, was an admiral in 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 ...

. He commanded Destroyer Squadron 10 which participated in several important naval battles at the

Battle of Midway The Battle of Midway was a major naval battle in the Pacific Theater of World War II that took place on 4–7 June 1942, six months after Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor and one month after the Battle of the Coral Sea. The U.S. Navy under Adm ...

Guadalcanal Campaign The Guadalcanal campaign, also known as the Battle of Guadalcanal and codenamed Operation Watchtower by American forces, was a military campaign fought between 7 August 1942 and 9 February 1943 on and around the island of Guadalcanal in th ...

, and the

Battle of Leyte Gulf The Battle of Leyte Gulf ( fil, Labanan sa golpo ng Leyte, lit=Battle of Leyte gulf; ) was the largest naval battle of World War II and by some criteria the largest naval battle in history, with over 200,000 naval personnel involved. It was fou ...

Biography

Kimura was a native of

Tochigi prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region of Honshu. Tochigi Prefecture has a population of 1,943,886 (1 June 2019) and has a geographic area of 6,408 Square kilometre, km2 (2,474 Square mile, sq mi). Tochigi ...

, and graduated 55th out of 144 cadets in the 40th class of the Imperial Japanese Navy Academy in 1912. He served his

midshipman A midshipman is an officer of the lowest rank, in the Royal Navy, United States Navy, and many Commonwealth navies. Commonwealth countries which use the rank include Canada (Naval Cadet), Australia, Bangladesh, Namibia, New Zealand, South Afr ...

duty on the

cruiser A cruiser is a type of warship. Modern cruisers are generally the largest ships in a fleet after aircraft carriers and amphibious assault ships, and can usually perform several roles. The term "cruiser", which has been in use for several hu ...

''Azuma'' and

battleship A battleship is a large armored warship with a main battery consisting of large caliber guns. It dominated naval warfare in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The term ''battleship'' came into use in the late 1880s to describe a type of ...

''Aki'', and as a sub-lieutenant on ''Tokiwa'', repair ship ''Kantō'', and

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 ...

''Shiratsuyu''. In 1918, he attended the Navy Staff College, where he specialized in

navigation Navigation is a field of study that focuses on the process of monitoring and controlling the movement of a craft or vehicle from one place to another.Bowditch, 2003:799. The field of navigation includes four general categories: land navigation, ...

. After graduation as a lieutenant, he served as chief navigator in the coastal patrol ship ''Matsue'' and destroyer ''Amatsukaze'', becoming

executive officer An executive officer is a person who is principally responsible for leading all or part of an organization, although the exact nature of the role varies depending on the organization. In many militaries and police forces, an executive officer, o ...

on ''Akikaze'' in December 1920. He continued to serve as chief navigator on a wide variety of warships through the 1920s, becoming

lieutenant commander Lieutenant commander (also hyphenated lieutenant-commander and abbreviated Lt Cdr, LtCdr. or LCDR) is a commissioned officer rank in many navies. The rank is superior to a lieutenant and subordinate to a commander. The corresponding rank i ...

in 1925, and executive officer of the heavy cruiser ''Myōkō'' in 1929. Kimura was promoted to

commander Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countries this naval rank is termed frigate captain. ...

in 1930. Kimura’s first command was that of the destroyer in 1933, followed by ''Ushio'' later that year. In 1934, he commanded the 2nd Destroyer Division. After a brief stint as executive officer on ''Iwate'' in 1935, he commanded the 30th Destroyer Division, followed by the 19th Destroyer Division in 1936. Kimura was then appointed captain of the light cruiser ''Sendai'' in 1937, followed by the heavy cruiser ''Mikuma'' in 1939 and ''Haruna'' in 1940. However, at the time of the

attack on Pearl Harbor The attack on Pearl HarborAlso known as the Battle of Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike by the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service upon the United States against the naval base at Pearl Harbor in Honolulu, Territory of Hawaii, j ...

, Kimura was attached to the Imperial Japanese Navy General Staff. In May 1942, Kimura was promoted to

rear admiral Rear admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, equivalent to a major general and air vice marshal and above that of a commodore and captain, but below that of a vice admiral. It is regarded as a two star "admiral" rank. It is often regarde ...

. He commanded the destroyer screening force (Destroyer Squadron 10) at the

, during which time his

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 ...

was the cruiser ''Nagara''. He continued to command Destroyer Squadron 10 into the

(including the Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands and the

Naval Battle of Guadalcanal The Naval Battle of Guadalcanal, sometimes referred to as the Third and Fourth Battles of Savo Island, the Battle of the Solomons, the Battle of Friday the 13th, or, in Japanese sources, the , took place from 12 to 15 November 1942, and was t ...

.) During the

he commanded Destroyer Squadron 10 from the light cruiser ''Yahagi''.Morison. ''History of United States Naval Operations in World War II. Vol. 12: Leyte, June 1944-January 1945'' In December 1944, Kimura became head of the Naval Navigational School. He was promoted to vice admiral in April 1945. Kimura died in 1980 at the age of 86.

References

Books

* * * * *

External links

*
Pacific War On-Line Encyclopedia

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kimura, Susumu 1891 births 1980 deaths Military personnel from Tochigi Prefecture Battle of Midway Japanese admirals of World War II Imperial Japanese Navy admirals