Japanese destroyer Isonami
Encyclopedia
was the ninth of twenty-four destroyer
s, built for the Imperial Japanese Navy
following World War I
. When introduced into services, these ships were the most powerful destroyers in the world. They served as first-line destroyers through the 1930s, and remained formidable weapons systems well into the Pacific War
.
s in other navies. Isonami, built at the Uraga Dock Company
was laid down on October 19, 1926, launched on November 24, 1927 and commissioned on June 30, 1928. Originally assigned hull designation “Destroyer No. 43”, she was completed as Isonami.
s, , , and , were assigned to Destroyer Division 19 under the IJN 2nd Fleet
. During the Second Sino-Japanese War
, from 1937, Isonami covered landing of Japanese forces in Shanghai
and Hangzhou
. From 1940, she was assigned to patrol and cover landings of Japanese forces in south China
.
, Isonami was assigned to Destroyer Division 19 of Desron 3 of the IJN 1st Fleet
, and had deployed from Kure Naval District
to the port of Samah on Hainan
Island. From 4 December 1941 to 30 January 1942 Isonami was part of the escort for the heavy cruiser
s , , , and out of Samah and Camranh Bay, French Indochina
in support of Malaya
, Banka
-Palembang
and Anambas Islands invasion operations. On 27 February, Isonami was assigned to "Operation J"
(the invasion of Java
), and "Operation T"
(the invasion of northern Sumatra
) on 12 March and the "Operation D"
(the invasion of the Andaman Islands
on 23 March. She served patrol and escort duties out of Port Blair
during the Japanese raids into the Indian Ocean
. On 13–22 April Isonami returned via Singapore
and Camranh Bay to Kure Naval Arsenal
, for maintenance.
On 4–5 June, Isonami participated in the Battle of Midway
as part of Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto
’s main fleet. While returning from the battle, she was damaged in a collision with and limped back to Yokosuka Naval Arsenal
for repairs, which were not completed to the end of July. From August to September, Isonami was assigned to training missions with aircraft carriers and in the Inland Sea, and escorted these aircraft carriers to Truk in early October. She was assigned to patrols out of Truk in October, and to "Tokyo Express
" transport missions to various locations in the Solomon Islands
to mid January 1943.
On 1 December, Isonami was damaged off Buna, New Guinea
, in an air strike by United States Army Air Force planes. On 18 December, she rescued the survivors from the torpedoed cruiser Tenryū
.
In early January, Isonami returned to Kure Naval Arsenal
for repairs. In February, she escorted a troop convoy from Pusan to Pulau and on to Wewak
. On 25 February, she was re-assigned to the Southwest Area Fleet
and was based at Surabaya
to escort convoys throughout the Netherlands East Indies.
On 9 April 1943, while escorting a convoy from Surabaya to Ambon
, Isonami was torpedoed and sunk by while rescuing survivors of torpedoed Penang Maru, 35 nautical miles (64.8 km) southeast of Wangiwangi Island
at position 5°26′S 123°4′E). Of her crew, seven were killed and another nine injured.
On 1 August 1943, Isonami was removed from the navy list
.
Destroyer
In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast and maneuverable yet long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against smaller, powerful, short-range attackers. Destroyers, originally called torpedo-boat destroyers in 1892, evolved from...
s, built for the Imperial Japanese Navy
Imperial Japanese Navy
The Imperial Japanese Navy was the navy of the Empire of Japan from 1869 until 1947, when it was dissolved following Japan's constitutional renunciation of the use of force as a means of settling international disputes...
following World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. When introduced into services, these ships were the most powerful destroyers in the world. They served as first-line destroyers through the 1930s, and remained formidable weapons systems well into the Pacific War
Pacific War
The Pacific War, also sometimes called the Asia-Pacific War refers broadly to the parts of World War II that took place in the Pacific Ocean, its islands, and in East Asia, then called the Far East...
.
