HMS Moth (1915)

HMS Moth was an Insect class gunboat of the Royal Navy.

HMS Moth was laid down during the first half of 1915 at the yards of the Sunderland Shipbuilding Company, with her sister ship HMS Mantis. Moth was launched on 9 October 1915 and completed on 5 January 1916.

Royal Navy service
She was dispatched to the Middle East (Mesopotamia area) in 1916. In 1919, she was dispatched to the White Sea, and by 1920 she had been reassigned to the China Station. In December 1941 she became a member of the Far East fleet with HMS Cicala at Hong Kong. On 8 December 1941, Moth and Cicala were in port during an air raid by the Imperial Japanese Army Air Force. Cicala was sunk on 21 December. Moth was in the dock for repairs, but with the fall of the city to the Japanese imminent, Moth was scuttled on 12 December. HMS Thracian was also in port and was captured by the Japanese Army. Thracian was placed on duty as Patrol boat No.101 in October 1942.

Imperial Japanese Navy service
The Imperial Japanese Navy dispatched the Navy 2nd Construction Department (海軍第二工作部) to Hong Kong to investigate the Moth, and on 1 July 1942, she was refloated and renamed Suma (須磨). Suma is a Japanese beauty spot appearing in The Tale of Genji. 29 July 1943 she fires on US aircraft during an air raid on Hong Kong. Attacked by 3 14th Air Force B-25s on 29 December 1943, and by 2 B-25s the next day receiving some damage, while claiming to kill one B-25. On 11 June 1944 attacked by P-38s and on the 18th by 3 B-25s. On 26 December attacked by 7 P-51s, with the aft 25 mm gun wrecked with 18 K.I.A. & 4 W.I.A. Aft gun is replaced & repairs made to the ship 28-30 December at Yanhu. Attacked by P-51s on 11 February 1945. Repaired at Mitsubishi Yangshupu Shipyard, Shanghai 17 February-12 March 1945. She was active on the Yangtze River in anti-insurgency operations. On 19 March 1945, she struck a naval mine at Anqing and sank with a loss of 8 crewmen.