Guadalcanal Campaign - The Big Night Battle: Night 1 (IJN 3(?) : 2 USN)

Today we look at the first part of the fifth major battle of the Guadalcanal Campaign, the originally named Naval Battle of Guadalcanal.
Massive thanks to the fine gentlemen at The Operations Room for making the animations, check out their channel here! / @theoperationsroom
Sources:
www.amazon.co.uk/Neptunes-Inferno-U-S-Navy-Guadalcanal/dp/B004KSEYHI
www.amazon.co.uk/Battle-History-Imperial-Japenese-Navy/dp/1591142199
www.ibiblio.org...
www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00TG24BC6/
Free naval photos and more - www.drachinifel.co.uk
Want to support the channel? - / drachinifel
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Episodes in podcast format - / user-21912004
Music - / ncmepicmusic

[@Drachinifel]

Pinned post for Q&A :) - Check out The Operations Room, they made the animations which really helped this video out! kzbin.info/door/nZJt7yQw5IztVwe-Dscd-Q

[@Michael_OBrian]

Drydock question for you: How would USS Midway have faired had she been ready for war in June 1944 assuming she’s outfitted as she was in September 1945?

[@road-eo6911]

Oh I'm a new subscriber! I don't know if anybody has asked this question before, but did the Dominion of India have a separate navy like other dominions such as Australia or Canada?

[@robertdennett1617]

Is that metal of honor earned?

[@Billy_Annizarry]

Is it true that Yamamoto, before the pacific war, opposed with the idea of construction of the Yamato class battleship? And why is it?

[@GaldirEonai]

So here's a what-if scenario: For whatever reason, Scott is in overall command in this battle instead of Callaghan. What changes? Would Scott still have been on the Atlanta with her superior radar, and would that have resulted in a less confusing and costly engagement?

[@TheOperationsRoom]

Enjoyed working with you, glad our Naval Battle of Guadalcanal video was of use :)

[@studentaviator3756]

Hey your work is great. Love it.

[@eltostado3304]

I knew I recognized the animations! Good stuff!

[@Kevin_Kennelly]

This was the collaboration we'd all been waiting for. Well done Gents.

[@ryanvargas4889]

Good show!

[@tomaszmankowski9103]

Thanks a lot! This battle is exceptionally confusing so the animations are very important.

[@tenarmurk]

Remember that the wildcat pilot had to wind down his landing gear using a hand crank 28 times before he could go in for the clubbing

[@richardm3023]

That's called "Commitment".

[@johnbeauvais3159]

You have to be decidedly pissed off to decide “Fuck it I’m going to stomp you to death!”

[@TheBeomoose]

Just more time to get pissed off. By the time he got to the low 20s he was probably just breathing in and letting out one long continous stream of f-bombs.

[@ivanthemadvandal8435]

@@TheBeomoose Wildcat pilot recites the sacred hym of four letter words, its super effective.

[@AnimeSunglasses]

@@ivanthemadvandal8435 Mine Eyes Have Seen The Glory Of A F**KING P!SSED MARINE...!

[@mobiuscoreindustries]

The term "Aerial melee combat" was not something i ever considered until now

[@seanbryan4833]

I remember once reading about an American fighter pilot whose guns were either jammed or out of ammo coming up behind a Japanese scout plane and chewing its tail off with his propeller, causing it to crash. He landed on his carrier with only a few inches of his propeller blades remaining.

[@brianspencer6397]

AKA 'Furball' in modern parlance!

[@Kromaatikse]

"Fly me closer, I want to hit him with my…" *checks notes* "…landing gear."

[@andrewgause6971]

I recall one instance of a Japanese zero pilot attempting to ram a helldiver out of desperation. They eventually hit one another more or less head on, wing on wing. That is to say, the helldiver tried to twist out of the oncoming ram at the last moment, but the leading edges of the zero's right wing and the helldiver's left wing hit one another. Unfortunately for the zero pilot, he had failed to calculate into his plan the fact that the zero is a light, agile air superiority fighter and the SBD is, well, a dive bomber, and built to withstand all the stresses and forces that imparts on a plane. The end result was a battered, unhappy, and distinctly in need of repair Helldiver...aaaannnd a zero that was now missing about 70% of its right wing several thousand meters above the Pacific Ocean...

[@mobiuscoreindustries]

@@andrewgause6971 You know what they say, there are old pilots and bold pilots. And there is a reason why you aren't seeing many that are both.

[@GearGuardianGaming]

The wildcat pilot who beat down a bomber with nothing but landing gear deserves his own video if there is enough info on his service, and it would also be awesome to know how many times he connected and what the important thing was that he broke. Kudos!

[@korbell1089]

Probably broke the Japanese pilot's will to live.

[@Kromaatikse]

I would assume he initiated fatigue cracks in something structurally critical, such as a wing spar. Japanese aircraft tended to be built a *lot* closer to their yield strength than most, probably to minimise weight and maximise fuel capacity.

[@deltavee2]

Considering that Wildcats and other carrier aircraft have enormously strengthened landing gear to absorb the incredible abuse of a multi-ton aircraft landing repeatedly on a carrier in what is basically a controlled crash, he was basically the Incredible Hulk jumping up and down on the bomber. Damd good thinking on his part. Plus he probably has the only Landing Gear kill of the war. Definitely worth a story if sufficient details could be found. Americans...gotta love 'em.

[@SteamCrane]

I doubt he ever had to buy himself a drink the rest of his life.

[@JWalker6541]

Making said video sounds like a job for The History Guy!

[@winghungyuen2726]

Japanese bomber crew: Oh, you're approaching Mr. Wildcat? You have no ammunition!" Cactus Air Force pilot: I can't beat you the shit out of you with my landing gear without getting closer. Japanese bomber crew: Nani!?

[@propellhatt]

Wildcat pilot: "you're talking an awful amount of stupid for someone within landing gear distance

[@liberalsockpuppet4772]

That madlad deserves a medal

[@MagnusVictor2015]

That one Japanese pilot who was always teased for bringing his officer's sword aloft with him: "Finally, a worthy opponent! Our battle shall be legendary!"

