USN Destroyer vs IJN Destroyer: The Pacific 1943

by Mark Stille, Ian Palmer (Illustrator), Giuseppe Rava (Illustrator)

Overview

This book covers the fierce night naval battles fought between the US Navy and the Imperial Japanese Navy during late 1943 as the Allies advanced slowly up the Solomons Islands toward the major Japanese naval base at Rabaul. During this period, several vicious actions were fought featuring the most modern destroyers of both navies. Throughout most of 1942, the Imperial Navy had held a marked edge and a key ingredient of these successes was their destroyer force, which combined superior training and tactics with the most capable torpedo in the world. Even into 1943 mixed Allied light cruiser/destroyer forces were roughly handled by Japanese destroyers. After these battles, the Americans decided to stop chasing Japanese destroyers with cruisers so the remainder of the battles in 1943 (with one exception) were classic destroyer duels. The Americans still enjoyed the technical edge provided to them by radar, and now added new, more aggressive tactics. The final result was the defeat of the Imperial Navy's finely trained destroyer force and the demonstration that the Japanese were unable to stop the Allies' advance.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781780961194
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Publishing
Publication date:	11/20/2012
Series:	Duel , #48
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	80
Sales rank:	961,414
File size:	8 MB

About the Author

Mark E. Stille (Commander, United States Navy, retired) received his BA in History from the University of Maryland and also holds an MA from the Naval War College. He has worked in the intelligence community for 30 years including tours on the faculty of the Naval War College, on the Joint Staff and on US Navy ships. He is currently a senior analyst working in the Washington DC area. He is the author of numerous Osprey titles, focusing on naval history in the Pacific. He is also the author of several wargames.
Mark Stille is the author of numerous Osprey titles focusing on naval history in the Pacific. He recently concluded a nearly 40-year career in the intelligence community, including tours on the faculty of the Naval War College, on the Joint Staff and on US Navy ships. He received his BA in History from the University of Maryland and also holds an MA from the Naval War College.
Ian Palmer is a highly experienced digital artist with two decades of experience in the video games industry, both as a 3D artist and an Art Director. He has a passion for military history, gaming and riding his motorbike. He lives in Warwickshire with his wife, daughter and menagerie of pets.
Giuseppe Rava was born in Faenza in 1963, and took an interest in all things military from an early age. Entirely self-taught, Giuseppe has established himself as a leading military history artist, and is inspired by the works of the great military artists, such as Detaille, Meissonier, Röchling, Lady Butler, Ottenfeld and Angus McBride. He lives and works in Italy.

Table of Contents

Introduction 4

Chronology 8

Design and Development 10

The Strategic Situation 28

Technical Specifications 31

The Combatants 46

Combat 54

Statistics and Analysis 71

Aftermath 76

Bibliography 78

Index 80

Editorial Reviews

This illuminating installment in Osprey's acclaimed 'Duel' series recaps four vicious night actions between US Navy and Imperial Japanese Navy destroyers in late 1943.” —David L. Veres, www.cybermodeler.com (July 2013)

“Provides a fine history of the arena of destroyers in the Pacific War during 1943, where night battles were a technological and strategis challenge on both sides.” —The Midwest Book Review (February 2013)

From the Publisher