Japanese destroyer Yugure
Encyclopedia
was the sixth and last destroyer
, built for the Imperial Japanese Navy
under the Circle One Program
(Maru Ichi Keikaku). Three were laid down in JFY 1931 and the next three in JFY 1933.
Yugure was laid down at Maizuru Naval Arsenal
in Maizuru, Kyoto
on April 9, 1933, launched on May 6, 1934 and commissioned on March 30, 1935.
, Yugure was assigned to Destroyer Division 27 of Destroyer Squadron 1 of the IJN 1st Fleet
together with her sister ship
s , , and , and was based at Hashirajima
in Japanese home waters on anti-submarine patrol
.
In January 1942, Yugure escorted aircraft carriers and to Palau
and to Ambon
during the invasion of the Netherlands East Indies, and was a participant in the Darwin air raid of February 19, 1942. Afterwards, she was based at Staring Bay, in Sulawesi
from which she conducted escort patrol missions to the end of March. She returned to Sasebo Naval Arsenal
for repairs from March 22 to April 15, 1942. At the end of April, she went to Truk as part of the escort for and and was part of Admiral Takagi's
force at the Battle of the Coral Sea
.
In May, Yugure was assigned escort and back to Kure
. During the Battle of Midway
, she was part of the escort for the Aleutian diversionary force under Admiral Shirō Takasu
. Reassigned to the IJN 2nd Fleet
on July 14, she was then detached for temporary duty with the IJN 4th Fleet
in a sortie from Truk to Jaluit on August 20. After bombarding Ocean Island
on August 23, a landing party from Yugure occupied that island on August 26 as part of "Operation RY
" until relieved by a garrison force on August 30. Yugure was then assigned to the Solomon Islands
, participating in numerous Tokyo Express
high speed transport runs throughout the Solomon through January 1943. Although she did not participate in the First Naval Battle of Guadalcanal, she assisted in rescue operations afterwards, taking on crew from the stricken battleship
After returning to Sasebo for repairs through the middle of January 1943, Yugure escorted a convoy to Tsingtao, and from there to Palau
and Wewak
by the end of February. She escorted another convoy from Turk to Wewak and back to Yokosuka
in March and again in May. She returned to Truk at the end of the month as escort for , returning with at the end of May. In early June, she escorted to Turk, and returned with the same damaged ship a few days later. In late June, she escorted from Yokosuka to Truk. In early June, she was assigned to cover troop transport runs to Kolombangara
.
On 12 July 1943, Yugure participated in the Battle of Kolombangara
, assisting in sinking and damagng and .
However, a few days later on the night of 19 July 1943, while on a troop transport run to Kolombanara, Yugure was bombed and sunk by U.S. Marine
TBF Avenger
s from Guadalcanal
, north-northwest of Kolombangara (07°25′S 156°45′E). The rescue destroyer was also sunk, leaving no survivors from among the entire combined Kiyonami-Yugure crews of 468 men.
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...
, 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...
under the Circle One Program
1st Naval Armaments Supplement Programme (Japan, 1931)
The , otherwise known as the "Circle One" plan was the first of four expansion plans of the Imperial Japanese Navy between 1930 and the start of World War II.-Background:...
(Maru Ichi Keikaku). Three were laid down in JFY 1931 and the next three in JFY 1933.
History
Construction of the advanced Hatsuharu-class destroyers was intended to give the Imperial Japanese Navy smaller and more economical destroyers than the previous and destroyers, but with essentially the same weaponry. These conflicting goals proved beyond contemporary destroyer design, and the initial ships of this class were top-heavy design, with severe stability problems and with inherent structural weaknesses. After the "Tomozuru Incident" of 1934 and "IJN 4th Fleet Incident" in 1935, Yugure underwent extensive design changes and modifications prior to launch to remedy these issues.Yugure was laid down at Maizuru Naval Arsenal
Maizuru Naval Arsenal
was one of four principal naval shipyards owned and operated by the Imperial Japanese Navy. -History:The Maizuru Naval District was established at Maizuru, Kyoto in 1889, as the fourth of the naval districts responsible for the defense of the Japanese home islands. After the establishment of the...
in Maizuru, Kyoto
Maizuru, Kyoto
is a city located in Kyōto, Japan, on an inlet of the Sea of Japan.As of 2008, the city has an estimated population of 89,626 and the density of 264 persons per km². The total area is .The city was founded on May 27, 1943....
on April 9, 1933, launched on May 6, 1934 and commissioned on March 30, 1935.
