Strange but True Stories

'Strange but True Stories'
Translated by Erich Muehlthaler with Bob Hackett

“Doolittle´s after-effects”

On 18 April 1942, in the First Bombing of Japan, LtCol (later Gen/Medal of Honor) James H. Doolittle's force of 16 North American B-25 "Mitchell" twin-engine Army bombers of the 17th Bomb Group took off from Captain (later Admiral) Marc A. Mitscher's carrier USS HORNET (CV-8) and struck targets in Tokyo, Yokohama, Osaka, Nagoya and Kobe.
Four days later, at 1525, on 21 April, the brand-new flying boat tender AKITSUSHIMA was running official builder trials off Wada-misaki, Kobe when a large airplane approached the vessel. The aircraft was identified as an enemy B-25 bomber! Immediately, AKITSUSHIMA opened fire with her brand-new AA-machine guns. Nearby, at the same time, Settsu Shosen´s passenger ship TENNYO MARU (495grt) was running her regular passenger service between Kobe and Awaji Island ports. At 1528, TENNYO MARU sent an emergency call that she was under machine gun fire thought to come from a large aircraft seen flying in the vicinity.
Finally, it became clear that AKITSUSHIMA had mistaken a Japanese transport plane for a B-25 bomber and that shell splinters from her AA-fire had rained down on nearby TENNYO MARU! The Doolittle Raid had, in deed, left a deep impact on Japanese psychology!

“Poor devil!”

MORIOKA MARU was 4,469-ton cargo ship owned by the Nippon Yusen Kaisha (NYK) Line of Tokyo. On 3 July 1941, she was requisitioned by the Imperial Army and allotted Army No. 286. On 2 March 1942, MORIOKA MARU finished loading 4.000 tons of coal at Sakito Harbor, Kakinoura-shima, Nagasaki Prefecture.
On 4 March, at 1000, MORIOKA MARU departed Sakito Harbor for Takao, Taiwan. At about 1130, Oiler 3rd Class Yoshimatsu Saito was just entering the boiler room when he discovered a male stowaway, about 25 or 26 years old. The stowaway was put in handcuffs and immediately brought to the captain´s room. Interrogation by MORIOKA MARU´s Captain Kikuchi Susumu revealed that the stowaway was a coal miner from Sakito who had tried to escape the extreme harsh working conditions that existed there. Captain Kikuchi decided to turn back to Sakito. At about 1207, MORIOKA MARU had just reversed course when she struck a Japanese defensive mine at 32-55.5N, 129-26.4E (177 degrees 5.5 nautical miles from Odate-jima Light). The mine exploded port side between No. 1 and No. 2 holds and tore a huge hole in the hull.
Initially, it was thought that the ship was hit by a torpedo from an enemy submarine. MORIOKA MARU’s stern gun fired two threatening shots. Immediately thereafter, both lifeboats were lowered into the water and Captain Kikuchi ordered all hands to abandon ship. Everyone on board, including the stowaway, got away safely. At 1220, MORIOKA MARU flooded and sank bow first. Later the same day, the survivors were picked up by auxiliary minelayer KINJO MARU (330grt) and landed at Sasebo that evening where two Kempeitai military policemen were awaiting the stowaway and took him away.
On 9 March, in a message regarding this sinking to the Chief of Staff of the Sasebo Naval Station, the Army Shipping Headquarter at Ujina complained that when MORIOKA MARU entered the difficult fairway it received instructions by means of a simple hand-flag from a naval boat and because of poor signalling MORIOKA MARU had not completely received the full content of message.
Captain Kikuchi later faced an investigation at Hiroshima. On 22 May, as a result of the hearings, it was decided that there would be no prosecution against him. Unfortunately, no records have been found about the fate of the poor devil who had tried to escape his terrible working conditions.

“The Exceptional Maiden Voyage of Imperial Japanese Army
Transport Submarine YU 3001"

