Japanese aircraft carrier Taiyō

Coordinates: 18°10′N 120°22′E / 18.167°N 120.367°E / 18.167; 120.367
This is a good article. Click here for more information.
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Not to be confused with with the much larger Japanese aircraft carrier Taihō.
Taiyō at anchor
History
Empire of Japan
NameKasuga Maru
Namesake
Kasuga Shrine
OperatorNYK Line)
BuilderMitsubishi Shipbuilding & Engineering, Nagasaki
Laid down6 January 1940
Launched19 September 1940
FateTransferred to the Imperial Japanese Navy, 1941
NamesakeGoshawk
Completed2 September 1941
Acquired1941
RenamedTaiyō (大鷹) (31 August 1942)
FateSunk by the
Cape Bolinao, Luzon, 18 August 1944 18°10′N 120°22′E / 18.167°N 120.367°E / 18.167; 120.367
General characteristics
Class and typeTaiyō-class escort carrier
Displacement
  • 18,116 t (17,830 long tons) (standard)
  • 20,321 t (20,000 long tons) (normal)
Length180.2 m (591 ft 4 in) (
o/a
)
Beam22.5 m (73 ft 10 in)
Draft7.7–8.0 m (25.4–26.25 ft)
Installed power
Propulsion
Speed21 knots (39 km/h; 24 mph)
Range6,500 or 8,500 nmi (12,000 or 15,700 km; 7,500 or 9,800 mi) at 18 knots (33 km/h; 21 mph)
Complement747
Armament
  • 6 × single
    AA guns
  • 4 × twin
    25 mm (1.0 in)
    AA guns
Aircraft carried23 (+ 4 spares)

The Japanese aircraft carrier Taiyō (大鷹, "Big Eagle") was the

NYK Line. The ship was requisitioned by the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) in early 1941 and was converted into an escort carrier. Taiyō was initially used to transport aircraft to distant air bases and for training, but was later used to escort convoys of merchant ships between Japan and Singapore. The ship was torpedoed twice by American submarines
with negligible to moderate damage before she was sunk in mid-1944 with heavy loss of life.

Civilian background and configuration

Sister ship Nitta Maru in passenger service, 1940

The Nitta Maru-class ships were intended to upgrade the passenger service of

launched on 19 September 1940.[3] Sources are contradictory regarding when the conversion occurred and if the ship was completed before the conversion began. Jentschura, Jung and Mickel state that Kasuga Maru was towed to Sasebo Naval Arsenal for conversion on 1 May 1941.[4] Stille, however, and Watts & Gordon say the conversion began while the ship was under construction.[2][5] This is indirectly supported by the allocation of a new yard number, 888, to the ship.[3] Tully, on the other hand, says that she was requisitioned on 10 February 1941 and was used as a transport until the conversion began on 1 May.[6]

If Kasuga Maru was completed as a passenger liner, the 17,163-gross register ton (GRT) vessel would have had a length of 170.0 meters (557.8 ft), a beam of 22.5 meters (73.8 ft) and a depth of hold of 12.4 meters (40.7 ft). She would have had a net tonnage of 9,397 and a cargo capacity of 11,800 tons.[1][7] The Nitta Maru class had accommodation for 285 passengers (127 first class, 88 second and 70 third).[1]

The ships were powered by two sets of geared

propeller shaft, using steam produced by four water-tube boilers.[7] The turbines were rated at a total of 25,200 shaft horsepower (18,800 kW)[4] that gave them an average speed of 19 knots (35 km/h; 22 mph)[3] and a maximum speed of 22.2 knots (41.1 km/h; 25.5 mph).[4][Note 1]

Conversion and description

Kasuga Maru's conversion was completed at Sasebo Naval Arsenal on 2

draft of 7.7 meters (25 ft 5 in).[8] The flight deck was 172.0 meters (564 ft 3 in) long and 23.5 meters (77 ft) wide and no arresting gear was fitted. The ships had a single hangar, approximately 91.4 meters (300 ft) long, served by two centreline aircraft lifts, each 12.0 by 13.0 meters (39.4 ft × 42.7 ft).[11] Unlike her sister ships, Kasuga Maru could accommodate 23 aircraft, plus 4 spares.[2]

