said.
“With the memory of war slipping further and further from people’s minds, I hope this discovery will help make the public think about history.”
Manolo Quezon, a prominent historian in the Philippines and the presidential communications undersecretary, also said the Musashi wreck would be a “major” historical find if verified.
“This would be like finding the Titanic, because of the status of the ship and the interest on the ship,” Quezon told AFP.
The Musashi was one of a trio of vessels built by Japan during the war that, at 263 metres each, were its biggest battleships ever.
American warplanes sank the Musashi on October 24, 1944, at the height of the Battle of Leyte Gulf, regarded as the largest naval encounter of the war in which US and Australian forces defeated the Japanese.
Dozens of Japanese warships that were sunk during World War II have since been found in the Philippines, with some of them now popular dive locations.
The Sibuyan Sea where the Musashi was reportedly found is at the heart of the Philippines’ central Visayas islands, and is home to busy shipping lanes.
The Seattle-born Allen, 62, who founded Microsoft with Bill Gates in 1975, is the world’s 51st richest person with a net worth of $17.5 billion, according to Forbes Magazine.
He is also a famous philanthropist and businessmen with a focus on innovation.
Allen is working on a project called Stratolaunch, which aims to put “cost-effective” cargo and manned missions into space.
He launched SpaceShipOne, the first privately built spacecraft, into sub-orbital space in 2004.
In Allen’s statement on his website, he said he been driven to pursue the Musashi for many reasons.
“Since my youth, I have been fascinated with World War II history, inspired by my father’s service in the US Army,” he said.
“The Musashi is truly an engineering marvel and, as an engineer at heart, I have a deep appreciation for the technology and effort that went into its construction.”