Ah com’on, yer a subfixer! From my periscope, the subject above clearly states “Greatest ship vs ship shot ever made”. To which I will put into nomination The U.S.S. Wahoo with Mush Morton & company in Wewak Harbor with a clutch down the throat torpedo shot on a Japanese destroyer.
True, but as with several of Manny’s posts, you have to read his initial post to get the full question. He clearly stated “gunfire”. Go back and read the first post of this thread, you’ll see.
True, he did state gunfire, but is it reasonable to argue that, since subs rarely engaged with deckguns, that some of their torpedo shots bear consideration? Actually, the title says the ‘Greatest’ ship vs. ship shot. Did Manny say in the original post if by, ‘greatest’, he specifically meant greatest range? Aren’t there some shorter range shots that might be considered ‘great’ simply due to the circumstances under which they were made or the results that they had on the adversary?
EDIT: OK, I re-read the original post, and Manny specifically asks for greatest range. But since that has been settled (basically) might we reconsider the definition of ‘Greatest’ to include factors other than range? How about a short range shot made at night or under adverse sea conditions? Or an outgunned ship making that one crucial shot that disables or even sinks its superiorly armed adversary? I’m no naval historian, but this line of questioning Manny threw out has definately piqued my curiousity…
I’m game…Let’s open it up to some of the most IMPRESSIVE (considering all wartime factors, range difficulty, adverse conditions, etc…) shots ever made, including torpedo, missile and naval gunfire…
It wasn’t remarkable because of the range but that it resulted in the first casualty in what became the war between Japan and the USA in the Pacific. The crew consisted of Naval reservists from Minnesota and the 4" gun that fired the fatal shot is on display as a memorial at the Minnesota State Capital.