Originally Posted by Gun Grape

As we have previously discussed, BBs are the best platforms to fight BBs. Once the enemy no longer has BBs then that element of their usefullness goes away. The only Japanese BB that was sunk by gunfire that included a US BB was the Yamashiro (Going off memory, correct me if I'm wrong) And she was first disabled by DDs. Sunk by BBs and CAs

So what were they REALLY" good for? The Navy stated that the 8" gun cruisers were the most accurate and best shore bombardment weapons of the war. They were great AA ships but the government realized that the material and manpower resources that it takes to build a BB could be better spent. And they realized that in 1942.

In the whole time that BBs were around you can point to 1 time that they were needed and wern't there. Their not being there was actually a good thing for the Marine Corps. Because of the airsupport being pulled, the Marines were able to justify their own air wings and the control of them.