Japanese Auxiliary Collier Tankers

KYUTANYUSEN!

(NISSAN MARU, prewar)

IJN NISSAN MARU:
Tabular Record of Movement

© 2016-2018 Gilbert Casse and Peter Cundall
Revision 2

30 June 1938:
Sakurajima. Laid down by Osaka Iron Works K.K. shipyard for Nissan Kisen K.K. as a 6,536-tons cargo ship.
6 November 1938:
Launched and named NISSAN MARU.
15 January 1939:
Completed and registered at Tokyo.
9 September 1941:
Requisitioned by the IJN.
20 September 1941:
Registered in the IJN as an auxiliary collier/oiler attached to the Maizuru Naval District with Maizuru as homeport under Navy’s instruction No. 1093. Assigned that same day to Vice Admiral Hosogaya Boshiro’s (36) 5th Fleet as an auxiliary collier/oiler (Ko) category. Captain Sakuma Takao (36) is appointed supervisor. [1]
24 September 1941:
Begins conversion to military duty at Osaka Iron Works K.K. shipyard.
15 October 1941:
The conversion is completed.
25 November 1941:
Captain Sakuma is relieved by Captain Naotsuka Hachiro (38).
26 November 1941:
Departs Yokosuka.
E 28 November 1941:
Arrives at Akkeshi, Hokkaido.
4 December 1941:
At 0700 departs Akkeshi.
6 December 1941:
At 1400 arrives at Matsuwa-To (now Ostrov Matua), Kuriles.
7 December 1941:
At 0700 departs Matsuwa-To.
8 December 1941:
At 0700 arrives at Paramushiro, Kuriles.
9 December 1941:
At 1400 departs Paramushiro.
13 December 1941:
At 1400 arrives at Ominato, Aomori Prefecture.
15 December 1941:
At 0400 departs Ominato. At 1430 arrives at Muroran.
17 December 1941:
At 0900 departs Muroran, Hokkaido.
20 December 1941:
At 1900 arrives at Paramushiro.
23 December 1941:
Comes alongside destroyer NOKAZE who sustains damage by her fenders.
26 December 1941:
At 1300 departs Paramushiro.
30 December 1941:
At 1100 arrives at Ominato.
2 January 1942:
At 1000 departs Ominato.
6 January 1942:
At 0700 arrives at Paramushiro.
7 January 1942:
At 1400 departs Paramushiro.
11 January 1942:
At 0800 arrives at Ominato.
13 January 1942:
At 0400 departs Ominato and at 1400 arrives at Muroran.
17 January 1942:
At 1530 departs Muroran.
18 January 1942:
At 1300 arrives at Akkeshi.
19 January 1942:
At 1530 departs Akkeshi.
23 January 1942:
At 0930 arrives at Chichi-Jima, Ogasawara Gunto (Bonins).
24 January 1942:
At 0800 and earlier at 0600 comes alongside auxiliary gunboats MAGANE and YOSHIDA MARUs and supply them with charcoal and boiler water.
25 January 1942:
Separates from YOSHIDA MARU and at 1500 departs Chichi-Jima.
28 January 1942:
At 1600 arrives at Yokosuka.
1 February 1942:
Assigned to supply northern troops under Northern troops HQ secret instruction No. 14.
6 February 1942:
At 0600 departs Yokosuka.
8 February 1942:
At 1200 arrives at Akkeshi.
20 February 1942:
Refuels kaibokan ISHIGAKI with 80-tons of Grade A oil.
27 February 1942:
Refuels kaibokan HACHIJO with 60-tons of heavy oil and light oil.
1 March 1942:
Assigned to supply northern troops under Northern troops HQ secret instruction No. 17.
5 March 1942:
At 1300 departs Akkeshi.
7 March 1942:
At 1500 arrives at Yokosuka. Assigned to ammunition transport mission under 5th Fleet secret telegram No. 880.
10 March 1942:
At 0200 departs Yokosuka heading south to Chichi Jima.
12 March 1942:
At 0600 arrives at Chichi Jima. Comes alongside and supplies auxiliary gunboat MAGANE MARU with charcoal and boiler water.
13 March 1942:
Comes alongside and supplies auxiliary gunboat YOSHIDA MARU with charcoal and boiler water. Departs Chichi-Jima later in the day at 1450.
17 March 1942:
