Japanese destroyer Fumizuki (1925)

Japanese destroyer Fumizuki (1925)
Japanese destroyer Fumizuki, July 1926
Career
Name:	Fumizuki
Owner:	Empire of Japan
Operator:	Imperial Japanese Navy
Builder:	Fujinagata Shipyards, Japan
Yard number:	Destroyer No. 29
Laid down:	October 20, 1924
Launched:	February 16, 1925
Commissioned:	July 3, 1926
Renamed:	as Fumizuki August 1, 1928
Struck:	March 31, 1944
Fate:	sunk in air attack February 18, 1944
General characteristics
Type:	Destroyer
Displacement:	1,315 long tons (1,336 t) normal, 1,445 long tons (1,468 t) full load
Length:	97.54 m (320.0 ft) pp, 102.72 m (337.0 ft) overall
Beam:	9.16 m (30.1 ft)
Draught:	2.96 m (9.7 ft)
Propulsion:	4 x Ro-Gō Kampon water-tube boilers 2 x Kampon geared turbines 38,500 ihp (28,700 kW); 2 shafts
Speed:	37.25 knots (68.99 km/h)
Range:	3600 nm @ 14 knots (6,700 km at 26 km/h)
Complement:	154
Armament:	4 ×Type 3 120 mm 45 caliber naval gun, 2 x Type 92 7.7 mm machine gun, 2 x triple Type 12 torpedo tubes (12 × 610 mm Type 8 torpedoes), 18 x depth charges 16 x Ichi-Gō naval mines

Service record
Part of:	Destroyer Division 30
Operations:	Battle of the Philippines Battle of Java Solomon Islands campaign New Guinea campaign Operation Hailstorm

Fumizuki (文月, ”July”) was one of twelve Mutsuki-class destroyers, built for the Imperial Japanese Navy following World War I. Advanced for their time, these ships served as first-line destroyers through the 1930s, but were considered obsolescent by the start of the Pacific War.

History

Construction of the Mutsuki-class destroyers was authorized as part of the Imperial Japanese Navy's build up following the abandonment of the Washington Naval Treaty from fiscal 1923. The class was a follow-on to the earlier Minekaze-class and Kamikaze class destroyers, with which they shared many common design characteristics. Fumizuki, built at the Fujinagata Shipyards in Osaka was laid down on October 20, 1924, launched on February 16, 1926 and commissioned on July 3, 1926. Originally commissioned simply as “Destroyer No. 29”, it was assigned the name Fumizuki on August 1, 1928.

World War II history

At the time of the attack on Pearl Harbor, Fumizuki was part of Desron 22 under Destroyer Division 5 in the IJN 4th Fleet, and deployed from Mako Guard District in the Pescadores as part of the Japanese invasion force for "Operation M" (the invasion of the Philippines), during which time it helped screen landings of Japanese forces at Lingayen Gulf and at Aparri.

In early 1942, Fumizuki was assigned to escorting troop convoys from French Indochina for "Operation E" (the invasion of Malaya) and "Operation J" (the invasion of Java, Netherlands East Indies), in February. From March 10, 1942 Fumizuki and Destroyer Division 5 were re-assigned to the Southwest Area Fleet and escorted troop convoy from Singapore to Penang, and Rangoon. She returned to Sasebo Naval Arsenal for repairs on June 17, and returned to Mako in early September.

On September 16, Fumizuki sustained heavy damage after a collision with the transport Kachidoki maru in Formosa Strait, forcing a return to Sasebo for repairs until early 1943.

At the end of January 1943, Fumizuki escorted the seaplane tender Kamikawa Maru from Sasebo via Truk and Rabaul to Shortlands, and remained throughout February to cover Operation KE (troop evacuations from Guadalcanal). On February 25, Fumizuki was reassigned to the IJN 8th Fleet. It participated in several “Tokyo Express” troop transport missions throughout the Solomon Islands through the end of April, suffering damage from strafing attacks at Finschhafen in March and at Kavieng in April.

Fumizuki returned to Yokosuka Naval Arsenal for repairs on May 4. It departed Yokosuka on August 20 escorting convoys via Sasebo to Saipan, Truk and Rabaul. From September through January 1944, it made numerous “Tokyo Express” runs to evacuate troops from Kolombangara and Vella Lavella and to land troops at Buka, Bougainville and various areas in New Guinea. On November 2, Fumizuki was strafed during an air raid by United States Navy aircraft while at Rabaul, with six crewmen killed and four injured. It was again damaged in an air raid near Kavieng on the night of January 4, 1944.

While at Truk on February 17, 1944, Fumizuki was torpedoed by during Operation Hailstorm, when carrier-based US Navy aircraft attacked the Imperial Japanese Navy fleet anchorage. The torpedo caused gradual flooding, which the crew could not control, and Fumizuki sank on February 18 at 07°24′N 151°44′E, with 29 crewmen killed.

Fumizuki was struck from the navy list on March 31, 1944.

References

• Bailey, Dan E. (1992). World War II: Wrecks of the Kwajalein and Truk Lagoons. North Valley Diver Publications. ISBN 0-911615-05-9. 
• Brown, David (1990). Warship Losses of World War Two. Naval Institute Press. ISBN 1-55750-914-X. 
• Howarth, Stephen (1983). The Fighting Ships of the Rising Sun: The Drama of the Imperial Japanese Navy, 1895–1945. Atheneum. ISBN 0-689-11402-8. 
• Jentsura, Hansgeorg (1976). Warships of the Imperial Japanese Navy, 1869–1945. US Naval Institute Press. ISBN 0-87021-893-X. 
• Lindemann, Klaus (2005). Hailstorm Over Truk Lagoon: Operations Against Truk by Carrier Task Force 58, and the Shipwrecks of World War II. Oregon, USA: Resource Publications. ISBN 1-59752-347-X. 
• Nelson, Andrew N. (1967). Japanese–English Character Dictionary. Tuttle. ISBN 0-8048-0408-7. 
• Watts, Anthony J (1967). Japanese Warships of World War II. Doubleday. ASIN B000KEV3J8. 
• Whitley, M J (2000). Destroyers of World War Two: An International Encyclopedia. London: Arms and Armour Press. ISBN 1-85409-521-8. 

External links

• Nevitt, Allyn D. (1997). "IJN Fumizuki: Tabular Record of Movement". Long Lancers. Combinedfleet.com. http://www.combinedfleet.com/fumizu_t.htm. 
• Nishidah, Hiroshi (2002). "Mutsuki class destroyers". Materials of the Imperial Japanese Navy. http://homepage2.nifty.com/nishidah/e/stc0422.htm. 
• Jones, Daniel H. (2003). "IJN Minekaze, Kamikaze and Mutsuki class Destroyers". Ship Modeler's Mailing List (SMML). http://smmlonline.com/articles/minekaze/minekaze.html.