The were a class of
destroyer
In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast, maneuverable, long-endurance warship intended to escort
larger vessels in a fleet, convoy, or carrier battle group and defend them against a wide range of general threats. They were conceived i ...
built for 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, Potsdam Declaration, when it was dissolved followin ...
(IJN) in the late stages of
World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
. The class was also designated the . Although sometimes termed
Destroyer escort
Destroyer escort (DE) was the United States Navy mid-20th-century classification for a warship designed with the endurance necessary to escort mid-ocean convoys of merchant marine ships.
Development of the destroyer escort was promoted by th ...
s, they were larger and more capable than contemporary
United States Navy
The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...
destroyer escorts or the Imperial Japanese Navy ''
kaibōkan
or coastal defense ship was a type of naval ship used by the Imperial Japanese Navy during World War II for escort duty and coastal defense. The term escort ship was used by the United States Navy to describe this category of Japanese ships ...
'' vessels.
Background
Even by 1942, the
Imperial Japanese Navy General Staff
The was the highest organ within the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN). In charge of planning and operations, it was headed by an Admiral headquartered in Tokyo.
History
Created in 1893, the Navy General Staff took over operational (as opposed to a ...
realized that attrition of its destroyer force was not sustainable. There was a growing need for a simplified design which could be quickly mass-produced, and which could serve primarily as
convoy
A convoy is a group of vehicles, typically motor vehicles or ships, traveling together for mutual support and protection. Often, a convoy is organized with armed defensive support and can help maintain cohesion within a unit. It may also be used ...
escorts and as destroyer-transports in front-line locations, but would still be capable of working with the fleet if necessary. Emphasis was placed on
anti-aircraft
Anti-aircraft warfare (AAW) is the counter to aerial warfare and includes "all measures designed to nullify or reduce the effectiveness of hostile air action".AAP-6 It encompasses surface-based, subsurface ( submarine-launched), and air-ba ...
guns 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 weapon ...
weapons, and
radar
Radar is a system that uses radio waves to determine the distance ('' ranging''), direction ( azimuth and elevation angles), and radial velocity of objects relative to the site. It is a radiodetermination method used to detect and track ...
, as operations against surface targets was deemed unlikely. Forty-two vessels were ordered and work began in August 1943.
In the middle of 1944, the orders for twenty-four of these vessels were replaced with a further-simplified design, designated the or . The ''Tachibana''-class had straight lines and a modular construction to facilitate mass-production. The Imperial Japanese Navy had plans to build another hundred and twelve ''Tachibana''-class vessels, but only fourteen were completed before construction was cancelled, with resources diverted to
"special-attack units".
Design and description
Designed for ease of production, the ''Matsu'' class was smaller, slower and more lightly armed than previous destroyers as the IJN intended them for second-line duties like escorting convoys, releasing the larger ships for missions with the fleet. The ships measured long
overall
Overalls or bib-and-brace overalls, also called dungarees in British English, are a type of garment usually used as protective clothing when working. The garments are commonly referred to as a "pair of overalls" by analogy with "pair of trousers ...
, with a
beam of and a
draft
Draft, the draft, or draught may refer to:
Watercraft dimensions
* Draft (hull), the distance from waterline to keel of a vessel
* Draft (sail), degree of curvature in a sail
* Air draft, distance from waterline to the highest point on a v ...
of .
[Sturton, p. 196] Their crew numbered 210 officers and enlisted men. They displaced at
standard Standard may refer to:
Symbols
* Colours, standards and guidons, kinds of military signs
* Standard (emblem), a type of a large symbol or emblem used for identification
Norms, conventions or requirements
* Standard (metrology), an object ...
load and at deep load.
[Whitley, p. 206] The ships had two
Kampon
The was the externally operating division of the Ministry of the Navy of Japan responsible for the administration of naval vessel construction. From 1923 onward, it took on the role of a research institution for the research and development of n ...
geared
steam turbine
A steam turbine or steam turbine engine is a machine or heat engine that extracts thermal energy from pressurized steam and uses it to do mechanical work utilising a rotating output shaft. Its modern manifestation was invented by Sir Charles Par ...
s, each driving one
propeller shaft
A drive shaft, driveshaft, driving shaft, tailshaft (Australian English), propeller shaft (prop shaft), or Cardan shaft (after Girolamo Cardano) is a component for transmitting mechanical power, torque, and rotation, usually used to connect o ...
, using steam provided by two Kampon
water-tube boiler
A high pressure watertube boiler (also spelled water-tube and water tube) is a type of boiler in which water circulates in tubes heated externally by fire. Fuel is burned inside the furnace, creating hot gas which boils water in the steam-generat ...
s. The turbines were rated at a total of for a speed of . The ''Matsu''s had a range of at .
[Jentschura, Jung & Mickel, p. 151]
The main armament of the ''Matsu''-class ships consisted of three
Type 89 dual-purpose gun
A dual-purpose gun is a naval artillery mounting designed to engage both surface and air targets.
Description
Second World War-era capital ships had four classes of artillery: the heavy main battery, intended to engage opposing battleships and ...
s in one twin-gun mount aft and one single mount forward of the
superstructure
A superstructure is an upward extension of an existing structure above a baseline. This term is applied to various kinds of physical structures such as buildings, bridges, or ships.
Aboard ships and large boats
On water craft, the superstruct ...
. The single mount was partially protected against
spray
Spray or spraying commonly refer to:
* Spray (liquid drop)
** Aerosol spray
** Blood spray
** Hair spray
** Nasal spray
** Pepper spray
** PAVA spray
** Road spray or tire spray, road debris kicked up from a vehicle tire
** Sea spray, refers to ...
by a
gun shield
A U.S. Marine manning an M240 machine gun equipped with a gun shield
A gun shield is a flat (or sometimes curved) piece of armor designed to be mounted on a crew-served weapon such as a machine gun, automatic grenade launcher, or artillery pie ...