[@lolroflroflcakes]

Sort of unrelated but I remember reading a "biography" of a fictional first world war fighter pilot. It was kind of a comedy and at one point he actually rams a German with his landing gear winning a dogfight. It removed his landing gear in addition to destroying the German plane so when he started seeing his own shadow on the ground sans landing gear he began to think he was being followed by some unknown aircraft.

[@chrissouthgate4554]

@@lolroflroflcakes Bartholomew Brandy; Three Cheers for Me

[@poetdriver]

The Wildcat pilot wasn't trying to beat the Japanese down, he was trying to land on it and board it. Aerial piracy invented.

[@moritamikamikara3879]

Holy fuck

[@GaldirEonai]

"Fly me closer, I want to stab them with my Ka-Bar!"

[@GearGuardianGaming]

Wildcat was running low on fuel and knew the bomber had extra stores, tried to dock for refueling😂😂😂

[@RCAvhstape]

Probably a Marine, instinctively doing what Marines traditionally did: board and seize enemy ships. Old habits die hard.

[@consubandon]

"'Iron Bottom'??? I'LL give you 'Iron Bottom'! Taste *MY* Iron Bottom!!! You like that? And here's MORE of it! And MORE! Don't be shy, enjoy ANOTHER helping! What? Leaving so soon?"

[@bullnukeoldman3794]

I visited Ironbottom Sound during my ship's deployment in 1986. We performed a wreath-laying at night, fired a bunch of 5" starshells, and the Captain and the Chaplain read history and scripture during the ceremony. Quite a memory for me.

[@justindearmond1]

that is badass dude. what ship if you dont mind me asking?...just curious is all. i had a couple of friends in the Navy, one served as a nuclear electrician on board the Carl Vinson and another buddy is a sonar tech on a sub, cant remember the ship though but he still serves. Ive never seen anything like naval guns firing. most ive ever seen is some awesome pyrotechnics...i used to do fireworks for the KC Royals and other evens here in Kansas. even did a show for Alice Cooper. we did shoot a 12 inch shell once. it is a 1/4 mile diameter in the sky...we had to bury the mortar like 8-10 feet in the ground, lower it down in the tube with a rope, man was that scary. We routinely did 6, 8 and even a few 10 inch shells once in a while. if i remember right the 3 inch salutes( the ones that just go bang) have about the same explosive equivalent as a hand grenade. Fun times!

[@bullnukeoldman3794]

@@justindearmond1 The USS Long Beach. The ship had two 5"/38 mounts on the 01 Level amidships that were served by the Marines in our MARDET.

[@lefr33man]

Little known fact: if you rearrange the letters in ''Battle of Guadalcanal", remove a few ones and add a couple others, you get ''Complete clusterfuck''. Funny how things work out sometimes.

[@robc4191]

You're right! It actually works out.

[@timesthree5757]

How about that!

[@doctormcboy5009]

soooooooo stupid

[@mrz80]

Charlie definitely felt the foxtrot a time or two over the course of the Guadalcanal campaign :D

[@scotthill8787]

In the car with my wife, the “low fuel” light came on. “I hope we can make it back to the Carrier,” I said. “You watch too many of those (Drach) videos,” she said.

[@milrevko]

Omg…..lol

[@JohnRodriguesPhotographer]

LOL!😂

[@CruiserToneFan]

thats too funny lmao

[@CrystalKingdomGeneral4942]

Do not for a nanosecond take that woman for granted.

[@davidvasquez08]

@@CrystalKingdomGeneral4942 agreed

[@robertf3479]

The Wildcat taking out a bomber by beating on it with his landing gear IS the most unusual air-to-air victory I've ever heard of.

[@rem26439]

Arguably the closest we ever got to an actual game of World of Warships IRL

[@ph89787]

Having recently got the Atlanta and Akatsuki. I’m already having PTSD.

[@moritamikamikara3879]

Jingles: In a real naval battle, you don't get battleships charging off alone and getting into knife fights with destroyers. Me Usually. It does happen somdtimes

[@Cailus3542]

@@moritamikamikara3879 It happened a few times, weirdly. Scharnhorst got into a point-blank fight with an insane Norweigan destroyer at North Cape, Warspite obliterated a German destroyer in Norway, it happened at Guadacanal, and obviously it happened quite spectacularly at Leyte Gulf. That’s just off the top of my head. A British destroyer actually got so close that it collided with a German battleship at Jutland, both ships surviving the encounter, with the destroyer getting away with some of the battleship’s armour plate as a souvenir.

[@trynnallen]

@@Cailus3542 Knowing the British DD, it's because they had a group of seamen with crowbars anticipating the opportunity and went..."Oh look souvenirs!"

[@ph89787]

@@Cailus3542 didn’t Warspite act as a massive decoy during the Battle of Jutland after its rudder was jammed?

[@richardmcgowan1651]

This battle could be summed up by "so I started blasting".

[@GaldirEonai]

It's kind of like the shootout at the end of Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels.

[@rring44]

I dont see so good, so I missed

[@Hailfire97]

USS Atlanta: *exists* Entire IJN Fleet: "So I took that personally."

[@84MadHatter]

Followed by clubbing

[@MikeVanHorn]

"Rolled better on her perception check" - Wonderful mental image of Drach having a guest appearance on Critical Role.

[@kpdubbs7117]

Next week, Drach's 5 minute guide to the Ball Eater

[@Reepicheep-1]

What is the effective firing range on a dragon turtle? With or without spell sniper? Have you taken into account competency of crazed adventurers into deck gun accuracy and rate of fire? Have you...

[@maxinelouchis7272]

A part of the damaged bridge of the San Francisco is preserved as a memorial near the Golden Gate Bridge. It also features a compass pointed to Guadalcanal showing the miles to the island. Very moving.

[@timf2279]

I'm surprised it hasn't been removed yet by the woke protesters.

[@photonotavailable7936]

My uncle’s name is on the plaque.

[@GeneralJackRipper]

'Death by Landing Gear,' holy shit. Now I've officially heard everything.

[@francoistombe]

Later (1944, early 1945?) an out of ammo corsair used it's propeller to chew off the tail control surfaces (canvas over wood) of a kamikaze bomber. The bomber went down with no functional rudder or elevation control.

