KIDO BUNTAI Sails into History Nov26-Dec.7 1941

[Saxondog]

President Roosevelt said it was a "Day of Infamy"which would live on in the American culture. Yet many have forgotten the real Infamy of Naval Disarmament leading the Us and Britain to relax their leads in Aircraft carrier construction and development after World War I.

The Royal Navy was the first to design and use an Aircraft carrier,and the first to use Aircraft in a major fleet action:JUTLAND". But this lead in development was wasted by the Peace brokers,even though allowed by the Washington Naval treaty, Britain and America both did not build to this Treaty level.

But across the Pacific the Japanese not only built carriers to their tonnage limit,they built and developed the best carrier aircraft in the world and tactics,including land based carrier groups. The first 6 months of the Pacific war would be an example of this powerful new weapon.

KIDO BUNTAI SAILS INTO HISTORY

The Kido Butai (also known as the Carrier Striking Task Force) set sail from Hittokapu Bay, Japan under Vice Admiral Chuichi Nagumo on 26 November 1941, arriving in Hawaiian waters on Sunday December 7, 1941 Hawaiian time. At around 8am, the first wave began its attack on the US Pacific Fleet based at Pearl Harbor and on outlying airfields. By the end of the day 21 American ships were either sunk or crippled, 188 aircraft were destroyed and over 3,500 American personnel were casualties of war. Japan was now formally at war with the United States.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1st_Air_Fleet_(Imperial_Japanese_Navy" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;)

Also read this article on the Royal Naval Air Service- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Royal_Naval_Air_Service" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Also read this article for the USN air fleet development- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carrier_st ... up#History" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

This is an interesting aspect of both the development of Naval Warfare,and the development of Ground warfare as the Japanese built few tanks a due in part because of their Naval and Army air groups, with air power the need for a strong armor force and the War with China prevented the developement of an Tank Corp of any size in Japan. Yet the Germans with severe tonnage restrictions on their surface fleet developed the armor units as a main strike weapon.

It is interesting to me how the Nations military powers were interlinked and developed so different yet were still a direct result of the belief prior to World War II that the nation with the largest fleet ruled the world,and this is so true of Britain. After all prior to WWII the sun never set on the British Empire or the Royal Navy.

Royal Navy-First aircraft carriers in the world, Ironically first Nation to loose a Battleship at sea under power exclusively to air craft,and Ironically Japanese aircraft. First Aircraft carrier lost to Naval Air Power in world war II,THAT'S RIGHT,the Royal Navy.

So much Irony,yet the Irony also of the Royal Navy using Bi-Planes to attack the Bismarck and bring about her destruction,then to never create a Mono wing carrier aircraft equal to land based aircraft(Hurricane and Spitfire) excluded.

And one last odd ball event,the first Naval Ship to mount an 18"(460)mm Naval gun,also the first British carrier conversions,the THREE SISTERS - Furious, Courageous and Glorious. (Furious mounting a single 18"naval gun).

In Britain, Fisher's "large light cruisers" were converted to carriers. Furious had already been converted to an aircraft carrier during the war and Glorious and Courageous, which had no place in the post-Treaty navy, were similarly converted.