JDS ''Harukaze'' (DD-101) was the

lead ship The lead ship, name ship, or class leader is the first of a series or class of ships all constructed according to the same general design. The term is applicable to naval ships and large civilian vessels. Large ships are very complex and may ...

Harukaze-class destroyer The ''Harukaze''-class destroyer was the first indigenous post-World War II Japanese destroyer class. Its main mission was anti-submarine warfare. Almost all equipment was supplied from the United States according to the U.S. and Japan Mutual Def ...

s, and the first destroyer of the

Japanese Maritime Self Defense Force , abbreviated , also simply known as the Japanese Navy, is the maritime warfare branch of the Japan Self-Defense Forces, tasked with the naval defense of Japan. The JMSDF was formed following the dissolution of the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) ...

to be built in

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

since the end of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

Construction and career

The ship was laid down at the Mitsubishi shipyard in

Nagasaki is the capital and the largest city of Nagasaki Prefecture on the island of Kyushu in Japan. It became the sole port used for trade with the Portuguese and Dutch during the 16th through 19th centuries. The Hidden Christian Sites in the ...

on 15 December 1954, launched on 20 September 1955 and commissioned on 26 April 1956 with the

hull number Hull number is a serial identification number given to a boat or ship. For the military, a lower number implies an older vessel. For civilian use, the HIN is used to trace the boat's history. The precise usage varies by country and type. United S ...

(DD-101). She was put into service on April 26, and was incorporated into the Sasebo District Force. On April 1, 1957, it was incorporated into the 2nd Escort Group as a flagship. From January 14 to February 25, 1958, the Maritime Self-Defense Force's first pelagic training voyage to

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...

was carried out by the training fleet, participating as a flagship, from August 6 to October 10 of the same year. He also participated as a

flagship A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of naval ships, characteristically a flag officer entitled by custom to fly a distinguishing flag. Used more loosely, it is the lead ship in a fleet of vessels, typically the fi ...

in the second pelagic training voyage to

and

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held on the same day. At the time of regular repairs carried out in March of the same year, the 5-inch gun fire control system was replaced from Mk.51 with a Swiss contrabass fire control system. In addition, on April 1, the same year, it was incorporated into the 1st Escort Group as a flagship, and her homeport was transferred to

Yokosuka is a city in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. , the city has a population of 409,478, and a population density of . The total area is . Yokosuka is the 11th most populous city in the Greater Tokyo Area, and the 12th in the Kantō region. The city ...

. From January 20 to March 20, 1959, a large-scale armament repair was carried out at Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Nagasaki Shipyard & Machinery Works, and four rear depth charge projectors and one depth charge projection rail were removed. Equipped with one Mk2 short torpedo depth charge on each side. The anti-submarine active sonar was changed from QHBa to SQS-11A, and the passive sonar was changed from QDA to SQR-4 / SQA-4. In addition, construction work was carried out, such as the installation of a new identification friend or foe device, the replacement of the electronic warfare device from OLR-3 to OLR-4, and the installation of air conditioning and ventilation equipment in the battle compartment rooms. In February 1960, an offshore refueling device was installed. On February 1, 1961, it was incorporated into the 2nd Escort Group as a flagship, and the fixed port was transferred to Sasebo again. In March 1967, the sonar was replaced with SQS-30. Transferred to the Sasebo District Force on October 15, 1969 (Showa 44). On February 1, 1971, he was transferred to the 12th escort corps, which was newly formed under the 3rd escort corps group, together with

JDS Yukikaze JDS ''Yukikaze'' (DD-102) was the second ship of Harukaze-class destroyers, and the second destroyer of the Japanese Maritime Self Defense Force to be built in Japan since the end of World War II. Construction and career The ship was laid dow ...

. This was the first time that both ships had formed an escort. On December 16, 1973, the 12th Escort Corps was abolished, and it was transferred to the 1st Submarine Corps as a ship under direct control, and the fixed port was also transferred to Wu. In order to engage in submarine training support missions, the stern depth charge projector and depth charge drop rails were removed, and training torpedo collection dabits and torpedo loading mounts were installed. On March 27, 1981, she was changed to a training auxiliary ship, and the ship hull number was changed to (ASU-7002). She was decommissioned on March 5, 1985. Until November 2001, it was moored and stored at the Maritime Self-Defense Force 1st Service School as a special pier, but it was sold due to significant damage caused by salt damage, and it was dismantled after leaving the area on the 19th of the same month.

Gallery

File:JDS Harukaze.jpg File:JS Harukaze (DD-101).png File:JapanesedestroyerHarukaze002.JPG, JDS ''Harukaze'' as a

training ship A training ship is a ship used to train students as sailors. The term is mostly used to describe ships employed by navies to train future officers. Essentially there are two types: those used for training at sea and old hulks used to house classr ...

on 5 December 2000

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Harukaze 1955 ships Harukaze-class destroyers Harukaze