Japanese Army Auxiliary Transports

RIKUGUN YUSOSEN

(Sister KUMAGAWA MARU by Ueda Kihachiro)

Transport SHINANOGAWAMARU: Tabular Record of Movement
© 2011 Bob Hackett

20 November 1932:
Nagasaki. Laid down at Mitsubishi Zosensho as a 7,504-ton cargo ship for Toyo Kaiun K. K., Tokyo.
24 June 1933:
Launched and named UYO MARU.
31 January 1934:
Completed and registered in the port of Tokyo.
1934-1940:
UYO MARU is in Toyo Kaiun's service. Transports timber between the west coast of North America and Japan.
1940:
Renamed SHINANOGAWA MARU. In Toyo Kaiun's service as a civilian merchant ship.
18 November 1941:
SHINANOGAWA MARU is requistioned by the Imperial Army (IJA) as a Rikugun (A-AK) cargo ship and assigned IJA ship No. 920. Attached to Vice Admiral Takahashi Ibo’s (35)(former CO of YAMASHIRO) Third Fleet as a troop transport.
8 December 1941: Operation "M" - The Attack on the Southern Philippines:
At 0800, SHINANOGAWA MARU departs Peleliu, Palau Islands for Legaspi, Luzon, Philippines in Rear Admiral (later Vice Admiral) Kubo
Kyuji 's (38)(former CO of KAGA) Fourth Surprise Attack Force with IJA transports MATSUMOTO, HARUNA, YASUKAWA and MYOKO MARUs and IJN transports SHINRYU and YAMAFUKU MARUs. Kubo’s force is escorted by light cruiser NAGARA (F), DesDiv 24's KAWAKAZE, SUZUKAZE, UMIKAZE and YAMAKAZE and minelayer AOTAKA. Kubo’s force is also accompanied by oiler IJN HAYATOMO and DesDiv 16’s YUKIKAZE and TOKITSUKAZE. Seaplane tenders CHITOSE and MIZUHO provide air cover.
11 December 1941:
Off Western Luzon, Philippines. Enroute to Legaspi, the convoy’s destroyers refuel from oiler HAYATOMO.
12 December 1941:
At 0400, A submarine is detected near the landing force. AOTAKA and patrol boat PB-34 are briefly detached for a depth-charge attack.

