Surigao Strait. (January 10, 2025): In this photo by MC1 Jacob I. Allison, the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson transits the Surigao strait, the site of the largest naval battle of World War II. Located between the southern Philippines and the Leyte Gulf, the Strait is a major economic artery for the world and a region that is hotly contested between the U.S. and China.

The Battle of Surigao Strait took place on October 25, 1944 and it turned out to be the last major naval contest between battleships. In the one sided battle, over two hundred thousand Sailors of the U.S. 7th Fleet took on the Imperial Japanese Navy which had mobilized all its remaining major naval vessels to defeat the Allied invasion of the Philippines.

Employing a classic ambush tactic, American Rear Admiral Jesse B. Oldendorf sent in his PT boats first, then his cruisers, and finally a showdown with his battleships. The oncoming Japanese were formed in a single line and were only able to use their forwards guns. Vice Admiral Shoji Nishimura's Southern Force suffered the loss of the battleships Fuso and Yamashiro and the destroyers Michishio, Asagumo, and Yamagumo.

The battle was an overwhelming victory for the Americans who lost only thirty-nine killed and 114 wounded with no battleships losses. This would be the end of “battleship line” naval warfare as aircraft carriers and long-range missiles made the tactic obsolete. American warships, like the USS Carl Vinson, continue to transit this critical waterway to defend free and open navigation to this day.