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IJN Junyo

1942 WORLD WAR 2

IJN Chunyang Story

In addition to the mighty battleships, the Japanese Empire during World War II (1939-1945) also had a strong aircraft carrier force. This force proved to be instrumental in Japan's conquest of the Pacific, and was just as important in overpowering the U.S. Navy in the inevitable Titanic showdown. However, four of these vital weapons were lost by the Americans at the Battle of Midway in 1942, forcing Japan to make up for the losses by converting existing passenger ocean liners into their own fleet carriers.

The group is led by IJN Hiyo (forged by SS Izumo Maru) accompanied by her sister IJN Junyo (built on the ruins of SS Kashiwara Maru).

Other navies during this period also began the conversion process, which made the acquisition of aircraft carriers relatively economical and convenient.

In her original construction work as the SS Kashiwara Maru, the ship was ordered in late 1938 and construction was entrusted to the Nippon Yusen Kaisha Shipyard (No. 900). The keel was laid on 20 March 1939 and the hull was launched on 26 June 1941.

Although still incomplete, she was acquired by the Imperial Japanese Navy on February 10, 1941, and officially commissioned on May 3, 1942.

When completed, the warship has a displacement of 24,150 tons and dimensions include a barrel length of 719.6 feet, a beam of 87.6 feet and a draft of up to 26.8 feet. Power comes from 6 Kampon water tube boilers feeding 2 geared steam turbines producing 56,250 hp driving 2 shafts.

Maximum speed in ideal conditions is 25.5 knots and range is 12,250 nautical miles. Armor protection extends up to 2 inches on the belt.

Up to 1,224 additional personnel on board. Internally, she carried two hangar decks of limited size, meaning her air force was limited to 42 fighter jets in total.

The armament was mainly used for self-defense and consisted of 12 x 127mm dual-purpose (DP) guns and 24 x 25mm anti-aircraft (AA) guns and 8 triple emplacements.

During World War II, IJN Junyo became a veteran of the Battle of the Aleutian Islands (1942-1943), the Battle of Santa Cruz (1942), the Battle of the Philippine Sea (1944), New Guinea (1942). -1945) and Solomon Islands (1942-1945). In November 1943, she was hit by an Allied torpedo and was incapacitated for three months while repairs were carried out.

She was damaged again in the naval battle of the Philippine Sea, this time by aerial bombardment by Allied fighter jets, and she was torpedoed again in December 1944, then shelved until March 1945. The ship was abandoned and put into service by Japanese authorities before being released back.

The war ended with the surrender of Japan in August 1945.

IJN Junyo technically survived the fighting in WWII. Her name was finally removed from the Naval Register on November 30, 1945, and she was officially dismantled and sold for scrap in 1946-1947.