Japanese repair ship Akashi

History
Akashi off Sasebo in July 1939

Name:	Akashi
Namesake:	Akashi Strait
Builder:	Sasebo Naval Arsenal
Cost:	10,000,000 JPY as Akashi 23,027,000 JPY as Mihara and Momotori
Launched:	29 June 1938
Completed:	31 July 1939
Decommissioned:	10 May 1944
Fate:	Sunk on 30 March 1944
General characteristics
Type:	Repair ship
Displacement:	9,000 long tons (9,144 t) standard 10,500 long tons (10,668 t) trial
Length:	158.50 m (520 ft 0 in) overall 154.66 m (507 ft 5 in) waterline
Beam:	20.50 m (67 ft 3 in)
Draught:	6.29 m (20 ft 8 in)
Installed power:	10,000 bhp
Propulsion:	2 × Mitsubishi/MAN Model 60 diesels, 2 shafts
Speed:	19.2 knots (22.1 mph; 35.6 km/h)
Range:	8,000 nmi (15,000 km) at 14 kn (16 mph; 26 km/h)
Crew:	336 men and 433 engineers
Armament:	4 × 127 mm (5.0 in) L/40 Type 89 AA guns 12 × Type 96 25mm AA guns
Armour:	none

Akashi was a Japanese repair ship, serving during World War II. She was the only specifically designed repair ship operated by the Imperial Japanese Navy. The navy based her design on the US Navy's USS Medusa.

Construction

In 1937 the Imperial Japanese Navy had converted the old battleship Asahi to serve as a repair ship. After the conversion of Asahi, a decision was made to build a dedicated repair ship with better capabilities for that task. The Imperial Japanese Navy planned for her to carry out 40% of the repairs needed by the Combined Fleet (needing approximately 140,000-man-hours). Therefore, she was equipped with the latest machine tools imported from Germany.

War service

During the war Akashi operated out of the Japanese base in the Truk atoll where she repaired various types of battle-damaged Japanese warships, including the Shōkaku in October 1942 and the Yamato in December 1943. In February 1944 the Americans made a raid on Truk (Operation Hailstone), sinking and damaging many ships. Akashi was damaged in these attacks and escaped to the Japanese atoll of Palau.^[1]

Fate

On 30 March 1944, while anchored off Urukthapel in the Palau Islands, Akashi was hit numerous times by bombs and rockets from American aircraft from Task Group 58, during Operation Desecrate One. She was sunk in shallow water with her bridge still remaining above the water.^[2]^[3]

Ships in class

Ship #	Ship	Builder	Laid down	Launched	Completed	Fate
	Akashi (明石)	Sasebo Naval Arsenal	18 January 1937	29 June 1938	31 July 1939	Sunk on 30 March 1944; salvaged and scrapped in 1954.
5416 5417	Mihara (三原) Momotori (桃取)	Mitsubishi, Yokohama Shipyard				Cancelled on 11 August 1943.

Bibliography

"Rekishi Gunzō". , History of Pacific War Vol.51 The truth histories of the Japanese Naval Vessels part-2, Gakken (Japan), August 2005, ISBN 4-05-604083-4
Ships of the World special issue Vol.47 Auxiliary Vessels of the Imperial Japanese Navy, Kaijinsha, (Japan), March 1997
The Maru Special, Japanese Naval Vessels No.34 Japanese Auxiliary vessels, Ushio Shobō (Japan), December 1979
Senshi Sōsho Vol.31, Naval armaments and war preparation (1), "Until November 1941", Asagumo Simbun (Japan), November 1969
Senshi Sōsho Vol.88, Naval armaments and war preparation (2), "And after the outbreak of war", Asagumo Simbun (Japan), October 1975

References

↑ http://www.combinedfleet.com/Akashi_t.htm
↑ Morison, Samuel Eliot (2001). History of United States Naval Operations in World War II: New Guinea and the Marianas, March 1944 – August 1944. 8. University of Illinois Press (reprint). pp. 32–33. ISBN 978-0-252-07038-9. Google Books limited preview
↑ Belote, James H.; Belote, William M. (1975). Titans of the seas: the development and operations of Japanese and American carrier task forces during World War II. New York: Harper & Row. p. 226. ISBN 978-0-06-010278-4.

