Quote:
Originally Posted by Pirate-Drakk
The outstanding question about the Yamato class BBs is WHY?
The Japanese were innovators of the aircraft carrier and they could have made a couple of them with the resources used by the Yamato BBs. Or they could have made a couple big honking flat tops with the same hulls. As large as those guns were, they could only fire a round 25 miles. A carrier based bomber can carry a 3,000 pound bomb 100's of miles (at least in principle). Such was the obsolesence of the Battleship in WWII.
About the only thing the Yamato's were good for was "bragging rights".
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"Bragging rights" is definitely a factor, though that's slightly simplifying it. Doctrine really has a lot to do with it, and underneath the doctrine, philosophy. Most of the Japanese naval commanders at the time were brought up with Mahanian philosophies, so they've always looked for the decisive naval battle that would win the war. After all, they have history to prove their philosophy right: Just look at the Battle of Tsushima that took place only a generation or two before WW2.