Her wreck was located in March 2015 by a team of researchers employed by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen. Musashi was launched on 1 November 1940, coming to a stop only 1 metre (3.3 ft) in excess of the hull's expected 220 metres (720 ft) travel distance across the harbour. [24] The torpedo hit killed seven crewmen and wounded another eleven. [11], Towards the end of fitting out, the ship's flagship facilities, including those on the bridge and in the admiral's cabins, were modified to satisfy Combined Fleet's desire to have the ship equipped as the primary flagship of the commander-in-chief, as her sister Yamato was too far along for such changes. Believing it had sunk in one piece, they had plans of refloating the battleship, towing it to a nearby island, and converting it into a war museum. C… Just over two hours later, the battleship was attacked by eight Curtiss SB2C Helldiver dive bombers from Intrepid at 10:27. Read More By chance, most American aircraft focused on Musashi, whose guns fired in combat for the first time. Throughout construction, a large curtain made of hemp rope weighing 408 t (450 short tons) prevented outsiders from viewing construction. [9] Heavy anti-aircraft defence was provided by a dozen 40-calibre 127-millimetre (5 in) Type 89 dual-purpose guns in six twin turrets, three on each side of the superstructure. Komura was promoted to rear admiral on 1 November and transferred to the 3rd Fleet on 7 December as Chief of Staff, Captain Bunji Asakura assuming command of Musashi. The ship's 4-metre (13 ft 1 in) thick launch platform, made of nine 44 cm (17 in) Douglas fir planks bolted together, took two years to assemble (from keel-laying in March 1938) because of the difficulty in drilling perfectly straight bolt holes through 4m of fresh timber. The Battle of the Sibuyan Sea. Four ships were begun, but only two were completed as battleships. 1018: Lookouts sight 30 enemy planes. Debris was scattered across the ocean floor. The MUSASHI, the second of two Yamato-class battleships, shared the honor with the lead ship YAMATO as the largest battleship ever constructed in naval history. She spent the remainder of 1943 in Truk Lagoon. Since the navy anticipated they would be unable to produce as many ships as the United States, the Yamato-class ships with their great size and heavy armament were designed to be individually superior to American battleships. dottedOverlay:"none", Nevertheless, every other ship in Kurita's force remained battleworthy and able to advance. The ship took on 3,000 long tons (3,000 t) of water and a 5.5-degree list to starboard that was later reduced to 1 degree by counterflooding compartments on the opposite side. Allen announced in March 2015 that the team had indeed found Musashi under the Sibuyan Sea in the Philippines, some 3,000 feet (910 m) beneath the surface. On 23 April, his cremated remains were flown back to Truk and placed in his cabin on board Musashi. On October 18 1944, Japanese vice admiral Takeo Kurita sailed with a 67-strong fleet, including both the Musashi and Yamato, into the Sibuyan Sea, west of … onHoverStop:"on", [11], On 17 May, in response to American attacks on Attu Island, Musashi—together with the carrier Hiyō, two heavy cruisers, and nine destroyers—sortied to the northern Pacific. 1, possibly because of a bomb fragment in the barrel, and wrecked the turret's elevating machinery. The Philippine provincial government having jurisdiction over the Sibuyan Sea where the wreckage of World War II-era Japanese battleship Musashi was discovered this week by a private exploration team was not aware of the search effort, its top official said Friday. It was at a depth of more than 1km (3,280ft) on the floor of the Sibuyan Sea off the Philippines. On 24 February, Musashi sailed for Palau, carrying one Imperial Japanese Army battalion and another of Special Naval Landing Forces and their equipment. hideThumbs:10, The sides of the conning tower were 500 millimetres (19.7 in) thick and it had a 200-millimetre thick roof. The ship was hit by three more torpedoes, opening up her starboard bow[28] and reducing her speed to 13 knots (24 km/h; 15 mph). [8], The battleship had four sets of Kampon geared steam turbines, each of which drove one propeller shaft. At 19:15 her list reached 12 degrees and her crew was ordered to prepare to abandon ship, which they did fifteen minutes later when the list reached 30 degrees. 20th Century Battleship Overview. Fleet in unsuccessful searches for American forces on October 24, 1944: seen. 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