External links

Tabular record of Akashi's movements

Japanese auxiliary ship classes of World War II

Colliers and oilers	Notoro Ondo Sunosaki Ashizuri Kazahaya^S Hayasui^S Hario^S Muroto Teiyō Maru^S Ōse (ex-Dutch tanker Genota)^SC

Food supply ships	Mamiya^S Nosaki^S Kinesaki Irako^S Kurasaki^SC

Landing ships	No.1 No.101 Shinshū Maru^S (Army) SS (Army)

Armed merchant cruisers	Aikoku Maru^S Kongō Maru^S Noshiro Maru^S

Minelayers and cable layer	Tokiwa^SC Itsukushima^S Yaeyama^S Okinoshima^S Tsugaru^S Minoo^SC Shirataka^S Hatsutaka Tsubame Natsushima (1933) Sokuten (1938) Hirashima Ajiro^S Kamishima Hashima Sokuten (1913) Aux. No.1 Aux. No.101 (ex-HMS Barlight)^SC

Minesweepers	No.1 (1923) No.5 (1928) No.13 No.17 No.7 (1938) No.19 No.101 (ex-HMS Taitam and HMS Waglan)^C Aux. No.1 Aux. No.101 (ex-HNLMS DEFG-class) Aux. No.104 (ex-HNLMS DEFG-class)

Patrol boats	No.1^C No.31^C No.46^SC No.101 (ex-HMS Thracian)^SC No.102 (ex-USS Stewart)^SC No.103 (ex-USS Finch)^SC No.104 (ex-Dutch East Indies Valk and Arend)^C No.105 (ex-Philippine customs Arayat)^SC No.106 (ex-HNLMS Banckert (1929))^SCI No.107 (ex-USS Genesee)^SC No.109 (ex-Dutch East Indies Fazant)^SC Aux. No.1

Repair ships	Asahi^SC Akashi^S Hayase (ex-Chinese passenger Chin Kiang)^SC Hitonose (ex-ROCN Min Sheng)^SC

Seaplane tenders	Notoro Kamoi^SC Chitose Mizuho^S Nisshin^S Akitsushima^S Kamikawa Maru

Submarine chasers	No.1 No.3^S No.4 No.13 No.28 No.60 Aux. No.1 Aux. No.101 (ex-HNLMS Tjerimai)^SC Aux. No.102 (ex-HNLMS Ardjoeno class)^C Aux. No.103 (ex-HNLMS B1 class)^C Aux. No.111 (ex-HNLMS P13 or P14)^SC Aux. No.112 (ex-HNLMS A class)^C Aux. No.117 (ex-HNLMS Bantam)^C Aux. No.251 Aux. No.253^S

Submarine tenders	Komahashi^SC Jingei Taigei^S

Survey ships	Tsukushi^S Katsuriki^SC Hakusa (ex-China customs Fu Hsing)^SC

Target ships	Settsu^SC Yakaze^SC Hakachi^S Ōhama^S

Training ships	Fuji^SC Shikishima^SC Asama^SC Azuma^SC Kasuga^SC Atada (ex-ROCN Yat Sen)^SC

Others	Sōya (freighter)^SC Kashino (turret transporter)^S Ōtomari (icebreaker)^S Tategami (salvage tug) Kasashima (salvage tug) Miura (salvage tug) Kaiyō No.1 (oceanographic research ship) Asuka (traffic ship, ex-ROCN Yung Chien)^SC

S Single ship of class C Converted to ship type I Incomplete until the end of war

Shipwrecks and maritime incidents in March 1944

Shipwrecks	1 Mar: HMS Gould, U-358, U-603, U-709 4 Mar: U-472 5 Mar: U-366 6 Mar: U-744, U-973 10 Mar: USS Leopold, U-343, U-450, U-625, U-845 11 Mar: Dupleix, UIT-22, U-380, U-410 13 Mar: Peleus, Tatsuta, U-575 15 Mar: Dupleix, Empire Ace, U-653 16 Mar: Shirakumo, U-392 17 Mar: U-28, U-801, U-1013 19 Mar: U-1059 20 Mar: HMS Graph 22 Mar: Cattaro 23 Mar: U-575 24 Mar: Schwabenland, U-1102 25 Mar: U-976 26 Mar: USS Tullibee 28 Mar: HMS Syrtis, Tulagi 29 Mar: U-961 30 Mar: Akashi, HMS Laforey, PB-31, U-223 Unknown date: Goshū Maru, HMS Stonehenge, U-851

Other incidents	3 Mar: Karatsu

1943 1944 1945 February 1944 April 1944

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