JDS ''Fushimi'' (ASR-402) was a

submarine rescue ship A submarine rescue ship is a surface support ship for submarine rescue and deep-sea salvage operations. Methods employed include the McCann Rescue Chamber, deep-submergence rescue vehicles (DSRV's) and diving operations. List of active subm ...

Japan 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) ...

Development and design

The Maritime Self-Defense Force built JDS Chihaya in the 1959 and started the operation of the submarine rescue ship. At that time, the Maritime Self-Defense Force's submarines were centrally deployed at the

Kure is a port and major shipbuilding city situated on the Seto Inland Sea in Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan. With a strong industrial and naval heritage, Kure hosts the second-oldest naval dockyard in Japan and remains an important base for the Japan M ...

base, and the ship also supported the submarine unit with Kure as its home port. However, after that, as the number of submarine units increased, a submarine base was also set up at

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 ...

base, so this ship was built as a second submarine rescue ship to be deployed here. This ship is basically an advanced version of JDS Chihaya, but it was said that some parts have been forced to down due to lack of budget. Similar to JDS Chihaya, the design method is a commercial ship structure because of the need for cost reduction, and the ship type is an obstruction deck type with a two-layer deck, but there are two chimneys. It was also equipped with an anti-sway tank (ART) to facilitate offshore work. As the main engine, Kawasaki Shipyard MAN V6 V22 / 30ATL diesel engine, which is a V-type 6-cylinder engine linked to the lineage of the VV22 / 30 series that was common in auxiliary ships of this period, propels one propeller axis. The same goes for the propeller being a variable-pitch propeller.

Construction and career

''Fushimi'' was

laid down Laying the keel or laying down is the formal recognition of the start of a ship's construction. It is often marked with a ceremony attended by dignitaries from the shipbuilding company and the ultimate owners of the ship. Keel laying is one o ...

on 5 November 1968 at

Sumitomo Heavy Industries (SHI) is an integrated manufacturer of industrial machinery, automatic weaponry, ships, bridges and steel structure, equipment for environmental protection, including recycling, power transmission equipment, plastic molding machines, laser proces ...

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 ...

and launched on 10 September 1969. The vessel was commissioned on 10 February 1970. On 16 October 1973, the 2nd Submarine Group was newly formed under the Self-Defense Fleet and was incorporated as a ship under direct control. On 27 March 1985, JDS Chihaya belonging to the 1st Submarine Group was changed to a special service ship, so it was reorganized into the same group and the homeport was also transferred to

. On 24 March 2000, she was decommissioned due to the commissioning of

JS Chihaya JS ''Chihaya'' (ASR-403) is a submarine rescue ship of Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force. Development and design She was built as a replacement for the dilapidated . In terms of design, it is said to be an expanded and improved version of th ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fushimi (ASR-402) 1969 ships Ships built by Sumitomo Heavy Industries Auxiliary ships of the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force Submarine rescue ships