We haven’t done a book review in a while so let’s do one!
The Fletcher class destroyer was the iconic destroyer of WWII but have you wondered why? Why did it become an icon? What characteristics made it so successful? How did it evolve?
John C. Reilly, Jr.’s book, “United States Navy Destroyers of World War II”, answers these questions and many more. As the name suggests, the book is an exploration of the pre-war evolution of US destroyers which culminated in the Fletcher class and its successors the Sumner and Gearing classes.
The book is soft-covered (there is a much more expensive hard cover version available) in an 8-1/2 x 11 inch format which provides ample area for the over 200 b&w photos, most of them quite close up and revealing all manner of detail about equipment. Each photo is accompanied by detailed captions explaining what you’re seeing.
The book begins with a brief history of the beginnings of destroyers and then examines the evolution through the Farragut, Porter, Benham, Sims, Benson, and Gleaves classes and then, of course, the Fletchers along with the following Sumner and Gearing classes. It is a treat and highly informative to flip through the pages and see the visual evolution of the classes as the form of the Fletcher becomes more and more evident with each succeeding class.
Of intense interest are the descriptions of the debates and considerations that went into each succeeding design and how real world experience fed back into the evolutionary process. The role of the General Board and BuShips in developing designs really stands out and is made all the more emphatic when compared to the absence of any guiding design authority today and the almost random nature of today’s ship designs.
A chapter on anti-aircraft (AA) roles, evolution, and impact on tactics and ship design is utterly fascinating. Diagrams of various AA projectiles is most illuminating. Passages such as,
On 12 June [1940] the General Board forwarded a memorandum to CNO. This summarized fleet AA firing of 1939-40 and concluded that ‘the firing is generally ineffective, that a large amount of ammunition is expended in obtaining only occasional effective hits, and that anti-aircraft gunnery – as at present developed – does not provide reasonable security against air attack.’[1]
emphasize the degree of testing and honesty about results that is sorely lacking today (not withstanding the Navy's pre-war torpedo testing fiasco!).
Additional topics such as the development of radar, the role of the torpedo, the rationale for armor, the shift in focus from anti-surface to anti-air, the importance of topside weight, the development of the 5” gun, and more are all detailed through the discussions of the development of the various classes.
I look at the development and evolution of the destroyer and can’t help but be impressed by the logic and common sense as well as the feedback of real world experience that inexorably led to the ultimate destroyer, the Fletcher class. Every new design/class along the way built on the preceding class and represented a marked and steady improvement. In contrast, we seem to have no steady development and improvement with today’s ship classes. Indeed, each new design/class seems almost worse than the preceding one!
This book is a treat and a feast for the eyes and the mind and I highly recommend it. A reader will come away with a detailed understanding of ship design, ship evolution, the role of equipment in the development of tactics, and many more aspects of ship development, in general, and destroyer development, in particular.
Disclaimer: I have absolutely no connection, whatsoever, with the author, the book, or the publisher. As a point of interest, I picked this book up decades ago for the price of $9.95. I shudder to think what inflation has done to the price!
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[1]John C. Reilly, Jr., “United States Navy Destroyers of World War II”, Blandford Press, 1983, ISBN: 0 7132 1026 8
Have read D.K. Brown's Atlantic Escorts?
ReplyDeleteExcellent on the interaction of ship/weapon design
with operational and tactical practice. Brown was a ship
constructor for the RN.
I have not read that one. I'll look for it. Assuming it's from a largely RN perspective, what differences did you note from US design and tactics?
DeleteUS ships were considered luxurious, compared to RN.
Delete(I laughed when I read that, you were right even in 1942)
RN ships had open bridges; most attacks were spotted visually at the time.
"As a point of interest, I picked this book up decades ago for the price of $9.95. I shudder to think what inflation has done to the price!"
ReplyDeleteAvailable new for $43, used good condition for $5. Easy to find on Amazon, and a few copies available on Thriftbooks. Not as bad as I expected for an out-of-print book of this type. Certainly cheaper than a copy of Stimson, the thorough reading of which should be a legal requirement before anyone is allowed to discuss radar outside of a cocktail party.
I'll have to see if I have room on my bookshelf :)
The following Sumners & Gearings classes were the product improved MK 2 & 3 Fletchers. The US had the best destroyer fleet in the 40's and 50's for sure.
ReplyDeleteI got a copy on thriftbooks. Let you know when I've read it.
ReplyDeleteI will certainly look for this. I do hope the author covers the revolutionary development of 600psi superheated steam propulsion. That was fundamental to being able to outclass foreign types.
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately, there is no dedicated discussion of the power plant. Propulsion, speed, range, and endurance are discussed for the various classes but no in depth discussion of the mechanics of the power system.
DeleteFor me, the best book I have read involving the Fletchers is: Destroyer Squadron 23: Combat Exploits of Arleigh Burke's Gallant Force. I believe there are numerous books and such that have been written about the Fletcher-class. Back in 2016, while in Buffalo, I took my old lady on the USS The Sullivans (DD-537). Seeing a Fletcher-class up close, I saw why they were a successful class of warship.
ReplyDeleteThe last book that I recall CNO recommending was "Blind Man's Bluff", which was well worth the read.
ReplyDeleteSo I went ahead and bought it this morning off Ebay, used hardcover was $8 and free shipping.
I'm really looking forward to this book.
Since CNO's post about the Fletcher class, I've been thinking through some modern uses and configurations of the Gearings.
I'll be interested in learning more about those classes of ships.
Lutefisk
This book sounds very interesting. I recently bought Dr. Alexander Clarke's "Tribals, Battles, and Darings: The Genesis of the Modern Destroyer". If you like his YouTube videos on the subject, you'll like this book too. Clarke has many ideas similar to CNO.
ReplyDeleteThanks for this book review!
My Dad was a destroyer man during WW2 and served as a QM on the USS Ralph Talbot (DD 390) a Bagley class pre-war built destroyer. Bought the book, looking forward to the read. Thanks
ReplyDelete