Japanese Auxiliary Netlayers

KYUSETSUMOKAN!

BOSEMMOTEI!

(ZUISHO MARU drawing – Peter Cundall collection)

IJN ZUISHO MARU :
Tabular Record of Movement

© 2018 Gilbert Casse, Berend van der Wal and Peter Cundall

E 1939:
Osaka. Laid down by Osaka Zosensho K.K. shipyard as a cargo ship for Kawabata Zenkichi.
6 May 1939:
Launched and named ZUISHO MARU.
10 August 1940:
Completed and registered at Osaka. Gross tonnage is 534 GRT. [2]
24 April 1941:
Requisitioned by the IJN.
10 January 1942:
Registered as an auxiliary anti-submarine netlayer attached to Kure Naval District. Conversion to military duty is completed that same day at Mitsubishi Zosen K.K., Nagasaki Zosensho shipyard.
15 January 1942:
Navy Reserve Lt (jg) Kouda Akira is appointed CO.
1 February 1942:
Attached to Rear Admiral Matsuyama Mitshuharu’s (40) Kure Guard Force in Rear Admiral (later Vice Admiral) Ishikawa Shigeru’s (40) Kure Local Defense Squadron, Saeki Base Defense Unit.
3 February 1942:
Departs Sasebo and arrives at Yukinora later this day.
4 February 1942:
Departs Yukinora and arrives at Sagonoseki, Oita Prefecture later that day.
5 February 1942:
Departs Saganoseki and arrives at Saeki later that day.
6 February 1942:
Departs Saeki and returns later this day.
14 February 1942:
Departs Saeki and returns later this day.
15 February 1942:
Departs Saeki and arrives at Mikuni Port, Fukui Prefecture later that day.
16 February 1942:
Departs Mikuni Port and arrives at Usuki, Oita Prefecture later this day.
17 February 1942:
Departs Usuki and arrives at Saeki later that same day.
18 February 1942:
Departs Saeki and returns later in the day.
20 February 1942:
Departs Saeki.
21 February 1942:
Arrives at Saeki.
23 February 1942:
Departs Saeki.
25 February 1942:
Arrives at Nagoya, Aichi Prefecture.
26 February 1942:
Departs Nagoya.
27 February 1942:
Arrives at Saeki.
1 March 1942:
Departs Saeki and arrives at Nagoya later that day.
2 March 1942:
Departs Nagoya and arrives at Saeki later that same day.
3 March 1942:
Departs Saeki.
9 March 1942:
Arrives at Saeki.
10 March 1942:
Departs Saeki.
12 March 1942:
Arrives at Saeki.
13 March 1942:
Departs Saeki and arrives at Fukuura, Miyagi Prefecture later that day.
14 March 1942:
Departs Fukuura.
15 March 1942:
Arrives at Sukumo, Kochi Prefecture.
16 March 1942:
Departs Sukumo.
18 March 1942:
Arrives at Saeki.
19 March 1942:
Departs Saeki.
21 March 1942:
Arrives at Saeki.
22 March 1942:
Departs Saeki.
24 March 1942:
Arrives at Saeki.
25 March 1942:
Departs Saeki.
26 March 1942:
Arrives at Saeki.
27 March 1942:
Departs Saeki.
29 March 1942:
Arrives at Saeki.
30 March 1942:
Departs Saeki and arrives back there later this day.
2 April 1942:
Departs Saeki and returns later this day.
6 April 1942:
Departs Saeki and returns there later in the day.
7 April 1942:
Departs Saeki and returns later that day.
8 April 1942:
Departs Saeki and returns later that same day.
9 April 1942:
Departs Saeki.
11 April 1942:
Arrives at Uwajima, Ehime Prefecture.
12 April 1942:
Departs Uwajima and arrives at Saeki later that day.
13 April 1942:
Departs Saeki and arrives back there later this day.
17 April 1942:
Departs Saeki and returns later in the day.
18 April 1942:
Departs Saeki and arrives at Nagahama, Shiga Prefecture later that same day.
19 April 1942:
Departs Nagahama and arrives at Kure later that day.
19 April ~ 18 June 1942:
Undergoes repairs.
19 June 1942:
Departs Kure.
20 June 1942:
Arrives at Saeki.
2 July 1942:
Departs Saeki and returns later this day.
4 July 1942:
Departs Saeki.
5 July 1942:
Arrives at Saeki.
6 July 1942:
Departs Saeki and returns later that day.
