Japanese destroyer Makigumo
Encyclopedia
Makigumo was a of 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...
. Her name means "Cirrus Clouds" (Rolling Clouds).
Following the Battle of Midway in June 1942, downed American aircrew SBD Ensign Frank W. O'Flaherty and AMM1c Bruno P. Gaido were pulled from the water by Makigumo. After an interrogation, the crew tied weights around Flaherthy's and Gaido's feet and threw them into the Pacific to drown, instead of taking them prisoner and returning them back to Japan.
Shortly after the Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands
Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands
The Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands, 26 October 1942, sometimes referred to as the Battle of Santa Cruz or in Japanese sources as the , was the fourth carrier battle of the Pacific campaign of World War II and the fourth major naval engagement fought between the United States Navy and the Imperial...
during the early hours of 27 October 1942, Makigumo along with the destroyer Akigumo
Japanese destroyer Akigumo
Akigumo was a Imperial Japanese Navy destroyer of the .Shortly after the Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands during the early hours of 27 October 1942, Akigumo along with the destroyer Makigumo sunk the heavily damaged and abandoned USS Hornet...
scuttled the heavily damaged and abandoned . US destroyers had attempted to scuttle Hornet earlier but failed to do so before Japanese naval forces forced the US ships to withdraw. Despite this, the Japanese failed in their mission in attempts to bombard Henderson Field.
On 1 February 1943, Makigumo was on a troop evacuation run to Guadalcanal
Guadalcanal
Guadalcanal is a tropical island in the South-Western Pacific. The largest island in the Solomons, it was discovered by the Spanish expedition of Alvaro de Mendaña in 1568...
. While maneuvering to avoid a PT boat
PT boat
PT Boats were a variety of motor torpedo boat , a small, fast vessel used by the United States Navy in World War II to attack larger surface ships. The PT boat squadrons were nicknamed "the mosquito fleet". The Japanese called them "Devil Boats".The original pre–World War I torpedo boats were...
attack, she struck a mine
Naval mine
A naval mine is a self-contained explosive device placed in water to destroy surface ships or submarines. Unlike depth charges, mines are deposited and left to wait until they are triggered by the approach of, or contact with, an enemy vessel...
. removed 237 survivors, including Commander Fujita, and scuttled Makigumo with a torpedo
Torpedo
The modern torpedo is a self-propelled missile weapon with an explosive warhead, launched above or below the water surface, propelled underwater towards a target, and designed to detonate either on contact with it or in proximity to it.The term torpedo was originally employed for...
, three miles (5 km) south-southwest of Savo Island
Savo Island
Savo Island is a volcanic island in the Solomon Islands group in the South Pacific ocean. It is located to the northeast of the northern tip of Guadalcanal Island at . Politically, Savo Island is a part of the Solomons' Central Province. The indigenous language of Savo is the Savosavo language.The...
(09°15′S 159°47′E).