Return of the Battleship?

There are rumours of a plan to bring the old U.S. Iowa-Class battleships back into service. 

I can see why. The Houthis in the middle East can generally survive an attack from aircraft. The amount of ordnance an aircraft can delivery is pretty limited in scope. Yes, the U.S> have something like the B-52 that can deliver an impressive number of bombs, but the total amount isn't that high.

It would take several sorties to deliver a knock-out punch, with each mission losing the element of surprise and increasing the chances of a loss.

But something like the USS Missouri, with her massive guns could in theory impart quite a punch exactly where it's needed, especially when allied to UAV spotting. 

A shell the size of a car, filled with explosive landing on a target would have a pretty shocking effect. A continuous bombardment even by secondary armament would have a pretty devastating effect. 

Plus the ship is pretty well armoured, having been built in the days when the enemy was also lobbing car-sized shells back. Small UAVs and missiles most likely wouldn't touch it.

A battleship with a defensive screen would be an almighty ground-pounder. 

The only downside is the limited range. But by God the effect of an all-out barrage from such a ship would be pretty devastating. If the big munitions could be modernised to have some guidance capability...