Japanese aircraft carrier Ryūjō

Ryūjō (Japanese: 龍驤 "Prancing Dragon") was a light aircraft carrier built for the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) during the early 1930s. Small and lightly built in an attempt to exploit a loophole in the Washington Naval Treaty of 1922, she proved to be top-heavy and only marginally stable and was back in the shipyard for modifications to address those issues within a year of completion. With her stability improved, Ryūjō returned to service and was employed in operations during the Second Sino-Japanese War. During World War II, she provided air support for operations in the Philippines, Malaya, and the Dutch East Indies, where her aircraft participated in the Second Battle of the Java Sea. During the Indian Ocean raid in April 1942, the carrier attacked British merchant shipping with her guns and aircraft. Ryūjō next participated in the Battle of Dutch Harbor, the opening battle of the Aleutian Islands campaign, in June 1942. She was sunk by American carrier aircraft in the Battle of the Eastern Solomons on 24 August 1942.

Oblique view of Ryūjō at speed, 6 September 1934
Class overview
Operators Imperial Japanese Navy
Preceded byKaga
Succeeded bySōryū
Built1929–1931
In commission1931–1942
Completed1
Lost1
History
Empire of Japan
NameRyūjō
BuilderMitsubishi, Yokohama
Laid down26 November 1929
Launched2 April 1931
Commissioned9 May 1933
Stricken10 November 1942
FateSunk during the Battle of the Eastern Solomons, 24 August 1942
General characteristics (as built)
TypeLight aircraft carrier
Displacement
  • 8,000 t (7,900 long tons) (standard)
  • 10,150 t (9,990 long tons) (normal)
Length179.9 meters (590 ft 3 in) (o/a)
Beam20.32 meters (66 ft 8 in)
Draught5.56 meters (18 ft 3 in)
Installed power
  • 12 × Kampon water-tube boilers
  • 65,000 shp (48,000 kW)
Propulsion2 × shafts; 2 × geared steam turbines
Speed29 knots (54 km/h; 33 mph)
Range10,000 nmi (19,000 km; 12,000 mi) at 14 knots (26 km/h; 16 mph)
Complement600
Armament
Aircraft carried48
General characteristics (1936)
Displacement
  • 10,600 t (10,400 long tons) (standard)
  • 12,732 t (12,531 long tons) (normal)
Beam20.78 meters (68 ft 2 in)
Draught7.08 meters (23 ft 3 in)
Complement934
Armament
  • 4 × twin 12.7 cm dual-purpose guns
  • 2 × twin 25 mm (1 in) AA guns
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