Yamato was a Japanese battleship laid under the keel in 1937, launched in August 1940, and commissioned in the Imperial Japanese Navy in December 1941. The total length of the ship was 263 meters, width 38.9 meters, and a full displacement of 65,000 tons. The maximum speed of battleship Yamato was around 27-28 knots. The main armament at the time of the launch was 9 460 mm guns in three turrets of three guns each, and the secondary armament was mainly 12 152 mm guns.
Yamato was the first battleship of the type with the same name - ie Yamato. The genesis of this type of battleships dates back to the early 1930s, when the command of the Japanese Navy, hoping for the Washington Treaty to expire soon (from 1922) and preparing for the war in the Pacific, decided to create the most powerful and best battleship in history, which would outclass their counterparts in the US Navy or Royal Navy, and keep its construction completely secret. As a result, when it entered service in 1941, Yamato was the most powerful battleship (the 460 mm cannon had a shot range of 42,000 meters!) And was the best armored ship of this type in the world! So the assumptions of the Imperial Navy were fully realized! Yamato became the flagship of the entire Japanese Navy in 1942. It was from his deck that Isoroku Yamamoto commanded the defeat for Japan at the Battle of Midway (June 1942). Yamato spent the years 1943-1944 in the Japanese mother waters, taking a limited part in the fighting in the Pacific. In June 1944 he took part in the Battle of the Philippine Sea, but his role in it was marginal. He also fought in the Battle of Leyte in October 1944. Yamato's last combat mission was his suicide voyage against the American forces landing in Okinawa (Operation Ten-Go) - after being hit with at least 11 torpedoes and 8 bombs, this largest battleship in history sank on April 7, 1945.
Yahagi was a Japanese light cruiser the keel of which was laid in 1941, launched in October 1942, and commissioned in the Imperial Japanese Navy in December 1943. The ship was 174.5 meters long, 15.2 meters wide, and had a full displacement of 8,500 tons. The cruiser Yahagi's maximum speed was 35 knots. The main armament at the time of the launch was 6 152 mm guns in three turrets, two guns each, and the additional armament included: 4 80 mm guns and two quadruple 610 mm torpedo tubes.
Yahagi was the third Agano-class cruiser. This type of cruisers was created in connection with the need to expand the Japanese light forces, which occurred in the late 1930s. Agano type units were to serve as the so-called "Leaders" or units that lead the destroyer flotillas. This type of task led the Japanese designers to put emphasis on powerful torpedo armament and high top speed in these cruisers, including Noshiro. As a result, very successful ships were created, but less armored than their British or American counterparts. Light cruiser Yahagi took a small part in the Battle of the Philippine Sea in June 1944 and a very active part in the Battle of Leyte in October of the same year. Cruiser Yahagi's final combat mission was Operation Ten-Go, in which she sailed with battleship Yamato to fight the American invasion force fighting in Okinawa. Yahagi was sunk in the course of this operation by American on-board airliners on April 7, 1945.