[@CharlesStearman]

@@francoistombe I believe there were one or two instances in WW1 of an aircraft using its landing gear to tear off the upper wing of an enemy biplane. Of course planes were much more lightly built back then.

[@gwtpictgwtpict4214]

@@francoistombe 15th September 1940 Flt Sergeant Ray Holmes attacked 3 Do 17 bombers over London, his attack on the first left him with oil on his windscreen, the second with a German airman attached by parachute to his starboard wing, he managed to shake the chap off. He ran out of ammunition while attacking the third one so he rammed it using his port wing, taking it's tail off. As he could then no longer control his damaged Hurricane he bailed out.

[@akornzombie8616]

I'm sure this has been mentioned before, but another casualty of the jeuneau was the five Sullivan brothers.

[@therealuncleowen2588]

You beat me to mentioning this. It was wrong to ever allow them to serve on the same ship. May they rest in peace.

[@shep9231]

Yeah...

[@Paladin1873]

The Sullivan brothers were another legend reinvented by the Navy to preserve and enhance morale at home. The true story of them serving together puts a bit of tarnish on their reputation and their loss pretty much destroyed their family as well, if the accounts I've read are true.

[@guhalakshmiratan5566]

​@@therealuncleowen2588 IIRC, the oldest George and the second oldest had already served an enlisted term in the Navy but re-enlisted after Pearl. The brothers (at George's urging) INSISTED on serving together. Someone at Personel had grave misgivings but thanks to the popularity of the story (and rising enlistments) he was over ruled by command. Of the 5 brothers, George was the last to perish - a lonely death in the shark infested waters at Torpedo Junction after being adrift for days, still looking for his brothers. Mrs. Sullivan put on a brave front but at the christening/launching of the The Sullivans, couldn't bear any more and collapsed into a puddle of sobs.

[@fastyaveit]

Made a great film, Saving Private Ryan

[@PLANETRAILROAD]

The front guardrail of the observation deck in front of the bridge of USS San Francisco , still with all of it’s battle damage, is a memorial in the City of San Fransisco, along with a bronze plaque that has an excerpt from FDR’s praise of the ship’s actions during the fight, although no mention of it shooting up Atlanta

[@thomasbergman6903]

My grandfather was the highest ranking survivor of the Laffey, apparently he told my uncles that they were so close to the Hiei that they could have thrown hand grenades if they had any.

[@bkjeong4302]

I believe some of your grandfather’s fellow crew fired pistols at Hiei’s crew, who were doing the same (firing back)

[@JohnRodriguesPhotographer]

There was an action between a destroyer escort and a Japanese submarine, where they were so close the usn sailors were throwing potatoes at the Japanese on their submarine. In the complete confusion of the moment the Japanese were running around and throwing them overboard thinking they were hand grenades!

[@johnkeith4026]

My Dad was a Signalman aboard the USS SAN FRANCISCO, one of the few that survived. When I was young he wouldn’t talk about his experiences in the Navy. In later years he did talk some. He said the night was so black the only illumination they had was from the guns and the fires. He was always upset that the officers were not better trained to understand the radar. He lost a lot of friends that night and carried scars the rest of his life. “A barroom brawl with the lights shot out”

[@photonotavailable7936]

My uncle, Nicholas “Nick” Janosco, KIA, remains not recovered, was one of your Dad’s shipmates.

[@JohnRodriguesPhotographer]

I agree with your dad regarding radar. God bless him

[@JohnRodriguesPhotographer]

​@@photonotavailable7936my your uncle rest in peace.

[@photonotavailable7936]

@@JohnRodriguesPhotographer Thank you. Appreciate it. My dad never got over the loss of his younger brother.

[@hmskinggeorgev7089]

The work from the Operations Room helps greatly to show what was going on I hope to see both of you working together again in the near future. :)

[@stevepuls8532]

Or they could go back and redo or update a few episodes

[@davidfuller581]

This battle sounds more like an age of sail close in knife fight than a ww2 era long range battle.

[@tyree9055]

"Night Fighting in The Slot" 😉

[@mrz80]

And it just gets worse when Kirishima gets in close and unplugs South Dakota's fire control and power before Washington gets in even closer and systematically butchers Kirishima.

[@barleysixseventwo6665]

And we’re SURE that ‘Wildcat’ wasn’t actually a time-displaced Ork Fightah? Just making sure.

[@brotlowskyrgseg1018]

"Oy, looks like youz needs a good krumpin', ya git." "No, you can't just go into melee with a modern combat aircraft." "Haha, wheel thing go stompin'." "This is madness!" "Madness? Dis is... *WAAAAAAGHHHH!*

[@dropdead234]

Probably "just" a Marine. Though I do understand how you'd get them confused.

[@CSSVirginia]

Definitely not Tau.

[@internetzenmaster8952]

@@dropdead234 I've seen 40kfans joke about Americans being like Orks due to all things dakka-related. Apparently this comparison is more accurate than most people realize.

[@dropdead234]

@@internetzenmaster8952 Oddly enough, the Godless Heathens of the North have few guns and are uncivilized backstabbing monsters, while we in the South have plenty of guns and are quite civil and well-intentioned. I wonder if there's a correlation?

[@mattwoodard2535]

I have to imagine Admiral Scott was damn near pulling his hair out over Callahan's orders (or lack of them) before he was killed. sm

[@scottgiles7546]

Say! Who's ship killed Admiral Scott?

[@fabianzimmermann5495]

@@scottgiles7546 It pretty likely was friendly fire by San Francisco. So Scott was killed by his own boss.

[@69Applekrate]

perhaps so, perhaps not. Calahan may deserve much more credit for his judgement and bravery than many give him. He chose to close the range to make his 8" guns more effective against Hei

[@Thomas-rk4rl]

@@69Applekrate If that was true, there was still no reason not to order the destroyers to launch torps

[@mattwoodard2535]

@@69Applekrate Bravery does not make up for bad judgment and not using the advantages his ships possessed. The US had a major advantage because of the new radars and he failed to use it. sm

[@scocon8658]

Yep...According to naval historians this was the action known as The Barroom Brawl. Watching those old-time western movies where a massive fight breaks out in a saloon; now imagine it all taking place in a swimming pool... With live sharks.

