![]() ![]() The main battle fleet thus played no role in the operation.Īfter Midway Yamato was uninvolved in combat for several months, used as a “palace” for Yamamoto and his officers first at the anchorage in Harashima, then in Truk, the major naval base in the Caroline islands. Certainly Yamamoto tried to surge ahead with his battleships in the hope to lure Spruance in a surface engagement, but the American admiral refused the bait. Yamamoto was forced to relinquish any command function to his subordinate leaders in other task groups without having any effect on the battle. She sailed for the big Midway operation, but played a secondary role, actually being out with the fleet and forced to keep radio silence her involvement in the operation was certainly detrimental. When Yamato entered service she was used as Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto's personal command ship, usually moored in a safe place away from danger, hardly a fitting role for the most powerful ship afloat. ![]() So what was the real contribution of our two behemoths to the Japanese efforts during the war? After Leyte he said surface forces at sea cannot be stopped by airpower alone. I do not think so, and interestingly enough not even William Halsey held this idea. We have been told this was because the two battleships were obsolete, airpower was supreme and they were just two relics of the past. Many readers may be familiar with two images: the sinking of Musashi in San Bernardino Strait and of Yamato en route to Okinawa. But now we have to talk about the two giants as actual warships. We also discussed the reasons behind their construction and their design. Actually the war had already started when Yamato joined the fleet. Part One concluded with the two giant battleships Yamato and Musashi slipping into the water and preparing for war.
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