Nissan Maru
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''Nissan Maru'' () was a Japanese cargo ship completed in 1939 owned by
Nissan Kisen K.K. , trading as Nissan Motor Corporation and often shortened to Nissan, is a Japanese multinational automobile manufacturer headquartered in Nishi-ku, Yokohama, Japan. The company sells its vehicles under the Nissan, Infiniti, and Datsun brands, ...
that was requisitioned for service as an auxiliary collier and oiler by 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 ...
during
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 ...
. She served with the
5th Fleet The Fifth Fleet is a numbered fleet of the United States Navy. It has been responsible for naval forces in the Persian Gulf, Red Sea, Arabian Sea, and parts of the Indian Ocean since 1995 after a 48-year hiatus. It shares a commander and headq ...
and was sunk by
United States Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...
bombers during the
Japanese occupation of Kiska The Japanese occupation of Kiska took place between 6 June 1942 and 28 July 1943 during the Aleutian Islands Campaign of the American Theater and the Pacific Theater of World War II. The Japanese occupied Kiska and nearby Attu Island in orde ...
in the Aleutian Islands Campaign.


Building and civilian service

The vessel was laid down on 30 June 1938 by the
Osaka Iron Works is a major Japanese industrial and engineering corporation. It produces waste treatment plants, industrial plants, precision machinery, industrial machinery, steel mill process equipment, steel structures, Heavy equipment (construction), construc ...
at its shipyard for Nissan Kisen K.K.. Launched on 6 November of that year and named ''Nissan Maru'', she was completed and registered at
Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...
on 15 January 1939. ''Nissan Maru'' was a 6,534 GRT cargo ship with a
net register tonnage Net register tonnage (NRT, nrt, n.r.t.) is a ship's cargo volume capacity expressed in "register tons", one of which equals to a volume of . It is calculated by subtracting non-revenue-earning spaces i.e. spaces not available for carrying cargo, ...
of 3,887. She was equipped with a direction finder, and had two decks with a
cruiser stern The stern is the back or aft-most part of a ship or boat, technically defined as the area built up over the sternpost, extending upwards from the counter rail to the taffrail. The stern lies opposite the bow (ship), bow, the foremost part of a ...
. She had a length of 424.1 feet, a beam of 57.4 feet, and a depth of 34.4 feet. The ship was powered by two oil-burning
Hitachi () is a Japanese multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate corporation headquartered in Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan. It is the parent company of the Hitachi Group (''Hitachi Gurūpu'') and had formed part of the Ni ...
steam turbines double reduction geared to one screw shaft rated at 500
NHP Horsepower (hp) is a unit of measurement of power, or the rate at which work is done, usually in reference to the output of engines or motors. There are many different standards and types of horsepower. Two common definitions used today are the ...
. On 19 July 1939, while steaming down the
Huangpu River The Huangpu (), formerly romanized as Whangpoo, is a river flowing north through Shanghai. The Bund and Lujiazui are located along the Huangpu River. The Huangpu is the biggest river in central Shanghai, with the Suzhou Creek being its maj ...
at
Shanghai Shanghai (; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four direct-administered municipalities of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the Huangpu River flow ...
, she suffered a twisted bow after colliding with the SS ''President Coolidge'' while the latter was tied up at a pier. No injuries occurred on either ship.