History
Construction of the advanced Fubuki-class destroyers was authorized as part of the Imperial Japanese Navy's expansion program from fiscal 1923, intended to give Japan a qualitative edge with the world's most modern ships. The Fubuki-class had performance that was a quantum leap over previous destroyer designs, so much so that they were designated . The large size, powerful engines, high speed, large radius of action and unprecedented armament gave these destroyers the firepower similar to many light cruiserLight cruiser
A light cruiser is a type of small- or medium-sized warship. The term is a shortening of the phrase "light armored cruiser", describing a small ship that carried armor in the same way as an armored cruiser: a protective belt and deck...
s in other navies. Isonami, built at the Uraga Dock Company
Uraga Dock Company
was a major privately owned shipyard in Uraga, Japan, which built numerous warships for the Imperial Japanese Navy.-History:Uraga Dock Company was founded by Enomoto Takeaki in 1869. A shipyard had already existed in Uraga from the end of the Edo period...
was laid down on October 19, 1926, launched on November 24, 1927 and commissioned on June 30, 1928. Originally assigned hull designation “Destroyer No. 43”, she was completed as Isonami.
Operational history
On completion, Isonami, along with her sister shipSister ship
A sister ship is a ship of the same class as, or of virtually identical design to, another ship. Such vessels share a near-identical hull and superstructure layout, similar displacement, and roughly comparable features and equipment...
s, , , and , were assigned to Destroyer Division 19 under the IJN 2nd Fleet
IJN 2nd Fleet
The was a fleet of the Imperial Japanese Navy.-History:First established on 28 December 1903, the IJN 2nd Fleet was created by the Imperial General Headquarters as a mobile strike force of cruisers and destroyers to pursue the Imperial Russian Navy's Vladivostok-based cruiser squadron while the...
. During the Second Sino-Japanese War
Second Sino-Japanese War
The Second Sino-Japanese War was a military conflict fought primarily between the Republic of China and the Empire of Japan. From 1937 to 1941, China fought Japan with some economic help from Germany , the Soviet Union and the United States...
, from 1937, Isonami covered landing of Japanese forces in Shanghai
Shanghai
Shanghai is the largest city by population in China and the largest city proper in the world. It is one of the four province-level municipalities in the People's Republic of China, with a total population of over 23 million as of 2010...
and Hangzhou
Hangzhou
Hangzhou , formerly transliterated as Hangchow, is the capital and largest city of Zhejiang Province in Eastern China. Governed as a sub-provincial city, and as of 2010, its entire administrative division or prefecture had a registered population of 8.7 million people...
. From 1940, she was assigned to patrol and cover landings of Japanese forces in south China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
.
World War II history
At the time of the attack on Pearl HarborAttack on Pearl Harbor
The attack on Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike conducted by the Imperial Japanese Navy against the United States naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on the morning of December 7, 1941...
, Isonami was assigned to Destroyer Division 19 of Desron 3 of the IJN 1st Fleet
IJN 1st Fleet
The was the main battleship fleet of the Imperial Japanese Navy.-History:First established on 28 December 1903, the IJN 1st Fleet was created during the Russo-Japanese War when the Imperial General Headquarters divided the Readiness Fleet into a mobile strike force of cruisers and destroyers to...
, and had deployed from Kure Naval District
Kure Naval District
was the second of four main administrative districts of the pre-war Imperial Japanese Navy. Its territory included the Inland Sea of Japan and the Pacific coasts of southern Honshū from Wakayama to Yamaguchi prefectures, eastern and northern Kyūshū and Shikoku....
to the port of Samah on Hainan
Hainan
Hainan is the smallest province of the People's Republic of China . Although the province comprises some two hundred islands scattered among three archipelagos off the southern coast, of its land mass is Hainan Island , from which the province takes its name...
Island. From 4 December 1941 to 30 January 1942 Isonami was part of the escort for the heavy cruiser
Heavy cruiser
The heavy cruiser was a type of cruiser, a naval warship designed for long range, high speed and an armament of naval guns roughly 203mm calibre . The heavy cruiser can be seen as a lineage of ship design from 1915 until 1945, although the term 'heavy cruiser' only came into formal use in 1930...
s , , , and out of Samah and Camranh Bay, French Indochina
French Indochina
French Indochina was part of the French colonial empire in southeast Asia. A federation of the three Vietnamese regions, Tonkin , Annam , and Cochinchina , as well as Cambodia, was formed in 1887....
in support of Malaya
Battle of Malaya
The Malayan Campaign was a campaign fought by Allied and Japanese forces in Malaya, from 8 December 1941 – 31 January 1942 during the Second World War. The campaign was dominated by land battles between British Commonwealth army units, and the Imperial Japanese Army...
