IJN Submarine RO-63:
Tabular Record of
Movement
© 2001-2017 Bob Hackett & Sander Kingsepp:
Revision 4
2 April 1923:
Kobe. Laid down at Mitsubishi Shipbuilding
as Submarine No. 48, a 990-ton L4 submarine.
24 January 1924:
Launched.
20 October 1924:
LtCdr (later Vice Admiral) Hiraoka Kumeichi
(39)(former CO of RO-60) is appointed the Chief Equipping Officer.
1 November 1924:
Renumbered RO-63.
20 December 1924:
Mitsubishi Kobe Yard. RO-63 is completed and
registered in the IJN. Attached to Maizuru Naval District. Assigned to SubDiv
33. LtCdr Hiraoka Kumeichi is the Commanding Officer.
1 December 1925:
LtCdr (later Captain) Kosokabe Yuzuru (38)(former
CO of RO-54) is appointed the CO.
4 August 1926:
LtCdr (later Captain) Sekino Akira (38)(former CO of
RO-55) is appointed the CO.
15 January 1928:
LtCdr (Rear Admiral, posthumously) Ito Jotaro
(42)(former CO of RO-21) is appointed the CO.
10 March 1929:
Placed in reserve at Maizuru.
29 June 1929:
Lt (Rear Admiral, posthumously) Nakaoka Nobuki (45)
(former CO of RO-26) is appointed the CO.
13 November 1929:
Off Sasebo. After conducting diving exercises in
company of RO-64, RO-63, returning to Sasebo, collides with the small motor
vessel SEGAWA MARU and receives minor damage to her starboard bow.
30 November 1929:
LtCdr (Rear Admiral, posthumously) Otake Toshio (45)
(former CO of RO-65) is appointed the CO.
1 December 1931:
Lt (promoted LtCdr 1 Dec 1932; Rear Admiral,
posthumously) Shimizu Taro (48)(former torpedo officer of I-58) is appointed
the CO.
1 December 1932:
Placed in reserve at Maizuru. LtCdr Shimizu is
appointed the CO of RO-64 as an additional duty.
20 March 1934:
LtCdr (Rear Admiral, posthumously) Yamada Takashi (49)
(former CO of RO-32) is appointed the CO.
28 February 1935:
Placed in reserve at Maizuru. LtCdr (later Captain)
Otani Kiyonori (49)(former CO of I-124) is appointed the CO.
15 February 1936:
Lt (promoted LtCdr 1 December 1936; later Captain)
Yamada Kaoru (50) is appointed the CO.
20 March 1937:
Lt (later Captain) Inaba Michimune (51)(former torpedo
officer of I-56) is appointed the CO.
1 July 1937:
Lt Inaba is appointed the CO of RO-68 as an additional
duty.
31 July 1937:
LtCdr (later Captain) Yokota Minoru (51)(former CO of
I-22) is appointed the CO.
15 November 1937:
LtCdr (Captain, posthumously) Hanabusa Hakushi
(51)(former CO of RO-64) is appointed the CO.
19 March 1938:
LtCdr Inaba Michimune (51)(former torpedo officer of
I-60) is appointed the CO (his second tour as the CO of that boat).
15 December 1938:
LtCdr (Cdr, posthumously) Yajima Yasuo (51)(former
CO of RO-65/RO-67) is appointed the CO.
1 September 1939:
Reassigned to SubDiv 33. LtCdr (later Captain)
Tagami Meiji (51)(former CO of RO-59) is appointed the CO.
20 November 1939:
LtCdr (Captain, posthumously) Ohira Masajiro (52)
(former torpedo officer of I-70) is appointed the CO.
20 March 1940:
Lt (Cdr, posthumously) Izutsu Monshiro (57)(former
torpedo officer of I-59) is appointed the CO.
15 October 1940:
LtCdr (later Cdr) Kusaka Toshio (53)(former CO of
RO-58) is appointed the CO.
2 December 1941:
The coded signal "Niitakayama nobore (Climb Mt.
