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Sazanami on 15 April 1940.
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History | |
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Name: | Sazanami |
Namesake: | Japanese destroyer Sazanami (1899) |
Ordered: | 1923 Fiscal Year |
Builder: | Maizuru Naval Arsenal |
Yard number: | Destroyer No. 53 |
Laid down: | 21 March 1930 |
Launched: | 6 June 1931 |
Commissioned: | 19 May 1932 |
Struck: | 10 March 1944 |
Fate: | Sunk in action, 14 January 1944 |
General characteristics | |
Class and type: | Fubuki-class destroyer |
Displacement: | |
Length: |
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Beam: | 10.4 m (34 ft 1 in) |
Draft: | 3.2 m (10 ft 6 in) |
Propulsion: | |
Speed: | 38 knots (44 mph; 70 km/h) |
Range: | 5,000 nmi (9,300 km) at 14 knots (26 km/h) |
Complement: | 219 |
Armament: |
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Service record | |
Operations: |
Sazanami (漣 "Ripples"?) was the nineteenth of twenty-four Fubuki-class destroyers, built for the Imperial Japanese Navy following World War I. When introduced into service, these ships were the most powerful destroyers in the world. They served as first-line destroyers through the 1930s, and remained formidable weapons systems well into the Pacific War.
Construction of the advanced Fubuki-class destroyers was authorized as part of the Imperial Japanese Navy's expansion program from fiscal 1923, intended to give Japan a qualitative edge with the world's most modern ships. The Fubuki class had performance that was a quantum leap over previous destroyer designs, so much so that they were designated Special Type destroyers (特型 Tokugata?). The large size, powerful engines, high speed, large radius of action and unprecedented armament gave these destroyers the firepower similar to many light cruisers in other navies.Sazanami, built at the Maizuru was the seventh in an improved series, which incorporated a modified gun turret which could elevate her main battery of Type 3 127 mm 50 caliber naval guns to 75° as opposed to the original 40°, thus permitting the guns to be used as dual purpose guns against aircraft.Sazanami laid down on 21 February 1930, launched on 6 June 1931 and commissioned on 19 May 1932. Originally assigned hull designation “Destroyer No. 53”, she was given the name Sazanami before her launch.