The Aircraft Carrier War In The Pacific During World War II
I have forgotten the author and where I read this excellent article, with great photos. When I find it again, I will give proper credit.
At Midway, the Japanese carrier aircraft were switching from land weapons to naval weapons to attack the American fleet after they bombed Midway Island. This meant that the decks and hangars were all littered with ammunition, bombs, torpedoes, and whatnot. The Japanese carriers were nothing but “powder kegs,” ready to blow up at a single well-directed bomb hit. The result was the disaster at Midway, as we all know.
This question is asking— under a ridiculous assumption— why Japanese aircraft carriers were “sunk so easily” compared to American aircraft carriers. At Midway, this was because the Japanese carriers were reduced to mere powder kegs and were completely unprepared to defend against air attacks. But what if we take a look at some of the other cases— outside of Midway?
Aside from the Battle of Midway, Japanese aircraft carriers weren’t usually sunk easily. At the Battle of the Coral Sea, for example, the two Japanese fleet carriers Shokaku and Zuikaku sustained considerable damage without sinking. Shokaku was too heavily damaged to participate at Midway, and Zuikaku lost too much of its aircrew, but the two carriers managed to survive. See the picture below to get an idea of just how much damage Shokaku suffered.
Meanwhile, the US carrier Lexington sunk after the Battle of the Coral Sea— not from battle damage, but from human error. She sustained lots of damage, too, and managed to survive, only to be sunk by a fatal accident. Yorktown sustained a lot of damage as well but was miraculously repaired in 3 days— a repair that should have taken 3 months!
As for the fleet carrier Hiryu sunk at Midway, she was not sunk by American aircraft at all. Hiryu was scuttled by the Japanese to prevent her from being captured. Now, it is true that American aircraft turned Hiryu into a floating wreck, prompting the Japanese to scuttle her. It is also true that British naval gunfire and torpedoes turned Bismarck into a floating wreck, promoting her crew to scuttle her to prevent her from being towed back to Britain as a prize, which would have humiliated Germany in the highest regard. Yet we don’t consider Bismarck as being sunk easily. She took a lot of damage but was still floating— although reduced to a floating wreck. Same with Hiryu.
After Midway, Japan had significantly fewer aircraft carriers. The only fleet carriers that remained were Shokaku and Zuikaku (although several more were produced, including Unryu, Amagi, Katsuragi, Taiho, and Shinano). Zuikaku was sunk at the Battle of Cape Engano. Zuikaku was far from being “easily sunk,” taking a whopping 7 torpedoes and 9 bombs. Even after that, it took her a relatively long time to sink. The crew even had time to lower the flag and offer their salutations while they were being evacuated.
What about Shokaku? Shokaku was sunk in the Philippine Sea by a submarine— not by enemy aircraft. Japanese (and American) aircraft carriers of that time did not have much submarine protection aside from destroyer escorts and anti-submarine air patrols. The sinking of the USS Yorktown was an excellent example of this. A Japanese submarine somehow managed to slip closely enough to the American carrier to launch torpedoes, sinking her as well as one American destroyer. The US fleet carriers Hornet and Wasp were also sunk by Japanese submarines. (In WW2, destroyers were the ships designed to combat submarines, not aircraft carriers. It wouldn’t be surprising for an aircraft carrier to be sunk by a submarine, but that submarine would have to be able to slip through the carrier’s destroyer escorts and also not be spotted by patrolling aircraft).
Shokaku had just finished refueling and rearming aircraft (just like the fleet carriers at Midway) and was extremely vulnerable when she was torpedoed by the US submarine Cavalla. Even then, it took 4 torpedoes to sink her. Given the circumstances, this should not be an example of a Japanese carrier “sinking easily.”
In the later parts of the war (from 1944-ish onward), Japanese aircrews were very inexperienced and lacking in number. Some Japanese carriers didn’t even carry planes at that point. Let us now discuss the sinking of the fleet carrier Taiho, which had an armored flight deck capable of withstanding a lot of bomb damage. As some readers might know, Taiho was sunk by a single torpedo launched by a US submarine. Should Taiho’s sinking be considered an “easy” sinking, then? I’d say no. Here’s why:
Consider how the British battlecruiser Hood was sunk by a single lucky shot that hit home (the ammunition magazine) and snapped the ship in half. Also consider the sinking of Arizona at Pearl Harbor in just 9 minutes, which was caused by a Japanese bomb exploding in the ammunition magazine. These are both good examples of extremely lucky hits.
