The Japanese torpedo boat ''Hiyodori'' was an of the

Imperial Japanese Navy The Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN; Kyūjitai: Shinjitai: ' 'Navy of the Greater Japanese Empire', or ''Nippon Kaigun'', 'Japanese Navy') was the navy of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945, when it was dissolved following Japan's surrender ...

, built for escort and

anti-submarine An anti-submarine weapon (ASW) is any one of a number of devices that are intended to act against a submarine and its crew, to destroy (sink) the vessel or reduce its capability as a weapon of war. In its simplest sense, an anti-submarine weapo ...

duties. Although classified as a torpedo boat, she was large enough to be considered a small

destroyer In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast, manoeuvrable, long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against powerful short range attackers. They were originally developed in ...

or a fast escort. She was the third ship of her class to be completedWatts, Anthony J., Gordon, Brian G. ''The Imperial Japanese Navy'', (Garden City, NY: Doubleday & Company Inc.), pp. 279 and served in the

Second Sino-Japanese War The Second Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945) or War of Resistance (Chinese term) was a military conflict that was primarily waged between the Republic of China and the Empire of Japan. The war made up the Chinese theater of the wider Pacific Th ...

and the

Second World War 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 ...

Design and description

Since the ''Otori'' class was designed and built with the harsh lessons learned from the ''Tomozuru'' and Fourth Fleet incidents,Evans, David C. & Peattie, Mark R. ''Kaigun: Strategy, Tactics and Technology in the Imperial Japanese Navy 1887-1941'' (Annapolis, MD: Naval Institute Press, 1997), pp. 244 ''Hiyodori'' benefited from having both a considerably powerful armament and far greater stability. The stability was provided with a lower

bridge A bridge is a structure built to span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or rail) without blocking the way underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, which is usually somethi ...

level, less armament and protection (in the case of gun shields) and a keel ballast. Upon launch, ''Hiyodori''s armament was the same as that of her sister-ships, distinguished by a set of three

torpedo tubes A torpedo tube is a cylindrical device for launching torpedoes. There are two main types of torpedo tube: underwater tubes fitted to submarines and some surface ships, and deck-mounted units (also referred to as torpedo launchers) installed aboa ...

amidships, three 12 cm guns and a single 40 mm Vickers machine gun. In 1944, ''Hiyodori'' and the surviving ships of the ''Otori'' class had their aft 12 cm gun and their single 40 mm Vickers gun replaced with several 25 mm anti-aircraft mounted in five single mounts and three twin mounts, granting her a total of 11 machine guns. The paravanes were also replaced with additional

depth charge A depth charge is an anti-submarine warfare (ASW) weapon. It is intended to destroy a submarine by being dropped into the water nearby and detonating, subjecting the target to a powerful and destructive Shock factor, hydraulic shock. Most depth ...

s and depth-charge throwers, bringing the total number of depth charges on board to 48, and her standard displacement to 1,043 tonnes.

Service career

''Hiyodori'' was first assigned to the 15th Escort Squadron of the Second China Expeditionary Fleet following its completion on 20 December 1936,Watts, Anthony J., Gordon, Brian G. ''The Imperial Japanese Navy'', (Garden City, NY: Doubleday & Company Inc.), pp. 279 Nevitt, Allyn D. "IJN Hiyodori: Tabular Record of Movements", IJN Hiyodori, Long Lancers, last modified 2 May 1998, http://www.combinedfleet.com/hiyodo_t.htm and later taking part in the

. ''Hiyodori'' began the Second World War with the Hong Kong Invasion Force. Following the successful invasion of

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...

, ''Hiyodori'' patrolled the Chinese coast from December 1941 to August 1942. During this time, the 15th Escort Squadron was deactivated and ''Hiyodori'' was transferred under the direct command of the Second Chinese Expeditionary Fleet, with which ''Hiyodori'' would spend the rest of the war escorting convoys in the Pacific. On 16 February 1943, ''Hiyodori'' and the

submarine chaser A submarine chaser or subchaser is a small naval vessel that is specifically intended for anti-submarine warfare. Many of the American submarine chasers used in World War I found their way to Allied nations by way of Lend-Lease in World War II. ...

''No. 18'' detected and sank . While escorting a convoy from

Manila Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is highly urbanized and, as of 2019, was the world's most densely populate ...

Brunei Brunei ( , ), formally Brunei Darussalam ( ms, Negara Brunei Darussalam, Jawi alphabet, Jawi: , ), is a country located on the north coast of the island of Borneo in Southeast Asia. Apart from its South China Sea coast, it is completely sur ...

in late October 1944, ''Hiyodori'' assisted the destroyer in the inspection of the derelict on 24 October 1944. On 17 November 1944, ''Hiyodori'' was sunk by east northeast of Cape Tourane.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hiyodori Ōtori-class torpedo boats Torpedo boats of the Imperial Japanese Navy Second Sino-Japanese War naval ships of Japan World War II naval ships of Japan Ships built by IHI Corporation