Japanese destroyer Shinonome (1927)

"Shinonome" redirects here. For the railway stations of this name, see Shinonome Station (disambiguation).

Japanese destroyer Shinonome (1927)
Shinonome in 1930.
Career
Owner:	Empire of Japan
Operator:	Imperial Japanese Navy
Ordered:	1923 Fiscal Year
Builder:	Sasebo Naval Arsenal
Yard number:	Destroyer No.40
Laid down:	12 August 1926
Launched:	26 November 1927
Commissioned:	25 July 1928
Struck:	15 January 1942
Fate:	Sunk in action, 17 December 1941
General characteristics
Class & type:	Fubuki class destroyer
Type:	Destroyer
Displacement:	1,750 long tons (1,780 t) standard 2,050 long tons (2,080 t) re-built
Length:	111.96 m (367.3 ft) pp 115.3 m (378 ft) waterline 118.41 m (388.5 ft) overall
Beam:	10.4 m (34 ft 1 in)
Draft:	3.2 m (10 ft 6 in)
Propulsion:	4 × Kampon type boilers 2 × Kampon Type Ro geared turbines 2 × shafts at 50,000 ihp (37,000 kW)
Speed:	38 knots (44 mph; 70 km/h)
Range:	5,000 nmi (9,300 km) at 14 knots (26 km/h)
Complement:	219
Armament:	6 × Type 3 127 mm 50 caliber naval guns (3×2) up to 22 × Type 96 25 mm AT/AA Guns up to 10 × 13 mm AA guns 9 × 610 mm (24 in) torpedo tubes 36 × depth charges

Service record
Operations:	Second Sino-Japanese War Invasion of French Indochina Battle of Malaya

Another view of Shinonome.

Shinonome (東雲, ”Daybreak”) was a Fubuki class was the sixth of twenty-four Fubuki-class destroyers, built for the Imperial Japanese Navy following World War I. They served as first-line destroyers through the 1930s, and remained formidable weapons systems well into the Pacific War.

History

Construction of the advanced Fubuki-class destroyers was authorized as part of the Imperial Japanese Navy's expansion program from fiscal year 1923, intended to give Japan a qualitative edge with the world's most modern ships. The Fubuki-class had performance that was a quantum leap over previous destroyer designs, so much so that they were designated Special Type destroyers (特型, Tokugata). The large size, powerful engines, high speed, large radius of action and unprecedented armament gave these destroyers the firepower similar to many light cruisers in other navies. Shinonome, built at the Sasebo Naval Arsenal was laid down on August 12, 1926, launched on November 26, 1927 and commissioned on July 25, 1928. Originally assigned hull designation “Destroyer No. 40”, she was completed as Shinonome.

Operational history

On completion, Shinonome was assigned to Destroyer Division 12 under the IJN 2nd Fleet. During the Second Sino-Japanese War, Shinonome was assigned to patrols of the southern China coast, and participated in the Invasion of French Indochina in 1940.

World War II history

At the time of the attack on Pearl Harbor, Shinonome was assigned to Destroyer Division 12 of Desron 3 of the IJN 1st Fleet, and had deployed from Kure Naval District to the port of Samah on Hainan Island. From 4 December to 12 December, she covered Japanese landings at Kota Bharu in Malaya.

From 16 December, Shinonome was assigned to cover Japanese landings during "Operation B", the invasion of British Borneo. The official record of her demise, however, is ambiguous. Although some Japanese sources at the time claimed that she hit a naval mine, there are no extant records of either British or Dutch mine-laying in the area. It is generally accepted that the Shinonome was sunk by Dutch military aircraft, either (a) on 17 December 1941, after being struck by two bombs from a Dornier Do 24 flying boat X-32 of the Royal Dutch Naval Air Group GVT-7, which detonated her aft magazine, or (b) on 18 December 1941, after an attack by Martin B-10 bombers of the Royal Netherlands East Indies Army Air Force (2de Vl.G). In either case, Shinonome exploded and sank with all hands in the vicinity of Miri, Sarawak (04°24′N 114°0′E)

On 15 January 1942, Shinonome was struck from the navy list.

Shinonome wreckage

The exact position of the wreck of Shinonome remains unknown, but it likely lies somewhere between Seria, Brunei to the north, and Miri town itself. A team of wreck researchers, based in Miri and with help from the Netherlands, has been searching for the ship's remains since 2004. The team has identified several prospective sites, and is in the process of confirming them. The position, orientation and condition of the wreck will help to resolve the lingering uncertainty about the circumstances surrounding the Shinonome's demise.

References

• 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. 
• 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). CombinedFleet.com "IJN Shinonome: Tabular Record of Movement". Long Lancers. Combinedfleet.com. http://www.combinedfleet.com/shinon_t.htm CombinedFleet.com. 
• Nishidah, Hiroshi (2002). "Fubuki class destroyers". Materials of the Imperial Japanese Navy. http://homepage2.nifty.com/nishidah/e/stc0423.htm. 
• Shirakumo in Naval History of World Wars
• Globalsecurity.org. "IJN Fubuki class destroyers". http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/japan/fubuki-dd.htm.