How Quickly Could the Battleships Be Reactivated?

In this episode we're underneath the ship looking at some of the work that would need to be done to reactivate the ship.
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The views and opinions expressed in this video are those of the content creator only and may not reflect the views and opinions of the Battleship New Jersey Museum & Memorial, the Home Port Alliance for the USS New Jersey, Inc., its staff, crew, or others. The research presented herein represents the most up-to-date scholarship available to us at the time of filming, but our understanding of the past is constantly evolving. This video is made for entertainment purposes only.

[@alexkitner5356]

It depends on how loud you play AC/DC in the background... if you blast Highway to Hell at 14,000 decibels, the task can be done in as little as 3 hours with a competent commander like Channing Tatum and a handful of senior citizens.

[@barrydysert2974]

😂😂😂

[@MikeN-cs8qe]

Its cant be louder than the Super Hueys flying overhead blasting out “Fortunate Son”. 🚁 🚁

[@BrickNewton]

We gonna need a montage, a ship building montage

[@charlesmaurer6214]

Don't forget Thunderstruck.

[@jasonmoran7425]

And a whole lotta coffee….

[@markf19]

I don’t care what anyone says, that scene from battleship is one of the coolest scenes ever

[@geradkavanagh8240]

Just the attitude was good. Like the old guys said, 'Who's going to know what to do."

[@Viper31300]

“Let’s drop some lead on those motherfu-.”

[@deracer69]

what most people didn't realize is that when the Mighty Mo fired her 16inch, that was actually footage taken from the Persian war, back in the early 90's and just enhanced to look modern

[@douglascampbell4993]

@@deracer69 seriously??? I want that to be true so bad, hey! hahahahaha

[@williamneal7210]

Hells yeah!

[@davidodonnell7396]

I was on Eisenhower (CVN-69) in the Red Sea at the beginning of Desert Shield. We were relieved by battleship Wisconsin (BB-64). The sight of a battleship coming over the horizon and pulling up alongside is something I will never forget.

[@BoomerRockstheGrand]

I served on IKE also from '80 to '82 and spent 9 mos off the Gulf of Oman during the Iranian Hostage Crisis (and with no liberty for 9 mos). It was challenging but I wouldn't trade it for anything. God bless our armed forces!

[@youwished8806]

I was on the Ike in 2000. Sadly I missed out on the battle wagon era. I've been on the Texas and Alabama both of them had a purpose in their era. I would love to see a day where we would arm a new line of ships with 4 five inch guns and tomahawk launchers.

[@hallvardhalrgar]

@@BoomerRockstheGrand My dad was a cook on the Ike from '76 to '80 and was out in the IO with you during that time. He said when he finally saw land he knew he was never going back.

[@pauljanetzke]

I bet that was an awesome sight, seeing Big Wisky break the horizon.

[@jaceelliott6317]

I wish I'd been there to see the look on the faces of the gunners when they got the order to fire off the cannons. Imagine being told that you get to fire the first modern shots from a battleship Cannon in a modern conflict, and get to say for the rest of your life that you shot the US military's biggest gun in combat.

[@TheOtherGuys2]

"Let's drop some lead on these mother-" *16 inch full broadside sounds*

[@jacksonstephens7549]

Best scene

[@bdubb7005]

I swear the guy shooting the .50 looks like morgan freeman

[@yoyo5069]

Faulkers

[@paulheitkemper1559]

The movie they most need to make is Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors. It's another one of those movies where they'll have to tone down how incredibly those destroyers fought simply because the audience wouldn't believe it.

[@starmnsixty1209]

Agreed. ✔️

[@casey6556]

Agreed! My first thought when it came to “battleship on battleship” engagements, despite the fact that one side “only” had destroyers that fought like battleships

[@w.reidripley1968]

_Last Stand_ is the stuff of action movies all right. Bravo, James A. Hornfischer, R.I.P. Maybe they will name a frigate for him one day. After all, not only did they name one for John Hancock (DD-981), they reproduced his famous signature on its stern. Saw her tied up at Norfolk with her squadron, like a row of seagoing butcher knives.

[@PatHelbert]

They should make a movie about the 6 month long fight for Guadacanal too.

[@paulheitkemper1559]

@@PatHelbert not that they're comprehension by any means, but the miniseries The Pacific and the movie The Thin Red Line dealt with Guadalcanal.

[@brax2364]

I was stationed at NAS Sanford FL back in 1968. I remember when they brought the New Jersey back on line and the Navy needed a bunch of WWII and Korean War retired gunner’s mates to bring back on active duty to teach the young lads how to fire the 16 guns. I’ll never forget the Cheshire grins all these CPOs had wearing the uniform once again. Respect.

[@toddburgess5056]

Thanks for sharing

[@NordicDan]

That had to be a helluva sight to see. I have to admit I'm jealous.

[@murph19611]

I went thru dry dock next to her in 1982 , we got out of dry dock at the same time as Jersey so we trained along side her , I got to watch Ronald Reagan recommission her ...watched her fire her 16s for the first time since Nam ...

[@zacknagel827]

I drive past that airport about 3 times a week now! Blue angles still fly shows out of OSI! Saw them flying a few weeks ago! Still amazes me!

[@mikeallensonntag]

I don't think it's a question of if they can be reactivated I think it's mainly a question of no one has knowledge on how to operate some of the system on these old battleships. The navy would literally have to bring back some old timers from retirement just like in the movie to train some sailors atleast for a small run down on how things operate back then.

[@danielstephens7416]

A movie about how Admiral Lee turned Washington's gunners into snipers and made it the only US battleship to sink another battleship in a gunfight.

[@roscop.coltrane8532]

I just finished the book, his death was so tragic. He should have been at the surrender.

[@danielseelye6005]

"Remember: Ching Lee Doesn't Miss." - The Fat Electrician. 😎

[@ryanstuckey8677]

washington wasn't the only us battleship to sink another battleship in ww2

[@waynewolfe8817]

The battle of Suriago Straight was the classic "crossing the T" formation used by the US Navy, commanded by Admiral Jessie Oledendorf. The battle started miles from the main battle line by PT Boats, then the US destroyers worked over the heavy units, cruisers and battleships. The Pearl Harbor survivors then put the finishing touches on the Japanese battle line, (I think including Yamato's sister ship, the Musashi).

[@danielseelye6005]

@@ryanstuckey8677 "Sammie B" might've fought like a battleship, but she wasn't one. 😉

[@cyberherbalist]

After the 1980s reactivations of Iowa class battleships, a distant cousin of mine who retired as a US Navy Master Chief Petty Officer was invited to return to active duty for service aboard one of them. He did so, gleefully, but his wife was less thrilled!

[@tankiller9638]

Got an uber recently that helped recommission the Missouri...was a cool story before work.

[@53kenner]

My brother got off active duty and then went in to reenlist, provided he got New Jersey ... which was in recommissioning. They told him that there was no way to get that billet, but a few hours later a message came in ordering them to sign him up and send him to the yards. Apparently, he had experience with similar fire control systems.

