Force Z

Wrote a piece earlier this month on the destruction of Force Z:

Seventy five years ago, the Western Allies suffered a catastrophic defeat in the Pacific. Japanese aircraft devastated an allied naval force, sinking the most effective battleships in the fleet. Japan’s aerial victory opened much of Asia up to invasion, giving the Imperial Japanese Navy a clear field for undertaking its grand offensive. The attack demonstrated conclusively that the battleship, the primary capital ship of fleets since the late 19th century, could no longer project independent of air support.