The torpedo plane has emerged in the present war as the most dangerous and destructive aerial weapon which can be used against surface craft. The Navy which employs this weapon in the largest numbers and with the most skill will have brought to bear the full force of seagoing air power against the enemy surface fleet. The Army Air Corps is concentrating on the large bomber as the best means of exploiting to the limit the striking power of modern aircraft. This as a policy for the Army striking primarily against land objectives is unassailable. The large bomber doing horizontal bombing is not as effective against surface ships as the dive bomber nor is the dive bomber as effective as the torpedo plane. Let us in naval aviation concentrate on the development and employment of the torpedo plane.
The torpedo plane in use by the major powers of the world today does not represent the same degree of modernization as other types of aircraft. The full realization of its value came too late to design, produce, and get into service, planes comparable in performance to other types. The aerial torpedoes in use by the major powers of the world today do not represent the same degree of development that the submarine torpedoes do. The number of experienced torpedo plane pilots in the world's navies is therefore comparatively low. Despite the relatively obsolescent equipment being used, let us examine some of the spectacular achievements of torpedo planes in this war.
British torpedo planes launched from an aircraft carrier attacked the Italian Fleet at anchor in Taranto and did tremendous damage including the sinking of one or two battleships. This attack was pressed home in the face of intensive anti-aircraft fire which produced negligible losses in the attacking aircraft.
British torpedo planes launched from an aircraft carrier attacked the German superbattleship Bismarck, hitting her, slowing her down, and disabling the steering gear. This disabling of the steering gear is probably the one thing that prevented the escape of the Bismarck. This torpedo plane attack was launched against the Bismarck in the face of intensive anti-aircraft fire from a practically undamaged ship. The losses in torpedo planes were negligible. The ship was in the open sea and free to maneuver.
Japanese torpedo planes launched from aircraft carriers attacked the U. S. Pacific Fleet anchored in Pearl Harbor and did considerable damage. While horizontal and dive bombers were also employed, by far the largest percentage of damage to big ships was caused by torpedo planes. Intensive anti-aircraft fire was developed here in a remarkably short time but the losses in enemy torpedo planes were in no way comparable to the damage they caused.
Japanese torpedo planes attacked the battleships Prince of Wales and Repulse in the open sea and sank both of them. Both ships were free to maneuver and the Prince of Wales had presumably the best damage-control equipment then in existence. Intensive anti-aircraft fire was developed but the losses in enemy torpedo planes were negligible by comparison with the loss of the ships. It is probable that the planes participating in this attack came from not more than one or two aircraft carriers. The loss of the ships was attributed to lack of air support. It is probable that had both the battleships and the torpedo planes had fighter plane support the result would have been very much the same.
American torpedo planes launched from an aircraft carrier, participating in the raid on the Marshall and Gilbert Islands, helped sink some 20 enemy ships; while dive bombing planes and horizontal bombing planes were also used, by far the highest percentage of fatal damage to surface ships was credited to the torpedo planes. The bombs caused fires on ships and damage to ships but the torpedo planes caused ships to sink right and left. Both anti-aircraft fire and enemy aircraft were encountered, and neither could stop the attack.
There are four answers to air attacks on ships, anti-aircraft fire, maneuver, bad weather, and fighter or pursuit planes. The torpedo planes can attack in weather which would make bombing of any kind completely out of the question. Maneuvering loses much of its effectiveness when torpedoes are launched at short range. While the torpedo plane, like any airplane, is vulnerable to enemy pursuit or fighter plane attack yet by reason of the low altitude at which it attacks it is much less so than the bombing plane. High speed pursuit and fighter planes find many of their favorite aerial combat tactics stymied by a plane with a good rear gunner flying low over the surface of the water. If long range fighter planes can be designed to accompany the torpedo planes on their mission it is unlikely that any seagoing defense by ships or planes can prevent the attack being driven home with deadly effectiveness.
The effectiveness of anti-aircraft fire against torpedo plane attack has been found to be greatly overrated. In actual practice surprisingly few planes are shot down in a skillful and determined attack. A large number of individual fast-moving targets, all of which must be brought under fire in an extremely short time, presents the most difficult anti-aircraft problem imaginable. Theoretically some planes should get through, and in practice many have gotten through to the dropping point. It does not take many torpedoes to put even the best protected ship out of action.
In the face of this overwhelming evidence, how can there any longer be any doubt that our Navy should have the maximum number of torpedo planes our ships can carry? Furthermore, wherever and whenever enemy convoys bring troops in highly vulnerable transports to invade our islands or the shores of our mainland, let them be met by a swarm of torpedo planes and few soldiers indeed will ever touch dry land again.
All our key naval districts could be assigned a torpedo wing composed of two or three torpedo squadrons with which to attack enemy raiding or invading forces. Such an aerial force, had it been available to defend Norway, the Philippines, Borneo, Sumatra, Java or New Guinea, would have wrecked the enemy invasion convoys. Nothing short of overwhelming fighter plane opposition would have stopped the torpedo plane attacks and that, if brought in aircraft carriers, would be in grave danger of having its landing field sent to the bottom.
Air power enthusiasts have publicized the deeds, actual and potential, of the big bombers. The Army Air Corps is concentrating on the greatest big bomber program in the world history and rightly so. Let us in the Navy, whose experience peculiarly fits us to see air power in its true effect on sea power, concentrate our attention on torpedo planes. Wherever large Army bombers can go we can take our torpedo planes on aircraft carriers and do the job against surface ships far better.
The big bomber doing horizontal high altitude bombing against surface ships in the open sea has serious limitations. Effective high-altitude horizontal bombing against ships in the open sea free to maneuver requires (1) good weather, (2) protection against fighter planes, and (3) a very highly trained bomber or bombardier. The Japanese have tried to bomb our carriers with long-range, land-based bombers and patrol planes with disastrous results. A recent attack (published in the newspapers) by modern land-based bombers cost them 17 out of 18 planes and not a single bomb hit was scored. The defending fighter planes literally cut them to pieces. A bomber (Navy) or bombardier (Army) capable of bombing maneuvering ships successfully must be very highly trained and possess considerable experience. To train such a man requires years, not months, and we haven't got that much time. A very much less degree of training is required to bomb large fixed land objectives. To those objectives the partially trained bomber must stick to be successful. By contrast a good torpedo plane pilot can be trained in a very short time. If time is short and our aerial force must be expanded rapidly the implication is, of course, obvious.
Let the Army bomb the enemy out of his land strongholds, and we will sink his ships wherever and whenever we can find them. There is a big field for both of us but let us not be deluded by thinking the big bomber is a cure-all and can destroy a navy with air protection. It can't. Bombers damage ships—torpedo planes sink them.