World War Weapons • Printable Reference
Yamato vs USS Iowa
Battleship doctrine at peak scale: armor and caliber versus speed, radar, and systems integration.
Japan • NAVAL
Yamato
Yamato-class Battleship
- Introduced
- 1941
- Manufacturer
- Kure Naval Arsenal
- Type
- battleship
- Service Window
- 1941 - 1945
Largest battleship class ever completed, sunk during Operation Ten-Go in 1945.
United States • NAVAL
USS Iowa (BB-61)
Iowa-class Battleship
- Introduced
- 1943
- Manufacturer
- New York Naval Shipyard
- Type
- battleship
- Service Window
- 1943 - 1990
Fast U.S. battleship class supporting carrier task forces and shore bombardment.
Yamato Key Specs
- Displacement
- 65,000 t
- Length
- 263 m
- Top Speed
- 27 knots
- Range
- 7,200 nmi
- Crew
- 2,500
- Main Armament
- 9x 46cm main guns • Secondary and AA batteries
- Armor
- Belt 410 mm • Deck 200 mm
USS Iowa (BB-61) Key Specs
- Displacement
- 58,000 t
- Length
- 270 m
- Top Speed
- 33 knots
- Range
- 15,000 nmi
- Crew
- 2,700
- Main Armament
- 9x 16-inch main guns • 5-inch dual-purpose and AA batteries
- Armor
- Belt 307 mm • Deck 152 mm
Operational Tradeoff Summary
Yamato
Yamato entered service in 1941 as a battleship and its battlefield value came from endurance, escort doctrine, and control of maritime approaches.
USS Iowa (BB-61)
USS Iowa (BB-61) entered service in 1943 as a battleship and its battlefield value came from endurance, escort doctrine, and control of maritime approaches.