Anatomy of Yamato
4. Secondary Guns
While dwarfed by the main artillery, Yamato's secondary
armament was still impressive. Her six-inch guns—that is, guns
firing shells six inches in diameter—had a range of 17 miles.
And her 24 five-inch guns, mounted in 12 turrets, could destroy
targets nine miles away. The secondary guns had one significant
advantage over the main artillery: they could shoot more rounds per
minute. It took at least 40 seconds to load and fire one shot from
the main guns, an interminable time during an air attack.