Japanese escort Ishigaki

Ishigaki (石垣) was an escort ship of the in the service of the Imperial Japanese Navy during World War II. Based in the Kuriles, she patrolled and escorted convoys and ships there.

USS S-44
On October 7, 1943 the Ishigaki sank the submarine USS S-44 (SS-155). S-44 discovered a target on her radar that she took to be a lone small freighter. S-44 opened fire with her 4-inch deck gun on the refrigerator ship Koko Maru. Ishigaki, Koko Maru's escort, sighted the submarine at 3,300 yards and opened fire with her bow 4.7-inch gun. Captain Francis Brown of the S-44 ordered a crash dive, but Ishigaki scored her first hit on S-44's conning tower before she could submerge. S-44 attempted to fight back with her deck gun, but her gunners were blinded by Ishigaki's 75 cm searchlight and she scored no hits. Ishigaki then scored her second hit on the submarine's battery section. She then turned and all three 4.7-inch guns began firing at S-44. Soon, she scored several more hits on S-44 which began to sink. Perhaps as many as eight men had made it off the submarine; but only Chief Torpedoman's Mate Ernest A. Duva and Radioman Third Class William F. Whitemore were picked up by the Ishigaki, so the Ishigaki's captain to claim his success.

On May 31, 1944 the Ishigaki was torpedoed by the USS Herring (SS-233), and had her bow blown off. She managed to drop several depth charges before sinking with a loss of 167 sailors.