Beginning at about 1200, Kubo's Fourth Surprise Attack Force lands troops at Legaspi.
18 February 1942: Operation "J" - The Invasion of Java, Netherlands East Indies:
Vice Admiral Takahashi's Third Fleet, Western Netherlands East Indies Seizure Force departs Camranh Bay, Indochina. Takahashi's force consists of 56 troop transports carrying the 16th Army's 2nd Infantry Division for the invasion of Bantam Bay and Merak, Java. Light cruisers YURA and NATORI provide escort and seaplane tenders SANYO and KAMIKAWA MARU provides air cover. Rear Admiral (later Vice Admiral) KURITA TAKEO’s (38) CruDiv 7's MOGAMI, MIKUMA, SUZUYA and KUMANO provide cover.
SHINANOGAWA MARU and 29 other transports are assigned to land the IJA’s 2nd Division’s Nasu Detachment’s troops south of Merak, Java. The transports also carry the 2nd Tank Regiment’s 2nd and 4th companies (21 Type 97 medium tanks) and 2nd Recon Regiment (16 Type 97 tankettes).
19 March 1942: "U" transport operation to Burma (U Sakusen):
The First Burma Transport Convoy departs Singapore consisting of 32 ships with main body of the 56th Division: SHINANOGAWA, HAVRE, AOBASAN, KAZUURA, KIZAN, GLASGOW, KUSUYAMA, KOTOHIRA, SANKO, SAKITO, SHINAI, SHINRYU, SHUNSEI, SYDNEY, SUMATRA, GENOA, TATEISHI, TSUYAMA, TOKIWA, NAKO, NAGARA, NICHIRAN, NAPLES, HARUNA, HIBURI, HOFUKU, HOKUMEI, MYOKO, MOMOYAMA, YAE MARUs and two others.
25 March 1942:
The First Burma Transport Convoy arrives at Rangoon, Burma (now Yangon, Myanmar).
3 June 1942:
SHINANOGAWA MARU departs Mutsure in the RIKU convoy consisting of AKIURA, KANSAI, KINUKAWA, SAGAMI escorted by destroyers FUYO and WAKATAKE and torpedo boats SAGI and HAYABUSA.
8 June 1942:
Arrives at Manila.
26 June 1942:
At 0600, SHINANOGAWA MARU departs Manila for Kure in Convoy "D" consisting of KANSAI, KINUGAWA, NAKO, TAIFUKU and KIYOZUMI MARUs.
2 July 1942:
Arrives at Kure.
7 August 1942: American Operation "Watchtower" - The Invasion of Guadalcanal, British Solomons:
Rear Admiral (later Admiral) Richmond K. Turner's (former CO of ASTORIA, CA-34), Amphibious Task Force 62, covered by Vice Admiral (MOH/later Admiral) Frank J. Fletcher's (former CO of VERMONT, BB-20) Task Force 61 and Rear Admiral (later Admiral) John S. McCain's (former CO of RANGER, CV-4) Task Force 63's land-based aircraft, lands MajGen (later General/MOH/Commandant) Alexander A. Vandegrift's 1st Marine Division on Florida, Tulagi, Gavutu, Tanambogo and Guadalcanal opening the campaign to retake the islands.
2 October 1942:
SHINANOGAWA MARU arrives at Rabaul, New Britain in an unidentified convoy probably also consisting of BRISBANE, ARIZONA, NAKA, CANBERRA KINUGAWA, YAMAURA and YAMAZUKI MARUs and several unidentified ships with an unknown escort.
6 November 1942:
At 1400, SHINANOGAWA MARU departs Rabaul for the Shortland Islands, Solomons in an unnumbered convoy also consisting of ARIZONA, TOYO, NAGARA, YAMAZUKI, TEIYO, YUROI, TOYOKUNI and OIGAWA MARUs escorted by torpedo boat HIYODORI, minelayer SHIRATAKA, minesweeper W-15 and subchaser CH-16.
8 November 1942:
At 1020, the convoy arrives at Shortlands.
13 November 1942:
At 1730, SHINANOGAWA MARU departs Shortlands for Guadalcanal, Solomons with Rear Admiral (later Vice Admiral) Tanaka Raizo's Reinforcement Group’s troop transports carrying Maj Gen Tanabe Suketomo's 38th Army ("Sendai") Division and Special Naval Landing Force (SNLF) troops, equipment and provisions in the No. 2 Butai also consisting of BRISBANE, ARIZONA, KINUGAWA, YAMAURA and YAMAZUKI MARUs accompanied by the No. 1 Butai consisting of SADO, NAGARA, CANBERRA, NAKO and HIROKAWA MARUs all escorted by DesRon 2’s HAYASHIO, AMAGIRI, KAGERO, KAWAKAZE, MAKINAMI, MOCHIZUKI, NAGANAMI, OYASHIO, SUZUKAZE, TAKANAMI and UMIKAZE. Air cover is provided by the 11th Air Fleet and the R-Area Air Force's floatplane fighters. SHINANOGAWA MARU is carrying the 2nd Battalion of the IJA 230th Infantry Regiment.
No. 2 Butai is to unload at Argulio Point, near Cape Esperance while the faster No. 1 Butai is to unload at Tassafaronga.
14 November 1942:
At 0849, as Tanaka's Reinforcement Group proceeds down the "Slot" between the New Georgia and Santa Isabel Islands, the 23-ship convoy is sighted by a reconnaissance Douglas "Dauntless" SBD dive-bomber from USS ENTERPRISE (CV-6). At 0908, the SDB attacks a transport, but is shot down by Japanese fighters.
Off Guadalcanal. At 1250, 18 Marine Corps SBD dive-bombers and seven USN Grumman "Avenger" TBF torpedo-bombers attack the convoy. Mitsubishi A6M "Zekes" shoot down some aircraft, but are engaged by Grumman F4F "Wildcat' fighters and cannot stop the attack. CANBERRA and NAGARA MARUs are bombed and sunk. Destroyers AMAGIRI and MOCHIZUKI rescue 1,500 survivors. The Americans also damage cargo ship SADO MARU that is detached to Shortlands with AMAGIRI and MOCHIZUKI carrying among, other survivors, MajGen Tanabe CO of the 38th Division
At about 1430, SBD dive-bombers from ENTERPRISE and USMC SBDs of the "Cactus Air Force" at Henderson Field bomb and sink BRISBANE MARU. Destroyer KAWAKAZE rescues 550 survivors.
Beginning about 1500, two flights of Fifth Air Force B-17 “Flying Fortress” heavy bombers from the 11th Bomb Group (H) at Espiritu Santo, New Hebrides attack the convoy without success.
Off Shortland Islands. At about 1530, SHINANOGAWA in the lead and ARIZONA MARUs in the rear of No. 2 Butai are attacked by eight SBD dive-bombers from ENTERPRISE covered by 12 F4F fighters. Both transports are hit by 1,000-lb bombs and abandoned. SHINANOGAWA MARU sinks at 08-30S, 158-45E. Destroyer NAGANAMI rescues 570 survivors from SHINANOGAWA MARU and MAKINAMI rescues 1,020 survivors from ARIZONA MARU.
In the last attack beginning about 1610, the planes sink transport NAKA MARU. Destroyer SUZUKAKE rescues 1,100 survivors. [1]

Author's Note:
Thanks go to Gilbert Casse of France and Erich Muehlthaler of Germany.

Bob Hackett

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