Japan 's navy today took delivery of its biggest warship . since the Second World War as it continues expanding its military capability in an attempt to shed its post-war pacifism . Today the Izumo , a helicopter carrier as big as . the Imperial Navy aircraft carriers that battled the United . States in the Pacific , was delivered to the navy in a crowning achievement for the nation 's military forces . With a crew of 470 sailors , it is a highly visible . example of how Japan is expanding the capability of its military . to operate overseas as Prime Minister Shinzo . Abe seeks lawmaker approval to loosen the restraints of Japan 's . pacifist post-war constitution . Scroll down for video . The Japanese navy 's new aircraft carrier , named the Izumo , cruises towards Yokosuka Base , in Kanagawa , Japan . Navy soldiers stand at attention and salute on board the helicopter carrier during its commissioning ceremony in Japan today . Pictured left ( and far right next to a much smaller navy ship ) is the Izumo , which is equal in size to the aircraft carriers Japan deployed throughout the Pacific during the Second World War . Navy and dockyard workers attending the ship 's commissioning ceremony today looked on in awe at the massive aircraft carrier . Hundreds of sightseers also visited the dock hoping to catch a glimpse of the huge boat . Here civilians watch as it departs from Yokohama Base , south of Tokyo . Sailors stand at attention on the deck of the warship , while a Japanese naval flag flutters before them . The huge warship is considered symbolic of Japan 's growing military capabilities . The 248metre ( 813ft ) long warship resembles U.S. Marine . Corp amphibious assault carriers in size and design but it is . designated as a helicopter destroyer - a label that allows Japan . to keep within the bounds of a constitutional ban on owning the . means to wage war . Aircraft carriers , because of their ability . to project force , are considered offensive weapons . General Nakatani , Japan 's Minister of Defence , told media at the handover ceremony in Yokohama : 'The vessel can serve in a wide range of roles including . peace keeping operations , international disaster relief and . aid . It also helps improve our ability to combat submarines . ' Japan is also adding longer-range patrol aircraft and . military cargo planes to its defence capability , and buying . Lockheed Martin F-35 fighter jets , amphibious assault . vehicles and Boeing 's Osprey troop carrier , which can . operate from the Izumo . President Abe 's attempts to ease Japan 's pacifist constitution and its build up in defence capabilities is unnerving neighbour China . The Izumo does not have a catapult necessary to launch . fixed-wing fighters , but a planned vertical-take-off-and-landing . ( VTOL ) variant of the F-35 could fly from the Izumo 's flight . deck . Based at Yokosuka naval base near Tokyo , also the home port . of the U.S . Seventh Fleets carrier battle group , the Izumo will . join two smaller helicopters carriers already in service that . are also classed as destroyers . Soldiers march and salute on the deck of the massive warship , which is capable of holding a maximum of 28 aircraft . However , Japan classes it as a helicopter destroyer , a label that allows it to keep within the bounds of a constitutional ban on owning the means to wage war . General Nakatani , Japan 's Defense Minister , speaks to naval soldiers during the commissioning ceremony of the Izumo warship . Soldiers untangle a rope on board the aircraft carrier , which measures 250m in length . Japan 's constitution , known as the Peace Constitution , is most famous for the renunciation of the right to wage war . It was drawn up under the Allied occupation which followed the Second World War and was intended to replace Japan 's previous militaristic and absolute monarchy system with liberal democracy . Japan was responsible for drawing the U.S. into the war after it launched a surprise attack on the U.S naval base Pearl Harbor in 1941 . The attack was intended as a preventive action to keep the U.S. from interfering with its planned military actions in Southeast Asia , which included overseas territories of the UK , Netherlands , and the United States . The conflict escalated massively when the U.S dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima on August 6 , 1945 . This led to the surrender of the Empire of Japan on September 2 , 1945 and brought the hostilities of World War II to a close . Japan 's constitution was enacted on May 3 , 1947 . Hiroshima was left devastated ( pictured ) after the U.S. dropped an atomic bomb on the city , ending the war and leading to the 'Peace Constitution '
Japan 's navy has officially taken control of biggest warship the country has owned since the Second World War . The Izumo , a 250m aircraft carrier , is as big as the Imperial Navy carriers that battled the U.S. in the Pearl Harbor . It has a crew of 470 sailors and is symbolic of how pacifist Japan is expanding its overseas military capabilities .