Japanese Auxiliary Gunboats

KOKAI HOKAN!

(HONG KONG MARU, prewar)

IJN HONG KONG MARU:
Tabular Record of Movement

© 2022 Gilbert Casse, Berend van der Wal and Peter Cundall

28 May 1935:
Kobe. Laid down by Mitsubishi Jukogyo K.K. as a 2,797-tons cargo liner for Osaka Chosen K.K. (OSK)
27 November 1935:
Launched and named HONG KONG MARU.
25 March 1936:
Completed and registered at Osaka. Her gross registered (GRT) tonnage and net registered tonnage (NRT) respectively are 2,797-tons and 1,558-tons. Her call sign is JPHK. Operates on the Kirun, Xiamen, Santo, Hong Kong route. [1]
1 September 1939:
Her Owners are changed to Toa Kaiun K.K. and her registered port to Tokyo.
7 November 1941:
Requisitioned by the IJN.
11 November 1941:
Ujina. Conversion for military duty begins at Ujina shipyard.
1 December 1941:
Registered as an auxiliary gunboat attached to the Kure Naval District, Kure Guard Force under instruction No. 1570. Navy (Resv) Lt Oda Takasuke is appointed CO that same day.
10 December 1941:
Conversion is completed.
21 December 1941:
With old destroyer WAKATAKE, escorts transports KAGU and KUNITSU MARUs bound for Palau and briefly RAKUTO MARU from Kure. The former two ships are bound for Palau. The ships pass through Bungo Suido heading S. At an unknown date and time HONG KONG MARU probably separates.
31 December 1941:
Attached to Vice Admiral Hosogaya Boshiro’s (36) Fifth Fleet.
1 January 1942:
Departs Saeki.
2 January 1942:
Arrives at Kure.
8 January 1942:
Departs Kure.
10 January 1942:
Arrives at Yokosuka.
28 January 1942:
Departs Yokosuka.
31 January 1942:
Arrives at Chinkai, Chosen (now Jinhae, South Korea).
1 February 1942:
Attached to the Chinkai Guard District in Rear Admiral Owada Yoshinosuke’s (35) Chinkai Guard Force. Assigned to Tsushima Strait Defense Force under Chinkai Guard District Order No. 38.
10 February 1942:
Assigned to Tsushima Strait Defense Force under Chinkai Guard District Order No. 41.
17 February 1942:
Departs Chinkai.
25 February 1942:
Arrives at Chinkai.
11 March 1942:
Departs Chinkai.
14 March 1942:
Arrives at Chinkai.
16 March 1942:
Departs Chinkai on training and returns there later that day.
27 March 1942:
Departs Chinkai.
31 March 1942:
Arrives at Chinkai.
3 April 1942:
Departs Chinkai.
10 April 1942:
Attached to the Sasebo Naval District under internal ordinance No. 660.
12 April 1942:
Arrives at Chinkai.
13 April 1942:
Departs Chinkai on gunnery practice and returns there later this day.
21 April 1942:
Departs Chinkai and arrives at Busan, Chosen (now Pusan, South Korea) later that day.
27 April 1942:
Departs Busan.
28 April 1942:
Arrives at Chinkai.
5 May 1942:
Depart Chinkai.
11 May 1942:
Arrives at Chinkai.
21 May 1942:
Departs Chinkai for Fukuoka.
27 May 1942:
Arrives at Chinkai.
1 June 1942:
Departs Chinkai.
2 June 1942:
Arrives at Chinkai.
15 June 1942:
Departs Chinkai and returns there later this day.
22 June 1942:
Departs Chinkai for Yeosu-eup, Chosen (now Yeosu, South Korea).
23 June 1942:
Arrives at Chinkai.
1 July 1942:
Departs Chinkai and arrives at Busan later that day.
3 July 1942:
Departs Busan and arrives at Chinkai later this day.
9 July 1942:
Departs Chinkai on training.
10 July 1942:
Arrives at Chinkai.
16 July 1942:
Departs Chinkai for Fukuoka.
19 July 1942:
Arrives at Chinkai.
22 July 1942:
Departs Chinkai on training.
24 July 1942:
Arrives at Chinkai.
29 July 1942:
Departs Chinkai for Port Hamilton (Komundo), Chosen (now Geomun-do, South Korea).
31 July 1942:
