武藏號戰艦：艾倫宣布“發現船身”，視頻首次公開

A few weeks ago the Mainichi News on-line reported the following:

戦艦武蔵:アレン氏「船体を発見した」発表　動画も初公表

毎日新聞　2015年03月04日　23時02分（最終更新　03月04日　23時36分）

　米マイクロソフトの共同創業者で資産家のポール・アレン氏は４日、声明を出し、太平洋戦争で撃沈された戦艦武蔵の船体を「発見した」と発表した。また、海底で撮影した船体の動画を初めて自身のサイトで公表した。

　８年以上前から武蔵の探索を始め、今月１日に船体を確認したという。「父が米軍に従軍しており、子供の頃から大戦史に興味を持っていた。海軍史上、重要な戦艦を探し当てることができ、光栄だ」と述べた。

　アレン氏によると、探索には自身所有の大型船を使用。フィリピン中部シブヤン海で測量調査を実施して沈没場所を絞り込み、２月に無人海底探査機を投入。３回目の潜水で船体を確認したという。

　今後について「武蔵の船体は慰霊の場として適切に扱われるべきであり、日本政府と協力したい」と述べた。

　武蔵は１９４４年１０月２４日、シブヤン海で米軍機の攻撃を受けて沈没し、乗員約２４００人のうち約１０００人が死亡した。【三木幸治】

(試譯文)

Paul Allen, a co-founder of the Microsoft of the US and a man of means, on the 4^th (March) issued a statement to announce that the hull the battleship Musashi sunk in the Pacific War "was being found". Video images of the hull taken at the bottom of the sea were released in his web site for the first time.

    It was said that the hull was confirmed on the 1st of this month (March) since the search for Musashi had started more than 8 years ago. It stated that "my father had been campaigning in U.S. forces and I am interested in war history since childhood. The fact that it was possible to find an important battleship in naval history is an honor".

    According to Allen, he used a large ship of his own to conduct the search. A surveying search was carried out in Sibuyan Sea at the middle of the Philippines. The sinking place was narrowed down and an unmanned submarine searching device was employed in February. He said that the hull was confirmed on the 3rd time of the diving.

    About the future, it was stated that "the hull of Musashi as a place for the memory of spirits should be handled appropriately, and I would like to cooperate with the Japanese Government".

     Musashi was under attacks from the aircrafts of the U.S. at Sibuyan Sea and was sunk on October 24, 1944. Among the about 2,400 crews on board some 1,000 people lost their lives.

I think it is an interesting historical discovery on sea battles of WWII.