. The accuracy of the Type 89 guns was severely reduced against aircraft because no high-angle gunnery
director
Director may refer to:
Literature
* ''Director'' (magazine), a British magazine
* ''The Director'' (novel), a 1971 novel by Henry Denker
* ''The Director'' (play), a 2000 play by Nancy Hasty
Music
* Director (band), an Irish rock band
* ''D ...
was fitted. The ships carried a total of 20
Type 96 anti-aircraft gun
Anti-aircraft warfare (AAW) is the counter to aerial warfare and includes "all measures designed to nullify or reduce the effectiveness of hostile air action".AAP-6 It encompasses surface-based, subsurface ( submarine-launched), and air-ba ...
s in four triple and eight single mounts. The ''Matsu''s were equipped with a
Type 22 surface-
search radar
This is a list of different types of radar.
Detection and search radars
Search radars scan great volumes of space with pulses of short radio waves. They typically scan the volume two to four times a minute. The radio waves are usually less than a ...
.
[Stille, p. 41] The ships were also armed with a single rotating quadruple mount
amidships for
torpedo
A modern torpedo is an underwater ranged weapon launched above or below the water surface, self-propelled towards a target, with an explosive warhead designed to detonate either on contact with or in proximity to the target. Historically, such ...
es. They could deliver their 36
depth charge
A depth charge is an anti-submarine warfare (ASW) weapon designed to destroy submarine
A submarine (often shortened to sub) is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. (It differs from a submersible, which has more limited ...
s via two stern rails and two throwers.
[
The early ships of the class probably were not initially fitted with a Type 13 ]early-warning radar
An early-warning radar is any radar system used primarily for the long-range detection of its targets, i.e., allowing defences to be alerted as ''early'' as possible before the intruder reaches its target, giving the air defences the maximum tim ...
. The radar and five additional 25 mm guns on single mounts were generally installed in late 1944.[
The ''Tachibana''-class, entering service in 1945, had the same armament as the ''Matsu''-class, but initially with 13 single-mount Type 96s instead of eight. This was later increased to as many as 19. Only one vessel, , was modified to launch a single '']kaiten
were crewed torpedoes and suicide attack, suicide craft, used by the Imperial Japanese Navy in the final stages of World War II.
Background
In recognition of the unfavorable progress of the war, towards the end of 1943 the Japanese high co ...
'' manned torpedo from her stern, although there were plans to convert another 11 to this configuration just before the war came to an end.
Operational history
''Matsu''-class destroyers were assigned to Destroyer Divisions 43, 52, and 53. Few ''Matsu''-class units saw extensive service beyond Japanese home waters, and none of the ''Tachibana''-class did.
''Matsu'' and ''Tachibana'' classes comparison
Ships of the classes
Forty-two vessels were ordered in Fiscal Year 1943 under the Modified 5th Naval Armaments Supplement Programme as #5481-#5522. Eighteen of these were completed to the original ''Matsu'' design, but the other twenty-four were altered to a modified (simplified) design which became known as the ''Tachibana'' class. Eight of this batch were completed to that design, while orders for sixteen were subsequently cancelled (of which eleven had not been laid down).
Another thirty-two vessels were authorised in Fiscal Year 1944 under the Wartime Naval Armaments Supplement Programme as #4801-#4832, all to the ''Tachibana'' design. Six of this batch were completed to that design, while another four were ordered and laid down but were subsequently cancelled on 17 April 1945; the remaining twenty-two were never ordered.
A further eighty vessels were projected in Fiscal Year 1945 to a further modification of the design, known as the ''Kai-Tachibana'' class, but no orders were placed before the end of the war brought an end to the programme.
Notes
Bibliography
*
*'', History of Pacific War Vol.43 Matsu class destroyers'', Gakken
is a Japanese publishing company founded in 1947 by Hideto Furuoka, which also produces educational toys. Their annual sales are reported at ¥ 90 billion ($789 million US).
Gakken publishes educational books and magazines and produces othe ...
(Japan), November 2003,
*'', History of Pacific War Vol.51 The truth of Imperial Japanese Vessels Histories 2'', Gakken
is a Japanese publishing company founded in 1947 by Hideto Furuoka, which also produces educational toys. Their annual sales are reported at ¥ 90 billion ($789 million US).
Gakken publishes educational books and magazines and produces othe ...
(Japan), August 2005,
*''Collection of writings by Sizuo Fukui Vol.5, Stories of Japanese Destroyers'', Kōjinsha (Japan) 1993,
*''Model Art Extra No.340, Drawings of Imperial Japanese Naval Vessels Part-1'', Model Art Co. Ltd. (Japan), October 1989, Book code 08734–10
*Daiji Katagiri, ''Ship Name Chronicles of the Imperial Japanese Navy Combined Fleet
The was the main sea-going component of the Imperial Japanese Navy. Until 1933, the Combined Fleet was not a permanent organization, but a temporary force formed for the duration of a conflict or major naval maneuvers from various units norm ...
'', Kōjinsha (Japan), June 1988,
*''The Maru Special, Japanese Naval Vessels No.41 Japanese Destroyers I'', Ushio Shobō (Japan), July 1980, Book code 68343–42
*Fitzsimons, Bernard, general editor. ''Illustrated Encyclopedia of Weapons and Warfare'', Volume 17, p. 1854, "''Matsu''". London: Phoebus Publishing, 1978.
*
*
External links
Matsu class at CombinedFleet.com
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Matsu Class Destroyer
Destroyer classes