It is not well known that several Japanese Army transport submarines (Maru-Yu) were built in Korea. YU 3001 was the first such boat built by Chosen Kikan Seisakujo Jinsen Kojo Seizotai (Korea Machine Factory Boat Manufacturing Works at Inchon). On 2 August 1944, YU 3001 was officially handed over to the Japanese Army. Thereafter, for about a month she conducted training in the vicinity of Inchon.
On 9 August 1944, YU 3001, commanded by 1st Lt Toshihiko Deguchi, departed Inchon for the IJA transport submarine’s main base at Iyo-Mishima, Ehime Prefecture, Inland Sea. The boat headed southward along the west coast of Korea. That evening, Lt Deguchi ordered the boat anchored in the shadow of an island off Kunsan.
At the same time, on a voyage from Wakamatsu to Dairen, Nippon Yusen Kaisha´s (NYK) Line’s IZU MARU (882grt), a wartime-standard type 2E cargo ship was approaching the waters off Kunsan. Captain Seinoshin Hiyama, skipper of IZU MARU was extremely careful. At this stage of the war, the Yellow Sea had become a very dangerous place with repeated attacks by enemy subs and aircraft. IZU MARU was sailing only at night, hopping from island to island and anchoring during day in the shadow of an island.
In the moonlight at about midnight of 8/9 September 1944, a lookout on IZU MARU´s quarter deck discovered a suspect silhouette through his binoculars. It looked like a submarine with conning tower and a deck gun at a distance of about 1,.500 meters and close to an island. Captain Hiyama checked the warships recognition manual, but the silhouette did not resemble any of the shown I-Go, RO-Go, HA-Go or trainings submarines. That left only one conclusion: enemy submarine!
Captain Hiyama immediately rang the emergency bell “enemy sub seen, all hands to action stations”! Lacking any weapons, Captain Hiyama decided to ram the sub! He ordered the helmsman to make a full U-turn and at full speed. Chief Engineer Toshiro Kurashige did his utmost to bring the small ship around as quickly as possible at maximum speed.
Meanwhile, on board YU 3001 half of the crew were asleep in their bunks. The night watch on the conning tower was observing the seaward vicinity through their binoculars. Around midnight, a lookout discovered an approaching shadow which was identified as a small cargo ship. Though the cargo ship came nearer and nearer, the men on the conning tower did not get suspicious, expecting the other ship to alter course at any moment and pass the submarine at safe distance. When the men realized that something was totally wrong, it was already too late.
IZU MARU rammed YU 3001 port side amidships and tore a big hole in No. 4 main tank. The shock of the collision knocked out all the lights. YU 3001’s stern draft increased by 20 cm. But the most important damage was a crack in the pressure hull. Luckily, the submarine escaped capsizing because the engine exhaust pipe still remained above water level. Fortunately there was only one grievous casualty among the men on board: IJA Captain Kanazawa Hajime was hit in the face by caustic soda causing painful burns. Captain Kanazawa was landed at Kunsan and was in the Keijo (Seoul) Army Hospital for treatment until December 1944. Captain Kanazawa was not a member of the crew, but the navigation officer of the Army Transport Submarine Detachment Headquarters at Inchon.
After ramming YU 3001, IZU MARU came free again and backed. It was at this point, that several crew members on board IZU MARU heard desperate shouts coming from the submarine: “friend!”, “friend!”. Only now did Captain Hiyama realize that his ship had rammed a Japanese submarine. He immediately ordered IZU MARU´s life boat into the water and pulled over to the submarine arriving there 20 minutes later. He now recognized the full extent of the disaster and immediately offered all assistance he and his crew were able to give.
Afterwards, IZU MARU entered Kunsan Harbor where her bow damage was repaired. At Kunsan, Captain Hiyama and Chief Engineer Kurashige were asked by the local Military Police (Kenpetai) about the accident and a protocol was made for further investigations. Later, when IZU MARU arrived back again at Moji, Captain Hiyama was cited to appear in front of naval staff officer about the ramming of YU 3001. To his astonishment the naval officer admitted that, considering the circumstances, Captain Hiyama had performed courageously!
Due to lack of adequate repair facilities, Captain Deguchi received an order from Army Shipping Headquarter at Ujina to proceed to Pusan with a stop at Reisui (Yosu) on the south coast of Korea. YU 3001 was heading southward along the west coast of Korea when a navy plane was seen approaching the submarine. The aircraft passed over YU 3001 when all of a sudden, it lost speed and made an emergency water landing. The pilot was rescued and taken on board the submarine.
When YU 3001 arrived at the island-dotted waters of the SW coast of Korea, a northward bound convoy was sighted on the port side. Suddenly, a gunshot was heard and seconds later a column of water erupted with a deafening roar 500 meters ahead of the submarine. Shortly afterwards, a second round caused another water column 700 meters starboard astern. The attacker was now identified as a convoy escort vessel. The men on the sub signalled and waved with all means they had. Finally, the escort vessel realized its error and continued northward. After a stop at Reisui, YU 3001 arrived at Pusan on 18 September 1944.
At Pusan YU 3001 was dry-docked and repair work started on the damaged No. 4 main tank. A thorough inspection revealed that the crack in the pressure hull was so severe that a proper repair was impossible. This was very bad news meaning that the submarine would never be able again to reach her designed deep diving depth of 100 meters. After finishing all possible repairs, YU 3001 departed Pusan on 10 October 1944 and proceeded to Mishima and finally arrived there on 20 October 1944.
Due to her damaged pressure hull, YU 3001 could only be used as a training boat at the Mishima Army Transport Submarine Base. At end of war, YU 3001 was still at Mishima.