what how the Greeks pronounced the name, it's a British ship. This is nothing against the Greeks and if they have a ship called the Ajax it should be pronounce as they do. And I will remind you that you that you talk about Germany and not Deutschland, which is the name they use.
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  852.  @smokey1255  A sky full of USAAF fighters as well as flak. Now that is what I call a surprise. As many, if not all of the battleships et cetera would have survived they could meet up with the carriers and go after the Japanese fleet. I imagine the war would have been much shorter.
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  853.  @y0Milan  I never said it was exclusive. So thanks for the editions.
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  854.  @simonpitt8145  I see your point but maybe if they had actually picked a plan and built them before the war they could have been used.
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  855.  @mpetersen6  and me
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