Now, the torpedo that the submarine fired at Taiho struck the starboard side of the carrier and penetrated the aviation fuel tanks, jamming the elevator in the same process. This turned out to be an extremely lucky hit, as seawater mixed with gasoline from the penetrated fuel tanks began vaporizing into the hangar decks. The crew was inexperienced and did not respond to this effectively. Still, Taiho remained intact for many hours, and no one expected her to sink.
In an effort to get rid of the fumes, the damage control officer ordered the ventilation systems switched to full capacity. This actually increased the chance of ignition. Six and a half hours after the torpedo hit, a massive explosion tore the ship’s sides from the inside out, and loads of seawater flooded in. Taiho sunk almost two hours later. In all, it took more than 8.5 hours for Taiho to be sunk by this lucky torpedo hit (compared to the 9 minutes of Arizona’s sinking). If the crew’s response to the fumes had been better, Taiho may not have sunk. Additionally, Taiho also had design flaws. So, her sinking was caused by:
A very lucky hit
An ineffective response by an inexperienced crew
An order that was not carefully thought over by the damage control officer
Was this an “easy” sinking? I certainly wouldn’t say so.
Now, for the sinking of the largest aircraft carrier of that time, the fleet carrier Shinano:
Shinano already had serious design flaws, just like Taiho. She was sunk by 4 torpedoes fired by the US submarine (not enemy aircraft) Archerfish. The first torpedo flooded storage compartments and an aviation fuel storage tank. The second torpedo flooded the outboard engine room. The third torpedo flooded the third engine boiler room, which, assisted by structural failures, managed to also flood two other boiler rooms. The fourth torpedo flooded the starboard compressor room and a damage control station. It also caused an oil tank to burst.
Due to the crew’s confidence in the armor of the ship, their efforts to save the ship were slow, unorganized, and slacking. The captain, Toshio Abe, ordered the ship to continue at full speed even after the torpedo hits, which allowed large amounts of water to flood into the torpedo holes. The ship listed more than 20 degrees and the engines hat to he shut down. By the time the captain finally gave the order to abandon ship, Shinano was listing at 30 degrees. She later capsized and sank.
Once again, ineffective efforts to save the ship, inexperienced crews and a bad decision led to a fleet carrier being sunk. Additionally, the 4 torpedoes that hit Shinanon also managed to hit some places that had structural flaws in them. I would partially agree that Shinano was sunk because of her structural flaws, but I would argue that it was more because of slacking initial efforts and the captain’s decision to continue at full speed. But above all, this sinking should not be counted as an “easy” sinking. It was not the American submarine that “easily” sunk Shinano, but rather the crew’s overconfidence, slacking efforts, and the captain’s decision to continue at full speed.
The escort carrier Un’yo was also sunk by a submarine, which fired two torpedoes. These were also relatively lucky hits, knocking out the engines. That night, a storm collapsed Un’yo’s bulkheads, causing her to list to starboard. Then, the order to abandon ship was issued.
Was this an “easy” sinking? Perhaps. The torpedo hits were pretty severe, but it was more likely the storm that sunk the ship. Were it not for the storm, Un’yo would have been able to limp back to port for repairs. The storm was assisted by the torpedo hits (or the other way around: the torpedo hits were assisted by the storm). Either way, without the torpedo hits or without the storm, Un’yo would have survived.
Most of the other Japanese carriers were either sunk by submarines (which they weren’t designed to defend themselves against) or sunk in port by American air attacks during the final stretches of World War II. At that time, they had virtually no carrier aircraft left and were basically reduced to floating anti-aircraft batteries.
There are several other sinkings I want to mention in this answer, but judging from the fact that this answer is already much longer than a typical answer on Quora and people wouldn’t read all of it if I include more examples. (By the way, if you made it up to this point, then great job!)
In conclusion, aside from the Battle of Midway, there were indeed been a few rare cases of a Japanese aircraft carrier being “easily” sunk in non-disadvantageous circumstances, but these were pretty rare. So, enough with the ridiculous assumption that Japanese carriers were actually sunk easily in the Pacific War. They were either sunk in disadvantageous circumstances, sunk by deliberately being “powder kegs,” sunk by very lucky hits, sunk by ineffective responses, sunk by wrong decisions, or sunk because of structural flaws— the latter being rather uncommon for Japanese carriers (except for Taiho and Shinano).
Edit: Of course, one could argue that Japanese carriers were indeed easily sunk and that they were easily sunk due to such reasons, to which I would agree. If it is possible to assume that Japanese aircraft carriers were easily sunk in the Pacific War, then it is because of the above-mentioned reasons.
