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What size guns did the Scharnhorst have?
Completed in January 1939, the ship was armed with a main battery of nine 28 cm (11 in) C/34 guns in three triple turrets. Plans to replace these weapons with six 38 cm (15 in) SK C/34 guns in twin turrets were never carried out….German battleship Scharnhorst.
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Was Scharnhorst a good battleship?
A fast battleship of the King George V class, Duke of York easily outgunned Scharnhorst, and had better radar. Scharnhorst withstood several shells before a lucky long-range hit reduced its speed, at which point the British cruisers and destroyers closed to make a torpedo attack.
How many ships did the Scharnhorst sink?
On 15 March, the two battleships, with the two tankers in company, encountered a dispersed convoy in the mid-Atlantic. Scharnhorst sank two ships.
How did battleship guns aim?
Ship gun fire-control systems (GFCS) are analogue fire-control systems that were used aboard naval warships prior to modern electronic computerized systems, to control targeting of guns against surface ships, aircraft, and shore targets, with either optical or radar sighting.
Has the Scharnhorst been found?
According to British researchers, the wreckage of “SMS Scharnhorst” is now located in the South Atlantic off the Falkland Islands. This was announced by the Falklands Maritime Heritage Trust. It was found 98 nautical miles southeast of Stanley at a depth of 1,610 meters.
Did Scharnhorst have radar?
Both Scharnhorst and Gneisenau were equipped with two sets of Seetakt radar. One was mounted on the forward gun director, which was located on top of the bridge. The second radar set was emplaced on the rear main battery gun director.
What kind of guns did the Scharnhorst class have?
The Scharnhorst-class ships were built with nine 28.3 cm (11.1 inch) SK C/34 54.5 caliber quick-firing guns in three triple turrets, two forward and one aft. These guns were an improvement over the earlier 28.3 cm SK C/28 guns mounted on the Deutschland-class cruisers.
Was the Scharnhorst a good ship?
Like most German battleships, Scharnhorst was under-armed for her size. The German 11-inch gun was a very effective weapon, with a high rate of fire, but it lacked sufficient punch to seriously endanger enemy battleships.
When were the Scharnhorst and Gneisenau ships launched?
The two ships were laid down in 1935, launched in late 1936, and commissioned into the German fleet by early 1939. Scharnhorst and Gneisenau operated together for much of the early portion of World War II, including sorties into the Atlantic to raid British merchant shipping.
What was the classification of the German battleships?
Previous German battleships were classified as Linienschiffe (ships of the line), and Panzerschiffe (armored ship). Their adversary, the Royal Navy, rated them as battlecruisers but after the war reclassified them as battleships.