14 inch/45 Mk.8 (356 mm)

Description

Write an introduction to the article in 2-3 small paragraphs. Briefly tell us about the history of the development and combat using the weaponry and also about its features. Compile a list of air, ground, or naval vehicles that feature this weapon system in the game.

Vehicles equipped with this weapon

• USS Arizona

General info

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Available ammunition

Penetration statistics
Ammunition	Type of warhead	Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm)
		1,000 m	2,500 m	5,000 m	7,500 m	10,000 m	15,000 m
Mk.9 HE	HE	70	70	70	70	70	70
Mk.8 APCBC	APCBC	645	603	542	489	444	376

Shell details
Ammunition	Type of warhead	Velocity (m/s)	Projectile mass (kg)	Fuse delay (s)	Fuse sensitivity (mm)	Explosive mass (TNT equivalent) (g)	Ricochet
							0%	50%	100%
Mk.9 HE	HE	823	635	0	0.1	39,300	79°	80°	81°
Mk.8 APCBC	APCBC	823	635	0.035	12	14,000	48°	63°	71°

Comparison with analogues

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Usage in battles

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Pros and cons

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Pros:

Cons:

History

Between 1906 and 1919, the United States constructed 29 battleships and 6 battlecruisers as part of the international naval arms race around the turn of the century. During the 1908 Newport Conference, the United States decided to upgrade to 14-inch guns from their older 12-inch/45 Mk.5 guns. This move was to ensure supremacy against the Royal Navy and German Navy which had adopted 13.5-inch and 12-inch guns respectively. The resulting 14-inch/45 Mark 1 guns were first mounted on the New York-class battleships the USS New York and its more famous sister ship, USS Texas. The 14"/45 would subsequently be mounted on the Nevada-class ships the USS Nevada and USS Oklahoma, and the Pennsylvania-class ships USS Pennsylvania and USS Arizona. After World War I, the Washington Naval Treaty put a 10-year "holiday" on capital ship construction for the five signatory nations and the United States would keep most of their World War I-era dreadnoughts in service until World War II, but they did not go through the interwar period unchanged. The escalation of tensions of Germany and Japan in the 1930s led to modernization of the United States' existing dreadnoughts.

The 14-inch/45 Mark 1 gun was upgraded and re-designated the Mark 8 with a more modern construction and larger chamber volume for more powerful charges. The 14-inch/45 guns were effectively interchangeable between ships which did occur after the USS Arizona and USS Oklahoma were sunk at Pearl Harbor on December 7th, 1941. Three of Arizona's guns from the number 2 turret were undergoing a relining at the time and were installed on the USS Nevada which would serve in the coastal bombardment role at Iwo Jima and Okinawa. The number 1 turret was too badly damaged to be salvaged, but the remaining guns were repurposed as coastal artillery defending Hawaii with US Army Coastal Artillery Corps Battery Arizona on the west coast of Oahu while Battery Pennsylvania was assigned to Mokapu Point.

On the remaining ships, USS New York provided coastal bombardment support during Operation Torch in 1942 attacking Safi Harbor, Morocco alongside USS Pennsylvania. The USS Pennsylvania herself would later serve during the Aleutian Island Campaign in 1943. The USS Texas took part in the naval landings of Normandy known as Operation Overlord supporting both the US Army Ranger landings at Pointe Du Hoc, and the landings at Omaha Beach. The USS Nevada (not yet refitted with the Arizona's gun turrets) also participated at Normandy by bombarding the Cherbourg Peninsula. The USS Pennsylvania would serve a long career throughout the Pacific Theater, with its 14-inch guns also bombarding Makin Atoll, the Marina Islands, the Marshall Islands, and the Philippines, while the New York and Texas would join the Nevada at Iwo Jima and Okinawa.

Media

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See also

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• reference to the article about the variant of the cannon/machine gun;
• references to approximate analogues by other nations and research trees.

External links

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• topic on the official game forum;
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