Japanese submarine I-13 in 1945 |
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| Class overview | |
|---|---|
| Operators: | Imperial Japanese Navy |
| Preceded by: | A2 type submarine |
| In service: | 1944 - 1945 |
| Completed: | I-13, I-14 |
| General characteristics | |
| Displacement: | 3,603 tons surfaced 4,762 tons submerged |
| Length: |
108.40 m (355 ft 8 in) pp |
| Beam: | 11.70 m (38 ft 5 in) |
| Draft: | 5.89 m (19 ft 4 in) |
| Propulsion: | 2 diesels: 4,400 hp electric motors: 600 hp |
| Speed: | 16.7 knots (30.93 km/h) surfaced 5.5 knots (10.2 km/h) submerged |
| Range: | 21,000 nmi (39,000 km) at 16 knots (30 km/h) |
| Test depth: | 100 m (330 ft) |
| Complement: | 118 officers and men |
| Armament: | 6 × 533 mm forward torpedo tubes (12 torpedoes) 1 × 25 mm machine gun 2 × 25 mm 3-barrel machine gun |
| Aircraft carried: | 2 Aichi M6A1 Seiran sea-planes |
The AM (A Modified) type submarine was a large seaplane-carrying submarine of the Imperial Japanese Navy, with a hangar space for 2 aircraft. These giant submarines were originally of the A2 type, meant to act as command boats for groups of submarines, but their design was revised after construction started so that they could carry a second aircraft.[1] Seven units were ordered, but only two (I-13 and I-14) were completed, while construction of two more was abandoned in March 1945, with construction of the remaining three submarines never started.[2][3] The seaplanes were to be the Aichi M6A1, bomber carrying 800 kg bombs.
The range and speed of these submarines was remarkable (21,000 nmi at 16 knots), but their underwater performance was compromised, making them easy targets. I-13 was sunk on 16 July 1945 by the destroyer escort USS Lawrence C. Taylor and aircraft action from escort carrier USS Anzio about 550 nautical miles (1,019 km) east of Yokosuka. I-14 surrendered at sea at the end of the war, and was scuttled off Oahu in 1946. In 2009 researchers at the Hawaii Undersea Research Laboratory found I-14 at a depth of about 2,600 feet (790 m).[4]
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