[@Hellspijker]

It is so sad, that Scott didn't overrule command, So strict chain of command and a lesser admiral are not a good excuse for such a loss of live. :(

[@farskies5343]

Unfortunately this is not how military works....and for every disaster that happened due to this there is also a disaster avoided because of following the chain of command.

[@RGC-gn2nm]

And they both got the Medal of Honor. Insulting

[@robd8577]

Not a great idea to have subordinates who think they know better attempt to take command.

[@JohnRodriguesPhotographer]

The same thing occurred in the battle of the Java sea. The ABDA task force that was decimated by the IJN was Commanded by the Dutch Admiral Dorman. I don't think he had the right kind of experience to be commanding that group of ships. If you look at the size of the Dutch Navy in the interwar years leading up to that moment, how could he? He was in command because he was a senior in rank not because he was qualified. This is not to say that I have something against him as an evil officer I just question his suitability for that command.

[@br0k3nman]

@@JohnRodriguesPhotographer well, Dorman was actually decent, his subs were sinking Japanese vessels at an unheard of rate at the time. He had few modern vessels and resources when it came down to it. He was brave and not incompetent, but like all Allies in the East Indies, they were mostly without enough resources and got poor intelligence from their commands. I’m sure you can think of many worse than him.

[@MrGreen-sk3ws]

My father was one of the few survivors who made it off of the sunken USS Barton DD 599 alive that night. He was a BM. The ship was broken in two by torpedoes. To make matters worse for these survivers was as the aft end of the ship went to the bottom her depth charges exploded below the men trying to stay afloat in the water above. My father said he was in the shark infested waters for hours before being rescued by higgens boats from Guadalcanal. A very harrowing ordeal.

[@jackthorton10]

Jeezus…

[@austinlange7210]

That illustration at 18:09 is just insane

[@augustosolari7721]

Callahan was such a fool... Interestingly the ship named after him was the last ship sunk by kamikaze. That says it all in My opinion...

[@69Applekrate]

I've read several books on the subject. some think like you do, others do not and think he did the correct thing.

[@noncynic1]

@@admiraltiberius1989 No that was Scott who was lucky, Callahan was on the staff of the area commander Ghormley until taking a sea command basically for this action.

[@admiraltiberius1989]

@@noncynic1 your right, I shot from the hip and lost. I'll delete my comment, thanks for the correction.

[@lamwen03]

You have to remember that radio communication in this area, at this time, was miserable. And it was all Morse, and coded. Callahan didn't know much about radar, and didn't take it into account. Just like Scott hadn't in his first command here.

[@rocketguardian2001]

@@lamwen03 They had TBS (Talk Between Ships) during this engagement. Callaghan was shouting his orders over this during the battle.

[@Raptor747]

I'd argue that the USN actually won this one. Battleships are far harder to replace than destroyers or cruisers, and Japan could ill-afford to lose any of its most useful and fuel-efficient class of battleships. The USN could afford to lose several destroyers and a couple of cruisers--the IJN could NOT afford to lose a fast battleship (losing a destroyer also hurt them too--Japan needed every ASW asset it could get, and USN subs were actually targeting the Japanse merchant marine, unlike their counterparts). While the IJN had lost one of its two critical capital ships in this engagement, the USN had not lost any (nor had any been damaged). This meant that while the USN's destroyer and cruiser complement was depleted in the follow-up engagement, it still had a stronger capital ship force than Japan did in the next engagement, and the result was telling: the IJN lost its other battleship, while the USN lost neither of its battleships, with only one suffering significant damage (and even then, the damage was mainly to the superstructure and non-critical parts of the ship). The USN could afford serious ship losses and was determined to hold onto Guadalcanal if at all possible, whereas the IJN could not afford serious ship losses and was hesitant to commit any more of its precious battleships when it had already lost two. Hell, even if it hadn't lost two, every sortie of its capital ships cost precious fuel at the end of a long supply chain. Every time the USN prevented the IJN's battleships from shelling Henderson Field, it made the IJN more hesitant to keep trying. Even if Hiei hadn't been sunk, taking such a severe beating would have made the prospect of committing more battleships to night engagements in which they could be sunk less appealing. By taking Hiei out of the equation even in the short-term, it meant that the two US battleships would be fighting on relatively even terms at worst. Ultimately, it's worth remembering that the IJN went into this battle with two fast battleships, while the USN went into it with no battleships at all. And the IJN had drilled extensively in night battles, while the USN had not. The fact that the USN had driven the IJN away from Guadalcanal for another night was impressive; the fact that they'd severely damaged a battleship and thrown the IJN fleet into such disarray that it retreated even when they basically had taken the field was one hell of an upset, proving to be a preview of sorts for the Battle of Samar.

[@tonyjanney1654]

Battles have ripples beyond the initial fight. The outcome of this engagement killed the convoy bringing reinforcements and critical supplies the next day. The failure of this convoy meant the failure of the campaign. The rest of your analysis is spot on.

[@meijin_warmbogen1282]

Imagine being on the island and sitting there and watching this battle through the treelines. I'm sure there were many instances of japanese and american soldiers grouping up to watch the mighty steel beast slug it out.

[@thejackman687]

I highly doubt that...

[@RGC-gn2nm]

Watch hbo the pacific

[@The_Modeling_Underdog]

You mean grouping up separately, for sure.

[@overboss9599]

@@The_Modeling_Underdog would be rather funny though, a group of American marines sitting on the beach, eating rations and watching the slaughter, a group of Japanese soldiers walks up and sits next to them, someone breaks out some spare rations, and the Japanese officer brings out some Sake....

[@legogenius1667]

The Japanese would never have been willing to be near an American soldier without trying to kill him, unfortunately.

[@RCAvhstape]

This is old school naval combat, ships so close the crews can see each others' faces and exchanging fire with rifles and pistols. Brutal.

[@OrdinaryEXP]

Get a bit closer and they could start boarding each other's ships.

