KYURYOKAN!
(HAYASAKI in wartime)
IJN HAYASAKI:
Tabular Record of Movement
© 2007-2020
Revision 6
Bob Hackett, Sander Kingsepp and Peter Cundall.
2 December 1941:
Osaka. Laid down at Hitachi Zosen’s Sakurajima shipyard.
1 April 1942:
Rated an auxiliary store ship vessel.
8 April 1942:
Designated HAYASAKI.
12 May 1942:
Launched.
31 August 1942:
Completed and registered in the Yokosuka Naval District.
22 December 1942:
Off Cape Pupukuna supplies auxiliary seaplane tender SANYO MARU with fresh food.
6/7 February 1943:
70 miles NW of Rabaul. Lt.Cdr (Cdr/MOH, posthumously) Howard W. Gilmore’s (USNA’26) USS
GROWLER (SS-215) is charging batteries on the surface. Gilmore spots HAYASAKI and prepares for a surface attack, but HAYASAKI’s watch also sees USS GROWLER and turns to ram her. As HAYASAKI charges out of the darkness, Gilmore sounds the collision alarm and orders, “Left full rudder!” His order is too late. USS GROWLER hits 900-ton HAYASAKI amidships at 17 knots at 03-34S, 151-09E.
The impact bends 18 feet of USS GROWLER’s bow sideways and disables her forward torpedo tubes. HAYASAKI machine-guns USS GROWLER’s bridge, killing the assistant officer of the deck, a lookout, and wounding Gilmore and two men. As the rest of the bridge party drops down the hatch, mortally wounded Gilmore gives his last order: “Take her down!” HAYASAKI is damaged in the encounter. USS GROWLER is forced to terminate her patrol. [1]
February 1943:
Rabaul. HAYASAKI undergoes emergency repairs, probably by repair ship YAMABIKO MARU.
23 February 1943:
At 1230 arrives at Saipan from Truk.
24 February 1943:
At 1500 due to depart Saipan for Yokosuka.
2 March 1943:
Arrives at Yokohama. Undergoes further repairs.
Early April 1943:
Repairs are completed.
25 April 1943:
At 1600 arrives at Kwajalein.
27 April 1943:
At 1315 departs Kwajalein with storeship KAIKO MARU.
8 May 1943:
Arrives at Yokosuka.
29 May 1943:
At 0600, arrives at Truk.
15 October 1943:
Reported sailing in Davao area with auxiliary storeship MANKO MARU.
2 November 1943:
Rabaul. 75 North American B-25 "Mitchell" medium bombers of the 5th Air Force's 3rd, 38th and 345th Bomb Groups, escorted by 70 P-38 "Lightning" fighters raid airfields and Simpson Harbor. IJA stores ship MANKO MARU is sunk with unknown casualties. HAYASAKI is lightly damaged in the raid as are CruDiv 5’s HAGURO and MYOKO, destroyer SHIRATSUYU, sub tender CHOGEI, transport HOKUYO MARU and minesweeper W-26.
9 November 1943:
Ordered to leave Rabaul because of damage to main engines and return to Yokosuka for repairs.
10 November 1943:
Near Dewate Island. HAYASAKI with minesweeper W-28 and auxiliary subchaser CHa-28 assist in refloating cargo ship NIKKAI MARU off a reef.
26 November 1943:
Departs Saipan in a a convoy consisting of UYO MARU and HAYASAKI.
4 December 1943:
At 1130, the convoy arrives at Yokosuka.
December 1943-March 1944:
Tokyo area. Undergoes repairs at an unidentified location.
22 March 1944:
HAYASAKI departs Kisarazu, Tokyo Bay in two echelons for Saipan and Palau in troop reinforcement convoy Higashi-Matsu No. 3 consisting of KOJUN, MEIRYU, TATSUURA, KENAN, TOMITSU, CHOHAKUSAN and NANYO MARUs and HOSHI MARU No. 11 and NISSEI MARU No. 1 escorted by light cruiser YUBARI, DesDiv 5's HATAKAZE, DesDiv 6's IKAZUCHI and DesDiv 32's TAMANAMI, torpedo boat OTORI, kaibokan HIRADO and NOMI and subchasers CH-48, CH-51 and CH-54.
