Japanese submarine Ro-15
 Submarine No. 24 during the early 1920s, sometime before her name was changed to Ro-15 on 1 November 1924.
| |
| History | |
|---|---|
 Japan | |
| Name | Submarine No. 24 |
| Builder | Kure Naval Arsenal, Kure, Japan |
| Laid down | 12 June 1920 |
| Launched | 14 October 1920 |
| Completed | 30 June 1921 |
| Commissioned | 30 June 1921 |
| Renamed | Ro-15 on 1 November 1924 |
| Stricken | 1 September 1933 |
| Renamed | Training Hulk No. 3036 on 7 March 1934 |
| Fate |
|
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type | Kaichū type submarine (K2 subclass) |
| Displacement |
|
| Length | 70.10 m (230 ft 0 in) overall |
| Beam | 6.10 m (20 ft 0 in) |
| Draft | 3.68 m (12 ft 1 in) |
| Installed power |
|
| Propulsion |
|
| Speed |
|
| Range |
|
| Test depth | 30 m (98 ft) |
| Crew | 43 |
| Armament |
|
Ro-15, originally named Submarine No. 24, was an Imperial Japanese Navy Kaichū-Type submarine of the Kaichū II subclass. She was commissioned in 1921 and operated in the waters of Japan. She was stricken in 1933.
Design and description
[edit]The submarines of the Kaichu II sub-class were larger and had a greater range than the preceding Kaichu I subclass, but they had the same powerplant, so their greater size resulted in a loss of some speed.[1] They also had a modified conning tower, bow, and stern, and the stern was overhanging.[1] They displaced 752 tonnes (740 long tons) surfaced and 1,019 tonnes (1,003.1 long tons) submerged. The submarines were 70.10 meters (230 ft 0 in) long and had a beam of 6.10 meters (20 ft 0 in) and a draft of 3.68 meters (12 ft 1 in). They had a diving depth of 30 meters (98 ft).
For surface running, the submarines were powered by two 1,450-brake-horsepower (1,081 kW) Sulzer Mark II diesel engines, each driving one propeller shaft. When submerged each propeller was driven by a 600-horsepower (447 kW) electric motor. They could reach 16.5 knots (31 km/h; 19 mph) on the surface and 8.5 knots (15.7 km/h; 9.8 mph) underwater. On the surface, they had a range of 6,000 nautical miles (11,000 km; 6,900 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph); submerged, they had a range of 85 nmi (157 km; 98 mi) at 4 knots (7.4 km/h; 4.6 mph).
The submarines were armed with six 450 mm (18 in) torpedo tubes, four internal tubes in the bow and two external tubes mounted on the upper deck, and carried a total of ten Type 44 torpedoes. They were also armed with a single 76.2 mm (3.00 in) deck gun mounted aft of the conning tower.[1]
Construction and commissioning
[edit]Ro-15 was laid down as Submarine No. 24 on 12 June 1920 by the Kure Naval Arsenal at Kure, Japan.[2] Launched on 14 October 1920,[2] she was completed and commissioned on 30 June 1921.[2]
Service history
[edit]Upon commissioning, Submarine No. 24 was attached to the Kure Naval District, to which she remained attached throughout her career.[2] She was assigned to Submarine Division 15 — in which she spent the rest of her career — and to the Kure Defense Division on 1 July 1921.[2] On 19 July 1921, a fire broke out in her galley due to faulty electrical wiring and spread to the adjacent torpedo room.[3] She was flooded to extinguish it, but not before much of her interior was burned out.[3] There were no casualties,[3] and she was repaired and returned to service.
Submarine Division 15 served in the Kure Defense Division until 1 December 1921 and again from 1 December 1922 to 1 December 1923.[2] While cruising off Moji, Japan, on 29 July 1924, Submarine No. 24 collided with a steamer, suffering no casualties.[4]
Submarine No. 24 was renamed Ro-15 on 1 November 1924.[2] On 1 December 1926, Submarine Division 15 began another assignment to the Kure Defense Division that lasted through the end of Ro-15′s active service.[2]
Ro-15 was stricken from the Navy list on 1 September 1933.[2] She remained moored at Kure as a hulk after that, and was renamed Training Hulk No. 3036 on 7 March 1934.[2] She served on training duties through the end of World War II in August 1945, and was scrapped in September 1948.[2]
Notes
[edit]- ^ a b c Gray, Randal, ed., Conway′s All the World′s Fighting Ships 1906–1921, Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 1985, ISBN 0 87021 907 3, p. 248.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "RO-15 ex No-24". iijnsubsite.info. 2018. Retrieved 15 October 2020.
- ^ a b c Airship Investigation: Report of Col. Henry Breckenridge, Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1933, p. 55.
- ^ Airship Investigation: Report of Col. Henry Breckenridge, Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1933, p. 56.
References
[edit]- "Rekishi Gunzō"., History of Pacific War Vol.17 I-Gō Submarines, Gakken (Japan), January 1998, ISBN 4-05-601767-0
- Rekishi Gunzō, History of Pacific War Extra, "Perfect guide, The submarines of the Imperial Japanese Forces", Gakken (Japan), March 2005, ISBN 4-05-603890-2
- The Maru Special, Japanese Naval Vessels No.43 Japanese Submarines III, Ushio Shobō (Japan), September 1980, Book code 68343-44
- The Maru Special, Japanese Naval Vessels No.132 Japanese Submarines I "Revised edition", Ushio Shobō (Japan), February 1988, Book code 68344-36
- The Maru Special, Japanese Naval Vessels No.133 Japanese Submarines II "Revised edition", Ushio Shobō (Japan), March 1988, Book code 68344-37
- The Maru Special, Japanese Naval Vessels No.135 Japanese Submarines IV, Ushio Shobō (Japan), May 1988, Book code 68344-39
Shipwrecks and maritime incidents in 1924 | |
|---|---|
| Shipwrecks |
|
| Other incidents |
|