[@tyree9055]

@@OrdinaryEXP Where were the Marines when the Navy needed them, eh? 😄

[@OrdinaryEXP]

@@tyree9055 Just give sailors cutlasses/katana, muskets, grappling hooks and BAM instant Marines.

[@matthewdavid6134]

Maybe at the end of the battle, you should have a graphic of some kind, showing losses of both sides, or showing all of the ships and then crosses out those that didn't make it. Its somewhat hard to keep track of when they're just listed.

[@johna1160]

5:23 Now, THAT is flying on the deck!

[@tommasobalconi]

11:10 It's Akatsuki, not Atatsuki. Case of fat fingers? Really enjoy these new animations!

[@TheOperationsRoom]

My bad!

[@farskies5343]

The animation are from the operation room channel who answer above me. Highly recommend checking it out it has high quality historical content

[@viridisxiv766]

a cat suki. attack suki. ...go for the eyes suki!!

[@tyree9055]

@@TheOperationsRoom It's okay, we'll forgive you.... this one time and only this time! 😅

[@Christopher-N]

What a crazy brawl! Thank you for the top-down graphics. Even with that aid, it was difficult to tell who was who, which for those who were there, must have been a nightmare to try to work out themselves.

[@sarjim4381]

Ya know, one of the ways I know I've passed into geezerhood is when half the comments about the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal refer to a video game, some kind of anime, movies, and weird Japanese comic books, none of which I know anything about. I guess it happens to us all.

[@davidkaminski615]

Actually, I take it as a good thing. Kids are taught history in different ways. With games, history has become interactive. Although in life, there is no reset button or difficulty setting.

[@kimleechristensen2679]

Back in the day I used to play GNB2 (Great Naval Battles 2) PC game. It revolved around the Guadalcanal campaign, were you could play as American or Japanese in some historic battle scenarios, the full campaign or a more condensed campaign beginning october 1942. This in turn inspired me to get a collection of 1/700 scale model warships from that time period. Then a few years ago I tried WoW, played it for a weekend and then uninstalled it, as it was not at all historical enough for my taste, it was too much WoT'ish for me. But hey, if that's what get kids inspired to learn more about WW2, well then its better than nothing. 🤔

[@sarjim4381]

@@kimleechristensen2679 I agree. As long as they get a grounding in the actual history of an event, any kind of multimedia thing will help kids (and a lot of adults) learn, or want to to learn, even more about it. The folks I have problems with are the ones that tell me things like they managed to sail the Bismarck out of danger in WoW so the real life captain should have been able to do the same.

[@WALTERBROADDUS]

As I hit 50 next Month, I feel your pain.....

[@hernerweisenberg7052]

Those Kongo-Class Battleships/Cruisers look really good, probably among my alltime favorite warships ;)

[@josebarron5684]

been listening to your videos for a long time. and your delivery on certain crazy, strange, and double take events makes me personified these planes and ships thanks to anime damn it. I mean three tiny destroyers pelting a battlecursier and a wildcat bodyslaming a Betty with a landing wheel gear. love your show.

[@Idahoguy10157]

Back in 1980 while in the navy met a retired sailor working on base who had been a on destroyer on December 7th. His destroyer fought in the Guadalcanal campaign. Barely surviving

[@OldWahya]

Am very happy to see/hear someone trying to tell the events as they actually happened. Many " documentaries " tend to lean one way or the other, for multiple reasons. I am looking forward to the exploits of the ( lucky ) USS Washington, and the ( unlucky - due mostly to design fails trying to fit into the treaty ) USS South Dakota. " Out of the way, we are coming through! " I had a great uncle that was a Master Chief MCPO aboard the USS Washington. He had many interesting tales to tell about that . Good work, cheers mate!

[@zeedub8560]

I used to play an old computer game called Task Force: 1942, which was about the surface combat in the Guadalcanal campaign. This battle was one of the scenarios. It started at the moment of contact so you were forced to deal with the same situation faced by the historical combatants. Every time I played it, from either side, it ended with all ships on both sides sunk. Every time I reread "Neptune's Thunder," I'm astonished that the real battle didn't end the same way.

[@randallcarpenter5313]

Remember the 5 Sullivan brothers on Juneau.

[@stevepuls8532]

Years ago I read a book about the USS Washington. Ever since that time I've waited to see it visualized somewhere. Thank you again Drach, and thank you to the Operations Room. Love ALL of your work!!!

[@nonna_sof5889]

8:54 I can't help but see that ship's boat as very happy.

[@joeottsoulbikes415]

The pilot who turned his landing gear into boxing gloves was amazing. Giving up with no ammunition is what most pilots would have done. To think about dropping your landing gear and flying up and down pounding the bomber from above is such innovative thinking. How this came to him I could never guess. It could have made it impossible for him to land should it have punctured a tire or bent the struts. It could have made his landing gear puncture the other craft and dragged him down also. So brave and amazing!! I salute that officer and his service. I hope he survived the war to a happy retirement.

[@crazywarriorscatfan9061]

Always makes my day when Drach uploads. Especially when it's a video of the Guadalcanal Campaign!

[@mattblom3990]

Uncle Drach is a great storyteller...You can hear his passion, even glee, as he describes one of the most important battles he has yet to cover.

[@berges104]

Not all Captains Promoted to Admiral are worth their water. I wonder how many air combat kills are from hostile Landing Gear

[@Aotearas]

Those aircraft flying near waterlevel @5:17 ... damn! Impressive!!! Not quite as impressive as the Wildcat beating one of them into the sea with its landing gear, but impressive still. Also, I don't envy the poor sod who had to draw up the after-battle report ship movements.

[@MrChickennugget360]

right? Particularly because all the senior officers were dead.

[@ivanthemadvandal8435]

Wildcat pilot, "No more dakka, WAAAAGH!"

[@zali13]

Nautical pub brawls and battering Betty bombers with landing gear. Brilliant!

[@toddwebb7521]

Landing gear attack is some MOH material if I've ever heard of it.

[@Canopus44]

my mom was a nurse, and in the late 1950's worked with a fellow nurse whose husband was a crewman on the San Francisco during this battle, Her co-worker told my mom her husband still had nightmares about it :(

[@typhoon9945]

Another amazing video. This is my favorite series on the channel. Thanks for all the great work.

