KUSENTEI!

© 2005-2009 Bob Hackett, Sander Kingsepp and Peter Cundall

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1938:
Yokohama. Laid down at the Tsurumi shipyard.

1938:
Launched and numbered CH-7.

15 November 1938:
Completed.

8 December 1941:
Camranh Bay, Indochina. CH-7 is in Vice Admiral Ozawa Jisaburo’s Southern Fleet with Rear Admiral (later Vice Admiral) Hiraoka Kumeichi (former CO of HIEI) 9th Base Force in Cdr Hayashi Risaku’s SubChasDiv 11 with CH-8 and CH-9.

13 December 1941: Operation "B" - The Invasion of British Borneo (Sarawak):
Camranh Bay, Indo-China. At 1300, CH-7 departs escorting MajGen Kawaguchi Kiyotake’s invasion convoy of 10 transport ships carrying the 35th Infantry Brigade HQ, 124th Infantry Regiment of the 18th Division, 2nd Yokosuka Special Naval Landing Force, 4th Naval Construction Unit and seaplane tender KAMIKAWA MARU. Other escorts include cruiser YURA with DesDiv 12’s MURAKUMO, SHINONOME, SHIRAKUMO and USUGUMO.

17 December 1941:
CH-7 participates in the invasion of Miri, Sarawak with CruDiv 7's KUMANO and SUZUYA, light cruiser KINU, seaplane tender KAMIKAWA MARU, DesDiv 12's SHIRAKUMO, MURAKUMO and the SHINONOME and minesweepers W-6 and W-7. Also present are DesDiv 11's FUBUKI and DesDiv 20's SAGIRI.

23-24 December 1941:
CH-7 participates in the landings of the Kawaguchi Detachment and the No. 2 Yokosuka SNLF at Kuching, Sarawak with CruDiv 7/1's KUMANO and SUZUYA, KINU, KAMIKAWA MARU and destroyers FUBUKI and the SAGIRI. Also present are DesDiv 12's SHIRAKUMO, MURAKUMO and USUGUMO and minesweepers W- 3 and W-6. West of the Covering Force is CruDiv 7/2's MIKUMA and MOGAMI with destroyer HATSUYUKI.

January 1942:
Off Malaya. CH-7 guards Army troop ships.

9 February 1942: Operation "L" - The Invasions of Palembang and Banka Island, Sumatra. SubChasDiv 11's CH-7 and CH-8 depart Camranh Bay, Indochina for Palembang with Rear Admiral (later Vice Admiral) Hashimoto Shintaro's DesRon 3's light cruiser SENDAI, DesDiv 11's FUBUKI, HATSUYUKI and SHIRAYUKI, DesDiv 20's ASAGIRI and MinesweepDiv 1's minesweepers W-1, W-2, W-3, W-4 and W-5 escorting eight transports. Covers the invasion landings.

10 March 1942: Operation "T”- The Invasion of Northern Sumatra:
CH-7, minelayer HATSUTAKA and Sec 1 of MinesweepDiv 44 depart Singapore's West Harbor escorting submarine tender NAGOYA MARU and eight transports carrying the main body of the Imperial Guards Division.

1942:
CH-7 is based at Penang. [1]

14 July 1942:
CH-7 is assigned to the Southwest Area Fleet's 1st Southern Expeditionary Fleet in the 10th Special Base Force's SubChasDiv 11 with CH-8 and CH-9.

2 November 1943:
At 1900, departs Pattani escorting KUNITSU MARU.

5 November 1943:
At 1400, arrives at Sibolga.

25 March 1944:
CH-7, minelayer No. 4, minesweeper W-7 and auxiliary submarine chaser CHa-59 depart Singapore for Port Blair, Andaman Islands escorting the "Matsukawa convoy" consisting of cargo ships MATSUKAWA and KONAN MARU No. 1.

26-27 March 1944:
Arrives at Pangkor, then Penang, Malaya. CH-7 is detached to return to Singapore.

28 March 1944:
Arrives at Singapore.

29 March 1944:
At 0950, departs Singapore for Moji with kaibokan AWAJI escorting convoy HI-54 consisting of NANKAI, ARIMASAN, KYOKUHO and MERI-GO MARUs.

31 March 1944:
Arrives and anchors at Cap St. Jacques, Indochina.

4 April 1944:
CH-7 departs St Jacques escorting convoy SASHI-16 consisting of four unidentified merchant ships.

7 April 1944:
Arrives at Singapore. 11 April 1944:
Cap St. Jacques, Indochina. Convoy HI-54 is joined by convoy HI-56 and absorbed therein.

14 April 1944:
At 0800, the reconstituted HI-56 departs Cap St. Jacques for Takao, Formosa.

19 April 1944:
Arrives at Takao.

24 April 1944:
Arrives at Moji.

15 June 1944:
S of Palau. CH-7 hits a mine and is damaged at 04-03N, 135-08E.

June 1944:
Singapore. Undergoes repairs.

30 June 1944:
Completes repairs. CH-7 resumes convoy escort duties from Penang.

22 October 1944:
CH-7 and CH-8 depart Singapore escorting convoy SHIMA-03 consisting of six unidentified merchant ships.

25 October 1944:
Arrives at Miri, Borneo.

27 October 1944:
Departs Miri.

5 November 1944:
Arrives at Manila.

7 November 1944:
At 2000, CH-7 and CH-8 depart Manila for Singapore escorting convoy MASHI-03 consisting of oilers NICHINAN MARU No. 2 and SHIMOTSU MARU Singapore.

8 November 1944:
At 2127, an abortive torpedo attack occurs, but at 2257, LtCdr Mashall H. Austin's USS REDFIN (SS-272) torpedoes and sinks NICHINAN MARU No. 2 at 14-10N, 116-37E.

9 November 1944:
At 0055, SHIMOTSU MARU is torpedoed by LtCdr Irvin S. Hartman's USS BARBERO (SS-317) after a series of unsuccessful attacks by both REDFIN and BARBERO. At 1100, SHIMOTSU MARU sinks at 14-32N, 116-53E.

10 November 1944:
Arrives at Manila.

19 November 1944:
CH-7 and CH-8 depart St Jacques escorting convoy SASHI-34 consisting of nine unidentified merchant ships.

22 November 1944:
Arrives at Singapore.

11 April 1945:
Andaman Sea. E of Car Nicobar. CH-7 and auxiliary netlayer AGATA MARU are bombed by B-24 "Liberator" bombers of the Royal Air Force's No. 203 Squadron that sink both ships at 08-57N, 93-38E.

25 May 1945:
Removed from the Navy List.

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Author's Notes:
[1] The authors could find no data detailing CH-7's movements during Apr '42 to Nov '43. Readers with access to such data are requested to post the information on the Discussion and Questions board or at j-aircraft.org's IJN Ship Message Board

-Bob Hackett, Sander Kingsepp and Peter Cundall.

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