KYUSETSUMOKAN!
HOKAKUMOTEI!
(KOTOBUKI MARU No. 3 prewar- Berend van der Wal collection)
IJN KOTOBUKI MARU No 3:
Tabular Record of Movement
© 2023 Gilbert Casse, Berend van der Wal and Peter Cundall
July 1936:
Osaka. Laid down by Urabe Zosen Tekkosho G.K. as a 724-tons cargo ship for Fujioka Sadaichi.
17 October 1936:
Launched and named KOTOBUKI MARU No. 3.
December 1936:
Completed and registered at Osaka with Gross Registered Tonnage (GRT) of 724-tons and Net Registered Tonnage (NRT) of 406-tons. Her call sign is JJHL. [1]
1937:
Her GRT is changed to 723-tons. [1]
3 September 1941:
Requisitioned by the IJN.
20 September 1941:
Uraga. Registered as an auxiliary netlayer attached to the Yokosuka Naval District under internal instruction No. 1093. Navy (Resv) Lt. Sugawara Yoshizo is appointed CO. Conversion to military duty begins that same day at Uraga Senkyo K.K. shipyard.
14 October 1941:
Conversion to military duty is completed.
15 October 1941:
Attached to the 63rd Subchaser Division under internal instruction No. 1251. Attached to Vice Admiral (later Admiral) Takasu Shiro’s (35) Fourth Fleet in Rear Admiral (Vice Admiral posthumously) Yatsushiro Sukeyoshi’s (40) 6th Base Force, 63rd Subchaser Division.
14 November 1941:
Departs Yokosuka for the South Seas.
1 December 1941:
Attached to the Marshalls Area Defense Forces, 6th Base Force, 63rd Subchaser Division, rated as No. 1 unit.
4 December 1941:
Departs Kwajalein, Marshalls.
6 December 1941:
Arrives at Jaluit, Marshalls.
31 December 1941:
Attached to 6th Base Force, 63rd Subchaser Division, rated as No. 1 unit.
5 January 1942:
Attaches to Marshall Area Defense Forces, Kwajalein Sea Surface Defense Force.
25 January 1942:
Departs Imieji, Jaluit.
27 January 1942:
Arrives at Kwajalein.
30 January 1942:
Departs Kwajalein and arrives at Roi, Marshalls. Returns there later that day.
3 February 1942:
Departs Kwajalein and arrives at Roi later this day.
26 February 1942:
Departs Roi and arrives at Kwajalein later that day.
E March ~ 5 May 1942:
At Kwajalein.
6 May 1942:
Supplies general requisitioned vessel OHARA MARU with fresh water.
23 May 1942:
Auxiliary patrol boat SHINSEI MARU arrives and takes over her patrol area.
24 May 1942:
Escorts auxiliary submarine tender RIO DE JANEIRO MARU.
27 May 1942:
Replaced by and departs with auxiliary patrol boat RYUJIN MARU No. 3.
30 May 1942:
Replaced by and returns with RYUJIN MARU No. 3.
E June ~ July 1942:
Patrols near Kwajalein and Roi.
1 August 1942:
Navy (Resv) Lt. Sugawara Yoshizo is confirmed as CO.
4 August 1942:
Departs Kwajalein.
10 August 1942:
Arrives at Truk, Central Carolines.
E11 ~ 24 August 1942:
Undergoes repairs.
25 August 1942:
Departs Truk.
27 August 1942:
Arrives at Ponape, Carolines.
28 August 1942:
Departs Ponape.
1 September 1942:
Arrives at Kwajalein.
3 September 1942:
Supplied with 7-tons of boiler water by auxiliary patrol boat TAISEI MARU. Patrols her assigned area alternately with RYUJIN MARU No. 3.
4 September 1942:
Patrols her assigned area alternately with RYUJIN MARU No. 3.
8 September 1942:
Patrols her assigned area alternately with RYUJIN MARU No. 3.
12 September 1942:
Patrols her assigned area alternately with RYUJIN MARU No. 3.
14 September 1942:
Patrols her assigned area alternately with RYUJIN MARU No. 3.
15 September 1942:
Patrols her patrol area alternately with RYUJIN MARU No. 3.
17 September 1942:
Patrols her assigned area alternately with RYUJIN MARU No. 3.
18 September 1942:
Patrols her assigned area alternately with RYUJIN MARU No. 3.
E October ~ December 1942:
Patrols Kwajalein waters.
January 1943:
At Kwajalein.
February 1943:
Patrols Kwajalein waters.
15 February 1943:
Attached to Kwajalein Sea Surface Defense Force under Marshalls Area Defense Force Order No. 1.
29 March 1943:
Arrives at Kwajalein.
31 March 1943:
Departs Kwajalein.
2 April 1943:
Arrives at Eniwetok, Marshalls.