[@cyberherbalist]

@@53kenner- Super story! I was in the Army infantry for 8 years, but I always loved the Navy. Even sailed on a couple of ships (as cargo). I loved those "boats".

[@pvccannon1966]

THERE are millions of women. There are only a few battleships. She should know her place in the the piramid.

[@jmjones7897]

Outstanding

[@martinjrgensen8234]

That scene from Battleship, while ridiculous, is just absolutely awesome. It is so much dumb fun seeing the Mo power slide and unload a full broadside

[@stevenpowell1991]

Battle of Leyte Gulf. It is absolutely criminal that this has never been made into a movie.

[@SlipKnot7866]

a movie about this would be awesome. Something like highlighting the Musashi and Yamato's only real fight and how uselessly they were could be the theme in a way?

[@navylostboy]

"i have not had a chance to see it" = translated from ryan speech for "NOT GONNA DO IT"

[@terrylong8894]

Because yes it really is THAT stupid.

[@davidpick1076]

The ultimate question is a bad movie a good movie? Fans of HDTGM podcast say 100% yes. Those who lean a bad movie is just a bad movie. Remember a review is only an opinion.

[@captwrecked]

It's totally unbelievable and stupid but I gotta admit that it's worth at least watching the VFX shots of Mo at sea again under power. And to an ACDC soundtrack for extra "'Murica" on top. I love that specific shot sequence if only for it proving a real story could be told with great VFX of Big Ships at war.

[@DSNSGaming]

It was soooooo bad. 😂

[@bobguylikescheese9878]

It's not good but it is fun, and it looks great.

[@captwrecked]

I will say this about Battleship, as ridiculous as it was, VFX on Mo looked amazing and really made me want a remake of movies like Sink the Bismarck! with that attention to detail like in Greyhound, etc. We need some great ship on ship movies again, more so if we can tell REAL stories as they're often better than fiction. Cheers to the whole team working on NJ right now!

[@oldmech619]

You gotta see the movie Battleship. It is a fun movie as ridiculous as it is. Just leave all your nautical brain cells at home.

[@johnlee8523]

I love Battleship, it's TOTALLY impractical but the kid in me loved to see the Mighty Mo sendingnlead downrange!

[@davidpick1076]

I still wish director Peter Berg made a transformer movie. I'm confident it would be better then the various sequels Michael Bay has made in that franchise.

[@captwrecked]

@@johnlee8523 Exactly. It proved the VFX are good enough to depict a real story accurately.

[@McNubbys]

Agee

[@123Dunebuggy]

This solves the fermi paradox, the aliens stay away because of the threat of museum ships.

[@Infernal_Elf]

🤣🤣🤣

[@brax2364]

Maybe not so much a fear of the museum artifacts but more like the fear of getting their asses kicked by very pissed off WWII combat veterans. Don’t Fuk with old people because they give zero fuks if you piss them off.

[@zanderzephyrlistens]

Genius

[@ricardof9394]

I was a Gunners Mate stationed on the New Jersey from March 1985 to March 1989. Turret 1 left gun captain.

[@ryancrazy1]

have you visited the ship since?

[@yoyo5069]

That's the wussiest turret and gun. The party is in the rear....ask P. Diddy

[@matthewallen978]

im a marine mechanic and i love seeing this kind of stuff, i love hearing about he history and stories of these ships and i would absolutely LOVE to take an active duty style tour of her, if the new jersey was reactivated, i'd be one of the first sailors to say "no, i want to be on THAT *pointing to the battleship*"

[@BritishTeaLover]

To be fair to the film Battleship, there's some hints that it might not be in the same condition that Missouri is in today. There's a line about how much fuel they have onboard, and one of the old crew (there's a number of veterans from her previous crews who are at a reunion, and happen to be there) says they've only got enough to do the odd shakedown run, implying that the ship (in that universe) might have been kept operational enough to do the odd sail. Though there's no indication of where all the people they'd need to do that are etc.

[@king_br0k]

If it is doing occasional prestige cruises the piwerplant could have been updated with computer control

[@DeeEight]

Not without real world precedent. HMS Vanguard while serving as Home fleet flagship from '52 to '55 had a reduced crew complement and less ammunition stored aboard.

[@DaveSoCal]

600 tons of fuel

[@SealofPerfection]

All of Missouri's intakes and other ports under the ship are welded over just like New Jersey's and every other museum ship's are. She can't go to sea or make steam without going to dry dock first and having them opened back up.

[@johngaltline9933]

@@SealofPerfection While I'm fully on board with it being a complete fantasy that Missouri could have been combat ready in just hours...it takes about a day just to build enough steam to sail... Within the universe of the film, we have it on screen that Missouri just came out of drydock, and within that universe it is possible that she was made fit to sail under her own power in that drydocking. There's plenty else impossible in the movie, but it is at least possible that the sea chests were open.

[@HeavyTanker-vx4oq]

I think Warspite needs a movie. To tell her story, from WW1 and her lone stand against the German Navy, to her Conquests in the Mediterranean during WW2, to her disgraceful death. All of that deserves to be covered in a movie, show, something. Let the Grand old Lady shine.

[@P-Mouse]

they made a movie about Narvik and didn't even put her in it, the movie was terrible btw

[@bill7533]

With all respect to Belfast, the Warspite should be in her place on the Thames.

[@HeavyTanker-vx4oq]

@@bill7533 DAMN RIGHT.

[@P-Mouse]

@@bill7533 always found it kinda funny that Belfast is in London and not in Belfast

[@bill7533]

@@P-Mouse if the world were a better place, she would be, and Warspite would be on the Thames. To be fair, I'm not sure she would have survived the IRA in their heyday if she'd been there.

[@adambowman8543]

In the movie Battleship it is implied that Missouri is kept in a semi operational state, saying they have enough fuel for a "maintenance run." And that some ammunition was available somewhere nearby, either sealed away from tourists in one of the magazines or in a wearhouse nearby.

[@felixleong61]

Well, when 2 US Navy Destroyers got destroyed AND those spinny shredder drones destroyed a US airbase nearby, I can see the Vets plus some navy boys got to work immediately, getting Mighty Mo as ready as she can be to shove some 16-inch HEs and APs up the Aliens' rear ends.

[@adambowman8543]

@@felixleong61 "Let's drop some lead on this mother" "Fire"

[@michaeltaylor5939]

@@adambowman8543 That was one of my favorite lines from the movie.

[@FS2K4Pilot]

@@felixleong61That airfield was MCAS Kaneohe Bay.

[@Curt-ge9gc]

A Decommissioned Naval vessel is Never Fully open to the Public.

[@toweringhorse2054]

Battleship will always be a guilty pleasure movie for me. Absolutely love that film

[@djh918]

You called it “Missourah”. I am so happy!

[@jmjones7897]

2nd that. Hell yeah from St. Louis

[@patrickprafke4894]

The thing I see never mentioned about the "Battleship" movie and is missed quit a lot. They mention that they go out for "maintenance runs" with it. Meaning its already ready to go and NOT mothballed or docked in a manner in witch it can't move. I think they even mention it twice in the movie.

