Japanese aircraft carrier Sōryū
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| Career |  |
|---|---|
| Ordered: | |
| Laid down: | November 20, 1934 |
| Launched: | December 23, 1935 |
| Commissioned: | December 29, 1937 |
| Fate: | Sunk by air attack at the battle of Midway, June 4, 1942 |
| Struck: | 10 August 1942 |
| General Characteristics | |
| Displacement: | 19,500 tons (full load), 15,900 tons (standard) |
| Length: | 728 ft 5 in (222 m) |
| Beam: | 70 ft (21 m) |
| Draught: | 24 ft 5 in (7.44 m) |
| Propulsion: | Geared steam turbines, 152,000 hp (113 MW), 4 screws |
| Speed: | 34.5 knots (63.9 km/h) |
| Range: | |
| Complement: | 1,103 |
| Armament: | Twelve 5 inch (120 mm) DP guns (dual-purpose) Twenty-six 25 mm AA guns Fifteen 13.2 mm machine guns |
| Aircraft: | 73 |
Sōryū (Japanese Kyūjitai: 蒼龍, Shinjitai: 蒼竜, sōryū, meaning "blue (or green) dragon") was an aircraft carrier of the Imperial Japanese Navy. She took part in the attack on Pearl Harbor and was sunk at the battle of Midway.
Sōryū was built at Kaigun Kosho, Kure, Japan and commissioned on December 29, 1937. As opposed to some earlier Japanese carriers which were redesigns on cruiser hulls, she was designed from the start as an aircraft carrier. At close to 35 knots, she was the fastest carrier in the world at launch.
At the outbreak of the Pacific War, commanded by Captain Ryusaku Yanagimoto, Sōryū was one of six carriers making up the Kido Butai (Striking Force) that attacked Pearl Harbor on 7 December 1941. She launched two waves of air strikes against the US Naval base. Her first wave targeted Nevada, Tennessee, and West Virginia with armour-piercing bombs and Utah, Helena, California, and Raleigh with torpedoes, as well as attacked grounded aircraft at Barbers Point. Her second wave targeted California, Raleigh, Kaneohe and Navy Yard installations.
[edit] Combat history
From 21 December to 23 December 1941 Soryu launched air strikes against Wake Island. In January of 1942 she supported the invasion of the Palau Islands and the Battle of Ambon. On 19 February 1942 Sōryū launched air strikes against Darwin, Australia. In March 1942 she took part in the Battle of the Java Sea, helping sink the US tanker Pecos.
In April of 1942 Sōryū took part in the Indian Ocean raid, launching air strikes against the Royal Navy base at Ceylon on 5 April 1942, and helping to sink the Royal Navy cruisers Cornwall and Dorsetshire. On 9 April she helped sink the British carrier Hermes and the escorting Australian destroyer HMAS Vampire.
On 19 April 1942 she pursued the American carriers Hornet and Enterprise after they launched the Doolittle Raid, but without success.
In June of 1942 Sōryū was one of four carriers with Vice Admiral Chuichi Nagumo's First Carrier Striking Force in the battle of Midway. Her aircraft complement consisted of 21 Mitsubishi A6M "Zero" fighters, 21 Aichi D3A "Val" dive bombers, and 21 Nakajima B5N "Kate" torpedo bombers. [1] On 4 June 1942 she launched one wave of planes against the American base on Midway Island. At 10:25 while preparing to launch a second strike against an American carrier group, she was attacked by thirteen SBD Dauntless dive bombers from the American carrier Yorktown. Sōryū received three direct hits from 1000-lb (454kg) bombs: one penetrated to the lower hangar deck, and the other two exploded in the upper hangar deck. The hangars contained armed and fueled planes in preparation for the upcoming strike, resulting in secondary explosions. Within a very short time the fires on the ship were out of control. At 10:40 she stopped and her crew were taken off by the destroyers Isokaze and Hamakaze. Sōryū sank at 7:13 PM. Losses were 711 crew of her nominal complement of 1103, including Captain Yanagimoto, who chose to remain on board. This was the highest mortality percentage of all the Japanese carriers lost at Midway, due largely to the devastation in both hangar decks.
The official record (the Nagumo Report) implies that Sōryū sank of her own accord, but later research has revealed she was scuttled with torpedoes by Isokaze.
[edit] Pop Culture references
Asuka Langley Soryu from the animated series Neon Genesis Evangelion is named for this aircraft carrier, as well as the American aircraft carrier USS Langley (CV-1).
[edit] External links
 Wikimedia Commons has media related to:
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| Sōryū-class aircraft carrier |
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Sōryū | Hiryū |
| List of ships of the Japanese Navy |
