@SuperbattleshipYamato
Yesterday, November 29th, 2024, marked the 80th anniversary of the sinking of the Japanese aircraft carrier Shinano.
Originally thought of as the third Yamato class battleship, following the Battle of Midway the Japanese made plans to rebuild it as an aircraft carrier. However, as the ship was already laid down and significantly in production, they were unable to finish it as a fleet carrier and instead made it a heavily armoured support carrier. In this role, it would act a “backup” carrier, holding supplies and reserve aircraft for other carriers, similar to the British carriers Unicorn, Perseus, or Pioneer.
On October 28, 9 days after commisioning, the ship, carrying 6 Shinyo suicide boats and 50 Okha suicide bombs, began sailing from Yokosuka to Kure, where final preparation would take place for the ship to deliver its cargo to the Phillipines and Okinawa. However, on the way there, the American submarine Archerfish detected it and managed to lob 4 torpedoes at it. Thanks to the ship’s semi-unfinished state, poor Japanese design and construction, and mistakes by the crew, the carrier sunk. It remains the largest ship ever sunk by a submarine.
