Kaidai class submarine

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The Kaidai class was a class of submarines operated by the Imperial Japanese Navy before and during World War II. All Kaidai class submarines originally had a two digit hull number, from I-51 onwards. In 1942, many of the active units of the class had a 1 prefixed to their designation. For example, I-52 became I-152. Ships will be listed by the three digit hull number if they had one, two digit if they were not granted one or left service before 1942.

Contents

[edit] Class variants

Kaidais were divided into seven types; KD1 - 7

[edit] KD1

The prototype for the class. The sole KD1, I-51, was based on World War I-era German submarines. She was completed in 1924, was refitted with new engines in 1932, and was scrapped in 1941. I-51 never saw combat. [1]

[edit] KD2

There was only 1 KD2, I-152. She was completed in 1929, used as a training vessel until mid-1942, then struck from service. She was scrapped in 1946. There were to be six KD2s, but the latter 5 were cancelled. [2]

[edit] KD3

The nine KD3s were based on earlier designs, but featured a strengthened hull. There were two sub-types; KD3A (I-53, I-54, I-55, and I-158) and KD3B (I-156, I-157, I-159, I-60, and I-63). The "B" types were 40 cm longer, and had a different bow design. All nine ships were constructed between 1927 and 1930. [3]

Of the nine KD3s, seven survived the war, as they spent much of their time as training vessels. These were scuttled or scrapped shortly after the end of World War II. I-63 was sunk in a collision with I-60 in 1939, the former losing all crew. I-63 was refloated and scrapped in 1940. I-60 was later sunk by HMS Jupiter. [3]

[edit] KD4

Slightly smaller than her predecessors and with only four torpedo tubes, three KD4s were constructed between 1929 and 1930; I-61, I-162, and I-164. I-61 was lost in a collison in 1941. I-162 was sunk by USS Triton on 17 May 1942. I-161 survived the war. [4]

[edit] KD5

3 KD5s were constructed; I-165, I-166, and I-67 were all completed in 1932. The design saw the upgrade of the deck weapon from a 50 cal to a 65 cal dual-purpose gun. The submarine was also slightly wider and taller, with an increased crew complement of 75 and an increased maximum depth of 230 ft (70 m). I-165 was modified in 1945; her gun removed and two Kaiten midget submarines/manned torpedoes. [5]

None of the KD5s survived World War II. I-67 was lost with all 87 crew during an exercise in 1940. I-165 was sunk on 27 June 1945, off the east coast of Saipan. I-166 was sunk by British submarine HMS Telemachus on 17 July 1944, off the coast of Singapore. [5]

[edit] KD6

Constructed over the course of 1934-1938, eight KD6s were built; I-168, I-169, I-70, I-171, I-172, I-73, I-174, and I-175. At 23 knots, this type had the fastest surface speed for any submarine at the time of construction, although the speed was bettered slightly by later Japanese submarines. I-174 and I-175 were of the KD6B sub-type. They were 30 cm longer, 25 tons heavier, and were equipped with a 50 cal deck weapon instead of a 65 cal. [6]

KD6s contributed to the sinking of two American aircraft carriers during World War II. The destruction of these submarines also hold some milestones; I-70 was Japan's first major warship casualty in World War II, and the sinking of I-73 represented the first warship kill by a United States Navy submarine in the war. [6]

KD6 submarines [6]
Name "Kills" "Fate"
I-168 *USS Yorktown (CV-5) (6 June 1942)
*USS Hammann (DD-412) (6 June 1942)		 Sunk 27 July 1943 by USS Scamp (SS-277)
I-169 - Lost during air raid on Truk on 4 April 1944
I-70 - Sunk on 10 December 1941 by aircraft from USS Enterprise (CV-6)
I-171 - Sunk by American destroyers in the Solomons on 1 February 1944
I-172 - Sunk by USS Southard (DD-207) on 11 November 1942
I-73 - Sunk by USS Gudgeon (SS-211) on 27 January 1942
I-174 - lost in an accident on 3 April 1944
I-175 *USS Liscome Bay (CVE-56) (24 November 1943) Sunk by American destroyers on 5 February 1944

[edit] KD7

The final design in the Kaidai class, ten KD7s were ordered in 1939 (I-176, I-177, I-178, I-179, I-180, I-181, I-182, I-183, I-184, and I-185), and were completed over the course of 1942 and 1943. [7] Instead of possessing some aft-firing torpedo tubes as all other predecessors did, the KD7's 6 tubes all faced forward. They had an underwater endurance of 75 days. [8]

Seven of the ten KD7s were sunk within their first year of operation, and all ten vessels were sunk by October 1944. [8]

KD7 submarines [8][7]
Name "Kills" "Fate"
I-176 [1] USS Chester (CA-27){Damaged}
USS Corvina (SS-226)		 Sunk by American destroyers

{USS Franks} in May 17 1944
I-177 AHS Centaur
Limerick		 Depth charged by American destroyers on 3 October, 1944
I-178 - Sunk by American submarine chaser in 1943
I-179 - Lost when a hatch was left open during a training dive
I-180 - Sunk by American destroyers in 1944
I-181 - Sunk by American destroyers in 1944
I-182 - Sunk by American destroyers in 1943
I-183 - Sunk by USS Pogy (SS-266) in April 1944
I-184 - Sunk by depth bombs dropped by aircraft from USS Suwannee (CVE-27)
I-185 - Sunk by American destroyers in 1944

[edit] References

  • Smith, A.E. [1991] (May 1992). Three Minutes of Time - the torpedoing of the Australian Hospital Ship Centaur, Second Printing, Miami: Tasman Press. ISBN 0-646-07631-0. 
  1. ^ Type KD1. Combinedfleet.com - Imperial Japanese Navy Page. Retrieved on 2007-02-20.
  2. ^ Type KD2. Combinedfleet.com - Imperial Japanese Navy Page. Retrieved on 2007-02-20.
  3. ^ a b Type KD3. Combinedfleet.com - Imperial Japanese Navy Page. Retrieved on 2007-02-20.
  4. ^ Type KD4. Combinedfleet.com - Imperial Japanese Navy Page. Retrieved on 2007-02-20.
  5. ^ a b Type KD5. Combinedfleet.com - Imperial Japanese Navy Page. Retrieved on 2007-02-20.
  6. ^ a b c Type KD6. Combinedfleet.com - Imperial Japanese Navy Page. Retrieved on 2007-02-20.
  7. ^ a b Smith (1992) Pg. 29
  8. ^ a b c Type KD7. Combinedfleet.com - Imperial Japanese Navy Page. Retrieved on 2007-02-20.