6 April 1943:
At 2030, departs Eniwetok apparently with auxiliary subchaser SHONAN MARU No. 3 and auxiliary NICHINAN MARU No. 51.
8 April 1943:
Arrives at Kwajalein.
11 April 1943:
Departs Kwajalein.
13 April 1943:
Arrives at Taroa, Marshalls. Departs there later this day.
16 April 1943:
Arrives at Tarawa, Gilberts.
17 April 1943:
Departs Tarawa.
19 April 1943:
Arrives at Jaluit.
21 April 1943:
Departs Jaluit.
22 April 1943:
Arrives at Kwajalein.
28 April 1943:
Departs Kwajalein.
2 May 1943:
Arrives at Otorishima (Wake Island).
6 May 1943:
Departs Otorishima.
11 May 1943:
Arrives at Kwajalein.
17 May 1943:
Departs Kwajalein.
23 May 1943:
At 0800, arrives at Truk.
June 1943:
At Truk.
1 July 1943:
Navy (Resv) Lt. Sugawara Yoshizo is confirmed as CO.
12 July 1943:
At 0630, departs Truk escorting convoy No. 5121 consisting of auxiliary stores ship KITAKAMI MARU.
14 July 1943:
At 1150, arrives at Ponape.
17 July 1943:
At 1200, departs Ponape.
20 July 1943:
At 1430, arrives at Kwajalein.
21 July 1943:
Departs Kwajalein and departs there later that day.
25 July 1943:
Navy (Resv) Lt. Senda Yusaku is appointed CO.
26 July 1943:
Departs Kwajalein.
27 July 1943:
Arrives at Kwajalein.
29 July 1943:
Departs Kwajalein.
30 July 1943:
Arrives at Kwajalein.
11 August 1943:
Departs Kwajalein.
15 August 1943:
Arrives at Otorishima.
16 August 1943:
Departs Otorishima.
21 August 1943:
Arrives at Kwajalein.
12 September 1943:
Departs Kwajalein.
13 September 1943:
At 0830, with auxiliary subchasers Cha-18 and TAIHEI MARU No. 1 GO arrives at the disaster site of torpedoed fleet oiler SHIRETOKO. She starts guarding her. Arrives back at Kwajalein later this day. [2]
20 September 1943:
Departs Kwajalein.
23 September 1943:
Arrives at Tarawa.
24 September 1943:
Departs Tarawa.
26 September 1943:
Arrives at Jaluit.
27 September 1943:
Departs Jaluit and arrives at Imieji later that day.
October 1943:
Attached to 6th Base Force, 63rd Subchaser Division. Attached to Kwajalein Sea Surface Defense Force under Marshalls Area Defense Force order No. 10.
1 October 1943:
Departs Imieji.
2 October 1943:
Arrives at Kwajalein.
9 October 1943:
Departs Kwajalein.
13 October 1943:
Arrives at Otorishima and departs there later this day.
17 October 1943:
Arrives at Kwajalein.
19 October 1943:
Departs Kwajalein.
21 October 1943:
Arrives at Otorishima.
24 October 1943:
Departs Otorishima.
26 October 1943:
Arrives at Kwajalein.
4 November 1943:
Departs Kwajalein for Jaluit with auxiliary subchaser CHa-18 and auxiliary minesweeper SHOWA MARU No. 8 escorting auxiliary transport OGASHIMA MARU bound for Kusai, Carolines.
5 November 1943:
Arrives with CHa-18, SHOWA MARU No. 8 and OGASHIMA MARU at Jaluit.
28 January 1944:
About 97 nautical miles S Eniwetok, one 7th Air Force’s Consolidated B-24 ‘Liberator’ bombs and sinks her with the loss of one crewman.
31 January 1944:
Removed from the Navy’s list under instruction No. 508.
Authors' Notes:
[1] NRT is a ship's cargo volume capacity expressed in "register tons", one of which equals to a volume of 100 cubic feet (2.83 m3). It is calculated by subtracting non-revenue-earning spaces i.e. spaces not available for carrying cargo, for example engine rooms, fuel tanks and crew quarters, from the ship's gross register tonnage (GRT). Net register tonnage (NRT) is not a measure of the weight of the ship or its cargo, and should not be confused with terms such as deadweight tonnage or displacement.
[2] Fleet oiler SHIRETOKO was torpedoed on 12 Sep ’43 and again on the following day by LtCdr (later Cdr) Carter L. Bennett's (USNA ’33) USS PERMIT (SS-178). Hit by a total of five torpedoes, she survived the damage and was towed to Roi, where she arrived for emergency repairs on 15 Sep ’43.
Thanks go to Gengoro S. Toda of Japan.
- Gilbert Casse, Berend van der Wal and Peter Cundall.
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