Japanese aircraft carrier Jun'yō

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Sasebo, Japan
, on 26 September 1945
History
Empire of Japan
NameKashiwara Maru
Owner
Nippon Yusen Kaisha
 (Japan Mail Steamship Company)
OrderedLate 1938
BuilderMitsubishi Heavy Industries, Nagasaki
Yard number900
Way number3
Laid down20 March 1939
Launched26 June 1941
FateSold to the Imperial Japanese Navy, 10 February 1941
NamesakePeregrine falcon
Launched26 June 1941
Acquired10 February 1941
Commissioned3 May 1942
RenamedJun'yō
Stricken30 November 1945
FateScrapped, 1946–1947
General characteristics (as built)
Class and typeHiyō-class aircraft carrier
Displacement24,150 
standard
)
Length219.32 m (719 ft 7 in) (o/a)
Beam26.7 m (87 ft 7 in)
Draft8.15 m (26 ft 9 in)
Installed power
Propulsion2 shafts; 2 geared steam turbine sets
Speed25.5 knots (47.2 km/h; 29.3 mph)
Range12,251 nmi (22,689 km; 14,098 mi) at 18 knots (33 km/h; 21 mph)
Complement1,187–1,224
Sensors and
processing systems		1 ×
Type 2, Mark 2, Model 1 early-warning radar
Armament
ArmorBelt: 25–50 mm (0.98–1.97 in)
Aircraft carried42–48

Jun'yō (隼鷹, "Peregrine Falcon")

Guadalcanal Campaign later in the year. Her aircraft were used from land bases during several battles in the New Guinea and Solomon Islands Campaigns
.

Jun'yō was

hulked for the rest of the war. After the surrender of Japan in September, the Americans also decided that she was not worth the cost to make her serviceable for use as a repatriation ship, and she was broken up
in 1946–1947.

Design and description

The ship was ordered in late 1938 as the fast luxury passenger liner Kashiwara Maru by

Navy Ministry, she was designed to be converted to an auxiliary aircraft carrier, one of 10 such ships subsidized by the IJN.[2]

Jun'yō had an

propeller shaft, using steam provided by six Mitsubishi three-drum water-tube boilers. Jun'yō had a designed speed of 25.5 knots (47.2 km/h; 29.3 mph), but reached 26 knots (48 km/h; 30 mph) during her sea trials. The ship carried 4,100 metric tons (4,000 long tons) of fuel oil, which gave her a range of 12,251 nautical miles (22,689 km; 14,098 mi) at 18 knots (33 km/h; 21 mph).[5]

Flight deck arrangements

Aft view of Jun'yō's island, 19 October 1945

Jun'yō's

fire fighting foam dispensers on each side. The hangars were served by two aircraft elevators.[6]

The ship's air group was originally intended to consist of 12 Mitsubishi A5M ("Claude") fighters, plus 4 in storage, 18 Aichi D3A "Val" dive bombers, plus 2 in reserve, and 18 Nakajima B5N "Kate" torpedo bombers. This was revised to substitute a dozen Mitsubishi A6M Zero fighters, together with 3 more in storage, for the A5Ms by the time the ship commissioned in 1942. As a result of the lessons learned from the Battle of Midway in June, the ship's fighter complement was strengthened to 21 Zeros, and the B5Ns were reduced to 9. By the end of the year, 6 more Zeros replaced an equal number of D3As, giving totals of 27 A6Ms, 12 D3As and 9 B5Ns. Although it was possible to fit all these aircraft into the hangars, 8 or 9 were usually stored on the flight deck to reduce cramping below decks.[7]

Armor, armament and sensors

As a conversion from an ocean liner, the ship could not support much armor, although it had a

aviation gasoline tanks and magazines were protected by one layer of Ducol steel. Her machinery spaces were further subdivided by transverse and longitudinal bulkheads to limit any flooding.[8]

The ship's primary armament consisted of a dozen 40-

25 mm Type 96 light AA guns alongside the flight deck. In mid-1943, four more triple mounts were added and another four triple mounts in late 1943 and early 1944. Two of these last four mounts were mounted on the stern and the others were placed in front of and behind the island. A dozen single mounts were also added, some of which were portable and could be mounted on the flight deck. After the Battle of the Philippine Sea in June 1944, the ship's anti-aircraft armament was reinforced with three more triple mounts, two twin mounts and eighteen single mounts for the 25 mm Type 96 gun. These guns were supplemented by six 28-round AA rocket launchers. In October 1944, Jun'yō had a total of 91 Type 96 guns: 57 in nineteen triple mounts, 4 in two twin mounts, and 30 single mounts.[9]