, Banka
Banka
Banka may refer to:* Banka, Bihar, a town in Bihar, India* Banka district, Bihar, India* Bankə, Azerbaijan*Banka, Cameroon* the Banka Gold Mining Project operated by Mwana Africa plc, in Ghana...
-Palembang
Palembang
Palembang is the capital city of the South Sumatra province in Indonesia. Palembang is one of the oldest cities in Indonesia, and has a history of being a capital of a maritime empire. Located on the Musi River banks on the east coast of southern Sumatra island, it has an area of 400.61 square...
and Anambas Islands invasion operations. On 27 February, Isonami was assigned to "Operation J"
Battle of Java (1942)
The Battle of Java was a battle of the Pacific theatre of World War II. It occurred on the island of Java from 28 February-12 March 1942. It involved forces from the Empire of Japan, which invaded on 28 February 1942, and Allied personnel...
(the invasion of Java
Java
Java is an island of Indonesia. With a population of 135 million , it is the world's most populous island, and one of the most densely populated regions in the world. It is home to 60% of Indonesia's population. The Indonesian capital city, Jakarta, is in west Java...
), and "Operation T"
Invasion of Sumatra (1942)
The Invasion of Sumatra by Imperial Japanese forces took place from 14 February to 28 March 1942. The invasion was part of the Pacific War in South-East Asia during World War II and led to the capture of the island...
(the invasion of northern Sumatra
Sumatra
Sumatra is an island in western Indonesia, westernmost of the Sunda Islands. It is the largest island entirely in Indonesia , and the sixth largest island in the world at 473,481 km2 with a population of 50,365,538...
) on 12 March and the "Operation D"
Invasion and Occupation of the Andaman Islands during World War II
The Japanese occupation of the Andaman Islands occurred in 1942 during World War II. The Andaman and Nicobar Islands , are a group of islands situated in the Bay of Bengal at about 780 miles from Kolkata, 740 miles from Chennai and 120 miles from Cape Nargis in Burma...
(the invasion of the Andaman Islands
Andaman Islands
The Andaman Islands are a group of Indian Ocean archipelagic islands in the Bay of Bengal between India to the west, and Burma , to the north and east...
on 23 March. She served patrol and escort duties out of Port Blair
Port Blair
Port Blair is the largest town and a municipal council in Andaman district in the Andaman Islands and the capital of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, a union territory of India...
during the Japanese raids into the Indian Ocean
Indian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third largest of the world's oceanic divisions, covering approximately 20% of the water on the Earth's surface. It is bounded on the north by the Indian Subcontinent and Arabian Peninsula ; on the west by eastern Africa; on the east by Indochina, the Sunda Islands, and...
. On 13–22 April Isonami returned via Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
and Camranh Bay to Kure Naval Arsenal
Kure Naval Arsenal
was one of four principal naval shipyards owned and operated by the Imperial Japanese Navy. -History:The Kure Naval District was established at Kure, Hiroshima in 1889, as the second of the naval districts responsible for the defense of the Japanese home islands along with the establishment of the...
, for maintenance.
On 4–5 June, Isonami participated in the Battle of Midway
Battle of Midway
The Battle of Midway is widely regarded as the most important naval battle of the Pacific Campaign of World War II. Between 4 and 7 June 1942, approximately one month after the Battle of the Coral Sea and six months after Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor, the United States Navy decisively defeated...
as part of Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto
Isoroku Yamamoto
was a Japanese Naval Marshal General and the commander-in-chief of the Combined Fleet during World War II, a graduate of the Imperial Japanese Naval Academy and a student of Harvard University ....
