Myōkō-class cruiser
Class overview | |
---|---|
Name | Myōkō class |
Builders |
|
Operators | Imperial Japanese Navy |
Preceded by | Aoba class |
Succeeded by | Takao class |
Built | 1924–1929 |
In commission | 1928–1946 |
Completed | 4 |
Lost | 3, 1 sunk as a target after the war |
General characteristics [1] | |
Type | Heavy cruiser |
Displacement | 11,633 tons (standard load) 14,980 tons (full load) |
Length | 204 m (669 ft) overall |
Beam | 19.5 m (64 ft) |
Draught | 6.36 m (20.9 ft) |
Propulsion |
|
Speed | 35.5 knots (40.9 mph; 65.7 km/h) |
Range | 8,000 nmi (15,000 km) at 14 kn (16 mph; 26 km/h) |
Complement | 773 |
Armament |
|
Armour |
|
Aircraft carried | 2 |
Aviation facilities | 1 catapult |
The Myōkō-class cruisers (妙高型巡洋艦, Myōkō-gata jun'yōkan) were a series of four
The ships of this class displaced 11,633 tons (standard), were 201 metres (659 ft) long, and were capable of steaming at 36
Design
The Myōkō class displaced 13,500 t (13,300 long tons), with a hull design similar to the preceding
Protection was superior to the preceding Aoba-class and accounted for about 16 percent of trial displacement. A 102 mm (4 in)
Modernizations
The class was modernized twice before the outbreak of the Pacific War. The first modernization program, carried out between 1934 and 1936, was the most extensive. The main armament was upgraded to the 203 mm (8 in) 2 GÔ versions and the 120mm guns replaced with eight 12.7 cm/40 Type 89 dual purpose guns in twin mounts. The single catapult was replaced with an aircraft deck that could accommodate three aircraft and two catapults. The fixed torpedo tubes in the hull were removed and two quadruple launchers carrying the Type 93 Long Lance torpedo were installed under the aircraft deck. The torpedo bulges were extended to increase stability. The modifications added 680 tons of displacement and reduced speed to 34 knots (63 km/h; 39 mph). Anti-aircraft protection was increased to eight 13mm machine guns in two quadruple mounts.[3]
The second modernization in 1939 added an additional two quadruple torpedo launchers and enhanced light anti-aircraft armament with the introduction of the
The class would receive upgrades during the Second World War to reflect the growing threat of aircraft in the form of numerous
Ships in class
The ships in the class were:
Name | Kanji | Builder | Laid | Launched | Commissioned | Fate |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Myōkō | 妙高 | Yokosuka Navy Yard | 25 October 1924 | 16 April 1927 | 31 July 1929 | Captured 21 September 1945 at Singapore. Scuttled in the Strait of Malacca, 8 July 1946 |
Nachi | 那智 | Kure Naval Arsenal | 26 November 1924 | 15 June 1927 | 26 November 1928 | Sunk 4 November 1944 in Manila Bay by aircraft from USS Lexington |
Haguro | 羽黒 | Mitsubishi Nagasaki Shipyard | 16 March 1925 | 24 March 1928 | 25 April 1929 | Sunk 16 May 1945 in the Strait of Malacca by the Royal Navy 26th Destroyer Flotilla |
Ashigara | 足柄 | Kōbe-Kawasaki Shipbuilding Yard | 11 April 1925 | 22 April 1928 | 20 August 1929 | Sunk 8 June 1945 in Bangka Strait by the submarine HMS Trenchant |
References
Notes
- ^ Whitley, Cruisers of WWII, p. 173
- ^ ISBN 9781849081481.
- ^ a b "Myoko Class Heavy Cruiser". WW2 Cruisers. Retrieved 13 February 2019.
Books
- Lacroix, Eric; Linton Wells (1997). Japanese Cruisers of the Pacific War. Naval Institute Press. ISBN 0-87021-311-3.
- Stille, Mark (2011). Imperial Japanese Navy Heavy Cruisers 1941-45. Osprey Publishing Ltd. ISBN 978-1-84908-148-1.
- Tamura, Toshio (2004). "Re: Japanese Cruiser Torpedoes". Warship International. XLI (4): 366–367. ISSN 0043-0374.
- ISBN 1-85409-225-1.