Niitaka) 1208" is received from the Combined Fleet. It signifies that
hostilities will commence on 8 December (Japan time). Mt. Niitaka, located in
Formosa (now Taiwan), is then the highest point in the Japanese Empire.
8 December 1941:
RO-63 is in Rear Admiral Onishi Shinzo's (42) SubRon
7 with Captain Nagai Takeo's (47) SubDiv 33 in Vice Admiral (later Admiral)
Inoue Shigeyoshi's (37)(former CO of HIEI) Fourth Fleet with RO-64 and RO-68.
LtCdr Kusaka Toshio is the CO.
Departs Kwajalein for Howland Island.
12 December 1941:
Arrives within 85 miles NW of Howland. LtCdr
Kusaka sights an enemy aircraft.
14 to 15 December 1941:
Reconnoiters Howland.
19 December 1941:
Returns to Kwajalein.
7 January 1942:
Departs Kwajalein for Truk.
11 January 1942:
Arrives at Truk.
15 January 1942:
Departs Truk with RO-64 and RO-68 to reconnoiter
Rabaul, New Britain. Patrols S of Cape St. George.
29 January 1942:
Returns to Truk.
10 February 1942:
LtCdr (Cdr, posthumously) Nagai Katsuhiko
(57)(former CO of RO-57) is appointed the CO.
18 February 1942:
Departs Truk for the Marshalls area in company of
RO-64 and RO-68.
23 February 1942:
Arrives at Ponape.
24 February 1942:
Departs Ponape in company of RO-64 and RO-68 for
the Marshalls area.
27 February 1942:
Soon after departure her horizontal rudder is
rendered inoperable. RO-63 heads for Bikini for repairs.
1 March 1942:
Departs after makeshift repairs but the jury-rigged
rudder breaks up again. Returns to Bikini.
2 March 1942:
Departs Bikini for Ponape.
5 March 1942:
Arrives at Ponape.
7 March 1942:
Departs Ponape for Truk.
9 March 1942:
Arrives at Truk.
19 March 1942:
Departs Truk for Saipan.
22 March 1942:
Arrives at Saipan.
26 March 1942:
Departs Saipan for Maizuru.
3 April 1942:
Arrives at Maizuru. Undergoes repairs.
5 June 1942:
Departs Maizuru for Saipan.
13 June 1942:
Arrives at Saipan, departs for Truk thereafter.
27 June 1942:
Departs Truk for Yokosuka.
4 July 1942:
Arrives at Yokosuka.
14 July 1942:
SubDiv 33 is transferred to the Fifth Fleet.
24 July 1942:
At 1600, departs Yokosuka for Paramushiro in company of
RO-64 and RO-68.
29 July 1942:
Arrives at Paramushiro.
31 July 1942:
Departs Paramushiro for Kiska with RO-68.
4 August 1942:
Arrives at Kiska. RO-63 is in Cdr (Rear Admiral,
posthumously) Kato Ryonosuke's (48) SubDiv 33 with I-6, RO-61, RO-62, RO-64,
RO-65, RO-67 and RO-68.
8-10 August 1942:
RO-63, RO-61, RO-64 and RO-68 sortie to
intercept TG 8.6 but fail to make contact.
11-13 August 1942:
Conducts a search for the crew of a ditched
reconnaissance plane.
17-20 August 1942:
Patrols off Aleutians, then returns to Kiska.
28-30 August 1942:
Patrols off Aleutians, then returns to Kiska.
3-5 September 1942:
Patrols off Aleutians, then returns to Kiska.
6-11 September 1942:
Patrols off Aleutians, then returns to Kiska.
14 September 1942:
Kiska. During an air raid on Kiska, RO-63 manages
to dive before the arrival of the planes, but a bomb dropped from a B-24 damages
her No. 1 periscope underwater.
15 September 1942:
SubDiv 22 and SubDiv 33 are temporarily attached
to Rear Admiral Akiyama Katsuzo's (40) 51st Base Unit (HQ Kiska).