7 July 1942:
Departs Saeki.
8 July 1942:
Arrives at Saeki.
9 July 1942:
Departs Saeki.
11 July 1942:
Arrives at Saeki.
12 July 1942:
Departs Saeki.
14 July 1942:
Arrives at Saeki.
15 July 1942:
Departs Saeki.
17 July 1942:
Arrives at Saeki.
18 July 1942:
Departs Saeki.
20 July 1942:
Arrives at Saeki.
21 July 1942:
Departs Saeki.
23 July 1942:
Arrives at Saeki.
24 July 1942:
Departs Saeki.
26 July 1942:
Arrives at Saeki.
27 July 1942:
Departs Saeki.
30 July 1942:
Arrives at Saeki.
31 July 1942:
Departs Saeki and returns later this day.
August 1942:
Navy Reserve Lt Yoshino Teruhiko is appointed CO.
2 August 1942:
Departs Saeki.
3 August 1942:
Arrives at Saeki.
5 August 1942:
Departs Saeki and arrives back there later that day.
6 August 1942:
Departs Saeki.
9 August 1942:
Arrives at Saeki.
10 August 1942:
Departs Saeki.
12 August 1942:
Arrives at Saeki.
14 August 1942:
Departs Saeki.
18 August 1942:
Arrives at Saeki.
19 August 1942:
Departs Saeki.
20 August 1942:
Arrives at Saeki.
21 August 1942:
Departs Saeki and returns back there later in the day.
23 August 1942:
Departs Saeki.
24 August 1942:
Arrives at Saeki.
26 August 1942:
Departs Saeki.
28 August 1942:
Arrives at Saeki.
29 August 1942:
Departs Saeki and returns later that same day.
30 August 1942:
Departs Saeki and returns later in the day.
1 September 1942:
Departs Saeki.
2 September 1942:
Arrives at Saeki.
4 September 1942:
Departs Saeki.
5 September 1942:
Arrives at Saeki.
7 September 1942:
Departs Saeki.
8 September 1942:
Arrives at Saeki.
10 September 1942:
Departs Saeki.
11 September 1942:
Arrives at Saeki.
13 September 1942:
Departs Saeki.
14 September 1942:
Arrives at Saeki.
15 September 1942:
Departs Saeki.
16 September 1942:
Arrives at Saeki.
17 September 1942:
Departs Saeki and returns later this day.
2 October 1942:
Departs Saeki and arrives at Nishiura, Aichi Prefecture later that day.
3 October 1942:
Departs Nishiura and arrives at Kure later this day.
4 October 1942:
Departs Kure and returns later that day.
4 October ~ 10 November 1942:
Undergoes repairs.
10 November 1942:
Departs Kure on trial run and returns later this day.
11 November 1942:
Departs Kure on trial run and returns later that day.
12 November 1942:
Departs Kure on trial run and returns later in the day.
13 November 1942:
Departs Kure on trial run and returns later that same day.
14 November 1942:
Departs Kure on trial run and returns later this day.
12 December 1942:
Tethered commissioning.
13 ~ 15 December 1942:
Tethered commissioning.
16 December 1942:
Departs Kure on trial run and returns later this day.
18 December 1942:
Tethered commissioning.
20 December 1942:
Removed from the Navy list under instruction No. 2346. Lt Yoshino disembarks that same day.
27 January 1943:
Released to her owners. [3]
23 April 1944:
A report prepared at Moji shipping office notes ZUISHO MARU as available to be sent south.
26 February 1945:
Sinks at 22-10N, 114-10E about 1.6 nautical mile km off Hong Kong SE Island after a submarine attack and post attack stranding. 17 crewmen are KIA. [4]

Authors' Notes:
[1] Not to be confused with IJA transport No. 460 (5,201 GRT, ’12).
[2] 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.
[3] At an unknown date after 27 January 1943, probably in 1944, her ownership is changed to Nihon Kinkai Kisen K.K.
[4] No submarine attack correlates to this sinking. It seems more likely the ship was sunk by another cause, probably air attack.
Thanks go to Gengoro S. Toda of Japan.

- Gilbert Casse, Berend van der Wal and Peter Cundall.

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