Japanese destroyer Natsugumo
Encyclopedia
was the fifth of ten destroyer
s built for the Imperial Japanese Navy
in the mid-1930s under the Circle Two Supplementary Naval Expansion Program
(Maru Ni Keikaku).
. 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. Despite being one of the most powerful classes of destroyers in the world at the time of their completion, none survived the Pacific War
.
Natsugumo, built at the Sasebo Naval Arsenal
was laid down on July 1, 1936, launched on May 26, 1937 and commissioned on February 10, 1938.
, Natsugumo, under the command of Lieutenant Commander Moritaro Tsukamoto , was assigned to Destroyer Division 9 (Desdiv 9), and a member of Destroyer Squadron 4 (Desron 4) of the IJN 2nd Fleet
, escorting the Philippines invasion
forces to Vigan and Lingayen
. She then assisted in the landings of Japanese forces at Tarakan
, Balikpapan
, Makassar
and Java in the Netherlands East Indies. During the Battle of the Java Sea
of February 27, she was on detached duty escorting the troop convoy and thus did not see combat. However, on March 1, she damaged with depth charge
s.
Natsugumo participated in the Battle of Christmas Island
from March 31 –April 10, escorting the damaged cruiser to Singapore
, and then returning to Yokosuka
on April 12 for repairs.
Natsugumo joined the escort for Admiral Nobutake Kondō’s Midway Invasion Force during the Battle of Midway
from June 4-6, 1942. Afterwards, she was reassigned to the minato Naval District] and assigned to patrols of the Kurile Islands and north Pacific to mid-July. However, on July 19, she received orders to escort the cruiser from Kure to Truk. From Truk, she made a transport run to Kwajalein
and returned to Yokosuka by August 8.
On August 11, Natsugumo departed Yokosuka for Truk, and was part of the escort for at the Battle of the Eastern Solomons
on August 24. She was assigned to patrols out of Truk in September, and ordered to Shortland Island
in October. During the month of October, she made four “Tokyo Express
transport runs to Guadalcanal
. On the fourth run, while escorting and Chitose, she went to the assistance of which had been damaged during the Battle of Cape Esperance
. Attacked by United States Navy
aircraft on the night of October 11, near misses ruptured her hull, and she sank after only 39 minutes at position 08°40′S 159°20′E approximately 90 nautical miles (166.7 km) west-northwest of Savo Island
. The attack killed 16 crewmen, including her captain, Lieutenant Commander Tsukamoto; took off her 176 survivors She was removed from the navy list
on November 15, 1942.
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...
in the mid-1930s under the Circle Two Supplementary Naval Expansion Program
2nd Naval Armaments Supplement Programme (Japan, 1934)
The otherwise known as the "Circle Two" Plan was the second of four expansion plans of the Imperial Japanese Navy between 1930 and the start of World War II.-Background:...
(Maru Ni Keikaku).
History
The Asashio class destroyers were larger and more capable that the preceding , as Japanese naval architects were no longer constrained by the provisions of the London Naval TreatyLondon Naval Treaty
The London Naval Treaty was an agreement between the United Kingdom, the Empire of Japan, France, Italy and the United States, signed on April 22, 1930, which regulated submarine warfare and limited naval shipbuilding. Ratifications were exchanged in London on October 27, 1930, and the treaty went...
. These light cruiser
Light 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...
-sized vessels were designed to take advantage of Japan’s lead in 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...
technology, and to accompany the Japanese main striking force and in both day and night attacks against the United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
as it advanced across the Pacific Ocean
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...
, according to Japanese naval strategic projections. Despite being one of the most powerful classes of destroyers in the world at the time of their completion, none survived 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...
.
Natsugumo, built at the Sasebo Naval Arsenal
Sasebo Naval Arsenal
was one of four principal naval shipyards owned and operated by the Imperial Japanese Navy. -History:The Sasebo Naval District was established at Sasebo, Nagasaki in 1886, as the third of the naval districts responsible for the defense of the Japanese home islands. After the establishment of the...
was laid down on July 1, 1936, launched on May 26, 1937 and commissioned on February 10, 1938.
Operational 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...
, Natsugumo, under the command of Lieutenant Commander Moritaro Tsukamoto , was assigned to Destroyer Division 9 (Desdiv 9), and a member of Destroyer Squadron 4 (Desron 4) of 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...
