US Protected Cruiser, 1890 – today Introduction: The birth of the “new navy” When the first Cleveland Administration took office in 1885, Navy Secretary William Collins Whitney decided to maintain the previous modernization program under the Arthur Administration, at the time it was still far from power projection, limited to commerce raiding only (in part … Read more
Wager class Destroyers (1950) South African Navy (1950-80)SAS Jan Van Riebeeck (D278), SAS Simon Van Der Stel (D237) Wager class joins South African Navy: SAS Jan Van Riebeeck after conversion (C.Haycocks) On 29 March 1950, South Africa received its first destroyer HMSAS Jan van Riebeeck (former HMS Wessex), at the HM Dockyard in Simons’s Town, … Read more
USN Carrier-borne piston-engine attack aircraft US Navy (1945-1985), 3,180 built The long-living piston-powered legend Although some of the most prominent WW2 aircraft, such as the F4U Corsair or the P51 Mustang, constantly upgraded, still took part in various combats in the 1970-80s, the Douglas Skyraider is certainly one of these surprises. Known at first as … Read more
Carrier Borne Fighter, Imperial Japanese Navy Imperial Japanese Navy, 10,939 built The legendary Japanese fighter Just named colloquially “zero” and still popularly known as such today, the A6M, or “Mitsubishi Navy Type 0 carrier fighter” (零式艦上戦闘機) hence the number used as nickname, was the brainchild of superstar aviation designer Jiro Horikoshi. A superb dogfighter, combined … Read more
Group III “Condotierri” light cruisers Italy (1934), Raimondo Montecuccoli, Muzio Attendolo A brand new cruiser design The four cruisers of groups III and IV were relatively similar, the Raimondo Montecuccoli class (with Muzio Attendolo), and the Emanuele Filiberto Duca d’Aosta soon after all were launched between 1934 and 1935. They were all very similar in … Read more
HMS Audacity (1941) United Kingdom – (1938-1941) The first British RN Escort Aircraft Carrier The Royal Navy’s first escort carrier was for most of her life never a carrier at all. She started life as SS Hannover which served as a regular cargo ship for Germany, but was requisitioned in January 1941 by the Royal … Read more
RNAS/FAA 1937-40: 192 built. A first modern Royal navy Dive Bomber The Blackburn Skua was the first monoplane of the Fleet Air Arm and thus represented a leap forward. It was also a combined fighter/dive bomber due to the small squadrons aboard British Aircraft Carriers. Unlike the Roc was also a combined fighter-Bomber, she saw … Read more
France (1891-1926) Admiral Charner, Bruix, Chanzy, Latouche-Tréville Follow-up cruisers of the Dupuy de Lôme. The previous Dupuy de Lôme was considered a prototype, an experimental armoured cruiser tailored for commerce warfare. The admiralty recoignised the merits of the design, innovative for them in the line of the young school, and it was decided to create … Read more
Germany – SMS Wiesbaden, SMS Frankfurt (1914-1919) Hipper’s Cavalry: Among the light cruisers screening for the Kaiserliches Marine, were the modern and active SMS Wiesbaden and Frankfurt: They were screening Admiral Franz Hipper’s battlecruisers (1st scouting group) in early sorties and fought notably at Jutland. Very similar to the previous Graudenz class, but up-armed with … Read more
Imperial Japanese Navy, 1936-44. IJN Chitose, IJN chiyoda Convertible seaplane tenders with a short career The Chitose class were started 1934 and 1936 as “cheats” towards international naval treaties, designed as seaplane tenders but at the start modular enough to be quickly converted as light aircraft carriers in wartime. As such, both in service as … Read more
