Overview

Building his case out of original research from U.S., British, and German archives, and from interviews with submarine veterans, Anthony Newpower presents a comprehensive study of the politics and technology behind the high failure rate of U.S. torpedoes early in WWII. His investigation focuses on the defects in the Mark XIV, which tended to run deeper than the set depth, detonate prematurely, and/or fail to explode when hitting a target. The author attributes the nearly two-year delay to correct these defects to senior officials who blamed the crews for poor marksmanship and training rather than acknowledge that a grossly defective weapon had been sent into the fleet. In the end, the submarine force overcame bureaucratic inertia and fixed the problems on its own. Newpower's examination of the decision-making process and his chilling accounts of experiences with faulty torpedoes broaden the book's appeal.

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9781591146230

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In the most comprehensive analysis of the topic to date, Newpower chronicles US torpedo problems, showing that they lasted until submariners simply stopped using the magnetic explorers. (Britain and Germany had abandoned them by 1941.) Officers in Australia conducted experiments that finally convinced BurOrd officials that depth regulators were defective. Newport Torpedo Station engineers then redesigned the depth regulators, and officers in Hawai'i solved the contact exploder problem on their own by redesigning the firing pin. Recommended. All levels/libraries. -Choice

A former naval officer examines the technical details and military politics behind the torpedoes developed by the United States, Germany, Britain, and Japan during 1941 and 1942 in response to navigation and detonation failures. The investigation focuses on the Mark 14 torpedo and relies on Bureau of Ordnance archives along with submarine veteran interviews. -SciTech Book News ?Anthony Newpower has done excellent work. Backed by dedicated research that yielded astute studies of naval bureaucracy in early years of the war, Iron Men and Tin Fish casts new and refreshing light on popular perceptions of the MK 14 torpedo controversy.?-Proceedings ?A former naval officer examines the technical details and military politics behind the torpedoes developed by the United States, Germany, Britain, and Japan during 1941 and 1942 in response to navigation and detonation failures. The investigation focuses on the Mark 14 torpedo and relies on Bureau of Ordnance archives along with submarine veteran interviews.?-SciTech Book News ?In the most comprehensive analysis of the topic to date, Newpower chronicles US torpedo problems, showing that they lasted until submariners simply stopped using the magnetic explorers. (Britain and Germany had abandoned them by 1941.) Officers in Australia conducted experiments that finally convinced BurOrd officials that depth regulators were defective. Newport Torpedo Station engineers then redesigned the depth regulators, and officers in Hawai'i solved the contact exploder problem on their own by redesigning the firing pin. Recommended. All levels/libraries.?-Choice Anthony Newpower has done excellent work. Backed by dedicated research that yielded astute studies of naval bureaucracy in early years of the war, Iron Men and Tin Fish casts new and refreshing light on popular perceptions of the MK 14 torpedo controversy. -Proceedings In the most comprehensive analysis of the topic to date, Newpower chronicles US torpedo problems, showing that they lasted until submariners simply stopped using the magnetic explorers. (Britain and Germany had abandoned them by 1941.) Officers in Australia conducted experiments that finally convinced BurOrd officials that depth regulators were defective. Newport Torpedo Station engineers then redesigned the depth regulators, and officers in Hawai'i solved the contact exploder problem on their own by redesigning the firing pin. Recommended. All levels/libraries. -Choice

Author Information

Anthony Newpower, a 1989 Naval Academy graduate, served as an anti-submarine warfare officer, navigator, and nuclear engineer. He lives in San Diego, CA, USA.

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