Japanese destroyer Hatsuzakura
Hatsuzakura (初櫻, "Early-blooming Cherry") was one of 23 escort destroyers of the Tachibana sub-class of the Matsu class built for the Imperial Japanese Navy during the final stages of World War II.
Sister ship Nire in January or February 1945 | |
History | |
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Name: | Hatsuzakura |
Namesake: | Persimmon |
Ordered: | 1943 |
Builder: | Yokosuka Naval Arsenal |
Laid down: | 4 December 1944 |
Launched: | 10 February 1945 |
Completed: | 18 May 1945 |
Stricken: | 5 October 1945 |
Fate: | Turned over to the Soviet Navy, 29 July 1947 |
General characteristics | |
Class and type: | Tachibana sub-class of the Matsu-class escort destroyer |
Displacement: | 1,309 t (1,288 long tons) (standard) |
Length: | 100 m (328 ft 1 in) (o/a) |
Beam: | 9.35 m (30 ft 8 in) |
Draft: | 3.37 m (11 ft 1 in) |
Installed power: | 2 × water-tube boilers; 19,000 shp (14,000 kW) |
Propulsion: | 2 shafts, 2 × geared steam turbines |
Speed: | 27.8 knots (51.5 km/h; 32.0 mph) |
Range: | 4,680 nmi (8,670 km; 5,390 mi) at 16 knots (30 km/h; 18 mph) |
Sensors and processing systems: |
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Armament: |
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Design and description
The Tachibana sub-class was a simplified version of the preceding Matsu class to make them even more suited for mass production. The ships measured 100 meters (328 ft 1 in) overall, with a beam of 9.35 meters (30 ft 8 in) and a draft of 3.37 meters (11 ft 1 in).[1] They displaced 1,309 metric tons (1,288 long tons) at standard load and 1,554 metric tons (1,529 long tons) at deep load.[2] The ships had two Kampon geared steam turbines, each driving one propeller shaft, using steam provided by two Kampon water-tube boilers. The turbines were rated at a total of 19,000 shaft horsepower (14,000 kW) for a speed of 27.8 knots (51.5 km/h; 32.0 mph). They had a range of 4,680 nautical miles (8,670 km; 5,390 mi) at 16 knots (30 km/h; 18 mph).[3]
The main armament of the Tachibana sub-class consisted of three 127-millimeter (5 in) Type 89 dual-purpose guns in one twin-gun mount aft and one single mount forward of the superstructure. The single mount was partially protected against spray by a gun shield. The accuracy of the Type 89 guns was severely reduced against aircraft because no high-angle gunnery director was fitted. The ships carried a total of 25 Type 96 25-millimeter (1 in) anti-aircraft guns in 4 triple and 13 single mounts. The Tachibanas were equipped with Type 13 early-warning and Type 22 surface-search radars.[4] The ships were also armed with a single rotating quadruple mount amidships for 610-millimeter (24 in) torpedos. They could deliver their 60 depth charges via two stern racks and two throwers.[1][4]
Construction and service
Hatsuzakura (early-blooming cherry)[5] was ordered in Fiscal Year 1943 under the Modified 5th Naval Armaments Supplement Program as part of the Matsu class, but the design was simplified to facilitate production and the ship was one of those built to the modified design.[3] She was laid down on 12 April 1944 by Yokosuka Naval Arsenal, launched on 10 February 1945 and completed on 28 May.[6] Hatsuzakura was assigned that day to Destroyer Squadron 11 under the Combined Fleet for working up, on 15 July she was transferred to the Yokosuka Naval District. On 27 August the ship ferried Japanese emissaries and local pilots to the entrance to Tokyo Bay to meet the American battleship Missouri. The ship was turned over to Allied forces at Yokosuka at the time of the surrender of Japan and was stricken from the navy list on 15 September.[5] The destroyer was disarmed and used to repatriate Japanese personnel in 1945–1947. Hatsuzakura was turned over to the Soviet Union on 29 July of the later year and became a trials ship with the name TsL-24.[3]
Notes
- Chesneau, p. 196
- Whitley, p. 208
- Jentschura, Jung & Mickel, p. 153
- Stille, p. 41
- Nevitt
- Stille, p. 40
Bibliography
- Berezhnoy, Sergey (1994). Трофеи и репарации ВМФ СССР [Trophies and Reparations of the Soviet Navy] (in Russian). Yakutsk: Sakhapoligrafizdat. OCLC 33334505.
- Chesneau, Roger, ed. (1980). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1922–1946. Greenwich, UK: Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 0-85177-146-7.
- 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.
- Nevitt, Allyn D. (1998). "IJN Hatsuzakura: Tabular Record of Movement". www.combinedfleet.com. Retrieved 22 June 2020.
- Stille, Mark (2013). Imperial Japanese Navy Destroyers 1919–45 (2): Asahio to Tachibana Classes. Botley, UK: Osprey Publishing. ISBN 978-1-84908-987-6.
- Whitley, M. J. (1988). Destroyers of World War Two: An International Encyclopedia. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 0-87021-326-1.