page_title: Fusō-class battleship
section_title: Armament
hierarchical_section_title: Fusō-class battleship / Description / Armament
caption_attribution_description: English: Japanese Vice-Admiral Sankichi Takahashi (1882-1966) in front of the Rear 14-inch gun turrets of the Battleship Yamashiro.　　　　　　　There is an objection in the above sentence (I am sorry by poor English writings) The setting of the photograph is Fuso model battleship The form of the bridge deck before modern remodeling, Fuso for 1930-1933 years, Yamashiro is 1930-1934 yearsIn being redecorated This at least photograph is a thing before 1930. Of person "Sankichi Takahashi" of also this photograph It is a career until 1930 after the Fuso completion more, In 1924/5 before the Aso captain assumption of office By the land and foreign service, Afterward the Fuso captain, the Naval General Staff, the combined fleet chief of staff, From 1928 I board Akagi as the 1 aviation squadron commander. Of time when I acted as Commander 1 aviation squadron Yamashiro becomes the combined fleet flagship in 1928/12-1929/11, When the commander of other fleets boarded a combined fleet flagship on some kind of business It is not thought that I remove a crew than a front part deck and a bridge deck and took a ceremonial photograph Because if it is the combined fleet chief of staff, I should put on an epaulet (staff officer aiguillette), As for this photograph, Takahashi is a period of 1924/11-1925/12 for the Fuso captain era, The warship of the background is thought to be very likely to be Fuso not Yamashiro. 日本語: 写真の背景は扶桑型戦艦ではあるが艦橋の形が近代改装前で、扶桑は1930-1933年、山城は1930-1934年に改装をしているので、少なくともこの写真は1930年以前の物である。そしてこの写真の人物「高橋三吉」の扶桑竣工後より1930年までの経歴であるが、1924/5に阿蘇艦長就任以前は陸上や海外勤務で、以後は扶桑艦長、軍令部、連合艦隊参謀長、1928年よりは第一航空戦隊司令官として赤城に乗艦している。第一航空戦隊司令官を務めていた時の1928/12-1929/11に山城が連合艦隊旗艦となっているが、一司令官が何がしかの用事で連合艦隊旗艦に乗艦した時に、前部甲板や艦橋より乗員を排除して記念撮影をしたとも考えづらく、連合艦隊参謀長であるなら肩章（参謀飾緒）を着けているはずなので、この写真は扶桑艦長時代1924/11-1925/12の期間であり、背景の艦は扶桑の可能性が高いと思われる。
context_page_description: The Fusō-class battleships were a pair of dreadnought battleships built for the Imperial Japanese Navy before World War I and completed during it. Both patrolled briefly off the coast of China before being placed in reserve at the war's end. In 1922 Yamashiro became the first battleship in the IJN to successfully launch aircraft.
  During the 1930s, both ships underwent a series of modernizations and reconstructions. Fusō underwent her modernization in two phases, while Yamashiro was reconstructed from 1930 to 1935. The modernization increased their armor, replaced and upgraded their machinery, and rebuilt their superstructures into the distinctive pagoda mast style. Despite the expensive reconstructions, both vessels were considered obsolescent by the eve of World War II, and neither saw significant action in the early years of the war. Fusō served as a troop transport in 1943, while Yamashiro was relegated to training duty in the Inland Sea. Both underwent upgrades to their anti-aircraft suite in 1944 before transferring to Singapore in August 1944.
context_section_description: The twelve 45-calibre 14-inch guns of the Fusō class were mounted in six twin-gun turrets, numbered from front to rear, each of which weighed 615 long tons (625 t). The turrets had an elevation capability of −5/+20 degrees. They were arranged in an uncommon 2-1-1-2 style with superfiring pairs of turrets fore and aft; the middle turrets were not superfiring, and had a funnel between them. The decision to use six twin turrets rather than four triple turrets greatly affected the entire design of the class because the two extra turrets required a longer ship and increased the amount of armor required to protect the ship. The location of the third and fourth turrets proved particularly problematic to the design of the class because the amidships turrets were not superfiring as in the subsequent Ise-class battleships. This further increased the length of the ships because the barrels of the upper turret did not protrude over the lower turret, requiring more space than a pair of superfiring turrets. Mounted amidships along the centerline of the ship, they had restricted arcs of fire, and their position forced the boiler rooms to be placed in less than ideal locations. Another complication was the need to fit extra insulation and air conditioning in the magazines of the amidships turrets to protect them from the heat generated in the adjacent boiler rooms. Originally both amidship gun turrets faced to the rear, but Fusō's turret No. 3 was moved to face forward during her reconstruction in order to accommodate additional platforms around her funnel.
  The main battery of the Fusō class underwent multiple modernizations throughout the ships' careers. During the first reconstruction of both vessels, the elevation of the main guns was increased to −5/+43 degrees, giving a maximum firing range of 35,450 yards (32,420 m). The recoil mechanism of the guns was also changed from a hydraulic to pneumatic system, which allowed for a faster firing cycle of the main guns.
  By World War II, the guns used Type 91 armor-piercing, capped shells. Each of these shells weighed 673.5 kilograms (1,485 lb) and had a muzzle velocity of 775 meters per second (2,540 ft/s). They had a maximum range of 27,800 meters (30,400 yd) at +30 degrees of elevation and 35,450 meters (38,770 yd) at +43 degrees after modernization. Also available was a 625-kilogram (1,378 lb) high-explosive shell that had a muzzle velocity of 805 meters per second (2,640 ft/s). A special Type 3 Sankaidan incendiary shrapnel shell was developed in the 1930s for anti-aircraft use.
  As built, the Fusō class was fitted with a secondary armament of sixteen 50-caliber six-inch guns mounted in single casemates along the sides of the hull at the level of the upper deck. Eight guns were mounted per side, and each had an arc of fire of 130 degrees and a maximum elevation of +15 degrees. Each gun could fire a 45.36-kilogram (100.0 lb) high-explosive projectile a maximum distance of 22,970 yards (21,000 m) at a rate of between four and six shots per minute. During their reconstruction in the 1930s, the maximum elevation of the guns was increased to +30 degrees, which increased their maximum range by approximately 900 metres (980 yd).
  The ships also mounted five or six 40-caliber 76 mm anti-aircraft (AA) guns. The 76-millimetre (3 in) high-angle guns were in single mounts on both sides of the forward superstructure, both sides of the second funnel, and each side of the aft superstructure (Fusō lacked the starboard side aft gun). Each of these guns had a maximum elevation of +75 degrees, and could fire a 6 kg (13 lb) projectile with a muzzle velocity of 680 m/s (2,200 ft/s) to a maximum height of 7,500 metres (24,600 ft). Both ships were equipped with six submerged 533-millimetre (21.0 in) torpedo tubes, three on each broadside.
  The Fusō class's secondary armament changed significantly over time. During the modernizations of the 1930s, all of the 76 mm guns were replaced with eight 40-caliber 127 mm (5.0 in) dual-purpose guns. These guns were fitted on both sides of the fore and aft superstructures in
caption: Admiral Sankichi Takahashi commanded Fusō 1924–1925
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