Aoba (Japanese: 青葉; named after Mount Aoba) was the lead ship in the two-vessel Aoba class of heavy cruisers in the Imperial Japanese Navy. Launched in 1926 and heavily modernized in 1938–40, Aoba initially served as a patrol craft, largely along the China coast, and saw extensive service during World War II. Repeatedly heavily damaged and repaired, she was finally crippled by bombing and settled on the bottom of shallow Kure harbor in April 1945; two raids in late July reduced her to an unsalvageable hulk. During the attack on 24 July 1945, future Vice Admiral Dick H. Guinn dropped the 2,000 lb (910 kg) bomb which contributed to her sinking.[2] She was formally removed from the Navy List on 20 November 1945, and her wreck scrapped in 1946–47.