Japanese destroyer Tamanami
 Tamanami anchored off Hashirajima in the Spring of 1943, taken from the battleship Nagato
| |
| History | |
|---|---|
 Empire of Japan | |
| Name | Tamanami |
| Builder | Fujinagata Shipyards, Osaka |
| Laid down | 16 March 1942 |
| Launched | 20 December 1942 |
| Completed | 30 April 1943 |
| Stricken | 10 September 1944 |
| Fate | Torpedoed and sunk by USS Mingo, 7 July 1944 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type | Yūgumo-class destroyer |
| Displacement | 2,520 long tons (2,560 t) |
| Length | 119.15 m (390 ft 11 in) |
| Beam | 10.8 m (35 ft 5 in) |
| Draft | 3.75 m (12 ft 4 in) |
| Propulsion | Steam engine(s) |
| Speed | 35.5 kn (65.7 km/h; 40.9 mph) |
| Complement | 228 |
| Armament |
|
Tamanami (玉波, "Jade Wave") was a Yūgumo-class destroyer of the Imperial Japanese Navy.
Design and description
[edit]The Yūgumo class was a repeat of the preceding Kagerō class with minor improvements that increased their anti-aircraft capabilities. Their crew numbered 228 officers and enlisted men. The ships measured 119.17 meters (391 ft 0 in) overall, with a beam of 10.8 meters (35 ft 5 in) and a draft of 3.76 meters (12 ft 4 in).[1] They displaced 2,110 metric tons (2,080 long tons) at standard load and 2,560 metric tons (2,520 long tons) at deep load.[2] The ships had two Kampon geared steam turbines, each driving one propeller shaft, using steam provided by three Kampon water-tube boilers. The turbines were rated at a total of 52,000 shaft horsepower (39,000 kW) for a designed speed of 35 knots (65 km/h; 40 mph), though they managed 35.5 knots on trials.[3]
The main armament of the Yūgumo class consisted of six Type 3 127-millimeter (5.0 in) guns in three twin-gun turrets, one superfiring pair aft and one turret forward of the superstructure.[2] The guns were able to elevate up to 75° to increase their ability against aircraft, but their slow rate of fire, slow traversing speed, and the lack of any sort of high-angle fire-control system meant that they were virtually useless as anti-aircraft guns.[4] They were built with four Type 96 25-millimeter (1.0 in) anti-aircraft guns in two twin-gun mounts, but more of these guns were added over the course of the war. The ships were also armed with eight 610-millimeter (24.0 in) torpedo tubes in a two quadruple traversing mounts; one reload was carried for each tube. Their anti-submarine weapons comprised two depth charge throwers for which 36 depth charges were carried.[2]
Career
[edit]Tamanami was commissioned at Osaka on April 30 1943 in the middle of WW2 for Japan, and was thus immediately relegated to destroyer division 11 for training duties, transiting between Kure and Hashirajima operating alongside the first fleet. These operations were kept up for several months, and it was on June 8 that Tamanami was anchored off Hashirajima when the battleship Mutsu suddenly and mysteriously erupted in a magazine explosion and sank in harbor, prompting the destroyer to assist the sinking Mutsu, but she didn't manage to rescue any survivors.[5][6]
On June 23, Tamanami departed Hashirajima to rescue survivors from the sunken transport ship Sagara Maru, then on the 28th practiced towing the battleship Nagato, managing a speed of 12 knots.[6] From July 10-15, Tamanami escorted seaplane tenders from Yokosuka to Truk, then departed on a troop transport run to Nauru and back to Truk, then escorted a troop convoy to Palau and back. From September 18-25, Tamanami escorted the combined fleet on a mission to counterattack US carrier raids, but this did not yield combat. From October 14-19, she escorted the aircraft carrier Junyō to Truk, then spent November operating with heavy cruiser groups. More escorting duties rounded out 1943 before Tamanami returned to Kure.[5]
With the start of 1944, Tamanami departed Kure on escorting duties, and returned to Yokosuka on February 15 escorting the battleship Musashi. From March 22 to April 2, Tamanami escorted a troop convoy from Japan to Saipan, and on April 20 returned to Yokosuka. From May 10-16, Tamanami escorted Musashi and several light carriers to Tawitawi, and from June 19-20 escorted Admiral Kurita's vanguard force at the battle of the Philippine Sea, where the force came under light air attacks from US aircraft carriers, but Tamanami was not damaged. Afterwards, from June 23-29, the destroyer escorted the oil tanker Kokuyo Maru from Okinawa to Singapore.[5]
On July 7, Tamanami was escorting Kokuyo Maru from Singapore towards Manila. However, little did the Japanese ships know, they were not alone as the submarine USS Mingo was patrolling the area when she spotted the two ships and prepared to intercept them. Tamanami spotted Mingo and engaged the submarine with depth charges, but inflicted no damage. Mingo in turn fired torpedoes at Tamanami, but she evaded all of them. About an hour passed when Mingo swerved into firing position again and let out four torpedoes, and in an impressive feat of accuracy, three of these four torpedoes gouged into Tamanami. Within an instant, anything that could explode did and Tamanami rapidly sank, and within a few moments, there was not a single trace of the destroyer left. There were no survivors.[6]
Citations
[edit]References
[edit]- Campbell, John (1985). Naval Weapons of World War II. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 0-87021-459-4.
- Jentschura, Hansgeorg; Jung, Dieter & Mickel, Peter (1977). Warships of the Imperial Japanese Navy, 1869–1945. Annapolis, Maryland: United States Naval Institute. ISBN 0-87021-893-X.
- Sturton, Ian (1980). "Japan". In Chesneau, Roger (ed.). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1922–1946. Greenwich, UK: Conway Maritime Press. pp. 167–217. ISBN 0-85177-146-7.
- Whitley, M. J. (2000). Destroyers of World War Two: An International Encyclopedia. London: Cassell & Co. ISBN 1-85409-521-8.
