The Carrier That Was Faster Than the Submarine Hunting It

A slower American submarine spent more than six hours trying to get ahead of a faster Japanese aircraft carrier. When USS Archerfish finally fired six torpedoes at Shinano, four hit — and the carrier kept moving. This is the story of how Commander Joseph Enright and the crew of USS Archerfish turned a losing stern chase into an intercept, and why the largest aircraft carrier in the world at the time survived the initial attack only to lose its battle against progressive flooding. In this episode of Hidden Vector, we reconstruct: why Archerfish could not simply chase Shinano from behind how Shinano’s course changes altered the geometry of the pursuit why Archerfish had to remain surfaced for so long how the final firing position developed why six torpedoes were fired and four hit why Shinano initially remained underway how counter-flooding temporarily improved the situation why unfinished watertight integrity made damage control harder how flooding eventually affected propulsion why two destroyers attempted to tow the carrier how the final loss of stability led to Shinano’s capsize Archerfish did not solve the problem by becoming faster. The crew solved it by changing the geometry of the hunt. Hidden Vector reconstructs military operations that seem impossible until you see how the pieces moved. THE ROUTE BEHIND THE OPERATION. Visual note: This documentary combines historical source material, explanatory maps and diagrams, and visual reconstructions. Reconstructed imagery is illustrative and is not presented as archival footage. Research for this episode draws on material from the U.S. Naval History and Heritage Command, Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships, U.S. Naval Institute, official naval records, and additional historical references. #navalhistory #militaryhistory #wwii CHAPTERS 00:00 Faster Than the Hunter 01:12 The Contact Becomes a Carrier 03:33 What Archerfish Had Found 04:06 The Six-Hour Chase 07:16 Shinano’s Side of the Problem 09:32 The Turn That Changed the Geometry 11:26 Archerfish Commits 13:25 The Firing Window 14:48 The Carrier Keeps Moving 16:11 Why the Flooding Spread 19:57 Shinano Loses Propulsion 20:43 The Tow Attempt 22:34 Abandon Ship 23:13 The Final Roll 23:34 Why the Hunt Worked Shinano, USS Shinano, Archerfish, USS Archerfish, USS Archerfish SS-311, Shinano sinking, sinking of Shinano, Japanese aircraft carrier Shinano, Joseph Enright, submarine warfare, US Navy submarine, World War 2 naval history, WW2 naval history, Pacific War, naval warfare, naval history, aircraft carrier history, military history, military documentary, naval history documentary, submarine history, Imperial Japanese Navy, US Navy history, WWII submarine warfare, Shinano aircraft carrier #navalhistory #militaryhistory #wwii