The War At Sea

The video starts off by talking about the Navy's use of weapons not used in any great numbers before, the first being the carrier. The section shows how the planes unfold their wings before taking off.

The other weapon was the submarine.

A damaged plane making a landing on an aircraft carrier. Notice that his landing gear has not deployed for some reason. The pilot, fortunately, survives the landing.

The plane, now deemed useless, is simply shoved over the side of the carrier.

The video relates this to the need for high-tech (for the times) methods of treating those injured.

The Naval supply system.

Preparing supplies for shipment.

The “machines of war” are loaded onto ships.

The supply ships would provide the front-line ships with their necessary supplies, including mail.

Some supplies were lost due to accident or enemy action.

Materials needed for invasions were part of the supplies. The video also talks about the sites that were needed for repairing damaged ships.

Then the video talks about submarines.

Subs were manned by volunteers only.

The submarine, on the surface, attacks a Japanese junk.

A few Japanese were taken prisoner this way.

The ship is sunk after getting the prisoners off and searching the ship.

The video says the ideal distance from a target was about 1000 yards.

A ship is sunk, this time by use of torpedoes.

Then it talks about how subs had to endure depth-charge attacks.

The submarine finally returns to the base, and the men gets some R&R.

Then it talks about carriers. Here is a below-decks portion.

Loading of bombs and missiles was by hand.

The pilots eating. Notice that the people doing the serving were blacks; most blacks in the war were limited to being in such positions (something which the film is careful not to point out. It also doesn't talk about how so many of the U.S. torpedoes early in the war were defective.)

Pilots preparing for takeoff are shown, along with some of the support crew.

Showing how the wings are unfolded.

Sometimes a catapult had to be used.

Then it talks about landing planes on a carrier. This is shown in more detail than I have seen anywhere else.

A landing in the process of going wrong.

The plane passed incredibly close to whoever was holding the camera. A bunch of debris then becomes visible as the plane crashes.

Another plane fails to land on the carrier and crashes into the sea.

A plane ditching on purpose is then shown.

Then it talks about the air/sea rescue service.

U.S. carrier task force raids through the Japanese defensive perimeter.

Then it talks about the bombing of Formosa.



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