[CJ Wolf]

that is big. How does it compare to our current battleships?

[null and void]

Ours are on top of the water?

[camle]

what current battleships?

[Tijeras_Slim]

I believe that all our battleships are of WWII vintage.

[Gator101]

The Yamato, and her sister Musashi, were the largest battleships ever made.

[COEXERJ145]

We no longer have any active duty battleships and haven't for almost 15 years.

But if you're referring to the Iowa class, the Yamato class weighed in around 70,000 tons and mounted 9, 18-inch gins. The Iowa weighed in around 45,000 tons with 9 16-inch guns.

That said, in a one-on-one dual, I would put my money on the an Iowa except at point blank range.

[quikdrw]

There are no current battle-ships.


The IOWA class was dsigned and built to have two of them beat the snot out of the BISMARCK. The YAMATO was bigger still, with larger guns.

[edzo4]

we have no current battleships...

last one built was the USS Missouri

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Missouri_(BB-63)

[SmithL]

There are no current Battleships. Here are a couple of shots of the USS Iowa being taken through the Carquinez Straights, enroute to joining the Mothball fleet.

-

I'd really like to see the Iowa become a Museum Ship.

[Calvin Locke]

From what I remember, the Japanese figured out the largest ship that could go through the Panama Canal, then spec'd
ships to be able to [theoretically] outclass them.

However, during the battle of Leyte Gulf, a little destroyer escort chased the Yamato out of the battle for about
10 minutes with a salvo of 3 torps.

Germany had a love for big railway guns. I think I saw that the amount of steel used in just one could
have outfitted a tank battalion.

I think Japan seriously misjudged the amount of naval air power that the US was able to deploy against the
Japanese fleet. After all, once their carriers were no longer a threat, what ships did they think was
going to be high on the target list?

[Lonesome in Massachussets]

The Yamato was 65,027 tons displacement, with 460 mm (18.1") guns. It would have out gunned the Missouri 58,000 tons, 16" guns. The difference in caliber meant that the Yamato could have "stood off " from the Missouri and lobed shells with devastating effect.

The Missouri had radar assisted gun laying (mainly for ranging, the largest source of error in WW-II naval artillery), if she could have closed to 16" range in bad weather or at night, she could have probably bested the Yamato.

In the event, it was moot, as the Yamato was sunk by U.S. naval aircraft as soon as she put to sea. Some historians feel that she was on suicide mission; for the Yamato to have survived the war would have been a severe embarrassment for the Imperial Navy.

[RetiredSWO]

The closest thing we have in destructive force to a Battleship is the Aircraft Carrier. However, if you are looking in the CRUDES class the Ticongeroga cruisers are next.

Here they are in comparison

	IJN Yamato	USS Ronald Reagan	USS Anzio
Length (in feet)	862.5	1092	567
Beam (in feet)	121 ft	134 ft	55
Displacement(tons)	72,800	(3) 20mm CIWS	9,600
Speed (in knots)	27	30+	30
Main Battery	(9) 18.1" Guns	Strike Aircraft	(2) 61-cell VLS Missile Launchers
Secondary Battery	(6) 6.1"	0	(2) 4-cell Harpoon Anti-ship Missile Launchers
AA Guns	(190) 1"-2" Guns	(3) 20mm CIWS	(2) 20mm CIWS
Missiles	0	(2) Sea Sparrow 8-cell Launchers (2) RAM 21-cell launchers	(2) 61-cell VLS launchers
Aircraft	7	80+	2 Helicopters
Catapults	2	4	0

[libstripper]

It was about 70,000 tons compared to about 45,000 tons for Iowa class battleships, one or two of which we periodically renovate anduse for shore bombardment. None of our battleships is currently on active duty.