SENSUIKAN!
(RO-46)
IJN Submarine RO-37:
Tabular Record of
Movement
© 2001-2019 Bob Hackett & Sander Kingsepp
Revision 4
9 October 1941:
Laid down at Sasebo Navy Yard as the 960-ton type K6 class Submarine No.
203.
20 June 1942:
Renumbered RO-37 and provisionally attached to Maizuru
Naval District.
30 June 1942:
Launched as RO-37 and attached to Maizuru Naval District.
6 April 1943:
LtCdr (Cdr, posthumously) Doi Takashige (60)(former CO
of RO-34) is appointed the Chief Equipping Officer (CEO).
12 May 1943:
Lt (promoted LtCdr 1 June 1943; Cdr, posthumously)
Sato Sakuma (60)(former CO of RO-62) is appointed the CEO.
30 June 1943:
Sasebo. RO-37 is completed and attached to Maizuru Naval
District. Assigned to SubRon 11 for working-up. LtCdr Sato Sakuma is the
Commanding Officer.
16 September 1943:
Assigned to Sixth Fleet.
22 September 1943:
Departs Maizuru for Truk.
24 September 1943:
Reassigned to Sixth Fleet, SubRon 1.
7 October 1943:
Arrives at Truk.
20 October 1943:
Departs Truk on her first war patrol to patrol E of
the New Hebrides as a part of Submarine Group "A".
31 October 1943:
Reassigned to SubDiv 34.
November 1943:
Returns to Truk.
15 and 31 December 1943:
Truk. HEIAN MARU transfers stores to RO-37.
2 January 1944:
On that day, the USN Fleet Radio Unit, Melbourne,
Australia (FRUMEL) provides the translation of the following message from Truk
Base Force:
"Submarine RO-37 will leave by South Channel at 1600 tomorrow 3rd
January. Course 116 degrees."
3 January 1944:
RO-37 departs Truk to patrol off the New Hebrides. No
contacts thereafter.
22 January 1944:
155 miles SE of San Cristobal Island, Solomons.
RO-37 attacks and torpedoes the 5,730-ton fleet oiler USS CACHE (AO-67,
ex-STILLWATER), en route to Espiritu Santo in company of the minesweeper
SOUTHARD (DMS-10). CACHE receives one torpedo hit to her port side at 12-08S,
164-23E. Three of her tanks are holed and others damaged. Two sailors are
blown overboard by the explosion: one is killed, but the other is rescued by
SOUTHARD.
CACHE transmits a distress call that is picked up by Cdr Floyd B.T.
Myhre's USS BUCHANAN (DD-484), currently en route from Purvis Bay, Florida
Island to Espiritu Santo. BUCHANAN goes to CACHE's rescue at flank speed.
130 miles ESE of San Cristobal and 95 miles NW of where CACHE was
torpedoed, BUCHANAN makes a SG radar contact with a "fairly large" submarine
at 12,750 yards. Cdr Myhre closes to 2,000 yds, snaps on his searchlight and
illuminates the diving submarine. BUCHANAN's sonar reacquires the target at
1,250 yds. After three hours of attacks and dropping a total of 53 depth
charges, the BUCHANAN sinks RO-37 at 11-47S, 164-17E. An oil slick is
observed on the surface, covering five square miles. In the morning, a
large amount of wooden and cork debris is sighted in the attack area.
17 February 1944:
Presumed lost with all 61 hands in New Hebrides
area.
30 April 1944:
Removed from the Navy List.
Author's Note:
Thanks go to Dr. Higuchi Tatsuhiro of Japan.
– Bob Hackett and Sander Kingsepp.
Back to Submarine
Page
