Akagi from Warlord Games

Akagi

Originally conceived as an Amagi-class battlecruiser, she was converted into an aircraft carrier due to the terms of the Washington Treaty. This made the Akagi ("Red Castle") one of Japan's first major aircraft carriers. Akagi and her near-sister Kaga operated on the borderline between aircraft carrier and dreadnought. To keep both options open, the ships were designed for rapid conversion to capital ships. They carried turret barbettes, magazines, and other equipment to support large gun turrets, and the wooden flight and hangar deck was designed for quick removal to make room for the installation of gun turrets. However, by the mid-1930s, admirals viewed the aircraft carrier as equivalent to the capital ship, and Akagi underwent extensive modifications to improve her aircraft-carrying capacity, effectively ending any possibility of later conversion to a capital ship.

Its aircraft served in the Second Sino-Japanese War in the late 1930s. With the formation of the First Air Fleet in 1941, it became its flagship and remained so until its demise. Notable actions include the attack on Pearl Harbor, the invasion of Rabaul, the bombing of Darwin in Australia, and the attack on the Indian Ocean.

In June 1942, she participated in the Battle of Midway, bombing the American-held atoll with her aircraft. However, US aircraft launched from Midway, along with the US aircraft carriers Enterprise, Hornet, and Yorktown, attacked Akagi and three other Japanese fleet carriers. Dive bombers from the USS Enterprise damaged Akagi so severely that she had to be sunk by allied destroyers to prevent her from falling into American hands. The loss of four Japanese aircraft carriers in this engagement, including Akagi, was a decisive defeat for Japan, dramatically altering the balance of power in the Pacific.

Models are delivered unassembled and unpainted.