IJN Submarine RO-112:
Tabular Record of
Movement
© 2001-2017 Bob Hackett & Sander Kingsepp
Revision 3
20 June 1942:
Senshu, Tanagawa Ward (near Osaka). Laid down
at Kawasaki Jukogyo K.K. as a 525-ton Kaisho (KS) Type submarine No. 403.
5 February 1943:
Numbered RO-112 and provisionally attached to Kure
Naval District.
25 March 1943:
Launched as RO-112, towed to
Kawasaki's Kobe shipyard thereafter.
25 July 1943:
Lt (Cdr, posthumously) Kondo Fumitake (62)(former CO of
RO-63) is appointed the Chief Equipping Officer (CEO).
14 September 1943:
Completed and attached to Kure Naval District.
Assigned to SubRon 11 for working-up. Lt (promoted LtCdr 1 May 1944) Kondo
Fumitake is the Commanding Officer.
25 December 1943:
Reassigned to Captain Oyama Toyojiro's SubDiv 30 in
Vice Admiral, the Baron, Samejima Tomoshige's (former CO of NAGATO) Eighth
Fleet/Southwest Area Fleet.
26 December 1943:
Departs Kure for Surabaya.
1 January 1944:
SubDiv30 is transferred to Rear Admiral (later Vice
Admiral) Ichioka Hisashi's (former CO of CL KATORI) SubRon 8 of Vice Admiral
(Admiral, posthumously) Takagi Takeo's (former CO of MUTSU) Sixth Fleet
(Submarines).
19 January 1944:
Departs Surabaya on her first war patrol to patrol in
the Australian waters.
Mid-February 1944:
Returns to Surabaya.
Early March 1944:
Departs Surabaya on her second war patrol.
19 March 1944:
N of Bali, Netherlands East Indies (08-02S, 115-25E).
At 1138, LtCdr Willard Laughon's USS RASHER (SS-269), on patrol off Cape
Bungkulan, sights a black submarine - probably RO-112 - surfacing. The Officer
of the Deck identifies it as a "RO-51 Type". At 1149, Laughton fires his four
Mk.14-3A stern torpedoes at the target, but his adversary changes course to port
and RASHER's torpedoes miss.
20 March 1944:
Reassigned to SubDiv 51 in SubRon 7, Sixth Fleet.
22 March 1944:
On that day, codebreakers at the USN Fleet Radio Unit,
Melbourne (FRUMEL), Australia, provide the following information:
"On completion of refit, RO-112 (currently refitting at Soerabaja) is to
go to Truk."
25 March 1944:
RO-112 returns to Surabaya.
11 April 1944:
Departs Surabaya for Saipan.
20 April 1944:
Arrives at Saipan.
24 April 1944:
Departs Saipan on her third war patrol to an area N of
New Guinea.
29 April 1944:
Reassigned to "B" patrol unit. Redirected to the area
S of Mereyon Islet (Woleai).
6 May 1944:
Returns to Saipan.
15 May 1944:
RO-112 departs Saipan on her fourth war patrol to form a
picket line with RO-104, RO-105, RO-106, RO-108, RO-109 and RO-116 to warn of
American invasion forces approaching the Palaus.
18 May 1944:
The U.S. Navy's Fleet Radio Unit Pacific (FRUPAC)
intercepts radio traffic that indicates the Japanese have established a new
submarine picket "NA" line between Truk and the Admiralty Islands to intercept
American carriers. LtCdr Walton B. Pendelton's USS ENGLAND (DE-635) departs from
Purvis Bay, Florida Island in the Solomons with USS RABY (DE-698) and GEORGE
(DE-697) as a hunter-killer group to attack the "NA" line.
27 May 1944:
The Sixth Fleet decodes American signals that indicate
that several submarines of the NA line have been sunk. After receiving a warning
message, LtCdr Kondo moves RO-112 to a new position 100 miles NW.
8 June 1944:
Arrives at Truk.
14 June 1944:
Departs Truk on her fifth war patrol in the Philippine
Sea.
27 June 1944:
Returns to Truk.
7 July 1944:
Departs Truk for Yokosuka.
17 July 1944:
Arrives at Yokosuka, later transferred to Kure.
5 August 1944:
Lt Matsushima Shigeo (66)(former torpedo officer of
I-38) is appointed the CO.
15 August 1944:
SubDiv 51 is disbanded. RO-112 and RO-109 are
reassigned to Kure SubRon to serve as training vessels.
31 August 1944:
Lt Sakamoto Doni (67)(former torpedo officer of RO-46)
is appointed the CO.