[@matasa7463]

Yeah, in the movie, the ship was actually not completely sealed up like the current modern ships are. The Navy seemed to use the ship for ceremonial sailing and stuff, so it is kept fairly active.

[@roberthoppock5349]

that's what I thought part of the filming was done during a maintenance run

[@Zerox_Prime]

So... the Mighty MO didn't 😮 fight the aliens.... tell me it ain't so. Joe! 😢

[@FireStormOOO_]

​@@matasa7463 That's interesting, so more in line with the museum model of USS Constitution than any of the later WWI and WWII era ships.

[@kennethdeanmiller7324]

@@Zerox_Prime Those aliens were toast before the movie even began!

[@garywayne6083]

I once suggested to them a fundraiser - "Watch Battleship with Ryan!" We'd all donate a bunch of bucks to sit in the wardroom and watch the movie with Ryan, with him pausing the movie and commenting on various scenes and how ridiculous it is. I understand we'd be there for probably 6 hours but the bar would bring in mega money! 😆😆😆

[@cerneysmallengines]

so much of a movie is just dialog. if they did it, it would probably he more like an hour

[@Kellen6795]

I think we might need more then a wardroom for that 🤣 Knowing how many people love this ship, we'd probably have to commandeer a carrier to be moved over and steal their hanger

[@ScotttheCyborg]

Back when the History Channel was actually about history, one of the best shows was History vs Hollywood, when they would show usually a war movie and had experts discuss the event and the movie.

[@t1m3f0x]

@@Kellen6795 Maybe they could strike a deal to do it on Kennedy before she leaves to be scraped.

[@benruset]

I would 1000% pay to attend this.

[@wlhamaty]

Let's say you had an Iowa-class battleship perfectly preserved in like-new condition. It requires 1,921 crew members to make it come to life. Every one of them has to qualify for each watch station. The last time anyone did any of those was 32 years ago, and the documentation, such as it is, is that old. The youngest person to actually serve on a battleship is in their 50's. Reactivating the Iowa-class BBs could be done, but it is about as practical as raising the Yamato and turning it into a spaceship.

[@wilsonle61]

Yes, and the logistics train just does not exist anymore. You could raid all the museum battleships and maybe you could keep 1 or maybe 2 Iowas running for maybe 5 years? After that, no more spares. Just an educated guess on my part.

[@christineshotton824]

Nice Star Blazers reference. 👍

[@hypergolic8468]

And crucially, in my opinion, there's always the documentation, but the day-to-day reality of any system: it's the deep operational knowledge that is what actually turns it into a weapons system. Seeing a lube oil indicator light "over there" flash up, could, to an experienced person, be the knowledge that a totally unrelated but larger fault is happening. You don't get that in manuals, only in hard operation.

[@xpusostomos]

​@@hypergolic8468I suspect all that is actually in the manuals, because you've got 4 ships, they need to share operational knowledge, however there's a difference between it being written down and it being trained into someone for actual operations

[@J-1410]

@@wilsonle61 If they were reactivated, in a hurry, we'd be in a war economy, so if something that is needed exists, the government would requisition it, like they did during both world wars If given time, and a cooperative congress, and a reason, replacement parts could be made again. Reproduction parts made from nothing but some drawings and pictures have been done on things older than 100 years. The Case 150 Road Locomotive is an example, being built from pictures and some drawings, from scratch, as a side project for a small foundry as money allowed. Everyone said they wouldn't build a new steam traction engine, let alone a rare odd ball, yet it happened. The same happened about a decade ago with a set of high pressure experimental steam traction engines. Neither had any operating instructions or living people who used it. So given the right combination of time, money, people, and resources, anything could be possible. The main key would be the people. You'd have to find someone who if you tell them "it can't be done" they will put everything they have on proving you wrong.

[@ap0lmc]

Big Mo at Desert Storm video was shock and awe to the world.

[@davigorb]

I'm a honorable discharge, Navy BT2. I'll be there. Help you get it moving with NO problem. I've run manually fired superheated boilers But might be a couple days to fix the steam leaks😊

[@joeb5316]

Battleship gets a worse rep than it deserves. I'm not saying it's historically accurate or sensible, mind you, but it's entertaining and Mighty MO does get to kick some stern.

[@ScotttheCyborg]

A good show to watch with your chicken burrito. And its VERY respectful of veterans.

[@Culdcepter]

Oh that damn chicken burrito :D

[@ronaldtreitner1460]

historically accurate? we never had a war with aliens at sea you've seen too many movies.

[@ScotttheCyborg]

@@ronaldtreitner1460 The Pentagon has a plan for dealing with an alien invasion. It varies according to two axes: the difference in technology level, and the speed at which the aliens can get replacements. There is also some consideration of adaptability, how fast each side can adapt to the tactics of the other. Mostly we're rapidly effed.

[@SdKfz173]

It has to be watched as entertainment and with the "coolness" of a battleship, and the other ships of course, not for its accuracy (or lack of). After all, its based on a computergame :)

[@ferremit]

As someone who works for government, and has been tasked to clean up old storage locations and found 'disposed of three decades ago' gear and equipment, I'm almost willing to bet a taco that somewhere is a forgotten warehouse absolutely stuffed full of 16" shells for the SoDac's and Iowas. Whether you'd be game to try and MOVE them at this stage is a choice for someone else to make!

[@singleproppilot]

The shells are less of an issue than the powder. If there is any powder left, it’s age means it’s no good.

[@seantaggart7382]

Wow So if needed? We could mothball together a destroyer or frigate with a battleship cannon

[@deracer69]

@@seantaggart7382 i like the way you think, but if i remember correctly, they did that back in WW2, and they were known as Heavy Cruisers, that had up to 305mm, or even 340mm turrets on them, i know the Des Moines class Cruisers had the 203mm on them

[@seantaggart7382]

@@deracer69 oh sweet! Now destroyer

[@xmtryanx]

@@singleproppilot Wasnt the 'powder' mostly thermite?

[@thomasgentry6201]

Retired USN. Gulf War 1 Vet. Missouri and Wisconsin was a sight to see!

[@lonmcq7317]

Thank You, Sir...

[@toodlepop]

almost nothing makes me happier than hearing a person talk about different alien movies, or different types of zombie movies, or stuff in star wars and star trek. i freakin love it.

[@robertfarrimond3369]

I'd like to see a movie about "The Battleship Commander" but they'd have to get the North Carolina to sit in for Washington

[@johnsykesiii1629]

Agree 110% with this.

[@wolfpreist]

Ching Lee?

[@johnsykesiii1629]

@@wolfpreist Yup.

[@McBruch]

Stand aside he is coming through

[@Echowhiskeyone]

Use The Fat Electrician's script for a basis for the movie. Keep it serious, but have fun doing it.

[@sargepent9815]

Side note, when I joined the Army in 2001 I worked at a depot that had surplus 16" shells for the iowa class in one of out ammunition bunkers, along with 8" shells for the M110 mobile howitzer. Some time around 2004 the 16" shells were removed, their charges removed and then sent off to various static displays. A few are at the Gold Star Museum at Camp Dodge Iowa

[@james7110]

I can tell this man likes his job and is passionate for it. Great job answering a qustion I've had for 12 years

[@donchaput8278]

Love this great cover story! Sooo excited to see one of the Iowa's finally reactivated again. Will love to see videos about all the new upgrades

[@lorenherrick8722]

I am a retired shipbuilder and supervisor from Bath Iron Works. We built the CG51 class, the DDG 51 class and the DDG1000 class. New Jersey would be a great place for retired shipbuilders to donate their time for upkeep and maintenance….