, escorting the Philippines invasion
Battle of the Philippines (1941-42)
The Philippines Campaign or the Battle of the Philippines was the invasion of the Philippines by Japan in 1941–1942 and the defense of the islands by Filipino and United States forces....
forces to Vigan and Lingayen
Lingayen, Pangasinan
Lingayen is a 1st class municipality in the province of Pangasinan on the island of Luzon in the Philippines. It is the capital municipality and the seat of government of the province of Pangasinan. According to the latest census, it has a population of 95,773 people in 16,467 households.Lingayen...
. She then assisted in the landings of Japanese forces at Tarakan
Battle of Tarakan (1942)
The Battle of Tarakan took place on January 11–12, 1942. Even though Tarakan was only a small marshy island at northeastern Borneo in the Netherlands East Indies, but the 700 oil wells, oil refinery and airfield on it, was one of the main objectives for the Empire of Japan in the Pacific War...
, Balikpapan
Balikpapan
Balikpapan is a seaport city on the eastern coast of the island of Borneo, Indonesia, in the East Kalimantan province, a resource-rich region well known for its timber, mining, and petroleum export products. Two harbors, Semayang and Kariangau , and the Sepinggan International Airport are the main...
, Makassar
Makassar
Makassar, is the provincial capital of South Sulawesi, Indonesia, and the largest city on Sulawesi Island. From 1971 to 1999, the city was named Ujung Pandang, after a precolonial fort in the city, and the two names are often used interchangeably...
and Java in the Netherlands East Indies. During the Battle of the Java Sea
Battle of the Java Sea
The Battle of the Java Sea was a decisive naval battle of the Pacific campaign of World War II, that sealed the fate of the Netherlands East Indies....
of February 27, she was on detached duty escorting the troop convoy and thus did not see combat. However, on March 1, she damaged with depth charge
Depth charge
A depth charge is an anti-submarine warfare weapon intended to destroy or cripple a target submarine by the shock of exploding near it. Most use explosives and a fuze set to go off at a preselected depth in the ocean. Depth charges can be dropped by either surface ships, patrol aircraft, or from...
s.
Natsugumo participated in the Battle of Christmas Island
Battle of Christmas Island
The Battle of Christmas Island, was a small engagement which began on 31 March 1942, during World War II. Because of a mutiny by Indian soldiers against their British officers, Japanese troops were able to occupy Christmas Island without any resistance...
from March 31 –April 10, escorting the damaged cruiser to 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 then returning to Yokosuka
Yokosuka Naval District
was the first of four main administrative districts of the pre-war Imperial Japanese Navy. Its territory included Tokyo Bay and the Pacific coasts of central and northern Honshū from the Kii Peninsula to Shimokita Peninsula.-History:...
on April 12 for repairs.
Natsugumo joined the escort for Admiral Nobutake Kondō’s Midway Invasion Force during 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...
from June 4-6, 1942. Afterwards, she was reassigned to the minato Naval District] and assigned to patrols of the Kurile Islands and north Pacific to mid-July. However, on July 19, she received orders to escort the cruiser from Kure to Truk. From Truk, she made a transport run to Kwajalein
Kwajalein
Kwajalein Atoll , is part of the Republic of the Marshall Islands . The southernmost and largest island in the atoll is named Kwajalein Island. English-speaking residents of the U.S...
and returned to Yokosuka by August 8.
On August 11, Natsugumo departed Yokosuka for Truk, and was part of the escort for at the Battle of the Eastern Solomons
Battle of the Eastern Solomons
The naval Battle of the Eastern Solomons The naval Battle of the Eastern Solomons The naval Battle of the Eastern Solomons (also known as the Battle of the Stewart Islands and, in Japanese sources, as the , took place on 24–25 August 1942, and was the third carrier battle of the Pacific campaign...
on August 24. She was assigned to patrols out of Truk in September, and ordered to Shortland Island
Shortland Island
Shortland Island is the largest island of the Shortland Islands, Solomon Islands, at . Named by John Shortland....
in October. During the month of October, she made four “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 runs 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...
. On the fourth run, while escorting and Chitose, she went to the assistance of which had been damaged during the Battle of Cape Esperance
Battle of Cape Esperance
The Battle of Cape Esperance, also known as the Second Battle of Savo Island and, in Japanese sources, as the , took place on 11–12 October 1942, and was a naval battle of the Pacific campaign of World War II between the Imperial Japanese Navy and United States Navy...
. Attacked by United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
aircraft on the night of October 11, near misses ruptured her hull, and she sank after only 39 minutes at position 08°40′S 159°20′E approximately 90 nautical miles (166.7 km) west-northwest 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...
. The attack killed 16 crewmen, including her captain, Lieutenant Commander Tsukamoto; took off her 176 survivors She 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....
on November 15, 1942.