Japanese battleship Hyūga
Hyūga (Japanese: 日向) was the second and last Ise-class battleship built for the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) during the 1910s. Although completed in 1918, she played no role in World War I. Hyūga supported Japanese forces in the early 1920s during the Siberian intervention in the Russian Civil War. In 1923, she assisted survivors of the Great Kantō earthquake. The ship was partially modernised in two stages in 1927–1928 and 1931–1932, during which her forward superstructure was rebuilt in the pagoda mast style. Hyūga was reconstructed in 1934–1936, improvements being made to her armour and propulsion machinery. Afterwards, she played a minor role in the Second Sino-Japanese War.
Aerial view of Hyūga in 1927 | |
History | |
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Empire of Japan | |
Name | Hyūga |
Namesake | Hyūga Province |
Builder | Mitsubishi Heavy Industries |
Laid down | 6 May 1915 |
Launched | 27 January 1917 |
Commissioned | 30 April 1918 |
Stricken | 20 November 1945 |
Fate | Sunk, 27 July 1945 and subsequently scrapped, 1946–1947 |
General characteristics (as built) | |
Class and type | Ise-class battleship |
Displacement | |
Length | 208.18 m (683 ft) (o.a.) |
Beam | 28.65 m (94 ft) |
Draught | 8.93 m (29 ft 4 in) |
Installed power |
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Propulsion | 4 × shafts; 2 × steam turbine sets |
Speed | 23 knots (43 km/h; 26 mph) |
Range | 9,680 nmi (17,930 km; 11,140 mi) at 14 knots (26 km/h; 16 mph) |
Complement | 1,360 |
Armament |
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Armour | |
General characteristics (after first reconstruction) | |
Displacement | 42,001 long tons (42,675 t) (full load) |
Length | 215.8 m (708 ft) |
Beam | 31.75 m (104 ft 2 in) |
Draught | 9.45 m (31 ft) |
Installed power |
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Propulsion | 4 × steam turbine sets |
Speed | 24.5 knots (45.4 km/h; 28.2 mph) |
Range | 7,870 nmi (14,580 km; 9,060 mi) at 16 knots (30 km/h; 18 mph) |
Complement | 1,376 |
Armament |
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Armour | Decks: 152 mm (6 in) |
Aircraft carried | 3 |
Aviation facilities | 1 catapult |
General characteristics (as hybrid carrier, 1945) | |
Displacement | 39,805 long tons (40,444 t) (full load) |
Length | 219.62 m (720 ft 6 in) |
Beam | 31.71 m (104 ft) |
Draught | 9.03 m (29 ft 8 in) |
Range | 9,500 nmi (17,600 km; 10,900 mi) at 16 knots |
Complement | 1,463 |
Sensors and processing systems |
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Armament |
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Aircraft carried | 22 |
Aviation facilities | 2 catapults |
Despite the expensive reconstruction, the ship was considered obsolete by the eve of the Pacific War, and did not see significant action in the early years of the war. After the loss of most of the IJN's large aircraft carriers during the Battle of Midway in mid-1942, she was rebuilt with a flight deck replacing the rear pair of gun turrets to give her the ability to operate an air group of floatplanes; lack of aircraft and qualified pilots meant that Hyūga never operated her aircraft in combat. She participated in the Battle off Cape Engaño in late 1944, where she helped to decoy the American carrier fleet supporting the invasion of Leyte away from the landing beaches. Afterwards, the ship was transferred to Southeast Asia, occasionally serving as a flagship. In early 1945, Hyūga participated in Operation Kita, during which she transported petrol and other strategic materials back to Japan. The ship was then reduced to reserve until she was sunk during American airstrikes in July. After the war, Hyūga was scrapped in 1946–1947.