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- #61
renrich
Chief Master Sergeant
In picking a cruiser I think one has to consider one of the pre war US CAs that were practically all the US had in the way of surface ships to fight the war in the Pacific in 1942 and early 1943.. My choice is San Francisco, CA38. Her battle honors include Pearl Harbor, Guadalcanal-Tulagi,, Cape Esperance, Guadalcanal Battle, Attu, Gilbert Islands, Kwajalein, Truk Raid, Hollandia, Marianas, Leyte, Iwo, Okinawa, Pacific raids. Whew! She was the flagship of the US TF at Cape Esperance and at The Battle of Guadalcanal where she was heavily damaged. Both were American victories and reversed the tide against the IJN. At the Battle of Guadalcanal her guns undoubtedly played a major role in the damage to the Hiei, the IJN BB that was so badly damaged in that night gun battle that she succumbed easily to air attack the next day. I don't believe any other cruiser had as much impact on the outcome of the war although there are several other US cruisers that come close.