Japan, 1943-45. 15 fleet aicraft carriers planned IJN Unryū, Amagi, Katsuragi, Kasagi, 5005, Aso, Ikoma, Kurama, Kaimon, 5010-5015. The Unryū class, last IJN fleet carriers IJN Unryu in yard trials, Yokosuka, 16 July 1944. The only operational carrier of the whole class (August-December 1944). Colorized by irootoko Jr. The six Unryū class fleet aircraft carriers … Read more
Light, Heavy and Specialized Imperial Japanese Cruisers of WW2. The fleet’s spearhead In December 1941, the most valuable asset of the Imperial Japanese Navy, after the aircraft carriers of the combined 1st air force (Kido Butai), were its Cruisers. Indeed, contrary to the older, slower battleships, cruisers were built along along the interwar and perfected … Read more
Heavy Cruisers Katori, Kashima, Kashii. The IJN school cruisers The three Katori class light cruisers, Katori, Kashima and Kashii had been designed as training cruisers in peacetime, that could take on in wartime the role of destroyers and submarine leaders. Design-wise they were short but beamy, slow, under-armed, and regarded in general of low military … Read more
Imperial Japanese Navy, 1923-44. IJN Sendai, Jintsū, Naka (+Kako, Ayase, Minase, Otonase, unnamed- cancelled) The “four pipers” light cruisers The cruisers of the Sendai class were very close in their general design compared to the previous Nagara, but with larger dimensions, new machinery for greater speed traduced in a new funnel. The fourth of the … Read more
IJN Heavy Cruiser 1942-45: Oyodo, Niyodo (cancelled), 11 more. The last IJN cruiser She was the last cruiser class of the Imperial Japanese Empire (the fourth Agano class was really the last one), and by extension, the last Japanese cruiser since none was built since in the JMSDF. Initially designed she was designed as a … Read more
light Cruisers Agano, Noshiro, Yahagi, Sakawa The last IJN light cruisers The Agano class (阿賀野型軽巡洋艦) were the last Japanese light cruiser built in Japan, before the larger Oyodo class, mostly cancelled. But they arrived late in the war: The fourth, IJN Sakawa, was only completed in December 1944, very last Japanese cruiser since shipyards were … Read more
IJN armoured aircraft carrier. The world’s largest aircraft carrier The third member of the Yamato super-battleships, IJN Shinano (信濃 – A province in Central Japan) had an uncertain fate before it was decided to convert her as an aicraft carrier, capitalizing on the best armoured hull in the world at the time, and record displacement. … Read more
Imperial Japanese Navy, 1936-44. IJN Chitose, IJN chiyoda Convertible seaplane tenders with a short career The Chitose class were started 1934 and 1936 as “cheats” towards international naval treaties, designed as seaplane tenders but at the start modular enough to be quickly converted as light aircraft carriers in wartime. As such, both in service as … Read more
Imperial Japanese Navy, Fleet Armoured Aircraft Carrier 1941-44. The Imperial Japanese Navy Taihō was a modern Fleet Aircraft Carrier designed as a successor to the Zuikaku class (1940). She was designed to give a quatitative edge to the Japanese, just as Yamato was for capital ships. As the head of a planned serie, IJN Taiho … Read more
Japan, 1938-45: IJN Jun’yō, Hiyō The first IJN converted liners Jun’yō (隼鷹, “Peregrine Falcon”) and Hiyō (飛鷹, “Flying Hawk”) were two Hiyō-class aircraft carriers of the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN). They were started before the war as the passenger liner Kashiwara Maru and Izumo Maru, respectively, but both were purchased by the IJN in 1941 … Read more
