Are battleships really obsolete

[TrailerParkJawa]

I found another interesting link. This one details day to day actions of the battleships during the Gulf War. It also names the British ship that shot down a Silkworm that was fired at the Missouri.

http://www.warships1.com/W-Iowas/index3_BB2_pst11.htm[/quote]

[RayCav of ASVS]

This discussion reminds me of one over in rec.arts.sf.science about land battleships. The LB advocate claimed that they would be fully self-containd and -sufficient environments, contain mining and refining equipment, shrug off all but direct hits from nuclear weapons, and, if they thought they were losing, could simply flee to the safety of orbit. Needless to say, he needed a lot of handwaving to justify his conclusions.
Of course, no one could dispute that they were cool.

It actually sounds like a Bolo

What's a Bolo?

http://www.sfrevu.com/2001/9835%20Bolo% ... Review.htm

A Bolo is a large tracked nuclear powered land battleship. Earlier ones weigh in the couple of thousands of tons; the latest ones weigh 32,000 tons, are capable of space flight and have total firepower comparable to a medium combat starship. They are typically armed with a Hellbore cannon, the core of which is a slush of hydrogen cooled to nearly absolute zero. This has the effect of not only impacting tremendous kinetic energy, but a bit of a mini-nuclear event as well. Some are armed with multiple cannon. Some have a crew of none, because all Bolos have artificial brains capable of not only complex thought but emotion as well. Most however have small human engineering teams to combat any obsticles. I believe their max speed can range in the hundred of kilometers, and if I'm not mistaken I think the fastest ones are actually some of the heavier ones. At the vary least they can pace a Heavy-class BattleMech.

[TrailerParkJawa]

These all remind of Steve Jackson's OGRE game.

[Raxmei]

Ah, those Bolos. The land battleship had a few minor differences. It would have been operated by humans, not an AI. There would have been no electronics, not even lightbulbs. The armament was a large cannon firing nuclear shells. Instead of tracks, it used feet to slowly crawl about the battlefield. The LB spacedrive was just an orion, which is probably less fancy than whatever Bolos use. Yes, this does sound a lot like a low-tech Bolo.

Are Bolos dedicated combat vehicles? The LB was meant to serve as a mining craft as well.

[RayCav of ASVS]

Ah, those Bolos. The land battleship had a few minor differences. It would have been operated by humans, not an AI. There would have been no electronics, not even lightbulbs. The armament was a large cannon firing nuclear shells. Instead of tracks, it used feet to slowly crawl about the battlefield. The LB spacedrive was just an orion, which is probably less fancy than whatever Bolos use. Yes, this does sound a lot like a low-tech Bolo.

Are Bolos dedicated combat vehicles? The LB was meant to serve as a mining craft as well.

Their primary mission is ground combat. In the case of the newest ones, their new secondary mission is space combat. But, IIRC, they do have industrial facilities; I believe their secondary mission is the assistance of the local loyal populace in any form they can lend. In one of the books, one of these behemoths actually ends up getting very emotional towards these people.

BTW, Bolos still have tracks.

[Raxmei]

BTW, Bolos still have tracks.

How do they solve the steering issues that come with tracks that size?

[Pendragon]

BTW, Bolos still have tracks.

How do they solve the steering issues that come with tracks that size?

"We brake for noone, we turn for noone."

[LordShaithis]

Uh........ This thing sounds like the dumbest sci-fi military creation since the battlemech. Why the hell would you build a starship with tank treads? Or a giant tank with rockets?

[Soulman]

IIRC the 16" on the Iowa doesn't fulfill the USMC NGS requirements because it can't fire at targets within a few hundred metres of the marines.

The best (although too expensive) option would be to build a large cruiser with maybe 2 12" guns.

[Doomriser]

Yeah, what's all this crap about Iowas providing fire support to infantry? "Danger Close" is considered to be a few hundred metres from your own troops. An Iowa broadside would stand a good chance of killing the very troops it is supposed to protect, wouldn't it?

[TrailerParkJawa]

Yeah, what's all this crap about Iowas providing fire support to infantry? "Danger Close" is considered to be a few hundred metres from your own troops. An Iowa broadside would stand a good chance of killing the very troops it is supposed to protect, wouldn't it?

I've never made the arguement that the 16" guns on the IOWA are needed for danger close support. If I worded any arguement to give that idea, it is not what I meant.

That doesnt mean 16" guns cant support infantry though. They support them by killing fixed positions, artillery, sam sites, etc. Look at the link I posted about what the Iowa's did in the Gulf War.

Some Marines in Khafji had to call in danger close rounds on the Iraqi's. I believe those rounds came from friendly artillery. Does anyone know? The 5" guns on the Iowa probably could have done this as well, but again I dont remember.

[RayCav of ASVS]

BTW, Bolos still have tracks.

How do they solve the steering issues that come with tracks that size?

The same way an AT-AT steers