The Pacific War Online Encyclopedia

Tonnage	35,800 tons standard displacement
Dimensions	708' by 104'1" by 30'2" 215.8m by 31.72m by 9.19m
Maximum speed	25.3 knots
Complement	1376
Aircraft	1 catapult 3 seaplanes
Armament	6x2 14"/45 guns 16x1 5.5"/50 guns 4x2 5"/40 dual-purpose guns 10x2 25mm AA guns
Protection	12" (305mm) belt and bulkheads 2.25" (57mm) armored deck 1"+1"+1.25" (25mm+25mm+32mm) splinter deck 3" (76mm) deck over steering 12"/10"/4.5" (305mm/203mm/114mm) turret face/sides/roof 12" (305mm) barbette 6" (152mm) casemate 13.75" (305mm) conning tower 5.8" (229mm) uptakes 17' torpedo bulges with 1" Ducol holding bulkheads and two outer void and two inner liquid compartments
Machinery	4-shaft Kampon geared turbine (80,825 shp) 8 Kampon boilers
Bunkerage	5113 tons fuel oil
Range	7870 nautical miles (14,580km)) at 16 knots
Modifications	Experimental radar installations were shipped just prior to the Midway operation, Type 22 on Hyuga and Type 21 on Ise. Reconstructed as hybrid carrier-battleships in 1943-44. The two rear main turrets were removed and replaced with a small flight deck with a capacity of 22 aircraft. The 5"/40 dual-purpose guns were replaced with 57 25mm/60 AA guns. The range became 9449 nautical miles (17,500km) at 16 knots. In June 1944 the antiaircraft armament was further increased, to a total of 104 25mm AA guns. In September 1944 the antiaircraft armament included 6x30 5" (127mm) rocket launchers. In October 1944 the catapults were removed to improve the firing arcs of the remaining main turrets.

The Ises, built in 1917-1918, were similar to the previous Fusos. However, they had an improved internal arrangement, had better siting of their main turrets, and replaced the 6" secondary battery with 5.5" guns.

Obsolescent by 1943, the Ises were converted to hybrid carrier-battleships, with the rear main turrets removed and replaced with a small flight deck with a capacity of 22 aircraft. They were not a success. The small air group was inadequate for anything but escort duty and aircraft ferrying, and while a hybrid carrier-battleship made an impressive escort vessel, it was hardly cost-effective. As fleet carrier units, they were a complete bust.

A peculiarity of the flight decks was that they were covered with 8" (20 cm) of concrete, primarily to compensate for the loss of the two rear turrets, which made the ships too stable. The concrete also acted as a crude form of armor which did not further drain Japan's already depleted stocks of high-quality steel.