The ship was present during the Battle of the Philippine Sea in June, but did not come in contact with American forces. Musashi was torpedoed in early 1944 by an American submarine and forced to return to Japan for repairs where the navy greatly augmented her anti-aircraft armament. She was used to transfer forces and equipment between Japan and various occupied islands several times in 1944. The ship was transferred to Truk in early 1943 and sortied several times that year with the fleet in unsuccessful searches for American forces. She was equipped with six or seven floatplanes to conduct reconnaissance.Ĭommissioned in mid-1942, Musashi was modified to serve as the flagship of the Combined Fleet and spent the rest of the year working up. Her secondary armament consisted of four 15.5-centimetre (6.1 in) triple-gun turrets formerly used by the Mogami-class cruisers. The Yamato-class ships were the heaviest and most powerfully armed battleships ever constructed, displacing 72,800 long tons (74,000 t) fully loaded and armed with nine 46-centimetre (18.1 in) main guns. Musashi ( 武蔵 ?), named after an ancient Japanese province, was one of two Yamato-class battleships built for the Imperial Japanese Navy, beginning in the late 1930s.
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