IJN Ibuki - "So, We Need More Aircraft Carriers, Right?"

[@JGCR59]

The removed half of the power plant is a good example of how exponentially the power requirement climbs over a certain speed. She could reach 29 knots with half her original power plant and needed the other half to basically drive her into the lower 30 knot range.

[@williamchamberlain2263]

k.e=0.5*mv^2 for the water molecules being pushed out of the way?

[@tonymanero5544]

Norman Friedman commented that the Iowas required almost doubled the SHP and 10,000 tons compared to the South Dakota’s for 5 more knots. Fighting power was essentially unchanged although one would argue the Iowas were better carrier AA screening ships.

[@paulmanson253]

Essentially the same with aviation and propellers. 300 mph, propellers about 80% efficient. 400 ish mph, propellers about 20 % efficient. Needed massive HP increase to push to the 425 to 450 mph.

[@genEricSVG]

I'd just like to point out that this is a excellent comment as well as some great replies !

[@takashitamagawa5881]

So true. One can also point to Japan's KONGO class battleships. Not only did they have the highest speed of all of Japan's heavy gunned warships but they were the most economical in their fuel use. They could escort Japan's Kido Butai carriers in the early part of the war and have bunker reserve to fuel the accompanying destroyers. Their fuel economy and their speed when they needed it made them by far the most useful battleships for the Japanese in the Guadalcanal campaign.

[@mpetersen6]

It doesn't matter how many carriers you have. If you do not have either the pilot training program or the experienced pilot cadre in place.

[@timengineman2nd714]

Old and Out Of Print (for a number of decades): Warships of the Imperial Japanese Navy 1863-1945. It has details of the Ibuki as a CVL, and a brief mention of her as a CA. (But not the upgrade in the number of Torpedo Tubes...

[@lloydknighten5071]

I have a copy of this book. It is excellent.

[@alephalon7849]

It's interesting to compare Ibuki with the USN's Independence class. They're roughly the same concept stemming from similar emergency requirements. But the IJN messed up badly, and so poor Ibuki never got completed.

[@mpetersen6]

One Ibuki vs how many lndependence's. It sucks when you neither quality or quantity.

[@genericpersonx333]

IJN didn't really "mess up" so much as they really never had a choice. We tend to forget Japan never did source a good supply of new steel, so from 1941 onwards, their shipbuilding was continuously being compromised by a lack of raw materials. Can't make 20,000 tons of ships a month if you only have 10,000 tons of steel smelted a month, that sort of thing.

[@bkjeong4302]

The Japanese actually cancelled multiple carrier projects post-Midway as well, such as the planned super-Taihos (not enough time or infrastructure), so it isn’t quite true to say that the Japanese went all-in for carrier construction after the Midway losses. It should also be noted that the Japanese were already cutting back on battleship construction efforts by the end of December 1941, not to the point of outright cancelling ships but to the point of putting construction efforts on hold and only trying to complete Shinano’s hull to free up the dock.

[@su-57stealthfighter73]

IJN also have a plan of 16 ships of Unryu Class Aircraft carrier which is the modified armored Hiryu class but much easier to build but sadly only 3 ships completed the UNRYU ,AMAGI and KATSURAGI and another 3 partially completed hulls of KASAGI ,IKOMA and ASO ..

[@bkjeong4302]

@@su-57stealthfighter73 The Unryus were planned even before Midway, so they’re not cases of Japan trying desperately to replace the Midway losses.

[@genericpersonx333]

A very good point, which ties in with the often neglected aspect of the Japanese war economy which was a virtual lack of new steel supplies following the American embargo. They got a little oil out of their conquests, which helped stave off that crisis for a short time, but between oil shortages limiting production of advanced steel compositions and limited total steel stocks, it is no wonder Japan never really built what it should have been given what it was trying to do. If anything, it is impressive what Japan did manage to make.

