Submersible Photographs WW2 Japanese Sub's Long-Lost Airplane Hangar

Zothecula writes: Until the 1960s, Japan's three I-400-class subs were the largest submarines ever built. They were so large, in fact, that they could each carry and launch three Aichi M6A Seiran amphibious aircraft. The idea was that the submarines could stealthily bring the planes to within striking distance of US coastal cities, where they could then take off and conduct bombing runs. Now, for the first time since it was scuttled at the end of World War II, one of the sunken subs' aircraft hangars has been photographed. The M6A on display at the Air and Space Museum's Udvar-Hazy Center is worth seeing, if you get a chance.

Comments

Product of the military culture of Japan

[Nidi62]

If you do any significant amount of reading regard the Japanese in WW2, you notice that there was often an over reliance on trickery, subterfuge, and a focus on the means rather than the end goal. Part of it was desperation borne out of being completely outmatched technologically, but part of it was also a deeply entrenched belief that the fighting spirit of the Japanese soldier would allow him to overcome any hardship, any adversary. Examples such as Guadalcanal, where they landed the 900-man Ichiki Detachment with orders to destroy the 10,000-strong Marine landing force; the countless instances of forsaking strong, pre-prepared defensive positions for banzai charges that killed hundreds or thousands of Japanese at the cost of a handful of Americans; to untrained high school boys with just enough flight training to be able to take off and fly level piloting aircraft with nothing more than an airspeed indicator and a compass trying to sink aircraft carriers. Necessity really is the mother of inventions, but when it is combined with desperation it can spawn some of the craziest ideas, which more often as not result in disaster.

Re:Subs as aircraft carriers

[smellsofbikes]

The germans had great engineering, but between this, the Bismarck, and the Tiger tanks (with engines/transmissions that broke down frequently and couldn't handle the load), they had major failings too in the economy department of bang for your buck [reichsmark]. Leadership was mostly to blame.

As the war dragged on, Hitler became increasingly convinced that technology would turn the tide for the Germans. The V-series rockets, the ME-262, the Tiger/King Tiger, all were intended to make up for the fact that they were increasingly sending young boys and old men onto the front lines. Numerous advisors and ranking members of teh military (at least claimed to have) attempted to persuade Hitler that these programs were a waste of resources but he was adamant in his support of them. I wonder if a lot of it was due to he increasingly deteriorated mental state as the combination of stress, drugs, and mental diseases (Parkinsons and possibly syphyllis if I am not mistaken ) took their toll.

I think part of it was that winning by tech was their only option: any rational analysis said they were outgunned and outproduced, so tech was their Hail Mary. They simply had to believe in it. Conveniently, it aligned with their sense of superiority.