[@dwaynecunningham2164]

I've said it before and I'll say it again. Love my daily run ration. Keep up the good work!! Nobody summarizes a battle with more detail and cutting insight than you!

[@Pitchlock8251]

Official US Navy battle tactics: “So anyway, I started blastin”

[@cheesenoodles8316]

The series on the Guadalcanal Navel battles are one of best. IMHO

[@gregoryjacobs1117]

Dude I'm so excited for the next episode of the Guadalcanal series. I find myself getting more excited about your videos coming out than I am of any given TV show these days!

[@GM-fh5jp]

Amatsukaze performed somewhat better than described in this video. Capt.Tamaichi Hara was commended for his skillful ship handling as Amastukaze handed out quite a beating to the USN surface forces within his gun and torpedo range. Had Abe persevered with the planned assault on Henderson field it would have been a dominant victory for the IJN. The aptly named "fog of war" certainly played a major part in saving the Cactus Airforce and marines from the bombardment that was due from Hiei and Kirishima later that morning. It certainly raises questions as to the outcome of the battle had the IJN had effective radar at that stage of the war. Thanks for the new episode Drach.

[@gregorywright4918]

The IJN THOUGHT they had the better optics and training for night-fighting, and their primitive radar sets were large and top-heavy, so even if they HAD radar it would have been worse for them than the US systems, and look at how well the US admirals were in using theirs...

[@brucewilliams6292]

What a harrowing tale! God, radar advantages and still couldn't figure it out. Thank you for the series!

[@CmoreChap]

@ Drachinifel Re: Helena not stopping to check for Juneau survivors. Helena just saw Juneau sunk by a suspected Japanese sub, whose whereabouts were unknown and was a severe cause for concern for her own continued survival and that of the barely afloat San Francisco whose damage control parties were performing a miracle as it was. Further what was he to do with barely any ASW capability? There were 2 destroyers left in the immediate group Fletcher and Sterett, only one fully capable after the fighting. "As Hoover judged it, the logic of the situation required him to foreclose any thought of saving them, or his friend. With just a single undamaged destroyer to chase submarines, with the responsibility to get heavily damaged ships and badly wounded men to base on his shoulders, with an adeptly commanded enemy submarine still at large, he decided he couldn’t risk stopping to search for survivors. Earlier that morning he had ordered the O’Bannon to steam away to the north to transmit a report of the previous night’s engagement to Nouméa. When maintaining radio silence, ships departed formation before transmitting their messages to avoid betraying the group’s location to radio snoopers. The O’Bannon wasn’t due to rejoin him until mid-afternoon." [James Hornfischer] Imagine how well we'd have thought of Helena's captain if he'd turned around got her sunk and probably San Francisco too given her parlous state. They'd have had to drive the sub off or sink her then spend who knows how long rescuing those left alive from Juneau, while vulnerable to Japanese planes and further sub attack. The US navy didn't have that many Cruisers or even CL/CLAA in theater that they could afford to lose these two. They still had to get through "Torpedo Alley" as it was and Helena was at this point the ONLY combat-ready cruiser in that part of the South Pacific. Captain Gilbert Hoover on the Helena was the most senior officer left alive, and was now in charge of the what remained of the battered fleet. He took the hard decision that Helena was too valuable to risk stopping, in order to pick up what he assumed to be very few survivors. Captain Hoover radioed a message to a B17 which unfortunately failed to report the loss of the in reasonable time, this was not Hoover’s fault. Hoover was disgustingly scapegoated, given the odds the fleet had been sent against, the failures of the various staff passing on the B17 message, the uproar about the five Sullivan brothers. Shameful most of all was Admiral Halsey's snap judgement and lack of support for a fellow decorated Officer. Halsey's reaction was likely tripped by his knowing that he had sent both Admirals Scott and Callaghan to their deaths, "They won him his Star" in his own words to their wives (paraphrase from memory). In late November, Halsey received his fourth star, elevating him from Vice Admiral to Admiral. When it was discovered that Nouméa was short of four-star pins for his epaulets, the Navy obtained a pair of two-star pins from a Marine major general and had them reconfigured by a repair ship’s welding shop. After Vice Admiral William L. Calhoun presented Halsey with the makeshift four-star insignia, Halsey turned in his three-star pins and said, “Send one of these to Mrs. Scott and the other to Mrs. Callaghan. Tell them it was their husbands’ bravery that got me my new ones.”[James Hornfischer] Without knowing the circumstances Halsey had rushed to judgment and jumped to conclusions, one of the down sides of his 'character of action' a side he also demonstrated both at Leyte Gulf's 'the Battle of Samar' and the 1944 Typhoon Cobra disasters. Admiral Halsey subsequently relieved Hoover of command, citing his failure to ensure a prompt report of the sinking was made, to attack the submarine, or to mount rescue operations. After the war, Halsey expressed regret over the episode, noting that Hoover 'had been exhausted by the previous night's fighting and that he had been motivated by the need to preserve his ship and those under his temporary command.' [James Hornfischer] This was disingenuous to say the least from Halsey, he threw Hoover under the bus for the 'good of the service' namely Halsey's own ego. James Hornfischer in 'Neptune's Inferno' believes Halsey showed his bad side here and covers this in depth. Canny, cautious, and discerning, Admiral Spruance picked up on an assumption that underlay Halsey’s censure-that Hoover had had the means at hand to attack the enemy submarine. He asked Hoover for comment, asking specifically whether his two destroyers had functioning sonar systems. Hoover conceded that both Fletcher and Sterett had working sound gear, though the latter was badly damaged. He added that he felt the need to bring damaged ships safely home outweighed the uncertain gain of searching for survivors of a vessel that had exploded so violently. Hoover emphasized the dangerous nature of the waters he was transiting, pointing to the dispatch the sent him that morning, notifying him of the threat of enemy aircraft and urging him to ask for prompt support from the task force. He mentioned that neither the Helena nor the San Francisco had planes on board to hunt submarines. [James Hornfischer] (To Spruance, Hoover was being good Navy and talking 'up' his situation, ready to take the fall.) Even Chester Nimitz’s moderating voice couldn’t overcome the damning effect of Halsey’s memo, "CinCPac was in disagreement with me on my judgment"- Halsy Pretty shoddy treatment of a decorated hero . Hoover’s decorations included two Navy Crosses, with a third (a second gold star) to follow after the events of Friday the thirteenth were duly considered. His destroyers had braved massive explosions at Coral Sea to save survivors of the sinking . His ship had been instrumental in two naval victories. Please excuse all the repeated referrals to James Hornfischer, good source I believe. erenow.net/ww/neptunes-inferno-the-u-s-navy-at-guadalcanal/40.php www.usni.org/magazines/naval-history-magazine/1992/december/captain-hoover-right-or-wrong