[@christopherrandazzo1485]

Kudos to Ryan for his deadpan delivery and tact when dealing with the oft-posed questions about re-activating USS New Jersey.

[@glennac]

Yes! The Staff must roll their eyes every time they see these outlandish “When is the ship being reactivated?” questions. 🙄

[@2adamast]

Reactivating is part of the dream people are visiting. Just like battleship movies. His commitment and that of the volunteers is to old iron is remarkable, but soon the generation of people with memories will be dead.

[@P-Mouse]

assuming he doesn't have a PowerPoint ready with his own step by step plan for reactivation

[@Skiiiiiifreeeeeee]

I cry BS. Ryan has watched battleship and enjoyed every second of it.

[@thecashier930]

And if he hasn't watched it yet he would enjoy it. That movie is so awesome.

[@Plaprad]

Battleship is one of my favorites. Does it have an emotional roller coaster of a story? No. Does it have a message all should learn in their lives? Nope. Does it have an Iowa class battleship absolutely clapping aliens back to the void of space with 16 inches of democracy. YES! Therefore, Emmy award material. But as for a real one, just about any. I can't think of a single battleship engagement that could not be made into a great movie. But my personal vote would be the Second Night Action off Guadalcanal. But I'm thinking more of a biopic of Admiral Lee with the climax being his leading Washington in introducing the Empire of Japan to the American tradition of shotguns and road signs. (If you know, you know. And probably grew up in the country.) Just seeing a decently accurate of that battle on the big screen would be amazing. Plus, you get a bonus. I'm betting to save money, a lot of scenes would be filmed on board North Carolina. More publicity and money for the ol' girl.

[@barrydysert2974]

Just a country boy here. i can't tell You how many shot up road signs i've seen in my nearly 62 years. i CAN tell you that Admiral Ching Lee is my all-time favorite Admiral. i am so with You on wanting to see Him on the big screen !:-)

[@Canopus68]

I saw the NJ twice. First time was in Bremerton when she came back from Nam and tied up across the pier for us. The next time was when she headed home from Desert Storm. The big MO came in and tied up near where we were stationed. I got a ride out with a Coast Guard boat.

[@charleshutchings9355]

My brother was on the NJ when they reactivated her. When they went through the Panama Canal they trimmed everything off the sides so she would fit. Then she went on to Viet Nam. Hollywood should make a movie about that deployment. I've talked to many soldiers & Marines who praised the ship AND her crew for being there. I was in the Sixth Fleet on an Oiler USS Nantahala at the same time. I'm grateful she brought my bro back safely. Sorry! Just thinking out loud. I wish my brother and I could visit the ship while she's in dry dock. I would love to see her, and I think my brother would as well. Thanks for these videos!

[@BB.61]

Not necessarily a battleship idea, but one that would be cool to see on the big screen would be one depicting the Battle off Samar.

[@Plaprad]

As much as I agree, how many people would be on social media immediately after complaining how that could never happen.

[@nonna_sof5889]

I was about to suggest that.

[@BB.61]

@@Plaprad Haha, true! When I first read about Samar even I thought it was ludicrous.

[@Plaprad]

@@BB.61 I forgot where I read it, but they apparently had an issue when the Audy Murphey movie came out. They cut all the stuff they thought no one would believe. With what was left, people left the movie complaining it was too ludicrous and unbelievable. I've shown people Drach's video on it, and they've all asked what movie it was from.

[@DaveSoCal]

Samar would be painful to watch

[@McBruch]

We really need a movie of Willis A. Lee and USS Washington both are getting so overlooked in history considering that that night at Guadacanal was a real make it or brake it engagement Washington and SoDak were the very last ships available to guard the airfield which was the big factor in this conflict. Lee was an absolutely outstanding commander who did so much for the USN in WW2 it really is a shame he gets non of the credits

[@rogerb3654]

Movie Name: "Ironbottom Sound" This covers the 1st - 4th Battles off Savo Island - The First Battle of Savo Island - The Second Battle of Savo Island (a.k.a. the Battle of Cape Esperance) - The Third Battle of Savo Island (a.k.a. the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal) - The Fourth Battle of Savo Island (a.k.a. the Battle of Tassafaronga)

[@MrJay_White]

that sounds like a franchise set if you dont want an 8 hour movie or smash cuts every 20 seconds.

[@majormagnumshow2528]

nah top line in small font "the" bottom line in huge font IRONBOTTOM with the main part of the logo with some star wars esque image of the different important figures stacked up with Karishima and USS Washington on opposite sides like the star destroyer and millennium falcon.

[@ah244895]

So you are saying it may be possible?

[@waynewolfe8817]

​@@ah244895Boy I hope, get Seth Paradin, and Capt. Bill Toti involved!

[@SKYNET9er]

@00:20 stop tape, i thought I remembered seeing one of his videos saying it would take way too much to bring it back into service?

[@cliffordplasd8239]

Thank you for a real world explanation of what it takes to bring old battle ships back on line.

[@Norbrookc]

Aside from the 16" guns, just park a HIMARS or ATACMS on the stern helicopter pad with some reloads. The Navy's already tried it.

[@Inspadave]

Better yet we have the SSGNs

[@xpusostomos]

Yeah, but do you want an old Battleship just so you can do that? I would suggest, no.

[@Highwind79]

But our hearts say yes.

[@austinhughes1924]

That alone would be cool!

[@hannahranga]

If you want a himars park a merchant ship would do the job just fine.

[@gordonwhitney6052]

At least the movie Battleship had live footage of Missouri under way on the open ocean. Filmed while she was either going to or coming back from her 2009 drydock visit, shot so as to keep the tugs and tow lines off camera and make it look as if Missouri was on her own, under her own power.

[@scottjackson5173]

There is no shortage of film footage of Iowa class battleships under way. They didn't really need to take too many shots of decommissioned ships. There is plenty of video and film footage of these ships shot for a variety of reasons. All after the New Jersey BB-62 was reactivated in the 1980s. Like that Stephen Segal movie, I forget the title. Any way I saw the New Jersey BB-62 pier side at NAS Coronado in 1983. She was moored next to my ship, the USS Ranger CV-61. Shortly before both ships deployed.

[@Ganiscol]

@@scottjackson5173 none of that footage has the required quality or format. They needed recent footage for some shots and relied on CGI for most of the rest.

[@scottjackson5173]

@@Ganiscol Saw both movies. Pretty sure I saw some cuts taken from Under Siege, with Stephen Segal. Since I knew that the Iowa class battleships were out of service. I looked closely at the ship. Assuming that the footage doesn't have the same resolution assumes the original footage was early digital footage. Instead of high quality film footage.