At 1400 arrives at Yokosuka. Assigned to personnel and ammunition transport mission under 5th Fleet secret telegram No. 97.
25 March 1942:
Departs Yokosuka and arrives at Kisarazu, Chiba Prefecture later that day.
26 March 1942:
Departs Kisarazu.
30 March 1942:
At 1130 arrives at Minami Torishima.
11 April 1942:
At 1700 departs Minami Torishima.
14 April 1942:
At 0800 arrives at Chichi-Jima. That same day, scheduled to be fitted with 14 Daihatsu craft by the Yokosuka Naval District under Navy’s secret instruction No. 4507.
15 April 1942:
At 1600 departs Chichi-Jima.
17 April 1942:
At 1800 arrives at Yokosuka.
20 April 1942:
Scheduled to be fitted with 14 Daihatsu craft stored by the Yokosuka Naval District. At 1500 departs Yokosuka.
23 April 1942:
Arrives at Kushiro.
2 May 1942:
Scheduled to be fitted with one rangefinder and related equipment under Navy’s secret instruction No. 5289. At 0600 departs Kushiro and at 0900 arrives at Akkeshi.
4 May 1942:
At 0800 departs Akkeshi.
5 May 1942:
Assigned to ‘AL’ Sakusen: The Seizure of Attu and Kiska, Aleutians.
7 May 1942:
At 0700 arrives at Yokosuka.
8 May 1942:
At 1200 departs Yokosuka.
10 May 1942:
At 1030 arrives at Chichi-Jima.
12 May 1942:
At 0900 departs Chichi-Jima.
14 May 1942:
At 0930 arrives at Yokosuka.
15 May 1942:
Captain Naotsuka is relieved by Captain Ishii Saburo (34).
20 May 1942:
At 0600 departs Yokosuka.
22 May 1942:
At 1600 arrives at Mutsu Wan, Ominato.
26 May 1942: Operation "AL" - The Seizure of Attu and Kiska:
Vice Admiral Hosogaya Boshiro's (36) (former CO of MUTSU) Northern Force's Main Body's CruDiv 5's NACHI (F) and destroyers INAZUMA and IKAZUCHI accompanying Rear Admiral (Vice Admiral posthumously) Kakuta Kakuji's (39) (former CO of NAGATO) Second Carrier Striking Force's CarDiv 4's RYUJO and JUNYO, CruDiv 4's TAKAO and MAYA, Desdiv 3 SHIOKAZE and DesDiv 7 AKEBONO, USHIO and SAZANAMI, auxiliary collier/oiler NISSAN MARU, auxiliary transport AKASHISAN MARU, auxiliary storeship TOKO MARU No. 2 GO, auxiliary oiler FUJISAN MARU and auxiliary cruiser AWATA MARU departs Mutsu Wan for the Aleutians. NISSAN MARU transfers from Ominato to Kawauchi Wan and waits.
28 May 1942:
Departs Kawauchi Wan.
E May 1942:
At some point, NISSAN MARU is diverted to the Kuriles.
1 June 1942:
At 1000 arrives at Kashiwabara.
2 June 1942:
Departs Kashiwabara, Paramushiro (now Severo-Kurilsk, Paramushir), Kuriles alone without escort.
10 June 1942:
Arrives at Attu, Aleutians. Unloads 200-tons of coal. Departs later.
12 June 1942:
Arrives at Kiska, Aleutians. Unloads cargo.
15 June 1942:
At 0830 sustains an airstrike in Kiska Harbor by USAAF 11th Air Force Boeing B-17s ‘Flying Fortress’ and Consolidated B-24s ‘Liberator’ heavy bombers. NISSSAN MARU is hit by several bombs and heavily damaged. One crewman is KIA.
19 June 1942:
At 0500, sustains another airstrike by three Boeing B-17s ‘Flying Fortress’, four Consolidated B-24s ‘Liberator’ and one Consolidated LB-30 ‘Liberator II’ heavy bombers from USAAF 11th Air Force. At 0700, NISSAN MARU sinks at 52-30N, 176-30E.
1 July 1942:
Removed from the Navy’s list under instruction No. 1184.

Authors' Notes:
[1] There were two categories of Kyutanyusen. (Ko) category with an IJN Captain as supervisor aboard and (Otsu) category without.
Thanks go to Gengoro S. Toda of Japan. Thanks goes also to the late John Whitman for info on USN decrypts.

- Gilbert Casse and Peter Cundall.

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