USS Ranger CV 4 - No Conversion Necessary

[@MrSuzuki1187]

My dad made 4 night carrier landings on Ranger off Oahu flying an F6F Hellcat fighter in July or August, 1944. This qualified him for membership in the very first night carrier based low level attack squadron. He flew the TBM Avenger in Night Torpedo Squadron 90 flying from the USS Enterprise 1944-1945,

[@trob1731]

As a former USS Ranger CV-61 crewman, I enjoyed this video. Always felt CV-4 was an important ship that did her job well.

[@Beb001-w2x]

even though smaller and not as fast... this ship's military service was outstanding.. and she was in the thick of WW2...

[@forsakenace9577]

Nah, this ship never faced another carrier group, while USS Enterprise CV-6 was taking on the entire Japanese navy by herself.

[@paddlerofrivers7413]

My grandfather Chief boatswains mate Abram Witt Jr. helped build her and served on her in the north sea. I forget when he got off.I was 12 when he passed away in February of 1998. I wish I could have been more interested in his "sea stories" but I had a N64 controller in my hand. I remember we took care of him in his last years and he loved listening to the Atlanta Braves play.

[@danytalloen]

An N64 controller ofcourse felt great, it was perhaps the most ergonomically designed controller ever in use, so it's completely understandable that you weren't interested in your grandfather's stories... How I regret my grandfather died long before I was born, his stories would have been something else... he spent four years in the trenches during WW I !

[@captjinxmarine9832]

I love the history of our ships. The 12 years of my career I spent time on the LPH-3 Okinawa. Good duty

[@richardmorrison1495]

Great video on the history of this forgotten ship.

[@BobSmith-dk8nw]

Yeah. There was a lot of learning done with everyone's early carriers and a lot of things were shaped by those Naval Treaties. _Wasp_ was another ship that was limited in it's capabilities because of treaties. .

[@jamesbednar8625]

Awesome video and very interesting/informative. If ever there was a ship of any class that deserved to be preserved as a museum, RANGER would be it, especially for her unique configuration.

[@navyreviewer]

Good video. The real problem with Ranger wasnt here speed, it was her structural strength. In the words of one of COs he felt that a single torpedo hit would "most likely" cause her to break in half. To fragile. Rather than a fleet carrier she should be thought of as an escort carrier.

[@petesheppard1709]

Or a light carrier...

[@navyreviewer]

@@petesheppard1709 no. Wasp was a light carrier.

[@petesheppard1709]

@@navyreviewer I'd say _Ranger_ is closer to the _Independence_ class (true light carriers) than _Wasp_ , as well as beiing faster and far more heavily armed than CVE.

[@danielkennedy1524]

Excellent video great history! thank you!

[@timsimms65707]

A very useful, unique and interesting ship.

[@petestorz172]

USS Wasp (CV-7) had the same speed and was deployed to the Pacific. The problem with USS Ranger was that it tried to pack too much into too little. She had very little torpedo protection and was not very upgradeable. Ranger did well in the Atlantic - ferrying aircraft and supporting the invasion of North Africa and attacking German shipping in Norway - where Germany and Italy didn't have aircraft carriers. In the context of the early 30s, when she was designed, aircraft carriers, how they might be used, aircraft technology, and torpedo technology were all experimental or advancing rapidly. USS Ranger wasn't as successful as a design as the next USN aircraft carrier class, the Yorktown class.

[@DavidFischer-mj2sv]

As far as I’m aware, Ranger was also the first carrier built with an offset keel to compensate the weight of the elevator shafts and machinery, also the island.

[@vaughnmojado8637]

I never really understood why the Armed Forces didn’t scrap their own stuff. I mean, I think it would’ve paid for itself maybe. But what do I know. Haha! It was a great video. I never heard of the Ranger. I never heard of the Washington Naval Treaty either. Great video.

[@starterstuff2574]

I would not have slept better on my destroyer knowing there’s one of us fallible humans in the crew who knows how to torch her in half on the mid watch tonight

[@vaughnmojado8637]

@@starterstuff2574yeah. You’re special

[@jimwolaver9375]

At 0:24: Ranger was regulated... I'm sure that should have been Ranger was relegated...

[@saparotrob7888]

I never knew about her operations in Alaskan waters nor her training of aircrews for night operations.

[@donaldgrant9067]

First jeep carrier? Not a navy man, so don't get mad.

[@MrGaryGG48]

I believe the Jeep Carriers came a bit later. Their hull sections were built across the country in factories with the ability to handle smaller pieces. Those pieces were then hauled by rail to the coasts and the ship yards there, to be finally assembled. As capable as our fleets and armies were, the manufacturing power of the United States gave us the strength to win the war. Without weapons you're limited to "shaking your fist" at the bad guys. Those Jeep Carriers and all the aircraft that were built across the country were vital to our success. Looking back at the 1940s, you'll see a nation with no computers, no calculators (only slide rules!) and a lot of common sense and determination to get the job done. There's been a lot of talk about "The Greatest Generation" written by Tom Brokaw, but what made them successful was the ability to focus on a common goal and the determination to maintain that focus until the war was won. If they had not been able to keep their "eyes on the ball" so to speak, the results would have been much different. I have a huge respect for all of those who left their homes and families to volunteer to fight for our nation. Both of my parents were in the Army Air Corps during the war, with my dad retiring from the Army in the mid-sixties. All three of their sons served in our military in the 1960s & 1970s. We would do well to be concerned about our future...

[@GlennWilson-n4t]

Nice history of a relatively less shiny heros of WW. Unsung but not unimportant.

[@katana258]

nothing like a overhaul then soon after scrap her .. go navy waste $$

[@jhonyermo]

Maybe they should have asked a Trumpanzee how to do thing.