[@t1m3f0x]

@@scottjackson5173 But present day there are some things missing that would be present in stock footage. See "What Are Those Domes On The Superstructures of the Battleships?" for an example.

[@scottjackson5173]

@@t1m3f0x It's been too long since I've seen the films. Domes could be a lot of things. CIWS antennas, SPQ-9 radomes for drone control are the most recent domes. Other types of domes were aboard, when they were originally placed in mothballs.

[@marial8235]

Jutland. The Battlecruiser duel would be fantastic with modern special effects. Plus when Jellicoe crosses the German T and Scheer’s masterful handling of his fleet. They could also show the Kaiser and Tirpitz while King George and Mary form a contrast. Many stories to tell here…

[@thekidfromcleveland3944]

HBO needs to get on this like immediately

[@bmflmf]

My Dad was on the Missouri Thanks for sharing

[@davidhansen9338]

Great show! I learned more great things about that class of battleships. Thanks.

[@sikhandtakerakhuvar9678]

One key point of the movie "Battleship" is that as the movie begins, the battleship is *just arriving* to be decommissioned and turned into a museum.

[@surelyyoujokemeinfailure7531]

Wasn't that the beginning of 'BSG' too? They were about to turn the Galactica into a museum ship?

[@sikhandtakerakhuvar9678]

@@surelyyoujokemeinfailure7531 I do believe you are right!

[@Lennis01]

@@surelyyoujokemeinfailure7531 Yes, and all of its ammunition had already been stripped, leaving the ship with only a fighter wing for defense until the ship could resupply.

[@Flies2FLL]

My dad worked at Detroit Edison's plant in Monroe, Mish-Gin and they had no end of tube leaks with their boilers. Four big boilers, four 750 MW units, the place was a monster! It was as long as a shopping mall and 20 stories high with two 800 foot stacks. That place was nothing but trouble, and a decommissioned New Jersey? I suspect a year to get it running is optimistic! Great video!

[@ScotttheCyborg]

This remind me of something from the Fallout tv series on Amazon - our young hero is a member of the Young Pipefitters Society. After over 200 years there's a lot of leaks to fix.

[@charlessandel]

Michigan *

[@phillipbruni2434]

This is quite the rabbit hole that we all just went down

[@mark5368]

You are so right. To use one of these wonderful examples of a battle ship in an obscure movie with aliens is ridiculous. BTW, thanks for everything you do as a curator of this piece of history.

[@shawndoyle7531]

If it's any consolation, the Navy still knows how to operate conventional steam plants. They have about a dozen ships, with a few newer than 1992, that used 600 psi boilers. I know that they're different from what the Iowas are equipped with, but they still burn fuel oil and are still pretty massive.

[@chrisauton4]

The last stand of the tin can sailor would make a great movie

[@michaelmurphy2602]

the sarcasm mixed with disdain for that movie is perfect.

[@michaelphillips8238]

People seem to forget that the movie was never intended to be about battleship warfare - it was one of a planned series of movies based around kids games. The first one, Real Steel, was based on Rockem Sockem Robots. Battleship was based on the boardgame of the same name (hence the alien weapons looked like the pegs used in the game). There was supposed to be a couple of others, but I don't think they finished them.

[@LithicForm]

oh my GOD the choice of the alien weapons always intrigued me... now I know why lmfao ty ty

[@michaelphillips8238]

@@LithicForm When you look at it as based on the board game, it's really a fun little movie 😜Plus, I always get pumped up during scenes that play AC/DC's Thunderstruck

[@LithicForm]

@@michaelphillips8238 💯 agreed 😂

[@joedunn1109]

Plus, there was the scene using the grid of sensors to detect the alien ships. They even used the coordinate system from the game.

[@JM-xu3cr]

@@michaelphillips8238 Yes! We all know it makes no sense but it still kicks ass and is fun.

[@darylmorning]

I want a movie following Adm Willis "Ching" Lee with the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal. That gunfight was almost Western in it's drama!

[@stanburton4574]

I would love to see a movie on the Battle of the Komandorski Islands. It is not a battleship fight, but US Cruisers Salt Lake City and Richmond fight off a superior force in the longest navel gunfight without air cover in WWII. I had a co-worker that was on the USS Coglan (DD-606) as one of the four destroyers there. His version of the battle was interesting. ---Stan=--

[@higgme1ster]

Ryan, you need to watch the movie Battleship at the soonest opportunity. This should be a personal imperative, in order to be relatable to the rest of the nation. It is also cracking good fun and gets the jingoist juices flowing, while continuing to embrace our harmonious relationship with the Japanese nation.

[@WilliamPayneNZ]

I am waiting for the day that Ryan goes full Frank Grimes level crazy from having to answer these questions all the time.

[@t1m3f0x]

In the movie Battleship they had the surviving crew members from 3 destroyers, (2 American Arleigh Burkes & 1 Japanese Kongō class).

[@AvGas502]

but how many surviving sailors was that in total ? i would'nt think even 50 or so not including the old sailors already on the ship, so maybe 70 sailors at most got the ship running in the movie ?

[@t1m3f0x]

@@AvGas502 I'm not sure, but now that I think about it, I don't remember if they even used the 5 inch guns, when they left Pearl Harbor they were only planing to do shore bombardment, so they may not have maned the 5 inch guns, or only maned half of them. And they also could have only fired up one or two engines, so that's another place where they could have understaffed.

[@Techburn997]

@@AvGas502 One other thing the movie should have shown is that despite the attack at Pearl there would be a large amount of active navy servicemen in the area beyond the Vets able to assist and has been doing so the moment they were attacked. The JPJ survivors should have puttered into Pearl to see the USS Missouri swarming with people and machinery working to getting it underway with the Vets leading the work teams, telling everybody how to operate the equipment and loading whatever they can find into her powder rooms. But the movie should have also taken place over a full week and had the JPJ and Myoko playing a game of chicken with the alien ships, unknowingly giving Pearl enough time to just get Missouri barely operational.

[@AvGas502]

@@t1m3f0x Can't remember any mention of the 5 inch guns in that movie, only in "Under Siege" do i remember them using 5 inch star burst to illuminate the submarine & then shoot the 16 inch

[@PhoenixT70]

@@t1m3f0xI could swear that there is an establishing shot of the 5” secondaries being fired, but it could be a Mandela Effect thing.

[@RandallSchwed]

All the parts and ammo are in the same warehouse as the Ark of the Covenant!

[@Ghauster]

Warehouse 13?

[@lozada1971]

The New Jersey is impressive. I was stationed at Navy Recruiting District Philadelphia from 2004-2007 and we conducted our Chief initiations there. Sleeping there, eating there and doing drills there was a blast. The volunteer crew were mostly all retired Chiefs, the had a blast participating on the Chief initiation final night. They were so happy to be part of the shaping of our new Chiefs. I participated in 12 Chief initiations in my 24 year career, but those 3 onboard the New Jersey were the best by far.

[@lostangeles4476]

Excellent history and explanations. Thank you.

[@Anachroschism]

I'd like to see the folks behind Band of Brothers, The Pacific, etc, do a miniseries on WW2 naval warfare.