[@ZJ517]

A side note of this battle was the relief of Capt Gilbert Hoover of USS Helena as a result of the non-rescue of survivors of the Juneau. He was a very capable ship officer and his relief of command was one of the appalling injustice in the US Navy during WW2. With only 3 destroyers - out of which USS Fletcher being the sole not crippled in some way - plus a half sunk San Francisco being tended, Hoover decision of proceeding in submarine infested water was sensible instead of risking his ships (Royal Navy 7th Cruiser Sqn take note). Adm Halsey, who took the decision upon much prompting by one Miles Browning, would later admitted he got it wrong and Hoover's decision was that right one.

[@grandadmiralzaarin4962]

US pilot, "Get me into MELEE range!" Japanese pilot, "NANI?!!"

[@slartybartfarst55]

This was perfect! Watched The Operations Room video yesterday, which gave me a lock on the generalities of the Battle, then I could watch this & really get 100% out of it. I love this concept, & hope you guys can do more things like this together.

[@Engine33Truck]

I grew up down the street from a man who was on USS Portland during this engagement. I’ve always loved hearing about this battle

[@TaylorLuu00]

This sounds like something right out of a book! You, sir, are an amazing scripter. I don’t need any images to see exactly what’s going on and when that’s how detailed this is!

[@George_M_]

Callaghan was a political appointment, as was his getting the posthumous Medal of Honor. I love FDR and all but this was patronage from beginning to end.

[@seanbryan4833]

Killed in action, he got a medal. If he'd survived he probably would have been court martialed and beached.

[@RedXlV]

@@seanbryan4833 Given how many things Halsey *didn't* get court-martialed for that he should've been, that's no guarantee.

[@gluesniffingdude]

@@RedXlV yeah, agreed. Halsey's career surviving Leyte is almost astounding.

[@leoamery]

Good point. Callaghan had been FDR's naval aide from 1938-41,

[@archiethearky3650]

Japanese bombers: start attacking Wildcat pilot: lowers landing gear with malicious intent

[@justinr6006]

Drachinifel: He hit the bomber with his landing gear. Me: He did what?!

[@Pow3llMorgan]

I'm loving these Drach-Operations Room collabs. It's like the naval version of bread and butter.

[@stephenhunt2806]

Excellent account of the battle, good graphics as well.

[@josepetersen7112]

This was quite well done. There is no naval battle more complex or difficult to break down, so kudos for taking it on. Interestingly, Admiral Halsey would later regret firing Helena's skipper.

[@AtomicBabel]

The long anticipated episode. OMG OMG ... ALAS will need to wait until the evening to savour.

[@hojoj.1974]

Fantastic video. No less than what I would have expected from you guys. I would love to hear more about that Wildcat pilot who beat on the Japanese bomber with this landing gear. Now that, is one hell of a story... keep 'em coming!

[@auo2365]

A common theme that keeps on recurring seems to be the commanders unwillingness to pursue their goals to the very end even if it does cost them their ships. Nerves I would assume is the primary reason but there also seems to be just a lack of determination with the plan of battle that was given out especially in the Japanese navy

[@Warspite1]

I don’t think it was a lack of determination, I think in both cases it’s that neither side could afford serious losses to their ships. The Japanese did not want to push after a major engagement because they had no idea what other forces may have been waiting for them, and come daylight they would be exposed to the US aircraft on Guadalcanal, plus any losses would not be replaced. The US did not want to lose any ships because they were aware there would not be any reinforcements immediately at hand, and to loss naval supremacy around the island would lose the island itself. Neither side could truly afford the losses, but in the long term the US could replace them.

[@unclestone8406]

I have a strong suspicion that Abe being wounded and losing his XO in the same moment from USS Laffey's fire on Hiei's bridge mayyy have had some small influence on his assessment of the situation :D

[@Warspite1]

@@unclestone8406 In this instance, certainly. But I’m also referring to the other engagements where the Japanese, despite seemingly victorious against the US, left the field of battle in Allied hands, in situations where they seemingly could have pressed on

[@TexasSpectre]

@@Warspite1 Quite often their COs had been shaken up by American actions on the field and were definitely not fully tracking. Their commanders had a disturbing habit of receiving unintended special attention from American forces. There's also the fact that towards the end of the war their lack of recon assets and naval intel information made them more cautious - I believe one of the reasons Kurita withdrew at Samar was that (in addition to his being sick, rattled by having his previous flagship shot out from under him and having to be fished out of the water after an unscheduled swim and going without sleep after) upon finally realizing that what he'd been getting mauled all out of proportion by wasn't the cruisers and fleet carriers he'd thought he was fighting, but instead it was escort and screening forces. Escort and screening forces normally don't go around by themselves, they're usually escorting or screening far more powerful naval units. Kurita had *no* aerial recon assets; he had no idea what was on the other side of the Taffies and he knew by that time that there was some godawful huge US task force somewhere in the area that had just made all of Southern Force disappear save one badly damaged destroyer that got away to tell of the Monster In The Dark that just ate all of its compatriots. For all he knew, that's what was on the other side of the Taffies - he had no way to tell. Being in command of what he thought was the last reasonably intact Japanese fleet formation, he apparently chose to not gamble, especially when the 'screening forces' had been causing damage far out of proportion of what Japanese naval intelligence thought they could do. Kind of makes sense when you look at it that way.

[@rybuds47]

This is awesome I was just recapping the other videos. Thanks Drach!

[@duncani3095]

Is London's pub scene really that volatile Drach? Or should i just leave well before closing time when visiting Engeland?