The Aircraft Carrier War In The Pacific During World War II
I have forgotten the author and where I read this excellent article, with great photos. When I find it again, I will give proper credit.
At Midway, the Japanese carrier aircraft were switching from land weapons to naval weapons to attack the American fleet after they bombed Midway Island. This meant that the decks and hangars were all littered with ammunition, bombs, torpedoes, and whatnot. The Japanese carriers were nothing but “powder kegs,” ready to blow up at a single well-directed bomb hit. The result was the disaster at Midway, as we all know.
This question is asking— under a ridiculous assumption— why Japanese aircraft carriers were “sunk so easily” compared to American aircraft carriers. At Midway, this was because the Japanese carriers were reduced to mere powder kegs and were completely unprepared to defend against air attacks. But what if we take a look at some of the other cases— outside of Midway?
Aside from the Battle of Midway, Japanese aircraft carriers weren’t usually sunk easily. At the Battle of the Coral Sea, for example, the two Japanese fleet carriers Shokaku and Zuikaku sustained considerable damage without sinking. Shokaku was too heavily damaged to participate at Midway, and Zuikaku lost too much of its aircrew, but the two carriers managed to survive. See the picture below to get an idea of just how much damage Shokaku suffered.
Meanwhile, the US carrier Lexington sunk after the Battle of the Coral Sea— not from battle damage, but from human error. She sustained lots of damage, too, and managed to survive, only to be sunk by a fatal accident. Yorktown sustained a lot of damage as well but was miraculously repaired in 3 days— a repair that should have taken 3 months!
As for the fleet carrier Hiryu sunk at Midway, she was not sunk by American aircraft at all. Hiryu was scuttled by the Japanese to prevent her from being captured. Now, it is true that American aircraft turned Hiryu into a floating wreck, prompting the Japanese to scuttle her. It is also true that British naval gunfire and torpedoes turned Bismarck into a floating wreck, promoting her crew to scuttle her to prevent her from being towed back to Britain as a prize, which would have humiliated Germany in the highest regard. Yet we don’t consider Bismarck as being sunk easily. She took a lot of damage but was still floating— although reduced to a floating wreck. Same with Hiryu.
After Midway, Japan had significantly fewer aircraft carriers. The only fleet carriers that remained were Shokaku and Zuikaku (although several more were produced, including Unryu, Amagi, Katsuragi, Taiho, and Shinano). Zuikaku was sunk at the Battle of Cape Engano. Zuikaku was far from being “easily sunk,” taking a whopping 7 torpedoes and 9 bombs. Even after that, it took her a relatively long time to sink. The crew even had time to lower the flag and offer their salutations while they were being evacuated.
What about Shokaku? Shokaku was sunk in the Philippine Sea by a submarine— not by enemy aircraft. Japanese (and American) aircraft carriers of that time did not have much submarine protection aside from destroyer escorts and anti-submarine air patrols. The sinking of the USS Yorktown was an excellent example of this. A Japanese submarine somehow managed to slip closely enough to the American carrier to launch torpedoes, sinking her as well as one American destroyer. The US fleet carriers Hornet and Wasp were also sunk by Japanese submarines. (In WW2, destroyers were the ships designed to combat submarines, not aircraft carriers. It wouldn’t be surprising for an aircraft carrier to be sunk by a submarine, but that submarine would have to be able to slip through the carrier’s destroyer escorts and also not be spotted by patrolling aircraft).
Shokaku had just finished refueling and rearming aircraft (just like the fleet carriers at Midway) and was extremely vulnerable when she was torpedoed by the US submarine Cavalla. Even then, it took 4 torpedoes to sink her. Given the circumstances, this should not be an example of a Japanese carrier “sinking easily.”
In the later parts of the war (from 1944-ish onward), Japanese aircrews were very inexperienced and lacking in number. Some Japanese carriers didn’t even carry planes at that point. Let us now discuss the sinking of the fleet carrier Taiho, which had an armored flight deck capable of withstanding a lot of bomb damage. As some readers might know, Taiho was sunk by a single torpedo launched by a US submarine. Should Taiho’s sinking be considered an “easy” sinking, then? I’d say no. Here’s why:
Consider how the British battlecruiser Hood was sunk by a single lucky shot that hit home (the ammunition magazine) and snapped the ship in half. Also consider the sinking of Arizona at Pearl Harbor in just 9 minutes, which was caused by a Japanese bomb exploding in the ammunition magazine. These are both good examples of extremely lucky hits.
