Types of Warships

Crusiers

Surface Warships that are used for reconnaissance missions.

World War 2 Cruisers would come in two different types of forms, heavy and light. Heavy cruisers were similar to battleships, just that they were smaller and less armed, heavy cruisers also had the capability to launch reconnaissance aircraft similar to that of Battleships. Light cruisers, on the other hand, were similar to destroyers, they were versatile but more armed than destroyers, these warships also had the capability to launch reconnaissance aircraft as they too had a hangar like Battleships. On th right is the Baltimore Class Heavy Cruiser which at its time weighed 145000 tons. Cruisers were mainly used for protecting smaller convoys and also for reconnaissance missions as well.

Destroyers

Small and effective surface warships.

World War 2 destroyers were versatile, small, swift and easily manoeuvrable warships, however, they were less armed and did not have the capability to launch reconnaissance aircraft as they did not have a hangar due to their size.  Destroyers in World War 2 were mainly used for defence patrolling and being parts of large convoy defences or taskforces wit aircraft carriers. Destroyers, as said before, had less armament and were easily sunk, but due to their size and weight, they could easily evade shell, torpedo and bomb attacks. Destroyers were armed with AP Shell launchers, Torpedo tubes, destroyers were ideal for launching torpedoes due to their size and as any World War 2 warship, Anti - Aircraft guns. On the Right is the fletcher class Destroyer which weighed an approximate 2500 tons fully loaded.

Battleships

Enormous surface warships that symbolised a country's naval power.

Battleships, also known as the beasts of the seas, which aren't used to date, in World War 2 were symbols of a country's Naval might. These metal beasts would be enormous in size and could hold up to 7 reconnaissance aircraft at a go in their hangars. Battleships were armed with shells, fired out of turrets with different amounts of guns and anti - aircraft artillery, these warships were armed heavily and their armament could go thicker than 18mm ! However, don't let that give you a clear picture of a battleship, due to their size, they were incredibly slow and burned a lot of fuel, but nevertheless were still a large contribution in fighting naval theatres of the Second World War. On my right is the American battleship, USS Texas. The largest battleship in the world ( used to be ) was Japanese IJN Yamato, which you can read about in the Famous Warships Section, and that had an approximate displacement of 72,000 tons.

Aircraft Carriers

Enormous vessels that are portable landing strips for aircraft during naval battles.

Aircraft carriers in the Second World War were also a very large contribution to winning any naval theatre of the war. These surface warships were in a word moving landing strips for naval aircraft and were armed mainly with anti aircraft artillery. Aircraft carriers mainly held fighter aircraft, dive bombers, AP high level bombers, torpedo bombers, and could also launch reconnaissance aircraft with catapults. At one point in the war, Heavy B-25 Mitchell Bombers were launched of the deck of the American aircraft carrier, USS Hornet during the Doolittle raid on Tokyo, which you can read about in the Pacific Theatre section. Aircraft carriers were heavily defended, in most cases surrounded by 8 or more cruisers and destroyers, as they were a vital part of the fleet. On my right is US Aircraft carrier USS Yorktown which weighed a total of 25,500 tons, approximate.