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...
, Yugure was assigned to Destroyer Division 27 of Destroyer Squadron 1 of the IJN 1st Fleet
IJN 1st Fleet
The was the main battleship fleet of the Imperial Japanese Navy.-History:First established on 28 December 1903, the IJN 1st Fleet was created during the Russo-Japanese War when the Imperial General Headquarters divided the Readiness Fleet into a mobile strike force of cruisers and destroyers to...
together with her sister ship
Sister ship
A sister ship is a ship of the same class as, or of virtually identical design to, another ship. Such vessels share a near-identical hull and superstructure layout, similar displacement, and roughly comparable features and equipment...
s , , and , and was based at Hashirajima
Hashirajima
is an island in southern Hiroshima Bay of the Inland Sea, Yamaguchi Prefecture, Japan. Located 26 kilometers southeast of Iwakuni, it is part of the Kutsuna Islands within the Bōyō Islands group....
in Japanese home waters on anti-submarine patrol
Anti-submarine warfare
Anti-submarine warfare is a branch of naval warfare that uses surface warships, aircraft, or other submarines to find, track and deter, damage or destroy enemy submarines....
.
In January 1942, Yugure escorted aircraft carriers and to Palau
Palau
Palau , officially the Republic of Palau , is an island nation in the Pacific Ocean, east of the Philippines and south of Tokyo. In 1978, after three decades as being part of the United Nations trusteeship, Palau chose independence instead of becoming part of the Federated States of Micronesia, a...
and to Ambon
Battle of Ambon
The Battle of Ambon occurred on the island of Ambon in the Dutch East Indies , on 30 January – 3 February 1942, during World War II. A Japanese invasion was resisted by Dutch and Australian forces...
during the invasion of the Netherlands East Indies, and was a participant in the Darwin air raid of February 19, 1942. Afterwards, she was based at Staring Bay, in Sulawesi
Sulawesi
Sulawesi is one of the four larger Sunda Islands of Indonesia and is situated between Borneo and the Maluku Islands. In Indonesia, only Sumatra, Borneo, and Papua are larger in territory, and only Java and Sumatra have larger Indonesian populations.- Etymology :The Portuguese were the first to...
from which she conducted escort patrol missions to the end of March. She returned to 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...
for repairs from March 22 to April 15, 1942. At the end of April, she went to Truk as part of the escort for and and was part of Admiral Takagi's
Takeo Takagi
was an admiral in the Imperial Japanese Navy during World War II.-Biography:Takagi was a native of Iwaki city, Fukushima prefecture. He was a graduate of the 39th class of the Imperial Japanese Naval Academy, ranking 17th of 148 cadets in 1911...
force at the Battle of the Coral Sea
Battle of the Coral Sea
The Battle of the Coral Sea, fought from 4–8 May 1942, was a major naval battle in the Pacific Theater of World War II between the Imperial Japanese Navy and Allied naval and air forces from the United States and Australia. The battle was the first fleet action in which aircraft carriers engaged...
.
In May, Yugure was assigned escort and back to Kure
Kure Naval District
was the second of four main administrative districts of the pre-war Imperial Japanese Navy. Its territory included the Inland Sea of Japan and the Pacific coasts of southern Honshū from Wakayama to Yamaguchi prefectures, eastern and northern Kyūshū and Shikoku....
. 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...
