IJN Shinano (Yamato Class)

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Shinano, a behemoth of the Imperial Japanese Navy, was unleashed onto the world stage during World War II as the largest aircraft carrier ever built at that time. Laid down on May 4th, 1940, as the third Yamato-class battleship, Shinano's partially completed hull was hastily transformed into an aircraft carrier in response to Japan's crushing defeat of four fleet carriers at the pivotal Battle of Midway in mid-1942. By November 1944, her conversion remained unfinished, and she set sail from the Yokosuka Naval Arsenal bound for Kure Naval Base to complete outfitting and transport a cargo of 50 deadly Yokosuka MXY7 Ohka rocket-propelled kamikaze flying bombs. Despite being ill-prepared with an inexperienced crew, serious design flaws, inadequate pumps, and fire-control systems, not to mention the absence of a single aircraft on board, Shinano embarked on her fateful journey. Tragically, she met her demise 10 days after commissioning, succumbing to four torpedoes fired by the U.S. Navy submarine Archerfish on November 29th, 1944. Over a thousand sailors and civilians were rescued in the aftermath, but 1,435 lost their lives, including her courageous captain. Shinano remains an infamous record holder as the largest warship ever sunk by a submarine. Name: Shinano Namesake: Shinano Province Builder: Yokosuka Naval Arsenal Laid down: May 4th, 1940 Launched: October 8th, 1944 Completed: November 19th, 1944 (for trials) Fate: Sunk by the submarine USS Archerfish on November 29th, 1944 General characteristics: Type: Aircraft carrier Displacement: 65,800 metric tons (64,800 long tons) (standard) 69,151 metric tons (68,059 long tons) (normal) Length: 265.8 m (872 ft 2 in) (o/a) Beam: 36.3 m (119 ft 1 in) Draught: 10.3 m (33 ft 10 in) Installed power: 150,000 shp (110,000 kW) 12 × Kampon water-tube boilers Propulsion: 4 × shafts 4 × geared steam turbines Speed: 28 knots (52 km/h; 32 mph) Range: 10,000 nmi (19,000 km; 12,000 mi) at 18 knots (33 km/h; 21 mph) Complement: 2,400 Armament: 8 × twin 12.7 cm Type 89 dual-purpose guns 35 × triple 25 mm Type 96 AA guns 12 × 28 – 12 cm (4.7 in) AA rocket launchers Armor: Waterline belt: 160–400 mm (6.3–15.7 in) Flight deck: 75 mm (3.0 in) Aircraft carried: 47