25 September 1944:
RO-112 is reassigned to SubDiv 33 in Kure SubRon.
13 October 1944: Operation "SHO-I-GO" - The Defense of the
Philippines:
Admiral Toyoda Soemu, CINC, Combined Fleet, orders the SHO-I-GO
plan activated.
14 October 1944:
Lt (later LtCdr) Uesugi Kazuaki (63)(former CO of
RO-68) is appointed the CO.
20 October 1944: American Operation "KING TWO" - The Invasion of Leyte,
Philippines:
Admiral (later Fleet Admiral) William F. Halsey's Third Fleet of
738 ships including 18 aircraft carriers, six battleships, 17 cruisers, 64
destroyers and over 600 support ships land the Army's X Corps (24th Infantry and
1st Cavalry Divisions) and the XXIV Corps (7th, 77th and 96th Infantry
Divisions) that begins the campaign to retake Leyte.
That day, RO-112 is reassigned to SubDiv 34, directly subordinated to
C-in-C, Combined Fleet.
23 October 1944:
Departs Kure with RO-109 to patrol E of the
Philippines on her sixth war patrol. Reassigned to "B" patrol unit.
21 November 1944:
Arrives at Mako, Pescadores.
30 November 1944:
Departs Mako for Lamon Bay, Philippines on her
seventh war patrol.
28 December 1944:
Returns to Kure.
5 January 1945:
Lt (LtCdr, posthumously) Yuchi Atsushi (66)(former CO
of RO-109) is appointed the CO.
9 January 1945: American Operation "MIKE ONE" - The Invasion of Luzon:
Lingayen Gulf, Philippines. Vice Admiral (later Admiral) Thomas C. Kinkaid's
Task Force 77 lands almost 175,000 men of General Walter Krueger's Sixth Army
under cover of heavy gunfire from Vice Admiral (later Admiral) Jesse B.
Oldendorf's Task Group 77.2 bombardment force and aircraft of Rear Admiral
(later Vice Admiral) Calvin T. Durgin's TG 77.4. In a five-month campaign, the
Sixth Army defeats General Yamashita Tomoyuki's 14th Army Group defenders.
22 January 1945:
Departs Kure to patrol W of Luzon, Philippines.
4 February 1945:
Vice Admiral Miwa orders RO-115, RO-46, RO-112 and
RO-113 to prepare to participate in the evacuation of the stranded pilots from
the Aparri area on Luzon, Philippines. Prior to the rescue mission all above
submarines are ordered to land their deck gun ammunition and reserve torpedoes
at Takao, Formosa.
7 February 1945:
Arrives at Takao.
9 February 1945:
Departs Takao for Batulinao, Luzon, Philippines to
evacuate stranded pilots and return them to Takao.
11 February 1945:
Camiguin Island, Luzon Strait, Philippines. At 1951,
Cdr John K. Fyfe's USS BATFISH (SS-310) SJ radar picks up a contact at 8,000
yds, bearing 310 degrees (T). BATFISH's AN/APR-1 radar detector also detects
radar emissions. At 2037, BATFISH makes visual contact on a submarine running on
the surface at 1,300 yds. At 2043, contact is broken as the target submerges.
At 2105, BATFISH's soundman reports the enemy submarine blowing tanks. At
2106, RO-112 surfaces; BATFISH again detects radar emissions and her SJ radar
makes contact at 8,650 yds, bearing 018 degrees. Cdr Fyfe closes the range to
the target for the next hour.
At 2150, with the range down to 6,000 yds, Fyfe dives to radar depth. At
2202, at 880 yds, he fires four Mk.18 bow torpedoes set to run at four feet on a
70 degree starboard track using a 1 knot speed spread. The first torpedo hits
and RO-112 blows apart, sinking almost immediately at 18-53N, 121-47E.
16 February 1945:
FRUMEL decodes the following message timed 171827:
"Submarines RO-112 and RO-113 left Takao on 9th and and 10th respectively
and were due to arrive at Batulinao on 12th and 14th. RO-115 has not yet
returned to Takao from her operating area."
20 February 1945:
Presumed lost in the Luzon Strait with all 61 hands.
10 May 1945:
Removed from the Navy List.
Authors' Note:
Thanks go to Dr. Higuchi Tatsuhiro of Japan. Special thanks
for assistance in researching the IJN officers mentioned in this TROM go to Mr.
Jean-François Masson of Canada and to Hans Mcilveen of the Netherlands for
research based on wartime FRUMEL intercepts.
– Bob Hackett and Sander Kingsepp.
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