[@su-57stealthfighter73]

@@bkjeong4302 Yes Unryu Class was planned / designed way before midway but construction of the first ship was rushed to compensate for midway losses ,in fact the lead ship Unryu was laid down August ,1942 after midway which happen few months earlier ...

[@su-57stealthfighter73]

@@bkjeong4302 and yes they were desperate to replace those 4 fleet carriers that lost in that battle because carrier is the backbone of IJN .. the only problem of those ship specially the Unryu classes is lack of aircraft and pilots ...

[@ginnrollins211]

It sad to see warships never getting completed and having their moment to shine. Same with the planned, but never-built warships. Two perfect examples are the Illinois and Kentucky of the Iowa-class battleships, but in the case of Kentucky, at least part of her bow lives on with the Wisconsin. Others like Graf Zeppelin and Sovetsky Soyuz are good examples as well.

[@PhantomP63]

The boilers and engines of… Kentucky, I believe, were re-used for a pair of fast oilers.

[@karthus006]

Graf Zeppelin was one unfortunate case whose fault probably lies in Herr Göring.

[@BHuang92]

The Ryūhō is an interesting IJN carrier that is forgotten and is considered to be Japan's worst aircraft carrier!

[@takashitamagawa5881]

That carrier was a lemon for sure but its disappointing career is something of a puzzle, as the converted light carriers ZUIHO, SHOHO, CHITOSE, and CHIYODA were certainly more successful.

[@paulamos8970]

Very interesting presentation, thank you.

[@Straswa]

Great vid Skynea, a fascinating ship for sure.

[@73Trident]

Good video as per usual, Thanks.

[@andrewtaylor940]

“Swapping the triple torpedo tubes of Mogami for Quadruple torpedo tubes” because those tubes worked out so well for Mikuma at Midway?

[@tonymanero5544]

Thanks for the ship build deep dive. But that’s a lot of research effort for a standard ship that wasn’t completed. At least the Montana battleships were interesting in the different design constraints to get 4 triple-gun turrets on an armored hull. Like Yamato, breaking engineering brick wall for marginal combat power is interesting just as a discussion of battleships, outside of the reality that a cheaper carrier + aircraft would overwhelm any battleship.

[@takashitamagawa5881]

Once the war between the USA and Japan began the USA had the resources to accelerate its shipbuilding program AND fight the war while in Japan shipbuilding slowed down due to the need to commit human and material resources to ongoing military operations. The Japanese had absolutely no chance against the USA in a protracted war, and naval leaders such as Isoroku Yamamoto knew that well before the war started.

[@mattblom3990]

Ibuki's B-turret seems like an engineering disaster worth some salt. Looks like it has to be elevated unless shooting to either side and that it could either bump A turret or get in the way of C turret.

[@JGCR59]

Same arrangement as on the Mogami class, it seemed to have worked fine. Thing is that ships rarely have to fire straight ahead or straight astern.

[@Verbindungs]

The same as Mogami's

[@tonymanero5544]

It’s an artist drawing, not builders blueprint.

[@genericpersonx333]

Mind also Japanese doctrine called for long-range engagement by cruisers. Long Lances were partly so named because they had abnormally long ranges for torpedoes, and the Japanese favored the 203mm gun because it had better penetration and effect at longer ranges. If shooting at longer ranges, the barrels would be that elevated anyway. Thus, that turret not being able to depress in several arcs would actually only come into play if the ship was engaging contrary to doctrine.

[@model-man7802]

My father was desperatl y trying to dsve Yorktown

[@vinceszemplinski6101]

bataan death march????

[@Sashulya]

If you institute a scorched earth policy, destroying everything of use while retreating down a peninsula, then surrender, you have no business complaining when the other side can't feed you. You may call it a death march, the Japanese do not

[@johncox2865]

If they had listened to Yamamoto, they wouldn’t have gotten into a war with the U.S. No, your Emperor was not a god 🤪