[@scottgiles7546]

The Critical Drinker has pretty much stated The Scotland pub scene is that "volatile", only he did not us volatile...

[@duncani3095]

@@scottgiles7546 hope to visit some day and go to the national gallery in Edinburgh to see Sargent's masterpiece. Also love the drinker's channel.

[@Mr.Praetor]

Always happy to hear about the USS Portland, she was quite the ship!

[@randychristopher8195]

Did anyone notice the dungeons and dragons “perception check” at 23:52? I was surprised and delighted to see a dnd reference in a wwii video

[@danielolson2857]

This is awesome Drac, your videos continue to improve! Love the illustrations! Stay after it!

[@MrBobuaw10]

My Uncle was a gunners mate on the Cruiser Atlanta.

[@tmm6106]

So glad that the USS Laffey is still afloat in South Carolina, along with the USS Clamagore and USS Yorktown. If you ever have the opportunity to go to Patriots Point its a really neat place to get to tour 3 different types of US ships in short order.

[@musoklimbu4824]

The pilot who managed to destroy that bomber with his landing gear will have the best story to tell

[@dougjb7848]

Scott and, more so, Callaghan are remembered positively because the IJN bombardment force turned back. But from reading various accounts, it seems this happened almost in spite of Callaghan. He issued no written battle plan, did / would not understand the power of radar, and kept his destroyers back overlong and missed a chance to launch torpedoes at an unsuspecting enemy.

[@fabianzimmermann5495]

Callaghan did a terrible job. Poor Scott should have been in charge, at least he had some experience in night battles and an idea of what should be done.

[@John-ru5ud]

Callaghan was slightly senior to Scott, unfortunately.

[@martinvagnerpind6302]

What strange is that Callaghan was given a Medal of Honer posthumosly by Roosevelt. Da fuck?!?

[@kemarisite]

@@John-ru5ud yup. We looked into that recently, it was about two weeks seniority.

[@scottgiles7546]

@@martinvagnerpind6302 Callaghan's death greatly improved the navy's chain of command and that could be the reason. Also, Roosevelt...

[@fabianzimmermann5495]

@@martinvagnerpind6302 As far as I'm aware, Callaghan had worked very closely with Roosevelt for some time as his naval aid and they got along well. When Callaghan decided to join the fighting, Roosevelt was reluctant, but let him do it. So I guess he got the Medal of Honor, because he was friends with Roosevelt.

[@robinblankenship9234]

It is really difficult to imagine a more savage “knife fight in a phone booth” naval engagement than this one. Rather glad I wasn’t yet born.

[@mpersad]

Excellent video, with great use of graphics/maps and photos.

[@Curbsidehustle87]

I wish every Memorial day they would pull out amazing war stories of these crazy pilots risking life and limb to hit enemy fighters with landing gear and chop off wings and props with propellers they just don’t make um like that anymore

[@Drink4Exp]

God i wish you did an audiobook reading of Neptune's Inferno....

[@tommcglone2867]

Laffey goes into War God Mode. Just as mental as the other Tin Can Lunatics like the Johnston and the Samuel B. Roberts. Fucking legends. The little ships sometimes turn out to have the biggest hearts.

[@bullettube9863]

This battle illustrates the wild viciousness of the fighting in the Southern Pacific during 1942. It's hard to remember that in 1942 radar and short range radios weren't readily available to either the US or the Japanese navies. But while the US continued to improve the technology and taught their commanders how to use it, The Japanese never fully developed it. When it gets dark in the Pacific it gets very dark if there is no moon! The Japanese developed night fighting, using some of the best binoculars ever made, and large listening devices installed on their ships. These weird looking megaphone like devices enabled the Japanese to hear ships from long distances, and were similar to the devices used by anti-aircraft gunners in Britain and Germany.

[@steelbreeze1960]

The Bar Room Brawl! Thanks for posting this.

[@dave7830]

It has always amazed me, we had so many incompetent admirals, but were still able to get the job done

[@orvilleh.larson7581]

Pardon me, but the majority of American flag officers were pretty damn good! Walden ("Pug") Ainsworth . . . Aaron S. ("Tip") Merrill . . . J. J. ("Jocko") Clark . . . Richard ("Close In") Connolly . . . Thomas Kincaid . . . Theodore ("Ping") Wilkinson . . . need I say more?

[@garrettfinley3178]

Can someone please get me a source for the "aerial melee combat" involving the hellcat?

[@chrisbullock3504]

jesus man. what an absolute knife fight of a naval battle. a type of battle from a different age.

[@jlarissou]

The USS San Francisco Memorial at Land's End park in San Francisco preserves the colander like bridge wings of the USS San Francisco. Ever since I was a child the way the steel was torn was a source of wonder. The monument was created from parts removed during the repairs caused by the efforts of the IJN, during the battle, to make it more closely resemble swiss cheese. It sits above the entrance to the Golden Gate. It is a beautiful site on the rare day that is not foggy. Less well known are the coastal defense batteries and mortar pits of Fort Miley that overlook it. Below, at low tide, are the remains of a ship that did not make it into the bay.

[@stephenfarthing3819]

Wow! I guess that was the first time that a Japanese Torpedo Bomber was encouraging it to 're-tire' ! At near Guadalcanal in 1942.

[@f-xdemers2825]

Ship to review hey? How about HDS Noah's arch? (Her Divinity's Ship)

[@scottgiles7546]

"Her"?? Not really into the Christianity thing I see. (Official view: GOD is far beyond the concept of gender.)

[@f-xdemers2825]

@@scottgiles7546 Not sure the Church or any Christian hierarchy reflects that view. Given that the Churchs '' Officially'' represent the views of God on earth, it appears that your Official view is officially contradicted by facts. Not really into the Christianity thing I see.

[@johnhazel5385]

Thanks. I could spend weeks studing this battle. Suggestion for a future video. Gower's design "Transit" ~1800, was a proto-barkentine. Gower was a great designer but a poor politician. He was not able to get orders from the Royal Navy. If he had, the outcome of the war of 1812 would have been very different. There's probly a lot of correspondence regarding "Transit" in less ordinary sources.