The changes made during the conversion limited the ship to a speed of 21.4 knots (39.6 km/h; 24.6 mph). She carried 2,290 metric tons (2,250 long tons) of fuel oil that gave her a range of 8,500 nautical miles (15,700 km; 9,800 mi) at a speed of 18 knots (33 km/h; 21 mph).[5][Note 2] Kasuga Maru's crew numbered 747 officers and ratings.[9]

The ship was equipped with six

air-search radar in a retractable installation on the flight deck at that time.[5] In July 1944, the 12-centimeter guns were replaced by two twin mounts for 12.7 cm (5.0 in) Type 89 dual-purpose guns and the light AA armament was augmented to a total of sixty-four 25-millimeter guns and ten 13.2-millimeter machine guns.[9]

Career

Before the start of the Pacific War on 7 December 1941, Kasuga Maru had made two voyages to

3rd Fleets sailed from the Inland Sea bound for Truk.[12] On 27 August, the carrier was detached from the main body and sent to deliver aircraft to Taroa Island in the Marshalls. She arrived two days later and then departed on 30 August for Truk.[6] The following day, Kasuga Maru was formally renamed Taiyō (大鷹, “goshawk”).[13]

After arriving in Truk on 4 September, the ship was sent to

Mako, Formosa, the ship was briefly refitted at Sasebo. While returning from Truk on 6 September, Taiyō was unsuccessfully attacked by USS Pike. Almost three weeks later, the ship was torpedoed by USS Cabrilla. The hit wrecked her starboard propeller and temporarily knocked out power so she had to be towed to Yokosuka by Chūyō. Repairs began once she arrived and lasted until 11 November.[6]

In December 1943, Taiyō was assigned to the Grand Escort Command and she began a lengthy refit at

Cape Bolinao, Luzon, Taiyō was hit in the stern by a torpedo fired by USS Rasher. The hit caused the carrier's aft avgas tank to explode, and Taiyō sank 28 minutes later at coordinates 18°10′N 120°22′E / 18.167°N 120.367°E / 18.167; 120.367. The number of crew aboard is unknown, but 350–400 was common practice at that time. Coupled with the 400-odd survivors rescued and the authorized complement of 834, that suggests that approximately 390 crew were lost in the sinking.[6]

See also

  • List by death toll of ships sunk by submarines

Notes

  1. ^ Watts and Gordon and Stille say that the ships were originally equipped with diesel engines that were replaced during the conversion by steam turbines, but this is contradicted by The Times and Lloyd's Register.[1][7] This also seems unlikely as the conversion only took about five months when the conversion of the diesel-powered liner Argentina Maru (Kaiyō) took eleven months. In addition, the turbines in the latter were twice as powerful as those in the Taiyō-class ships[8] and would probably have been used if the IJN wanted to increase the speed of the Taiyōs.[2][5]
  2. ^ Other sources give a range of 6,500 nmi (12,000 km; 7,500 mi) at that speed.[8][11]

Citations

  1. ^ a b c d "New Japanese Ships – Three for the London Service". The Times. No. 48332. London. 15 June 1939. p. 22.
  2. ^ a b c d Stille, p. 40
  3. ^ a b c "Kasuga Maru (4048210)". Miramar Ship Index. Retrieved 11 April 2017.
  4. ^ a b c Jentschura, Jung & Mickel, p. 59
  5. ^ a b c d e f Watts & Gordon, pp. 187–188
  6. ^ a b c d e f Tully
  7. ^ a b c "Lloyd's Register 1940–41" (PDF). PlimsollShipData. London: Lloyd's Register of Shipping. Retrieved 6 November 2015.
  8. ^ a b c Jentschura, Jung & Mickel, p. 58
  9. ^ a b c d Chesneau, p. 185
  10. ^ Stille, pp. 40–41
  11. ^ a b Peattie, p. 245
  12. ^ Rohwer, pp. 180, 187
  13. ^ Polmar & Genda, p. 262

References

External links

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Japanese_aircraft_carrier_Taiyō&oldid=1219098418"