In the greatest secrecy, the Japanese Navy begun construction of a 2nd Super Battleship, named Musashi. The ship was launched in secrecy and without any ceremony early in the morning on 1 November 1940, with a launch weight of 35,737 tons, and commissioned ready for service on August 5th 1942. Being a sistership of the Yamato, the most distinguishing features were the 9 huge 46cm guns, largest ever carried aboard ships. In addition to the 46cm guns, the Musashi carried twelve 5 inch anti-aircraft guns; and 130 25mm AA guns. Displacement at full load was 71,659 tons and she was powered by 4 steam turbine engines with a shaft horsepower of 150,000, which provided a top speed of 27.3kts. During Operations South of Luzon, Philippines on 24 October 1944, the Musashi was attacked by several U.S. aircraft from four aircraft carriers, and sustained 20 aerial torpedo and 17 bomb hits, plus 16 damaging near misses. Four and a half hours after this last attack, the proud Musashi sank. The Musashi differed greatly from the Yamato in her armament, and this model of the Musashi shows her in the latest configuration, just prior to her sinking in 1944.
 | This plastic model kit requires plastic cement and paint for assembly, and they are sold separately. |
