Japanese destroyer Asakaze (1922)
 Asakaze | |
| Career (Japan) |  |
|---|---|
| Name: | Asakaze |
| Owner: | Empire of Japan |
| Operator: | Imperial Japanese Navy |
| Builder: | Mitsubishi-Nagasaki Shipyards, Japan |
| Yard number: | Destroyer No. 3 |
| Laid down: | 16 February 1922 |
| Launched: | 8 December 1923 |
| Commissioned: | 16 June 1923 |
| Renamed: | Asakaze, 1 August 1928 |
| Struck: | 10 August 1944 |
| Fate: | Sunk in combat, 23 August 1944 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type: | Kamikaze-class destroyer |
| Displacement: | 1,400 t (1,400 long tons) (normal) 1,750 t (1,720 long tons) (full load) |
| Length: | 97.5 m (320 ft) p.p. 102.6 m (337 ft) o/a |
| Beam: | 9.1 m (30 ft) |
| Draft: | 2.9 m (9.5 ft) |
| Installed power: | 28,700 kW (38,500 shp) |
| Propulsion: | 2 × Parsons geared turbines 4 × Ro-Gō Kampon water-tube boilers 2 × shafts |
| Speed: | 37.25 kn (68.99 km/h; 42.87 mph) |
| Range: | 3,600 nmi (6,700 km; 4,100 mi) at 14 kn (26 km/h; 16 mph) |
| Complement: | 168 |
| Armament: | 3 × 120 mm (4.7 in)/45 cal naval guns, 10 × 25 mm anti-aircraft cannons, 4 × 533 mm (21.0 in) torpedo tubes, 16 × naval mines |
| Service record | |
|---|---|
| Operations: |
Battle of the Philippines Battle of Sunda Strait |
Asakaze (朝風 ”Morning Wind”)[1] was the second of nine Kamikaze-class destroyers built for the Imperial Japanese Navy following World War I. Advanced for their time, these ships served as first-line destroyers through the 1930s, but were considered obsolescent by the start of the Pacific War.[2]
Construction
Construction of the large-sized Kamikaze-class destroyers was authorized as part of the Imperial Japanese Navy's 8-4 Fleet Program from fiscal 1921–1923, as a follow on to the Minekaze class, with which they shared many common design characteristics.[3] Asakaze, built at the Mitsubishi-Nagasaki shipyards, was laid down on 16 February 1922, launched on 8 December 1922 and commissioned on 16 June 1923.[4] Originally commissioned simply as Destroyer No. 3, it was assigned the name Asakaze on 1 August 1928.
World War II
At the time of the attack on Pearl Harbor, Asakaze was part of Destroyer Squadron 5 under Destroyer Division 5 in the IJN 3rd Fleet, and deployed from Mako Guard District in the Pescadores as part of the Japanese invasion force for the "Operation M" (the invasion of the Philippines), during which time she helped screen landings of Japanese forces at and at Lingayen Gulf.[5]
In early 1942, Asakaze was assigned to escorting troop convoys to Singora, Malaya and French Indochina. Assigned to "Operation J" (the invasion of Java in the Netherlands East Indies, she participated at the Battle of Sunda Strait on 1 March. During that battle, she launched torpedoes at the light cruiser HMAS Perth and heavy cruiser USS Houston.[6]
On 10 March, Asakaze and Destroyer Division 5 were re-assigned to the Southwest Area Fleet and escorted troop convoy from Singapore to Penang, and Rangoon, and covered landings of Japanese troops in the Nicobar Islands as part of "Operation D" on 11 June. From late July 1942-February 1943, Asakaze was assigned to patrols between Ambon and Timor in the Netherlands East Indies. At the end of February, she was based out of Saigon, and assigned to convoy escort duties between Takao and Moji, Kyūshū. She refitted at Sasebo Naval Arsenal at the end of May, and resumed her convoy escort duties to Saipan and Manila through August 1944.[7]
On 24 August, Asakaze sortied from Takao as escort for a convoy bound for Manila when she was torpedoed by the American submarine USS Haddo. She was taken in tow by one of the ships in the convoy — the tanker Nijō Maru — but sank 32 km (20 mi) southwest of Cape Bolinao, Luzon, Philippines. 16°6′N 119°44′E / 16.100°N 119.733°ECoordinates: 16°6′N 119°44′E / 16.100°N 119.733°E
Asakaze was struck from the Navy List on 10 October.[8]
Notes
- ↑ Nelson. Japanese-English Character Dictionary. Page 749, 480
- ↑ Howarth, The Fighting Ships of the Rising Sun
- ↑ Howarth, The Fighting Ships of the Rising Sun.
- ↑ Nishidah, Hiroshi (2002). "Kamikaze class 1st class destroyers". Materials of the Imperial Japanese Navy.
- ↑ Morison. The Rising Sun in the Pacific 1931 - April 1942.
- ↑ Dull. A Battle History of the Imperial Japanese Navy
- ↑ Nevitt, Allyn D. (1997). "IJN Asakaze: Tabular Record of Movement". Long Lancers. Combinedfleet.com.
- ↑ Nishidah, Hiroshi (2002). "Kamikaze class 1st class destroyers". Materials of the Imperial Japanese Navy.
References
- Brown, David (1990). Warship Losses of World War Two. Naval Institute Press. ISBN 1-55750-914-X.
- Dull, Paul S. (1978). A Battle History of the Imperial Japanese Navy, 1941–1945. Naval Institute Press. ISBN 0-87021-097-1.
- Howarth, Stephen (1983). The Fighting Ships of the Rising Sun: The Drama of the Imperial Japanese Navy, 1895–1945. Atheneum. ISBN 0-689-11402-8.
- Jentsura, Hansgeorg (1976). Warships of the Imperial Japanese Navy, 1869–1945. US Naval Institute Press. ISBN 0-87021-893-X.
- Nelson, Andrew N. (1967). Japanese–English Character Dictionary. Tuttle. ISBN 0-8048-0408-7.
- Whitley, M. J. (2000). Destroyers of World War Two: An International Encyclopedia. London: Arms and Armour Press. ISBN 1-85409-521-8.
- Watts, Anthony J. (1967). Japanese Warships of World War II. Doubleday. OCLC 1344405.
External links
- Nevitt, Allyn D. (1997). "IJN Asakaze: Tabular Record of Movement". Long Lancers. Combinedfleet.com.
- Nishidah, Hiroshi (2002). "Kamikaze class 1st class destroyers". Materials of the Imperial Japanese Navy.
- Jones, Daniel H. (2003). "IJN Minekaze, Kamikaze and Mutsuki class Destroyers". Ship Modeler's Mailing List (SMML).
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