Signals II.

This is coolbert:

"The fog of war . . . is the uncertainty in situational awareness experienced by participants in military operations. The term seeks to capture the uncertainty regarding one's own capability, adversary capability, and adversary intent during an engagement, operation, or campaign."

Jutland the "fog of war" literally and figuratively so!!

Continuing and concluding the discussion the nature of the poor visibility confounding all participants during the Battle of Jutland:

As extracted from the book:

"The Jutland Scandal: The Truth About the First World War's Greatest Sea Battles"

By Reginald Bacon, John Harper

"It is of the first importance for the student and critic of the Battle of Jutland to keep in mind the conditions of visibility during the various stages of the battle. The weather had an important bearing on the issue."

"During the early stages of the battle-cruiser action the visibility was comparatively good; but by 4:15 P.M., the visibility to the eastward had become considerably reduced, and favoring the enemy. By 5.P.M., these conditions became worse and . . . 'Our ships being silhouetted against a clear horizon to the westward, while the enemy were for the most part obscured by mist, only showing up clearly at intervals.' [Beatty]"

Tremendous amounts of black smoke as a product of the coal-fired steam-engines of the period very typical of the pre-Dreadnought and Dreadnought era naval warfare. Visibility hindered, a combination of natural and man-made phenomenon. Indecisiveness of the commanders at Jutland in large measure due to the proverbial "fog of war" quite literal in this sense. Uncertainty not allowing the admirals to make sound decisions! This image please note NOT of the Grand Fleet steaming at Jutland.

"By the time the battle fleet came into action these conditions had become still worse; the sky was overcast, the sea  calm, the wind light and, owing to the combination of atmospheric conditions and the smoke from the ships, the visibility was very bad, and great difficulty was experienced in distinguishing ships."

SCANDAL THAT WORD I FIND TO BE TOO LOADED, TOO HARSH! BAD WEATHER AND POOR VISIBILITY BEYOND THE CONTROL OF THE PROTAGONISTS.

Effective and fast radio communication was indeed a panacea at Jutland but as was previously a topic for discussion inadequate at the time! THE BEST THAT COULD BE DONE WAS DONE!

coolbert.