[@cruisinguy6024]

Unfortunately I think the time has come and gone for great WWW productions. One of the reason why BoB, The Pacific, and all the great WW2 movies was access to the actual veterans of those battles. That’s why the Masters of the Air series is so “meh” and I suspect a naval warfare series would also fail to live up to BoB standards. There’s so very few WW2 veterans left now. So, so, so many great WW2 movies came out in the 1960s and 1970s because many of those veterans starred in those great movies but as they aged we saw less and less great WW2 movies, and now I think that age is over.

[@bighohnster]

I was very disappointed in “Pacific” I hoped it would focus more on battleship and heavy cruisers, and LST’s. But I definitely want a series like that.

[@777poco]

they made a mess of masters of the air but band of brothers was great

[@oceanmariner]

When I was a kid in the 1950s, my extended family had a business that reactivated freighters and other non-warships. Many ships mothballed after WWII had substantial fuel, both diesel and bunker. The navy and Maritime Administration put in a fuel preserver (that's probably illegal now) and the fuel was still usable. I used fuel as old as 22 years. Liberty, Victory cargo ships and tankers were the most common to be sold to shipping companies. Smaller ship types often went to commercial fishing as processors and a few were rebuilt into fishing vessels. Some of the king crab boats in Alaska were built in WWII. Our company would take possession of a ship for the buyer and get the engines and other equipment running. Diesels were the fastest and easiest to get running. Then reciprocating steam engines. Steam turbines took the most care. The boilers usually were usable without major repair. Once operational, the ship usually was delivered under it's own power to a West Coast shipyard that would do any repairs and repaint them. The civilian ships were not drydocked before mothballing, so all the thru hull fittings were open and protected by a closed valve. In about a week, we'd have steam up. Emergency diesel generators ran on the first day so we had lights. Most ships were 250v DC. Throughout the family we had licensed mariners from captain and chief engineer on down. First time I went to sea was on a Liberty going from Astoria to Long Beach in ballast. I was 7 years old. The captain was an uncle, my dad the chief and the rest family or close friends. Before WWII the was a huge merchant fleet. Ships were smaller so there were more of them. Many coastal families had connections to shipping. Common bulk carriers you see at grain terminals range 50k to 70k DWT. I think a Liberty displaced about 10k DWT. Victory ships were larger and about 7 knots faster.

[@texastad1989]

Awesome story thanks for sharing, would love to hear more. My dad worked on the long boats on the great lakes for a few years as a merchant marine. Ran coal, corn and iron from MI/WI to Canada. JC Miller, sister ship to the Edmund. Columba company. Thankfully my dad was not on the Edmund.

[@oceanmariner]

@@texastad1989 I lived on a river. By 7, I used a old wood row boat to fish for Salmon. I was given an outboard at 9. When I was 13, getting the ship diesel generator started was my job (depending on school). I bought a 65' Chris Craft at auction with my money and got in trouble. But since it was done they taught me how to run and care for it.

[@texastad1989]

@@oceanmariner Have you considered writing a book or blog/vlog about all your stories? I'm sure it would be interesting!

[@oceanmariner]

@@texastad1989 Maybe.

[@rogerlevasseur397]

I have a recollection that the USS Massachusetts had a lot of fuel on board when it first arrived in Fall River, Mass, but during the oil crisis of the early 70s the Navy reclaimed much of the fuel.

[@ValinPrezkowski]

Watched New Jersey sailing into Chesapeake Bay across the Bay Bridge Tunnel. Pulled over at one of the entry islands and watched it for about 10 minutes. Magnificent! Also walked around Missouri up in Bainbridge. I was surprised at how narrow it seemed. But pretty big!

[@chuckdargy5031]

As for the movie, as a former Enterprise sailor, you have to bring plenty of "suspension of disbelief" to enjoy it. But wishing to be one of the sailors who took Missouri back to war was very real. IDK why, but most any sailor I have talked to felt the same thing, no matter when or where we served. We love our battleships.

[@seantaggart7382]

Agreed Btw Enterprise is really great for the name Like We gotta keep that name going

[@chuckdargy5031]

@seantaggart7382 I myself am furious about further stroking somebody's ego by naming birdfarms after Presidents at the expense of some of our storied WW2 carriers that won the war in the Pacific.

[@eloka8362]

Every Sailor loves "His" ship/boat! says this former german sailor

[@FishKepr]

Sure, if you play ‘Thunderstruck’ over the 1MC system.

[@Norbrookc]

Or "Hoist the Colors" as you leave port

[@d.c.4598]

I smell a wisconsin sailor on here, lol, who's from BB-64🤔

[@rogerb3654]

Great music (i.e.-"Thunderstruck") and a cool montage... ...it'll take NO TIME at all...about 3 minutes 😉

[@bajaDave]

The soundtrack was pretty good. AC/DC and ZZ Top. The rest was OK unless until the “borrow your boat” part.

[@charlesmaurer6214]

That is the one line I hate, no navy man would call her a boat. I hope the writer and director got hell over that mistake.

[@thefretfiend]

In a video some time back, you speculated on how effective one of the Iowa class Battleships (during one of their activation periods) would be if it was present during the Revolutionary War period. I'm reminded of the situation that thrust the Nimitz back to December 1941 in the move, "The Final Countdown." Would be cool to see King George and his Generals' reaction to London being shelled by those 16 inch guns.

[@Varick76551]

True to begin with it would be devastating, however you have limited amounts of fuel, ammunition and trained crew, of which at that time period only the crew could potentially be replaced, and it would then depend on just how many ships and casualties the Royal Navy were willing to take to capture it, and if they really wanted to they would sooner or later, after all you can only run for so long. Sure you could return to America but they would not be able to resupply you with well anything but food and maybe crew.

[@ScotttheCyborg]

See The Destroyermen series en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Destroyermen

[@robertpatrick3350]

Interesting conjecture until a Lancaster carrying a grand slam left over from the Bielefeld raid gets caught in a similar event and drops it on NJ snapping her keel like a twig……

[@chrismaverick9828]

Point of note about powder charges: Black Powder and Smokeless powder are NOT the same in anything but a few chemical components and in the fact they can be "propellants". You can't do a one-to-one switch between them, and the 5" guns are not designed to use BP. The time it would take to work up a suitable charge of BP for the 5" would be better spent just making a standard smokeless charge for it from prior known listings, which likely have propellants similar to those used in tank and artillery rounds.

[@wtmayhew]

I recall reading in the post-attack investigation of the Arizona that there were both black powder and smokeless powder magazines. Smokeless power is not apt to spontaneously detonate, but black power will. The analysis of films of the Arizona seemed to show the black powder detonating which appeared may have set off the smokeless powder in a double explosion. I believe the 16 inch guns on New Jersey used a black powder primer, electrically detonated (?), to initiate the smokeless powder bags. The type of smokeless powder grain for the Mark 7 16 inch guns was 2 inches long and one inch wide with 7 holes through the grain. As of 1981, there were 13,300 16 inch rounds of various types inventoried and 22,000+ charges of several sizes inventoried. The service life of Mark 7 guns, originally designed in 1939, was 290 rounds per barrel. From what I could find, it is not clear if any of the ammunition still exists, or if any remaining ammunition is useable.

