Intense photos show the WWII Battle of Leyte Gulf - the biggest naval battle of all-time
The USS Princeton light aircraft carrier was hit by a Yokosuka D4Y dive-bomber's 550-pound bomb. It was the most crucial vessel the US Navy lost during the three-day battle.
The USS Gambier Bay billowing smoke after likely getting struck by Japanese cruisers, which are credited with sinking the US escort carrier.
Read more about escort carriers here.
The USS St. Lo escort carrier just moments after getting struck by a Japanese Kamikaze, pilots trained for suicide attacks meant to destroy US ships. The Battle of Leyte Gulf was the first time Japan used Kamikaze fighters.
Despite the US losses, the Allies hit back hard during later engagements of the Battle of Leyte Gulf.
Perhaps the biggest Japanese loss was the fleet carrier Zuikaku, the flagship of the Japan's Northern Force, which had also launched planes during the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor.
Here's a wider shot of the Zuikaku under attack from the air. The Allied planes eventually sunk the Japanese carrier.
The cruisers USS Louisville, USS Portland, USS Minneapolis, USS Denver, and USS Columbia fire simultaneously on Japanese ships.
Two Japanese battleships, the Fusō (front) and possibly the Yamashiro (back), under attack from US planes. Both battleships were sunk during the engagement.
And here's a view directly on top of either the Fusō or Yamashiro as it's bombed by US aircraft from above, some of which were launched by the famed aircraft carrier USS Enterprise.
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