Sinking of battleship Yamato
As fighting raged around Okinawa, one of the largest battleships ever built, the Japanese Yamato, steamed south on what was essentially a one-way mission. The plan called for Yamato and a small escort force to reach Okinawa, beach the ship, and fight as a coastal battery in a desperate attempt to blunt the American invasion. United States Navy carrier task forces detected the sortie and launched waves of aircraft tha