22-24 September 1942:
Patrols off Aleutians, then returns to
Kiska.
25 September 1942:
SubDiv 33 is reassigned to Kure SubRon.
26 September 1942:
Departs Kiska for Maizuru in company of RO-64 and
RO-68.
5 October 1942:
Arrives at Maizuru.
15 October 1942:
Lt (later LtCdr) Nanbu Nobukiyo (61)(former torpedo
officer of I-17) is appointed the CO.
6 November 1942:
Departs Maizuru for Kure.
8 November 1942:
Arrives at Kure. Used as training ship thereafter.
1 January 1943:
Kure Naval District. RO-63 is in SubDiv 33 with RO-64
and RO-68. Training duties.
16 March 1943:
Lt (Cdr, posthumously) Kondo Fumitake (62)(former
torpedo officer of I-122) is appointed the CO.
25 July 1943:
LtCdr (Cdr, posthumously) Nishiuchi Shoichi (60)
(former CO of RO-105) is appointed the CO.
20 December 1943:
Lt (LtCdr, posthumously) Suzuki Katsuhito
(63)(former torpedo officer of I-26) is appointed the CO.
23 February 1944:
Captain Otani Kiyonori (49), the current ComSubDiv
33, is appointed the CO RO-63 as an additional duty (his second tour as the CO
of that boat).
30 April 1944:
Lt (Cdr, posthumously) Chikuma Chuzo (65)(former
torpedo officer of RO-106) is appointed the CO. [1]
5 August 1944:
Lt (later LtCdr) Koreeda Sadayoshi (64)(former CO of
RO-115) is appointed the CO.
20 August 1944:
Lt (later LtCdr) Nakajima Mari (66)(former torpedo
officer of I-122) is appointed the CO.
14 October 1944:
Lt Arai Kanichi (69)(former torpedo officer of
HARUSAME) is appointed the CO.
6 November 1944:
Lt Imanishi Saburo (67)(former torpedo officer of
I-36) is appointed the CO.
1 January 1945:
Kure Naval District. RO-63 is in SubDiv 33 with RO-64
and RO-67. Training duties.
28 March 1945:
RO-63 is slated to become the tender of the
newly-established Koryu type midget submarine detachment on Amami-Oshima Island
(Amami Archipelago). She undergoes a makeshift conversion at Kure Navy Yard,
during which a 25-mm Type 96 AA gun and an E27 Type 3 radar detector are
installed.
8 April 1945:
Departs Kure for Sasebo.
10 April 1945:
At 1355 departs Sasebo for Amami-Oshima, carrying
torpedoes and spares.
13 April 1945:
Arrives at Koniya, Amami-Oshima and unloads her
cargo that night. During the next two weeks continual air attacks force RO-63 to
spend the days submerged on the bottom and surface at night.
29 April 1945:
Receives the order to return to Sasebo.
30 April 1945:
Embarks a cargo of sugar at Kasari Bay, then departs
for Sasebo.
3 May 1945:
Returns to Sasebo. Drydocked until mid-May.
Mid-May 1945:
Returns to Otake, resumes training duties.
1-12 June 1945:
Lt Imanishi is appointed the CO of RO-62 as an
additional duty.
14 June 1945:
Lt Imanishi is appointed the CO of I-367. No new CO is
appointed.
20 July 1945:
LtCdr Morita Ryoji (64)(former CO of RO-67) is appointed
the CO.
30 July 1945:
LtCdr Taketomi Kunio (65)(former CO of I-367) is
appointed the CO.
15 August 1945:
Maizuru. Surrendered to the Allies.
20 November 1945:
Removed from the Navy List.
May 1946:
Scuttled in the Iyo Nada.
Authors' Note:
[1] Chikuma Chuzo's name appears in some Japanese references
as Takema Chuzo.
Thanks go to Dr. Higuchi Tatsuhiro of Japan.
– Bob Hackett and Sander Kingsepp.
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