IJN Aircraft Carrier TAIHO-Deluxe Kit

Brand new and highly detailed kit of the Imperial Japanese Navy aircraft carrier TAIHO
   DELUXE EDITION  

• Scale 1:350
• Includes seaplanes
• Decals and basic photo-etched parts
• Additional turned brass parts, resin parts, photo-etched parts
• Unbuilt, unpainted
• Paint and glue not included

The Taihō (大鳳) was one of the Imperial Japanese Navy's most modern aircraft carriers, developed as an evolution of the Shōkaku class. She featured an armored flight deck, an enclosed bow, and heavy armor protection that was unusually robust for a Japanese carrier. Measuring approximately 260.6 meters in length with a top speed of around 33 knots, she could carry roughly 70 to 75 aircraft, depending on the mission.

Commissioned in March 1944, the Taihō became the flagship of Vice Admiral Jisaburō Ozawa's carrier fleet. She saw her first - and final - combat action during the Battle of the Philippine Sea on June 19, 1944. She was torpedoed by the American submarine USS Albacore; leaking aviation fuel and an accumulation of gasoline vapors subsequently triggered massive explosions, causing the Taihō to sink that same day. Thus, she was in service for only a few months and was lost during her very first major operation.