bismarck vs. iowa class??????

Answer 1

Bismarck is sunk unless she is very lucky. contrary to popular belief the Bismarck was not a super ship. she got lucky with the hood but she had several major shortcomings. she lacked the fire control for long range gunnery, had her control runs outside of her armor, was weakly built in the stern area, did not have either good radar or gunnery computers, and lacked good damage control. the Iowas were faster, had much heavier weigh to their broadsides, longer ranged guns, much better radar and fire control, better armor and design, were more maneuverable, and had much better damage control and redundant systems.

Answer 2

The Bismark was a superior ship at the time she was built, but with the introduction of the american Dreadnoughts (modern battleships) starting with the USS North Carolina, she would quickly have been outclassed. The North Carolina, being the first of the 'fast battleships' (continued station keeping during a battle in the South Pacific after taking a torpedo amidships, maintained 25 knots, or ~29mph), was armed with what became the standard of 9 16", 54 caliber guns and 20 5" 45 caliber guns, the firepower gave it a much greater range, about three miles further than the bismark's 14 inch guns at a point target.

But, ultimately, it will come down to the men fighting the battle. The American battleships, especially the Iowa class, (Iowa, Missouri, Wisconson and New Jersey), were technologically superior to the Bismark, and it's sister ship, Tirpitz, but the German Kriegsmarine was an intelligent, discipline and dangerous adversary.

Answer 3

Bismarck has 8x380mm/52cal guns for main armament, a speed of 29-30kts...and armour of up to 15" but on a more conservative layout optimized for short-range combat. The Iowas have 9x406mm/50cal guns for main armament, a speed of 32+kts and armour of up to 18" on a more modern layout.
Overall the Iowa-Class is superior...though if the Bismarck got close enough then it would be up to fate/luck to decide who wins.

Answer 4

I'd have to go with the Missouri, simply because she displaced slightly more (meaning she had slightly more armor, basically), her main guns were larger, and, crucially, she had radar to aim her guns. When it comes to slugging it out between main battle fleet battleships, barring a Jutland-style engineering flaw (that allowed explosions in British turrets to reach the magazine far below, destroying the ship from within), the ship with the heavier and better aimed main battery fire wins. Since Missouri had radar aimed guns, she could continue the battle into the night, when Tirpitz would be completely blind - she'd be able to see the flame from Missouri's guns, but would have no idea if her own shells were falling on target or half a mile away. Plus, the Missouri was faster, so she could offer battle on her terms, attacking at night, coming out of the sun, or hiding behind a fog bank if she wished, sailing away if it didn't look good. She was laid down four years later, in an era of rapid military technological improvements, so she probably also had other technical advantages. There's no chance that Tirpitz could get near enough for World War II era torpedoes to be useful, with such large main guns blazing away.

Answer 5

Bismarck definately

Answer 6

seawolf