Military service

On 9 September 1941, as Japan prepared to enter
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 ...
, ''Nissan Maru'' was requisitioned by 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 ...
. She became an auxiliary collier and oiler attached to the
Maizuru Naval District was one of four main administrative districts of the pre-war Imperial Japanese Navy. Its territory included the entire Sea of Japan coastline from northern Kyūshū to western Hokkaidō. History The strategic importance of the location of Maizur ...
, homeported at
Maizuru is a city in Kyoto Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 78,644 in 34817 households and a population density of 230 persons per km². The total area of the city is . Geography Maizuru is located in northern Kyoto Pref ...
on 20 September. On the same day the auxiliary was assigned to the
5th Fleet The Fifth Fleet is a numbered fleet of the United States Navy. It has been responsible for naval forces in the Persian Gulf, Red Sea, Arabian Sea, and parts of the Indian Ocean since 1995 after a 48-year hiatus. It shares a commander and headq ...
, and Captain Sakuma Takao was appointed its supervisor. The vessel began conversion to military service on 24 September at the Osaka Iron Works shipyard; the conversion was finished on 15 October. On 25 November Sakuma was relieved by Captain Naotsuka Hachiro, and on the next day she departed
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 ...
. ''Nissan Maru'' spent the next months on duty around
Hokkaido is Japan's second largest island and comprises the largest and northernmost prefecture, making up its own region. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaidō from Honshu; the two islands are connected by the undersea railway Seikan Tunnel. The la ...
and the
Kuriles The Kuril Islands or Kurile Islands (; rus, Кури́льские острова́, r=Kuril'skiye ostrova, p=kʊˈrʲilʲskʲɪjə ɐstrɐˈva; Japanese: or ) are a volcanic archipelago currently administered as part of Sakhalin Oblast in the ...
, before arriving at
Chichijima , native_name_link = , image_caption = Map of Chichijima, Anijima and Otoutojima , image_size = , pushpin_map = Japan complete , pushpin_label = Chichijima , pushpin_label_position = , pushpin_map_alt = , ...
on 23 January 1942. On 28 January she returned to Yokosuka, before being assigned to supply the Aleutian Islands Campaign invasion force on 1 February. On 7 March she was assigned to transport ammunition by the 5th Fleet, with an additional personnel transport mission being added on 17 March. In April she was fitted with fourteen
Daihatsu-class landing craft The was a type of landing craft used by the Imperial Japanese Army from 1937 to 1945, in the Second Sino-Japanese War and World War II. It was designated the "Type A" landing craft by the United States. History Daihatsu-class Landing Craft (大 ...
, as well as a rangefinder and related equipment in May. On 5 May ''Nissan Maru'' was assigned to the operation for the seizure of Attu and
Kiska Kiska ( ale, Qisxa, russian: Кыска) is one of the Rat Islands, a group of the Aleutian Islands of Alaska. It is about long and varies in width from . It is part of Aleutian Islands Wilderness and as such, special permission is required ...
; Naotsuka was relieved by Captain Ishii Saburo on 15 May. She arrived at
Mutsu Bay is a bay located within Aomori Prefecture, in the northern Tōhoku region of northern Japan. It has an east-west distance of approximately and a north-south distance of approximately at its eastern end, with a total area of approximately . ...
in preparation for the invasion on 22 May, but was transferred to Kawauchi Bay on 26 May. She was briefly diverted to the Kuriles, and unloaded 200 tons of coal at Attu on 10 June. ''Nissan Maru'' arrived at Kiska on 12 June and unloaded her cargo. At 08:30 on 15 June, still at Kiska, she was heavily damaged by several bomb hits during an airstrike of
United States Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...
Eleventh Air Force The Eleventh Air Force (11 AF) is a Numbered Air Force of the United States Air Force Pacific Air Forces (PACAF). It is headquartered at Joint Base Elmendorf–Richardson, Alaska.This unit is not related to the Eleventh Air Force headquarte ...
Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress The Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress is a four-engined heavy bomber developed in the 1930s for the United States Army Air Corps (USAAC). Relatively fast and high-flying for a bomber of its era, the B-17 was used primarily in the European Theater ...
and
Consolidated B-24 Liberator The Consolidated B-24 Liberator is an American heavy bomber, designed by Consolidated Aircraft of San Diego, California. It was known within the company as the Model 32, and some initial production aircraft were laid down as export models des ...
heavy bombers, killing one crewman. She sank in Kiska Harbor at 07:00 on 19 June 1942 after being hit in a 05:00 air strike composed of three B-17s, four B-24s, and one Consolidated LB-30 from the Eleventh Air Force. The mission that sank her was the first combat mission of the 36th Bombardment Squadron, led by Major Russell A. Cone. The wreck of the ''Nissan Maru'' was identified and filmed by the
National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an agency of the United States federal government within the U.S. Department of the Interior that manages all national parks, most national monuments, and other natural, historical, and recreational propertie ...
's Submerged Cultural Resources Unit after the program began in 1989.


References


External links


wrecksite.eu page
{{June 1942 shipwrecks 1938 ships Shipwrecks of the Alaska coast Ships sunk by US aircraft World War II shipwrecks in the Pacific Ocean World War II auxiliary ships of Japan Maritime incidents in June 1942 World War II merchant ships of Japan Ships of the Aleutian Islands campaign Ships built by Osaka Iron Works