[@marvindebot3264]

I don't see charges as an issue. Cordite and gun cotton can both still be made, there are still (in smaller, poorer navies) 4 and 5 inch naval guns using those propellants so it's still made. Working out the equivalent charge is easy enough and charge bags are easy to make. I also think he may be underestimating the number of 16-inch shells still in existence as well. Also, these are quick and easy to fill with their explosives and suitable fuses.

[@navyav8r653]

I can personally say that in 2014 we still had plenty of powder and a verity of different shells and parts for those 16in and 5in guns. I seen and put hands on it all while TAD at Crane naval weapons.I remember seeing some of the powder cans had sailor art on them from NJ weps department on them.

[@patg3424]

I went on a several operations with the Missouri BB-63 and she is iconic. I remember mustering on my ships flight deck and watching the Missouri steam behind us. I still have the photos of her doing a firepower presentation from 1989. Seconds after firing the 16 inch guns we would feel the heat from the primer hit us on the forecastle of our ship.

[@rilmar2137]

Even the cost, time and the usefulness of those old ladies in modern day warfare aside, there is this dilemma I have with many old aircraft, especially warbirds. Being active and in use (obviously not in combat when it comes to those planes) means extra wear and tear, but also a risk of damage in an accident. Just a year and a half ago we have lost 2 WW2-era aircraft in a tragic accident in Dallas. The thought of the battleships seeing combat once more is exciting, but the fear of losing such amazing pieces of history would hardly be bearable.

[@F-Man]

It is an unanswerable question, really - and I say, thankfully. For the warplanes, though a very expensive undertaking in their own right, it *is* at least within the scope of either a monied individual or a relatively small group of like minded people to restore one to flight condition, as has been accomplished with many aircraft; however, yes, that does mean exposing a historic artifact to the wear and tear of actual use, as well as to the risk of total loss, as we saw with Texas Raiders, sadly. With a very large ship, such as an Iowa, the choice of “to reactivate or not” is effectively made for us, as the specialized work and the cost thereof to accomplish that task far exceeds even the budgets of many government entities, nevermind individuals or private entities. To me, that is likely for the best. At this stage in the lives of ships like the Iowas, despite their likely relevance and capability even in the modern combat space, they are far more valuable as the artifacts and spaces for public enjoyment that they now are.

[@321CatboxWA]

Loosing a war is way worse . I can bear loosing battleship for freedom.

[@BouncingZeus]

The navy has batted around the idea recently about bringing them back. The idea is the old "dumb" weapons can't be jammed. So as a way to get around the jamming tech coming up.

[@xpusostomos]

Even in WWII they avoided putting them in harm's way.

[@randalsiggson7178]

I agree now look at the Magnificent lady “The B-52’s enough said…..

[@MK0272]

I recently listened to an audio book called "Ghost Fleet" in which the US Navy had been drastically cut due to a debt crisis. Most of the remainder of the Pacific Fleet was decimated by a Chinese attack on Pearl Harbor and the subsequent capture of the islands. In the book the Navy had to quickly reactivate reserve fleet ships to go fight. That's one scenario I can see in which a battleship (and possibly other museum ships) might possibly be reactivated. Certainly there would be significant modifications, like the removal of at least two 16 inch turrets to be replaced with VLS cells, possibly rocket assisted shells for turret 3, new combat and communications systems, etc; but that is not outside the realm of possibility. As for the knowledge of how to operate the engines, there are still some Great Lakes freighters running on steam plants. Perhaps the general principles would be similar enough to cut training time.

[@petergold1758]

Some of the Great Lake ships are more complicated than NJ. There are still high pressure steam ships in the Marad fleet.

[@mikespangler98]

The boiler operations could be taught by various civilian power plants. The steam turbines and such are easier, the nuclear fleet is steam powered after all, as in the combined cycle part of the gas turbine combined cycle power plants that are common place.

[@ryand487]

All US submarines and Aircraft carriers still use 600lb steam systems as well. Just instead of boilers they use a hot rock. If push came to shove I'm sure nucs could figure out how to run a boiler. The rest of the propulsion plant is very similar to a nuclear vessel.

[@edwardrhoades6957]

Those of us who did serve on conventionally powered warships (now decommissioned) within the last couple of decades would still have quite a learning curve. When I was in (2001-2007), our boiler controls had, by that point, been mostly automated, not to mention that it's a different boiler configuration than we had on our ship.

[@sparkieT88]

How could you not watch battleship, Ryan? It's super cheesy and really dumb, but it's worth seeing once. I like that part where they start shooting to coordinates like b3 , d5 😂

[@TheBigExclusive]

He purposely avoids the movie now because all the little things will bother him.

[@brianbudney9117]

Seriously. He’s made positive references to The Final Countdown on several occasions. 🤷‍♂️

[@pauld6967]

I believe Ryan prefers to stick with, as he calls it, "the documentary film" _'Under Siege.'_

[@Plaprad]

@@TheBigExclusive Feels more like he's "Doing it for the lulz." Kinda like when Stephen Fry let it slip he had never seen Star Wars. He wound up making a TV show out of it.

[@TesGon]

I will go to NYC one day and just bus myself to whete NJ is situated. Gonna be a nice time.

[@Military-Museum-LP]

Excellent topic. Thanks

[@powderriver2424]

I grew up near a naval magazine installation. I know in the 1980's that installation had multiple storage areas full of 16" shells for the Iowa's, however that was 45 years ago. I would assume however that somewhere the Navy has stored away ammo for an emergency.

[@shouldhavedonebetter]

The French frigate, the Alsace, (an Aquitaine Class frigate) has just had to withdraw from Yemeni coast after running out of missiles. It's Commander reported that the Alsace had to respond to a half dozen calls for assistance, and after a 71 day deployment, all combat equipment has been depleted. This includes all Aster missiles, every 7.62 machine gun round for the helicopter, and all 12.7 mm, 20 mm, and 76 mm rounds for the ship's auto-cannons - this after just 3 missile and 6 drone attacks by the Houthis, who have no navy. Each Aster missile costs $2 million US. Imagine a real naval battle with a real navy. Hope the USN takes a lesson from this; gonna need some guns in the future.

[@baronpen]

I'd like to see a movie about Surigao Strait. Having said that, I'd take a movie about ANY BB vs BB fight, assuming it was depicted somewhat accurately. As for Battleship, while the scene where Missouri gets reactivated is wildly unrealistic, IMO it's loads of fun to watch.

[@philiplewis5308]

Maybe the battle between hms hood and the Bismark and the subsequent hunt by the arkroyal would make a good film

[@AirJoe]

Petition to make Ryan react to the final fight scene with Missouri in battleship. 👇

[@DaveSoCal]

Strapped to a chair, toothpicks in the eyelids ??

[@charlesmaurer6214]

He should watch it and do a movie reaction. Might even be a good funraiser to do the full length live. By stating he hasn't seen it, it has funraiser written all over it.