25 March 1944:
The convoy is attacked by LtCdr (later Rear Admiral-Ret) Bafford E. Lewellen's (USNA’31) old USS POLLACK (SS-180). Lewellen torpedoes and sinks subchaser CH-54 (casualties unknown) and claims damage to several transports.
28 March 1944:
The Palau contingent of convoy Higashi-Matsu No. 3 consisting of HAYASAKI and transports TATSUURA, KENAN, TOMITSU, CHOHAKUSAN and NANYO MARUs is detached and escorted by destroyer TAMANAMI and kaibokan HIRADO and NOMI. After an American Task Force is reported E of Palau, the Palau contingent is diverted to Saipan.
30 March 1944:
The Palau contingent of convoy Higashi-Matsu No. 3 arrives at Saipan.
30-31 March 1944: American Operation “Desecrate One”:
Palau. The anticipated air raids occur as the anchorage is attacked heavily by carrier aircraft of Task Force 58. Many ships are damaged and sunk in the raids.
7 April 1944:
Departs Saipan via Ulithi for Palau.
14 April 1944:
Arrives at Palau.
28 April 1944:
At 0900, departs Surabaya, Java escorted by auxiliary patrol boat TAKUNAN MARU No. 5.
30 April 1944:
At 1800, arrives at Batavia (now Jakarta), Java. Later departs for Singapore.
13 May 1944:
Arrives at Tawi Tawi.
31 October 1944:
At 0630 HAKKO, MANEI and YUHO MARUs and storeship HAYASAKI depart Brunei escorted by kaibokan CHIBURI and CD-19, submarine chaser CH-34 and destroyer SHIGURE. At 1930 the ships arrive at Miri.
26 January 1945:
At 1600 departs Surabaya with MANYO MARU escorted by submarine chaser CH-3.
28 January 1945:
At 1700 off Jakarta MANYO MARU is detached.
29 January 1945:
At 0800 in Bangka Strait CH-3 is attached and HAYABUSA proceeds alone to Berhala Strait.
8 February 1945:
Lingga Anchorage. Provisions hydrographic survey ship HAKUSA (ex- Chinese CHI FU HSING) with fresh food.
28 March 1945:
At 1720, at 06-40S 116-58E undergoes a torpedo attack but suffers no damage.
7 May 1945:
N Sumatra. While enroute from Batavia to Singapore, HAYASAKI is damaged by a mine at 01-00S, 104-30E. The mine was probably laid by USS GUITARRO (SS-363) on 20 Apr ‘45.
15 August 1945:
Singapore. HAYASAKI’s crew is notified of the termination of the war.
5 October 1945:
Removed from the Navy List.
30 January 1946:
Departs Singapore. Probably performs repatriation duties although not officially allocated as such until 20 February.
11 February 1946:
Arrives at Otaka. Probably disembarks troops and passengers.
20 February 1946:
Tamano. Undergoes repairs at Mitsui shipbuilding. That same day, HAYASAKI is assigned to the Allied Repatriation Service as a demobilization transport. [2]
21 March 1946:
Repairs are completed.
26 March 1946:
Departs Kure.
1 April 1946:
Arrives at Manila. Embarks troops and passengers to be repatriated.
2 April 1946:
Departs Manila.
6 April 1946:
Arrives at Saigon. Embarks troops and passengers to be repatriated.
7 April 1946:
Departs Saigon.
16 April 1946:
Arrives at Kure. Disembarks troops and passengers.
4 May 1946:
Departs Kure.
12 May 1946:
Arrives at St Jacques, Indochina. Embarks troops and passengers to be repatriated.
13 May 1946:
Departs St Jacques.
16 May 1946:
Arrives at Bangkok. Embarks troops and passengers to be repatriated.
17 May 1946:
Departs Bangkok.
26 May 1946:
Arrives at Kagoshima. Disembarks troops and passengers and departs later the same day.