Arrives at Chinkai.
20 August 1944:
Departs Chinkai and arrives at Busan later that day.
21 August 1942:
Enters Chosen Jukogyo K.K. drydock.
27 August 1942:
Undocked. Departs Busan and arrives at Chinkai later this day.
31 August 1942:
Departs Chinkai and arrives at Mitsushimacho Takeshiki, Tsushima later that day.
4 September 1942:
Arrives at Chinkai.
14 September 1942:
Departs Chinkai.
15 September 1942:
Arrives at Chinkai.
22 September 1942:
Receives Chinkai Guard Unit wireless No. 63:
Chinkai Base Defense Unit CO dispatches KONGO MARU to Motoyama for security as well as dispatch training after 29 Sep ‘42. Ship should also cooperate in munitions’ transportation. Schedule and report the right action.
23 September 1942:
Departs Chinkai and returns there later this day.
29 September 1942:
Departs Chinkai.
30 September 1942:
Arrives at Motoyama (Genzan), Chosen (now Wonsan, North Korea).
1 October 1942:
Attached to the Chinkai Guard District Unit. Assigned to Tsushima Strait Force under Chinkai Guard District Ordinance No. 57.
3 October 1942:
Departs Motoyama.
4 October 1942:
Arrives at Chinkai.
20 October 1942:
Departs Chinkai.
21 October 1942:
Arrives at Motoyama.
8 November 1942:
Departs Motoyama.
10 November 1942:
Arrives at Chinkai.
14 November 1942:
Departs Chinkai.
20 November 1942:
Arrives at Chinkai.
2 December 1942:
Departs Chinkai.
3 December 1942:
Arrives at Chinkai.
19 December 1942:
Depart Chinkai.
23 December 1942:
Arrives at Motoyama.
26 December 1942:
Departs Motoyama.
27 December 1942:
Arrives at Chinkai.
19 January 1943:
Departs Chinkai.
11 February 1943:
Arrives at Chinkai.
20 February 1943:
Departs Chinkai.
10 March 1943:
Arrives at Chinkai.
19 March 1943:
Departs Chinkai.
7 April 1943:
Arrives at Chinkai.
14 April 1943:
Departs Chinkai.
30 April 1943:
Arrives at Chinkai.
9 May 1943:
Depart Chinkai.
2 June 1943:
Arrives at Chinkai.
7 June 1943:
Departs Chinkai.
19 June 1943:
At about 0825, in 32-30N, 126-15E convoy SHI-809 en route from Imari Wan (Bay) to Shanghai is attacked by LtCdr (later Admiral/CINCPAC) John S. McCain, Jr’s (USNA '31) USS GUNNEL (SS-253) and TOKIWA MARU is torpedoed and sunk with the loss of one crewman. In a follow up attack MIIKESAN and UGA MARU are both near missed. The convoy retreats and at 1410, arrives in a bay off Saishu To (Cheju Do or Quelpart Island). Meanwhile HONG KONG MARU, on a routine patrol, is ordered to intercept and destroy the submarine.
21 June 1943:
At 0912, drops two depth charges. Discovers a periscope and fires at it with the main guns. Hit by a torpedo of an unknown submarine at the bow port side. Sinks at 33-13N, 128-45E about two nautical miles off Ojika Jima Lighthouse. [2]
1 September 1943:
Removed from the Navy’s list under instruction No. 1823.

Authors' Notes:
[1] 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.
[2] No submarine attack matches this date and location. It is possible the ship struck a mine, perhaps broken loose from a defensive field, as is rather suggested by the bow damage. Alternatively USS GUNNEL attacked a target off Shirase LH on the night of 19 Jun ‘43 (after attack on convoy). It is possibly the case HONG KONG MARU was hit on 19 June and sank from damage sustained two days later, but this somewhat contradicts the entry for 21 June above.
________________________________________ Thanks go to Gengoro S. Toda of Japan.

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

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