’s main fleet. While returning from the battle, she was damaged in a collision with and limped back to Yokosuka Naval Arsenal
Yokosuka Naval Arsenal
was one of four principal naval shipyards owned and operated by the Imperial Japanese Navy, and was located at Yokosuka city, Kanagawa prefecture on Tokyo Bay, south of Yokohama...
for repairs, which were not completed to the end of July. From August to September, Isonami was assigned to training missions with aircraft carriers and in the Inland Sea, and escorted these aircraft carriers to Truk in early October. She was assigned to patrols out of Truk in October, and to "Tokyo Express
Tokyo Express
The Tokyo Express was the name given by Allied forces to the use of Imperial Japanese Navy ships at night to deliver personnel, supplies, and equipment to Japanese forces operating in and around New Guinea and the Solomon Islands during the Pacific campaign of World War II...
" transport missions to various locations in the Solomon Islands
Solomon Islands
Solomon Islands is a sovereign state in Oceania, east of Papua New Guinea, consisting of nearly one thousand islands. It covers a land mass of . The capital, Honiara, is located on the island of Guadalcanal...
to mid January 1943.
On 1 December, Isonami was damaged off Buna, New Guinea
Buna, Papua New Guinea
Buna is a village in Oro Province, Papua New Guinea. It was the site in part, of the Battle of Buna-Gona during World War II, when it constituted a variety of native huts and a handful of houses with a airstrip...
, in an air strike by United States Army Air Force planes. On 18 December, she rescued the survivors from the torpedoed cruiser Tenryū
Japanese cruiser Tenryu
was the lead ship in the two-ship of light cruisers of the Imperial Japanese Navy. Tenryū was named after the Tenryū River in Nagano and Shizuoka prefectures.-Background:...
.
In early January, Isonami returned to Kure Naval Arsenal
Kure Naval Arsenal
was one of four principal naval shipyards owned and operated by the Imperial Japanese Navy. -History:The Kure Naval District was established at Kure, Hiroshima in 1889, as the second of the naval districts responsible for the defense of the Japanese home islands along with the establishment of the...
for repairs. In February, she escorted a troop convoy from Pusan to Pulau and on to Wewak
Wewak
Wewak is the capital of the East Sepik province of Papua New Guinea. It is located on the northern coast of the island of New Guinea. It is the largest town between Madang and Jayapura. It is the see city of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Wewak....
. On 25 February, she was re-assigned to the Southwest Area Fleet
Southwest Area Fleet
The was a fleet of the Imperial Japanese Navy established during World War II.-History:The Southwest Area Fleet was an operational command of the Imperial Japanese Navy established on April 10, 1942 to coordinate naval, air, and ground forces for the invasion, occupation and defense of the...
and was based at Surabaya
Surabaya
Surabaya is Indonesia's second-largest city with a population of over 2.7 million , and the capital of the province of East Java...
to escort convoys throughout the Netherlands East Indies.
On 9 April 1943, while escorting a convoy from Surabaya to Ambon
Ambon Island
Ambon Island is part of the Maluku Islands of Indonesia. The island has an area of , and is mountainous, well watered, and fertile. Ambon Island consists of 2 territories: The main city and seaport is Ambon , which is also the capital of Maluku province and Maluku Tengah Ambon Island is part of the...
, Isonami was torpedoed and sunk by while rescuing survivors of torpedoed Penang Maru, 35 nautical miles (64.8 km) southeast of Wangiwangi Island
Wangiwangi Island
Wangiwangi Island is in the northwest cluster of the Tukangbesi Islands, seat of Wakatobi Subdistrict. To the west is the Gulf of Kolowana Watabo . The Wangi Wangi White-eye is a recently-discovered endangered bird on the island.The Island caretaker is Greg Lochhead, originally from Cringleford ....
at position 5°26′S 123°4′E). Of her crew, seven were killed and another nine injured.
On 1 August 1943, Isonami was removed from the navy list
Navy List
A Navy List or Naval Register is an official list of naval officers, their ranks and seniority, the ships which they command or to which they are appointed, etc., that is published by the government or naval authorities of a country....
.