Gunnery in the Grand Fleet
From The Dreadnought Project
Battle Fleet
- It must be clearly understood that under no circumstances is fire to be withheld for the purposes of obtaining a 'plot'; it should not even be delayed for rangefinder ranges if there is the smallest possibility of disadvantage resulting from the delay.
Battle Cruisers
On 24 February, 1915, Chatfield wrote to Captain Phillimore of Inflexible that, "Whoever gets the biggest volume of fire, short or hitting, will gain the ascendancy and keep it as the other fellow can't see to reply."[1]
Practice
On 12 June, 1915 the Battle Fleet and Cruiser Squadrons carried out target practice. Commander the Hon. Matthew R. Best noted in his journal, "Warspte & QE salvoes were delightful to watch. Mackinnon spread about 200 [yards] with ½ charges at 12000 [yards].[2]
Footnotes
Primary Sources
- The National Archives. Causes of Explosion in British Warships, when Hit by Heavy Shell. ADM 1/8463/176.
- The National Archives. H.S.A. 229 (Committees Formed to Consider Experience at Jutland). ADM 137/2027.
- The National Archives. H.S.A. 230 (Committees Formed to Consider Experience at Jutland). ADM 137/2028.
- The National Archives. H.S.A. 231 (Committees Formed to Consider Experience at Jutland). ADM 137/2029.