28 May 1946:
Tokyo. Arrives at Uraga.
6 June 1946:
Undergoes repairs at Uraga Dockyard.
20 June 1946:
Repairs are completed.
21 June 1946:
Departs Uraga.
23 June 1946:
Arrives at Yokosuka.
25 June 1946:
Departs Yokosuka.
27 June 1946:
Arrives at Korojima near Tsientsin, China. Embarks troops and passengers to be repatriated.
29 June 1946:
Departs Korojima.
2 July 1946:
Arrives at Hakata. Disembarks troops and passengers.
9 July 1946:
Departs Hakata.
12 July 1946:
Arrives at Korojima. Embarks troops and passengers to be repatriated.
14 July 1946:
Departs Korojima.
17 July 1946:
Arrives at Hakata. Disembarks troops and passengers.
22 July 1946:
Departs Hakata.
25 July 1946:
Arrives at Korojima. Embarks troops and passengers to be repatriated.
31 July 1946:
Departs Korojima.
3 August 1946:
Arrives at Hakata. Disembarks troops and passengers.
12 August 1946:
Arrives at Sasebo.
22 August 1946:
Arrives at Singapore.
27 August 1946:
Departs Singapore. Embarks troops and passengers to be repatriated.
5 September 1946:
Arrives at Otaka. Disembarks troops and passengers.
7 September 1946:
Tamano. Undergoes repairs at Mitsui shipbuilding.
23 September 1946:
Repairs are completed.
26 September 1946:
Departs Kure.
6 October 1946:
Arrives at Bangkok. Embarks troops and passengers to be repatriated and departs later that day.
19 October 1946:
Arrives at Singapore and departs later that day.
23 October 1946:
Arrives at Bangkok. Embarks troops and passengers to be repatriated.
25 October 1946:
Departs Bangkok.
29 October 1946:
Arrives at Palembang, Sumatra. Embarks troops and passengers to be repatriated.
4 November 1946:
Departs Palembang.
10 November 1946:
Arrives at Singapore. Embarks troops and passengers to be repatriated.
16 November 1946
Departs Singapore.
27 November 1946:
Arrives at Otaka. Disembarks troops and passengers.
5 December 1946:
Undergoes repairs at Osaka Zosen.
10 January 1947:
Repairs are completed, then the ship is laid up.
3 October 1947:
Nakhodka, Siberia. Ceded to the Soviet Union as a war reparation. Renamed OLEKMA.
Authors’ Notes:
[1] For his actions, Cdr Gilmore was awarded the Medal of Honor, posthumously.
[2] Allied occupation forces were responsible for the return of six million Japanese military personnel and civilians from Japan's defunct far-flung Empire. In addition, there were over a million Korean and about 40,000 Chinese prisoners and conscript laborers and approximately 7,000 Formosans and 15,000 Ryukyu Islanders to be repatriated.
Some Allied and many former IJN warships, from aircraft carriers to kaibokan, were used to facilitate the enormous repatriation effort. Japanese vessels and crews were used to the fullest extent possible to conserve Allied manpower and accelerate demobilization. Each ex-IJN ship first had to be demilitarized; guns removed or, in the case of large warships, barrels severed, ammunition landed, and radar and catapults removed, if fitted. Repatriation of the Chinese on Japanese ships began early in October from Hakata, but U.S. guard detachments had to be placed on many ships to prevent disorder because the Japanese crews could not control the returnees.
Japanese-run repatriation centers were established at Kagoshima, Hario near Sasebo, and Hakata near Fukuoka. Other reception centers were established and operated at Maizuru, Shimonoseki, Sasebo, Senzaki, Kure, Uraga, Yokohama, Moji and Hakodate. Allied line and medical personnel supervised the centers. Incoming Japanese were sprayed with DDT, examined and inoculated for typhus and smallpox, provided with food, and transported to his final destination in Japan.
Special thanks to Mr. Gilbert Casse of France, Mr. Berend van der Wal of Netherlands and the late John Whitman of USA.
- Bob Hackett, Sander Kingsepp and Peter Cundall.
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