Hamakaze

CountryJapan
Ship ClassKagero-class Destroyer
Displacement2,033 tons standard; 2,490 tons full
Length389 feet
Beam35 feet
Draft12 feet
Machinery2-shaft geared turbines
Power Output52,000 SHP
Speed35 knots
Range5,000 miles at 18 knots
Crew239
Armament6x5in, 4x25mm anti-aircraft, 6 DP guns, 8x24in torpedo tubes, 16 depth charges

Contributor:

ww2dbaseAt the end of 1942, Hamakaze was the first destroyer of the Japanese Navy to be equipped with radar after the installation of a Type 22 set. During the American campaign for Okinawa, she was sent along with the super battleship Yamato on the suicide mission Operation Ten-Go (Ten'ichigo). During the operation she lost steering after the rudder was struck an aerial torpedo. The engines soon gave out as well. Dead in the water, she quickly succumbed to the falling bombs all around her. Ensign Mitsuru Yoshida witnessed her sinking:

ww2dbase"On the left outer edge of the formation, Hamakaze all of a sudden seems to expose her crimson belly, then lifts her stern up into the air."

ww2dbase"She sinks in a matter of only twenty of thirty seconds. She leaves behind only a sheet of white foam."

ww2dbaseSurvivors of the sinking drifted for five hours before being rescued.

ww2dbaseSources: Imperial Japanese Navy Page, Requiem for Battleship Yamato.

Last Major Revision: Feb 2006




Did you enjoy this article? Please consider supporting us on Patreon. Even $1 per month will go a long way! Thank you.

Share this article with your friends:

 Facebook
 Reddit
 Twitter

Stay updated with WW2DB:

 RSS Feeds



Posting Your Comments on this Topic

Your Name
Your Email
 Your email will not be published
Comment Type
Your Comments
Security Code
 
 

Note: We hope that visitor conversations at WW2DB will be constructive and thought-provoking. Please refrain from using strong language. HTML tags are not allowed. Your IP address will be tracked even if you remain anonymous. WW2DB site administrators reserve the right to moderate, censor, and/or remove any comment. All comment submissions will become the property of WW2DB.
Search WW2DB & Partner Sites
More on Hamakaze
Event(s) Participated:
» Okinawa Campaign

Random Photograph

Smoke rising after German aerial bombardment, Stalingrad, Russia, Oct 1942




Current Site Statistics

Famous WW2 Quote
"With Germany arming at breakneck speed, England lost in a pacifist dream, France corrupt and torn by dissension, America remote and indifferent... do you not tremble for your children?"

Winston Churchill, 1935