Does the Past Have a Place in the Future? The Utility of Battleships in the Twenty-First Century

<p>This thesis examines the Iowa class battleships and whether they hold utility for the future. There is a myriad of writings concerning the history of the battleships and the arguments both for and against. The author uses this history to determine the key capabilities that a battleship provides and then identifies and reviews the arguments both for and against continued battleship service. This is then used to develop a comparison model that examines the battleship's possible strategic and tactical utility in future geopolitical climates. Keying in on the unique capabilities of the battleship a comprehensive review is conducted to validate these capabilities against demonstrated wartime capabilities and the capabilities of current and proposed battleship replacements. Finally a cost effectiveness comparison is completed to determine: Is there utility in bringing back the battleships? and if so Is it great enough to warrant the associated costs? The study found that there were key battleship capabilities exhibited that enable them to greatly contribute to operations in the littorals. While the Navy recognizes the need to fulfill these capabilities their attempts over the past few years have not been fruitful and will not be met adequately until 2015 with the vertical gun system (VGAS). Because of this capability vacuum the author concludes that there is at least temporary utility for the battleship return until other systems have been tested and fielded to the fleet.</p><p>This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work was reproduced from the original artifact and remains as true to the original work as possible. Therefore you will see the original copyright references library stamps (as most of these works have been housed in our most important libraries around the world) and other notations in the work.</p><p>This work is in the public domain in the United States of America and possibly other nations. Within the United States you may freely copy and distribute this work as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work.</p><p>As a reproduction of a historical artifact this work may contain missing or blurred pages poor pictures errant marks etc. Scholars believe and we concur that this work is important enough to be preserved reproduced and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.</p><br>