[Homer_J_Simpson]

Great pictures of BB’s and carriers, btw. I can understand how someone looking at a battleship could get locked into the idea of their invulnerablility. Compare one of those with its main battery going off to a carrier with a few planes sitting on the flight deck and it looks like no contest.

[PzLdr]

Until the Japanese sank H.M.S PRINCE OF WALES and REPULSE off Malaya in December, 1941, no aircraft attack ON A MANEUVERING warship had succeeded in sinking her [BISMARCK comes to mind. Damaged yes, sunk, no]. In the only previous carrier/ surface vessel combat, SCHARNHORST and GNIESENAU sank the British fleet carrier H.M.S GLORIOUS. So no one was certain a carrier could sink a battleship. And as you point out, it appears a mismatch - in favor of the battleship.

[magslinger]

You wouldn't think a petite young lady with a sniper rifle would be more than a match for a six foot 200+ pound bruiser with an MP 38, but let her pick the range of the engagement and I know where my money is.

The BB's had a combat radius of a little over 40 miles. The CV had at that time a combat radius of over 200 miles.