Now, the torpedo that the submarine fired at Taiho struck the starboard side of the carrier and penetrated the aviation fuel tanks, jamming the elevator in the same process. This turned out to be an extremely lucky hit, as seawater mixed with gasoline from the penetrated fuel tanks began vaporizing into the hangar decks. The crew was inexperienced and did not respond to this effectively. Still, Taiho remained intact for many hours, and no one expected her to sink.
In an effort to get rid of the fumes, the damage control officer ordered the ventilation systems switched to full capacity. This actually increased the chance of ignition. Six and a half hours after the torpedo hit, a massive explosion tore the ship’s sides from the inside out, and loads of seawater flooded in. Taiho sunk almost two hours later. In all, it took more than 8.5 hours for Taiho to be sunk by this lucky torpedo hit (compared to the 9 minutes of Arizona’s sinking). If the crew’s response to the fumes had been better, Taiho may not have sunk. Additionally, Taiho also had design flaws. So, her sinking was caused by:
A very lucky hit
An ineffective response by an inexperienced crew
An order that was not carefully thought over by the damage control officer
Was this an “easy” sinking? I certainly wouldn’t say so.
Now, for the sinking of the largest aircraft carrier of that time, the fleet carrier Shinano:
Shinano already had serious design flaws, just like Taiho. She was sunk by 4 torpedoes fired by the US submarine (not enemy aircraft) Archerfish. The first torpedo flooded storage compartments and an aviation fuel storage tank. The second torpedo flooded the outboard engine room. The third torpedo flooded the third engine boiler room, which, assisted by structural failures, managed to also flood two other boiler rooms. The fourth torpedo flooded the starboard compressor room and a damage control station. It also caused an oil tank to burst.
Due to the crew’s confidence in the armor of the ship, their efforts to save the ship were slow, unorganized, and slacking. The captain, Toshio Abe, ordered the ship to continue at full speed even after the torpedo hits, which allowed large amounts of water to flood into the torpedo holes. The ship listed more than 20 degrees and the engines hat to he shut down. By the time the captain finally gave the order to abandon ship, Shinano was listing at 30 degrees. She later capsized and sank.
Once again, ineffective efforts to save the ship, inexperienced crews and a bad decision led to a fleet carrier being sunk. Additionally, the 4 torpedoes that hit Shinanon also managed to hit some places that had structural flaws in them. I would partially agree that Shinano was sunk because of her structural flaws, but I would argue that it was more because of slacking initial efforts and the captain’s decision to continue at full speed. But above all, this sinking should not be counted as an “easy” sinking. It was not the American submarine that “easily” sunk Shinano, but rather the crew’s overconfidence, slacking efforts, and the captain’s decision to continue at full speed.
The escort carrier Un’yo was also sunk by a submarine, which fired two torpedoes. These were also relatively lucky hits, knocking out the engines. That night, a storm collapsed Un’yo’s bulkheads, causing her to list to starboard. Then, the order to abandon ship was issued.
Was this an “easy” sinking? Perhaps. The torpedo hits were pretty severe, but it was more likely the storm that sunk the ship. Were it not for the storm, Un’yo would have been able to limp back to port for repairs. The storm was assisted by the torpedo hits (or the other way around: the torpedo hits were assisted by the storm). Either way, without the torpedo hits or without the storm, Un’yo would have survived.
Most of the other Japanese carriers were either sunk by submarines (which they weren’t designed to defend themselves against) or sunk in port by American air attacks during the final stretches of World War II. At that time, they had virtually no carrier aircraft left and were basically reduced to floating anti-aircraft batteries.
There are several other sinkings I want to mention in this answer, but judging from the fact that this answer is already much longer than a typical answer on Quora and people wouldn’t read all of it if I include more examples. (By the way, if you made it up to this point, then great job!)
In conclusion, aside from the Battle of Midway, there were indeed been a few rare cases of a Japanese aircraft carrier being “easily” sunk in non-disadvantageous circumstances, but these were pretty rare. So, enough with the ridiculous assumption that Japanese carriers were actually sunk easily in the Pacific War. They were either sunk in disadvantageous circumstances, sunk by deliberately being “powder kegs,” sunk by very lucky hits, sunk by ineffective responses, sunk by wrong decisions, or sunk because of structural flaws— the latter being rather uncommon for Japanese carriers (except for Taiho and Shinano).
Edit: Of course, one could argue that Japanese carriers were indeed easily sunk and that they were easily sunk due to such reasons, to which I would agree. If it is possible to assume that Japanese aircraft carriers were easily sunk in the Pacific War, then it is because of the above-mentioned reasons.