Actually, I’d expect that even if it were the Iowa that T-boned the Nimitz, it would still be the one to crumple like a beer can. The carrier is over twice as heavy, and twice as long (so more area for water resistance). It won’t budge.
Essentially, a ramming scenario would boil down to a sedan running into an 18-wheeler at speed (or vice versa, or god forbid running into each other head on). Doesn’t really matter which hits which how: the sedan’s going to be the one worse for the wear when the metal has stopped screaming. The truck will crumple some, sure, but then, the Nimitz can afford to crumple some - lotsa empty room for those useless, weaponless planes ; and it also has more airtight compartments than the Iowa (not only because it has strictly more volume, but also because it’s of a more modern build, after people realized how flooding caused by torpedoes and airborne bombs works, and how to fight it). Even if they crumpled the exact same amount of bulkheads & compartments, the Nimitz still floats better after the substraction. And as long as it still floats in the end, it wins !
So it will end up wrecked too. Sell it to Argentina or something. Who told you to pit your own capital ships into a demolition derby anyhow, you lunatics ?!
Hmmm…so, the Enterprise is scheduled to be decommissioned soon. Apparently, what with all the nuclear reactors, turning her into a museum ship is right out. I imagine the oldest of the Nimitz class will be following fairly soon as the newer Gerald Ford class come on line, and I imagine turning them into museum ships will be considered equally unfeasible, since they’re also nuclear powered.
Meantime, much as I love old battleship museums–do we really need all four of the Iowa class preserved as museum ships?
In order words–we could maybe turn Enterprise or Nimitz and one of the Iowas over to Mythbusters or someone like that and get some actual empirical data to answer some of these whacky questions.
If both ships had the same hull design. Drop a 10 pound ball of popcorn onto a one pound ball of iron. Now drop a one pound ball of Iron onto a 10 pound ball of popcorn. Which recieves the greater damage?
The 18 wheeler made me think of another example to use. A fully loaded 18 wheeler vs a sherman tank. The truck loaded iss heaver than the tank, but how can the truck take out the tank?
If a BB T boned a carrier, the BB would penertrate a long way into the carrier. And if it could back out I would think the carrier would still be able to stay afloat. The BB’s bow would probably be destroyed back to and maybe including the 1st gun mount. The skin on a carrier I believe is around 1 inch. The BB’s had around 8 or more inches.
Carrier already has a giant catapult. Might be able to make use of it. Carrier has a very small amount of small arms on board so would have to make make shift weapons by the thousands. I don’t know what small arms the BB carriers.
BB would have the advantage in ramming. CV has more men.
BB was requested duty thus sailors on board probably more experience and more gunghoe. On the other hand, Nimitz class carrier might be able to launch radioactive materials at BB.