Two Type 94 high-angle

rangefinder. When Jun'yō was first commissioned only the rangefinders were fitted and the directors were added later. Four Type 95 directors controlled the 25 mm guns and another pair were added in early 1943. Early warning was provided by two Type 2, Mark 2, Model 1 early-warning radars. The first of these was mounted on the top of the island in July 1942, shortly after she was completed, and the other was added later in the year on the port side of the hull, outboard of the rear elevator.[10] A smaller Type 3, Mark 1, Model 3 early-warning radar was added in 1944.[11]

Career

Jun'yō's

launched on 26 June 1941 and commissioned on 3 May 1942 as Jun'yō.[12]

Upon commissioning, the ship was assigned to the

flak during the attack.[13]

Jun'yō had initially been designated as an auxiliary aircraft carrier (Tokusetsu kokubokan), but following the loss of four Japanese fleet carriers in the Battle of Midway, she was redesignated as a regular carrier (Kokubokan) in July.

3rd Fleet.[14]

On the night of 16 October, the two carriers were ordered to attack the American transports off

Rear Admiral Kakuji Kakuta, commander of the Second Carrier Division, also transferred and hoisted his flag aboard Jun'yō.[14]

A bomb from a Japanese aircraft narrowly missing Enterprise during the Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands

In late October 1942, during the Guadalcanal Campaign, Jun'yō took part in the

list from 7.5° to 14.5° and near-misses by the dive bombers started enough seams in her plating that her list increased to 18°. The Americans finally ordered the ship abandoned and the last wave of dive bombers hit Hornet twice more, but inflicted little further damage.[16]

In mid-November 1942, Jun'yō was tasked to provide air cover for the convoy bringing reinforcements for the Japanese forces on Guadalcanal during the three-day-long

Combat Air Patrol when the convoy was discovered by two SBDs from Enterprise and shot down one dive bomber after it had made its spot report. They were unable to protect the convoy against further attacks by aircraft based at Henderson Field; seven transports were sunk and the remaining four transports were damaged before the end of the day. That afternoon, Enterprise had been discovered by a searching B5N and Jun'yō launched an air strike with her remaining aircraft, but they failed to locate the American carrier.[17] In December 1942 and January 1943, the carrier covered several convoys that brought reinforcements to Wewak, New Guinea, and her air group protected the forces there for several days before returning to Truk on 20 January. The ship then covered the evacuation from Guadalcanal through early February.[18]

Jun'yō briefly returned to Japan in February before she sailed for Truk on 22 March together with Hiyō.[14] Her air group was detached to Rabaul on 2 April to participate in Operation I-Go, a land-based aerial offensive against Allied bases in the Solomon Islands and New Guinea. Before returning to Truk in the middle of the month, Jun'yō's aircraft claimed to have shot down sixteen American aircraft for the loss of seven A6Ms and two D3As,[19] and they sank the destroyer Aaron Ward.[14] The ship's air group was deployed to Buin, Papua New Guinea, on 2 July in response to the American attack on Rendova Island on 30 June. Her fighters claimed 37 victories for the loss of nine aircraft before disbanding on 1 September.[20] Leaving her aircraft behind, the carrier returned to Japan in late July.[14]

Jun'yō ferried aircraft to

Bungo Suidō by a torpedo from the submarine Halibut. Four men were killed, but the damage was light, other than the disabled rudder. The ship was under repair and refit until 29 February 1944 at Kure. Meanwhile, her air group had been reconstituted at Singapore on 1 November with 24 Zeros, 18 D3As and 9 B5Ns.[14] The aircraft transferred to Truk on 1 December and then to Kavieng at the end of December before reaching Rabaul on 25 January 1944. Her fighters claimed 40 Allied aircraft shot down and another 30 probably destroyed, but the air group was virtually annihilated.[21] The survivors were back at Truk on 20 February and the air group was disbanded.[14]

In the meantime, the Japanese Navy had restructured its carrier air groups so that one air group was assigned to one carrier division, and the

2nd Carrier Division with Hiyō, Jun'yō and Ryūhō on 1 March. The air group was last in priority to be rebuilt and only had 30 Model 21 Zeros, 13 Model 52 Zeros and four D3As on hand on 1 April of its authorized 81 fighters, 36 dive bombers and 27 torpedo bombers. The ship conducted training for her aircraft in the Inland Sea until 11 May, when she sailed for Tawi-Tawi in the Philippines.[22] The new base was closer to the oil wells in Borneo on which the Navy relied and also to the Palau and western Caroline Islands, where the Japanese expected the next American attack. However, the location lacked an airfield on which to train the green pilots, and American submarine activity restricted the ships to the anchorage.[23]

Battle of the Philippine Sea

Main article: Battle of the Philippine Sea

The Japanese fleet was en route to Guimares Island in the central Philippines on 13 June, where they intended to practice carrier operations in an area better protected from submarines, when

