Yamato met a similar fate in 1945 while on a mission to defend Okinawa, overwhelmed by U.S. carrier-based aircraft. -Shinano, converted into an aircraft carrier, was sunk by the USS Archerfish ...

USA, Oita Prefecture--The last moments of Japan’s mammoth battleship Yamato were captured in extremely rare color footage taken from U.S. military aircraft in World War II, a war-history group said.

The Yamato was sunk by U.S. carrier-borne aircraft on April 7, 1945, as it sailed toward Okinawa where its commanders were ordered to beach the vessel and use its mighty arsenal as a gun battery.