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No battleship was sunk by a kamikaze in World War 2. Most battleships only took minor to insignificant damage when hit by a kamikaze. I had read one account where the US battleship turret crew didn't even realize that their turret had be directly hit by a kamikaze. I would suggest that all battleships take only limited damage from kamikazes.

Mithrilotter wrote: Sat Mar 22, 2025 4:39 pm No battleship was sunk by a kamikaze in World War 2. Most battleships only took minor to insignificant damage when hit by a kamikaze. I had read one account where the US battleship turret crew didn't even realize that their turret had be directly hit by a kamikaze. I would suggest that all battleships take only limited damage from kamikazes.

Because of their desperate and dramatic nature, I think the power of a kamikaze attack has always been somewhat exaggerated in the popular media. Outside of the escort carrier St. Lo, the majority of ships either sunk or damaged beyond repair by kamikaze attack were destroyers, and most of the remaining victims were landing ships and cargo vessels. Not a single armored surface combatant (cruiser or battleship) was ever seriously endangered by a kamikaze strike. Of course, it also helped that poorly trained kamikaze pilots always attacked the picket ships first.

I can't recall the exact quote, but in "Forgotten Fleet" (book about Royal Navy in the pacific), a sailor on the HMS Illustrious remarked...

"When the Kamikazes were out, the US Carries hauled out the fire houses. We hauled out the mops."

Interesting ref link with info on Kamikazes vs. Carriers (USN and RN):
http://www.navweaps.com/index_tech/tech-042.php