Task Force 58 on 18 June. The Americans failed to locate Ozawa's ships that day and the Japanese turned south to maintain a constant distance between them and the American carriers as Ozawa had decided on launching his air strikes early the following morning. At this time, the 652nd Naval Air Group consisted of 81 Zeros, 27 D3As, 9 Yokosuka D4Y "Judy" dive bombers and 18 Nakajima B6N "Jill" torpedo bombers, roughly evenly divided among the three ships. The three carriers began launching their first air strike of 26 bomb-carrying A6M2 Zeros, 16 A6M5 Zeros to escort the other aircraft and 7 B6Ns at about 09:30. Most of these aircraft were misdirected and failed to find any American ships, although a dozen persisted in their search and found one of the American task groups. A B6N, 5 bomb-carrying Zeros and an escorting Zero were shot down by the defending fighters and no damage was inflicted on any American ships.[24]

A second air strike of 27 D3As, 9 D4Ys, 2 B6Ns and 26 escorting Zeros was launched around 11:00, accompanied by at least 18 A6Ms and B6Ns from Shōkaku and Zuikaku. They had also been given an erroneous spot report and could not find any American ships. The 652nd aircraft headed for airfield at Rota and Guam to refuel while those from the other two carriers returned to them. A pair of Zeros and 6 D4Ys bound for Rota spotted the carriers Wasp and Bunker Hill en route, but failed to inflict any damage on the American ships while losing 5 D4Ys to anti-aircraft fire. Radar had spotted those aircraft headed for Guam and they were intercepted by 41 Grumman F6F Hellcats. Only a single A6M5, 1 D4Y and 7 D3As of the 49 Japanese aircraft survived the encounter and landed.[25]

Jun'yō at anchor at Sasebo, 26 September 1945

At dusk, the Japanese turned away to the northwest to regroup and to refuel and the Americans turned west to close the distance. They discovered the retiring Japanese fleet during the afternoon of the following day and Vice Admiral Marc Mitscher ordered an air strike launched.[26] They found the ships of the Second Carrier Division and hit Jun'yō with two bombs near her island. The ship was not badly damaged, but flight operations had to be suspended.[14] The 652nd Naval Air Group claimed seven American aircraft shot down and four more probably shot down, but lost eleven Zeros, plus another three that had to ditch. The air group was disbanded on 10 July with many of its remaining personnel being assigned to Air Group 653.[27]

After repairs at Kure, Jun'yō remained in the Inland Sea without aircraft until 27 October, when she was tasked to transport material to Borneo. On 3 November, she was attacked by the submarine

Sasebo the following day and began repairs on 18 December.[14]

The repairs were abandoned in March 1945 for lack of materials and the ship was moved from the dock to Ebisu Bay, Sasebo, on 1 April. Efforts to camouflage the ship began on 23 April and she was reclassified as a

Navy List on 30 November and scrapped between 1 June 1946 and 1 August 1947 by the Sasebo Ship Company.[28]

Footnotes

  1. ^ Silverstone, p. 332
  2. ^ Lengerer & Rehm-Takahara, pp. 17, 106
  3. ^ a b Lengerer & Rehm-Takahara, p. 107
  4. ^ Jentschura, Jung & Mickel, p. 52
  5. ^ Lengerer & Rehm-Takahara, pp. 189–190
  6. ^ Lengerer & Rehm-Takahara, pp. 108–114
  7. ^ Lengerer & Rehm-Takahara, p. 111
  8. ^ Lengerer & Rehm-Takahara, p. 188
  9. ^ Lengerer & Rehm-Takahara, pp. 188, 193
  10. ^ Lengerer & Rehm-Takahara, pp. 188–189, 193
  11. ^ Stille, p. 23
  12. ^ Lengerer & Rehm-Takahara, pp. 17, 106–107
  13. ^ Brown, pp. 144–148
  14. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Tully
  15. ^ Lundstrom, pp. 318–319
  16. ^ Brown, pp. 181–186
  17. ^ Brown, pp. 188–193
  18. ^ Hata, Izawa & Shores, p. 141
  19. ^ Hata, Izawa & Shores, pp. 52–54
  20. ^ Hata, Izawa & Shores, p. 142
  21. ^ Hata, Izawa & Shores, pp. 142–143
  22. ^ Hata, Izawa & Shores, p. 235
  23. ^ Palomar & Genda, pp. 380–381
  24. ^ Brown, pp. 252, 257–261
  25. ^ Brown, pp. 261–262
  26. ^ Brown, pp. 263–264
  27. ^ Hata, Izawa & Shores, p. 236
  28. ^ Lengerer & Rehm-Takahara, p. 193

References

External links

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