, she was part of the escort for the Aleutian diversionary force under Admiral Shirō Takasu
Shirō Takasu
Admiral was a career naval officer in the Imperial Japanese Navy during World War II.-Biography:Takasu was a native of Sakuragawa Village, , and graduated from the 35th class of the Imperial Japanese Naval Academy, where his classmates included future admirals Nobutake Kondō and Naokuni Nomura...
. Reassigned to 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...
on July 14, she was then detached for temporary duty with the IJN 4th Fleet
IJN 4th Fleet
The was a fleet designation of the Imperial Japanese Navy. The Fourth Fleet designation was used during three separate periods. The initial designation was for a group of ships that were assigned to work together during the Russo-Japanese conflict and the period of its immediate aftermath...
in a sortie from Truk to Jaluit on August 20. After bombarding Ocean Island
Ocean Island
Ocean Island is a name given to two unrelated islands in the Pacific Ocean, and one in the Southern Ocean:* Kure Atoll, the last atoll in the Hawaiian Islands chain.* Banaba Island, in Kiribati, an island mined until recently for its phosphate....
on August 23, a landing party from Yugure occupied that island on August 26 as part of "Operation RY
Operation RY
Operation RY was the name of the Imperial Japanese plan to invade and occupy Nauru and Ocean islands in the south Pacific during the Pacific conflict of World War II. The operation was originally set to be executed in May 1942 immediately following Operation MO and before Operation MI, which...
" until relieved by a garrison force on August 30. Yugure was then assigned to the Solomon Islands
Solomon Islands
Solomon Islands is a sovereign state in Oceania, east of Papua New Guinea, consisting of nearly one thousand islands. It covers a land mass of . The capital, Honiara, is located on the island of Guadalcanal...
, participating in numerous 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...
high speed transport runs throughout the Solomon through January 1943. Although she did not participate in the First Naval Battle of Guadalcanal, she assisted in rescue operations afterwards, taking on crew from the stricken battleship
After returning to Sasebo for repairs through the middle of January 1943, Yugure escorted a convoy to Tsingtao, and from there to Palau
Palau
Palau , officially the Republic of Palau , is an island nation in the Pacific Ocean, east of the Philippines and south of Tokyo. In 1978, after three decades as being part of the United Nations trusteeship, Palau chose independence instead of becoming part of the Federated States of Micronesia, a...
and Wewak
Wewak
Wewak is the capital of the East Sepik province of Papua New Guinea. It is located on the northern coast of the island of New Guinea. It is the largest town between Madang and Jayapura. It is the see city of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Wewak....
by the end of February. She escorted another convoy from Turk to Wewak and back to Yokosuka
Yokosuka, Kanagawa
is a city located in Kanagawa, Japan. As of 2010, the city had an estimated population of 419,067 and a population density of 4,160 people per km². It covered an area of 100.62 km²...
in March and again in May. She returned to Truk at the end of the month as escort for , returning with at the end of May. In early June, she escorted to Turk, and returned with the same damaged ship a few days later. In late June, she escorted from Yokosuka to Truk. In early June, she was assigned to cover troop transport runs to Kolombangara
Kolombangara
Kolombangara is an island in the New Georgia Islands group of the Solomon Islands in the southwestern Pacific Ocean...
.
On 12 July 1943, Yugure participated in the Battle of Kolombangara
Battle of Kolombangara
The Battle of Kolombangara was a naval battle of the Pacific campaign of World War II, fought on the night of 12/13 July 1943, off Kolombangara in the Solomon Islands.-Background:...
, assisting in sinking and damagng and .
However, a few days later on the night of 19 July 1943, while on a troop transport run to Kolombanara, Yugure was bombed and sunk by U.S. Marine
United States Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...
TBF Avenger
TBF Avenger
The Grumman TBF Avenger was a torpedo bomber developed initially for the United States Navy and Marine Corps, and eventually used by several air or naval arms around the world....
s from 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...
, north-northwest of Kolombangara (07°25′S 156°45′E). The rescue destroyer was also sunk, leaving no survivors from among the entire combined Kiyonami-Yugure crews of 468 men.