Japanese destroyer Asashio (1936)
Asashio underway in July 1937.
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History | |
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Empire of Japan | |
Name | Asashio |
Ordered | 1934 |
Builder | Sasebo Naval Arsenal |
Laid down | 7 September 1935 |
Launched | 16 December 1936 |
Commissioned | 31 August 1937 |
Stricken | 1 April 1943 |
Fate | Sunk by air attack in Battle of the Bismarck Sea, 3 March 1943 |
General characteristics | |
Class and type | Asashio-class destroyer |
Displacement | 2,370 long tons (2,408 t) |
Length |
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Beam | 10.3 m (33 ft 10 in) |
Draft | 3.7 m (12 ft 2 in) |
Propulsion |
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Speed | 35 knots (40 mph; 65 km/h) |
Range | 5,700 nmi (10,600 km) at 10 kn (19 km/h) |
Complement | 226 |
Armament | 6 × Type 93 13 mm machine guns, 8 × 610 mm (24 in) torpedo tubes (2×4), 36 depth charges |
Asashio (朝潮, "Morning Tide")
History
The Asashio-class destroyers were larger and more capable that the preceding Shiratsuyu class, as Japanese naval architects were no longer constrained by the provisions of the London Naval Treaty. These light cruiser-sized vessels were designed to take advantage of Japan's lead in torpedo technology, and to accompany the Japanese main striking force and in both day and night attacks against the United States Navy as it advanced across the Pacific Ocean, according to Japanese naval strategic projections.[2] Despite being one of the most powerful classes of destroyers in the world at the time of their completion, none survived the Pacific War.[3]
Asashio, built at the
Operational history
At the time of the
Battle of Badung Strait
On the night of 19 February 1942, Asashio participated in the
In March, Desdiv 8 returned to Yokosuka. In April, Desdiv 8 was reassigned to Destroyer Squadron 4 (Desron 4). Desron 4 sailed to Manila Bay to assist in the shelling of Corregidor in late April and May 1942, returning to Kure, before deploying to Guam.
Battle of Midway
At the Battle of Midway on 4–6 June 1942, Asashio and Desron 4 escorted Admiral Takeo Kurita's Support Group covering the Midway troop convoy. She suffered medium damage in air attacks on 6 June, when she was hit by one 500 lb (230 kg) bomb, which killed 22 crewmen. She assisted her sister ship Arashio in rescuing 240 survivors from the heavy cruiser Mikuma, then escorted the crippled cruiser Mogami to Truk on 14 June. After emergency repairs by the repair ship Akashi, Asashio sailed to Sasebo for more extensive repairs on 29 June. She was then reassigned to Desdiv 8 and was based at Yokosuka Naval District.[6]
After a successful supply run to
On 7 January, Asashio and Desdiv 8 escorted
Battle of the Bismarck Sea
On 3 March 1943, Asashio and Desron 3 escorted a troop convoy from Rabaul towards Lae. In the Battle of the Bismarck Sea, the convoy was hit by an Allied air attack. After weathering the first waves, Asashio was bombed and strafed later in the day while attempting to rescue survivors from destroyer Arashio and troopship Nojima Maru. She was lost with some 200 men,[7] approximately 45 nautical miles (83 km) southeast of Finschhafen, New Guinea at position (07°15′S 148°15′E / 7.250°S 148.250°E). Among the casualties was Destroyer Division 8 Commander, Captain Yasuo Sato.[6] Few survivors escaped in a lifeboat that also rescued Nojima Maru's captain.[8]
Asashio was removed from the
Notes
- ^ Nelson. Japanese-English Character Dictionary. page 750
- ^ Peattie & Evans, Kaigun.
- ^ Globalsecurity.org, IJN Asashio class destroyers
- ^ Nishidah, Hiroshi (2002). "Asashio class 1st class destroyers". Materials of the Imperial Japanese Navy. Archived from the original on 21 July 2012. Retrieved 25 July 2010.
- ^ Allyn D. Nevitt (1998). "Asashio class Destroyers". combinedfleet.com. Retrieved 6 February 2008.
- ^ a b c d e f g Allyn D. Nevitt (1998). "IJN Asashio: Tabular Record of Movement". combinedfleet.com. Retrieved 6 February 2008.
- ^ "IJN Asashio (+1943)". Wrecksite. Retrieved 1 October 2016.
- ^ IJN Asashio: Tabular Record of Movement
- ISBN 1-55750-914-X.
References
- D'Albas, Andrieu (1965). Death of a Navy: Japanese Naval Action in World War II. Devin-Adair Pub. ISBN 0-8159-5302-X.
- Brown, David (1990). Warship Losses of World War Two. Naval Institute Press. ISBN 1-55750-914-X.
- ISBN 0-517-56952-3.
- Morison, Samuel Eliot (1961). Aleutians, Gilberts and Marshalls, June 1942 – April 1944, vol. 7 of History of United States Naval Operations in World War II. Boston: Little, Brown and Company. ASIN B0007FBB8I.
- 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.
- Watts, Anthony J (1967). Japanese Warships of World War II. Doubleday. ISBN 978-0-3850-9189-3.
- Whitley, M J (2000). Destroyers of World War Two: An International Encyclopedia. London: Arms and Armour Press. ISBN 1-85409-521-8.