Musashi
Message Board

4.
Sept. 30, 2014

The wreck of the largest battleship ever built has now been found in the Philippines. In 1944 the Japanese sent their fleet into the center of the Philippines to fight off the American forces who were attempting to recapture the islands. War planes from US aircraft carriers attacked the Imperial Japanese Navy causing immense loss of life and sinking the majority of the fleet. The IJN's largest battleship MUSASHI was hit with 19 torpedoes and 17 aerial bombs. Four hours later the battleship sank in the Sibuyan Sea, into deep water, where she still lies.

Last month a British science team named Merlindown, through their Nasa Imagery techniques have managed to obtain an image of the MUSASHI as it is now lying on the seabed. The exact position is being held by the Merlindown team, but would be available to interested parties for a fee. The official position of the sinking is off the Bondoc Peninsular in position 12°50'N, 122°35'E. However, when I studied all the available data of the sinking which happened some hours after the photographs were taken I gave an estimated position of 13° 07'01" N 122° 31'59" E. The images discovered by Merlindown are thought to be nearer to this position given by me in my book "Shipwrecks of the Philippines".

The wreck is well beyond ordinary diving depths and only robotic underwater vehicles could explore the site which is thought to be on the seabed 1,342 meters down. The image shows the MUSASHI lying on her side, completely spit in two, with square objects to one side which undoubtedly would be her upper gun turrets, that would have dislodged from the wreck when it hit the seabed.

In about 2008 the Senate of the Philippines was asked for permission to raise the wreck, for it to be conserved as a War memorial, sponsored by money in a Swiss Bank. A crazy and uneconomical idea, which got little favour with one senator who thought it may harm the underwater environment !

Now there is no need for vast amounts of money to be spent searching or salvaging as its location is known and the hull of the wreck is not intact enough to raise, even if it was feasible to do so.

Tom Bennett


3.
May 24, 2008

I am trying to find where the Battleship Musashi (as built) 13 mm AA guns were placed, before upgrades were made.

Thank you,
Wayne


2.
Dec. 23, 2007

I can't speak for any film of the real ship but Otoko Tachi No Yamato was released in Japan in 2005. It's the tale of the last fateful voyage of the ship and, overall, it is quite well done. For more details, check out the listing for it on imdb.com.

Cheers,
E M Olson


1.
Sept. 21, 2007

Has anyone ever seen any motion picture film of the Musashi or the Yamato?

Matthew E. Simek
Newberg, Oregon


Reply
Oct. 2 2007:
I saw a VHS movie that was made in Japan in the early 50's that was titled 'Yamato', it featured a
survivor who played himself in the movie. For more on this movie look up the book 'A Glorious Way to Die'
by Russell Spurr.

Bob Mailloux
Omaha, Nebraska


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Page published Oct. 25, 2007