[@SportyMabamba]

I’d chip in to help reach the stretch goal if it makes Ryan review the battleship movie 😂 Greetings from 🇬🇧

[@davidwells9342]

Hey army veteran here, military contractor, and all around big gun enthusiast I really appreciate how you ended it about mentioning that there were much better films that could be made in both world wars even into the Cold War with battleships personally, I agree they need to make an updated version of sync, the Bismarck in colorI think enough has been declassified now and you could really get some great details out of it and I would want it to be at least three hours long

[@johnapemantus2003]

Holy moly! You're hanging on that line is triggering my engineer's ADHD SOOO much! For goodness' sake LET GO!!

[@SportyMabamba]

Ryan’s now a load-bearing curator

[@daria_morgandorffer5768]

Now that I think about it I think the navy should spend the cash to actually mechanically reactivate all 4 and every year send the ship along with a carrier and a few destroyers along with support ships to sail the globe “showing the flag” as I feel there’s no better physical representation of “f*ck around and find out” and it would make for an epic recruiting campaign. Offering that “Join the navy and you may get the chance to sail a battleship around the world” it would give us time to actually reactivate all 4 and also start building shells and propellant again to do “demonstrations” of the iowas firepower. Of all the dumb things our taxes are spent on this would actually make sense and would make me happy to pay my taxes.

[@billireland2029]

Hear hear!!!

[@LithicForm]

didn't we do this back in the day with the "Great White Fleet"?... just googled it. yep. I second this idea

[@daria_morgandorffer5768]

@@LithicForm we did! It’s where I came up with the idea. It is cool historically and it’s a very cool way to project power to our enemies as well as our allies. All while making new history! Also we would be creating new manufacturing jobs by making new gun barrel liners and propellant with new shells!

[@2adamast]

It's ww2 level of comfort, and probably packed like rats, without access to the deck.

[@matasa7463]

@@2adamast We can upgrade the crew quarters. If the ship is to be reactivated at all, they would no doubt add a lot more automation to reduce crew numbers, since that's a big expense. They would probably try to make the ship as comfy as possible, to at least a decent standard, comparable to other ships. It'll still be an old fighting ship, so it ain't gonna be as comfortable as say, the new DDG-1000 Zumwalt, but it'll be a lot better than what is currently shown in the museum.

[@harrisoncorey282]

Battleship 2025: the war on corrosion - the paintening

[@johnparrott4689]

I’ll never forget the endless rattle of paint chippers aboard ‘Midway’. I don’t think I ever recall them NOT being used!

[@singleproppilot]

Best comment. As a person that works in maintenance myself (aircraft), our work is often taken for granted. People don’t really understand that any machine is only as good as its continued maintenance program. The Iowa ships have been sitting for decades. Even besides things that were done intentionally to deactivate them, that would then have to be undone, there would be a mile long list of inspections, repairs, and servicing that would be required to not only get that machinery running, but to make sure it’s reliable enough to be fit for combat duty. As Ryan says, it would likely take years and cost billions, for a vessel that is strategically and tactically obsolete.

[@Joe___R]

If you want to make a movie with battleships basing it on battles in the Pacific during WW2, would be your best option. It had some of the biggest naval battles ever.

[@workisfun...2438]

I'm glad you brought up the Bismark. Great story and history lesson. On another note, I would have loved to have felt the percussion of salvo of 16" guns. Great video!

[@davecaron1213]

A movie based on the book "The Last Stand of the Tin Can Sailors, or, the battle of Surigao straight would be amazing.

[@KSMvidcast]

A film about a desperate last-minute reactivation of museum battleships would make for an incredible story. I suppose it would be something akin to the Yamato series. Secretly resurrecting a WWII era battleship to compete in the space age. Impractical and unlikely, but what a tale that would be!

[@texastad1989]

love the Yamato series and Battleship movie.. checks almost all the boxes, would like to pick from the best of both , can you imagine?

[@TinKnight]

It'd probably be cheaper & easier to just build a new battleship up to modern needs than to salvage the Yamato or Musashi. Put a single twin or triple turret, modern systems, modern air & drone defense, & then massive numbers of VLS tubes for Tomahawks, Next-Gen ASMs, & whatever else.

[@KSMvidcast]

@@TinKnight You're certainly correct, but it would make for a great fictional movie. I think the only major hurdle starting from scratch would be sourcing enough armor material in a short time period. Well, and most of the designers and engineers who knew how to build things like that are dead now, with battleship design not exactly a sensible modern career path so no one is currently learning it aside from historians.

[@lancepharker]

The Battle of Jutland would make a great movie.

[@bankrollwels]

THOSE BATTLESHIPS STILL WORK, THAT'S WHY THEY KEEP THEM IN DRY DOCK

[@kenl9215]

Bad movies about battleships still keep people asking about battleships! Which is a good thing! Keeping their memory relevant. Massive, awesome, pieces of machinery!

[@wheatley_the_weasel]

I really wish a modern (faithful) recreation of the Battle of the Denmark Strait could be made. Hell, even a recreation of the Battle of the North Cape would be great

[@mikespangler98]

The Battle of North Cape? One lonely light battleship against a fleet? Then after the massacre of the Scharnhorst most of the survivors are left to die. Not a pleasant movie. The six battles around Guadalcanal would be more interesting. For that matter there are multiple relatively unknown battles after that too, two in Kula Gulf, and Empress Augusta Bay come immediately to mind.

[@WALTERBROADDUS]

We can't even get a budget passed.....

[@nathanjohnson705]

The "Battle Off Samar" desperately needs a movie. Not an American battleship involved, but no one told them that.

[@whatever8282828]

I heard Ryan saying he will never watch that movie, but I did watch it. It's not as bad as said! It's kind of fun!

[@maxseed4730]

With the loss ship yard capacity and know how to work on these types of ships.. id say FOREVER!

[@lilorbielilorbie2496]

maxseed4730 Yeah the U.S. Navy IMO screwed up bad when they closed the base in Long Beach, CA. It had the longest dry dock on the West Coast at over 1 thousand feet long. My Late Dad and I worked there in 1986 . Both the New Jersey and the Missouri where in the base at the same time . The Missouri was in dry dock and the New Jersey was just there. And to see something as big as a Battle ship with no water holding it up was something that I will never forget.

[@Atlasworkinprogress]

There is 1 drydock in Philly (obviously) that can work, one in Boston, 2 at Norfolk, 1 at Bremerton, and 2 at Pearl. There is also one at the US Navy base in Yokosuka. All of these would be more than capable of holding an Iowa Class Battleship. There might also be one in San Diego, but it cuts it close. Not to mention that floating drydocks also exist.

[@lilorbielilorbie2496]

@@Atlasworkinprogress San Diego does not have a typical dry dock. What they have/had was the largest floating dry dock on the West Coast. It is 950 ft. long by 205 ft. wide. The regular dry dock in Long Beach, CA. Was 143 ft. wide and 1,092 ft ' long. They where built by a company called Connolly-Pacific. Their yard was right across the channel from the Navy Base.

[@mariosebastiani3214]

If you don't have the propulsion you also don't have the electrical power to crank the main batteries. But the main problem remains the crew training.