was a
protected cruiser
Protected cruisers, a type of cruiser of the late 19th century, took their name from the armored deck, which protected vital machine-spaces from fragments released by explosive shells. Protected cruisers notably lacked a belt of armour alon ...
of the
Imperial Japanese Navy
The Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN; Kyūjitai: Shinjitai: ' 'Navy of the Greater Japanese Empire', or ''Nippon Kaigun'', 'Japanese Navy') was the navy of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945, Potsdam Declaration, when it was dissolved followin ...
. She was a
sister ship
A sister ship is a ship of the same Ship class, class or of virtually identical design to another ship. Such vessels share a nearly identical hull and superstructure layout, similar size, and roughly comparable features and equipment. They o ...
to . The name ''Akashi'' comes from an ancient name for a portion of the coastline near the modern city of
Kobe
Kobe ( ; , ), officially , is the capital city of Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan. With a population of around 1.5 million, Kobe is Japan's List of Japanese cities by population, seventh-largest city and the third-largest port city after Port of Toky ...
in
Hyōgo Prefecture
is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Hyōgo Prefecture has a population of 5,469,762 () and a geographic area of . Hyōgo Prefecture borders Kyoto Prefecture to the east, Osaka Prefecture to th ...
.
Background
''Akashi'' was designed and built at
Yokosuka Naval Arsenal
was one of four principal naval shipyards owned and operated by the Imperial Japanese Navy, and was located at Yokosuka, Kanagawa, Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture on Tokyo Bay, south of Yokohama.
History
In 1866, the Tokugawa shogunate govern ...
, as part of an Imperial Japanese Navy program to end its dependence on foreign powers for modern warships, using an all-Japanese design and all-Japanese materials.
[Schencking, ''Making Waves'';] Construction took four years, from 1892–1896. She was
laid down
Laying the keel or laying down is the formal recognition of the start of a ship's construction. It is often marked with a ceremony attended by dignitaries from the shipbuilding company and the ultimate owners of the ship.
Keel laying is one ...
on 6 August 1894,
launched on 18 December 1897 and completed on 30 March 1899.
[Nishida, ''Ships of the Imperial Japanese Navy''] While more lightly armed and armored than many of the cruiser's contemporaries, her small size and relatively simple design facilitated the vessel's construction and the ship's relatively high speed made her useful for many military operations. However, as with most Japanese designs of the period, she proved to be top-heavy and had issues with seaworthiness and stability.
[Jentsura, ''Warships of the Imperial Japanese Navy''; page 99]
Design
The design for ''Akashi'' was based on an all-steel, double-bottomed hull, with an armored deck, divided underneath by watertight bulkheads. The armor, of the
Harvey armor
Harvey armor was a type of steel naval armor developed in the early 1890s in which the front surfaces of the plates were case hardening, case hardened. The method for doing this was known as the Harvey process, and was invented by the United S ...
variety, covered only vital areas, such as the boilers,
gun magazines and critical machinery, with a thickness of on the deck.
Her
main battery
A main battery is the primary weapon or group of weapons around which a warship is designed. As such, a main battery was historically a naval gun or group of guns used in volleys, as in the broadsides of cannon on a ship of the line. Later, th ...
consisted of two
QF 6 inch /40 naval gun
The QF 6-inch 40 calibre naval gun (Quick firing gun, Quick-Firing) was used by many United Kingdom-built warships around the end of the 19th century and the start of the 20th century. In British service it was known as the QF 6-inch Mk I, II, III ...
s, one set in the
forecastle
The forecastle ( ; contracted as fo'c'sle or fo'c's'le) is the upper deck (ship), deck of a sailing ship forward of the foremast, or, historically, the forward part of a ship with the sailors' living quarters. Related to the latter meaning is t ...
and one in the
stern
The stern is the back or aft-most part of a ship or boat, technically defined as the area built up over the sternpost, extending upwards from the counter rail to the taffrail. The stern lies opposite the bow, the foremost part of a ship. O ...
. The main guns had a range of up to with a nominal firing rate of 5.7 shots/minute. Secondary armament consisted of six
QF 4.7-inch guns mounted in
sponson
Sponsons are projections extending from the sides of land vehicles, aircraft or watercraft to provide protection, Instantaneous stability, stability, storage locations, mounting points for weapons or other devices, or equipment housing.
Watercra ...
s on the upper deck. These guns had a range of up to with a nominal firing rate of 12 shots/minute. She also had ten
QF 3 pounder Hotchkiss
The QF 3-pounder Hotchkiss or in French use Canon Hotchkiss à tir rapide de 47 mm were a family of long-lived light naval guns introduced in 1886 to defend against new, small and fast vessels such as torpedo boats and later submarines. T ...
guns, with a range of up to with a nominal firing rate of 20 shots/minute, mounted four on the upper deck, two on the poop, two on the after
bridge
A bridge is a structure built to Span (engineering), span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or railway) without blocking the path underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, whi ...
and one each on the
bow and stern, as well as four
1-inch Nordenfelt guns, which were later replaced by four 7.62 mm
Maxim machine guns. She also was equipped with two
torpedo
A modern torpedo is an underwater ranged weapon launched above or below the water surface, self-propelled towards a target, with an explosive warhead designed to detonate either on contact with or in proximity to the target. Historically, such ...
es, mounted on the deck.
[Chesneau, ''Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1860–1905'', page 229]
Her powerplant consisted of two vertical triple expansion steam engines, with nine single-ended boilers in two boiler rooms separated by a watertight bulkhead .
[
The stability problems experienced by ''Suma'' was discovered before the completion of ''Akashi'', and she was modified during construction with greater freeboard amidships, a flush deck, and without fighting tops to lower her center of gravity.][
]
Service life
Early years
After entering service in March 1899, ''Akashi'' experienced numerous mechanical problems and had to return to Yokosuka Naval Arsenal for repairs in October 1899 and January 1900, with additional repairs performed at Kure Naval Arsenal
was one of four principal naval shipyards owned and operated by the Imperial Japanese Navy.
History
The Kure Naval District was established at Kure, Hiroshima in 1889, as the second of the naval districts responsible for the defense of the ...
in May 1900 and at Sasebo Naval Arsenal
was one of four principal naval shipyards owned and operated by the Imperial Japanese Navy.
History
The Sasebo Naval District was established at Sasebo, Nagasaki in 1886, as the third of the naval districts responsible for the defense of the ...
in July 1900.
The first overseas deployment of ''Akashi'' was from July to November 1900, to support Japanese naval landing forces which occupied the port city of Tianjin
Tianjin is a direct-administered municipality in North China, northern China on the shore of the Bohai Sea. It is one of the National Central City, nine national central cities, with a total population of 13,866,009 inhabitants at the time of the ...
in northern China during the Boxer Rebellion
The Boxer Rebellion, also known as the Boxer Uprising, was an anti-foreign, anti-imperialist, and anti-Christian uprising in North China between 1899 and 1901, towards the end of the Qing dynasty, by the Society of Righteous and Harmonious F ...
, as part of the Japanese contribution to the Eight-Nation Alliance
The Eight-Nation Alliance was a multinational military coalition that invaded northern China in 1900 during the Boxer Rebellion, with the stated aim of relieving the foreign legations in Beijing, which were being besieged by the popular Boxer ...
.
Immediately on her return, she required repairs to her boilers at Kure. From April to October 1901, ''Akashi'' was sent to southern China, and was then again renovated in Kure. From February 1902, ''Akashi'' was again deployed to China but was forced once more to cut her deployment short when it was found that three of her boilers could not hold pressure, and she could not achieve over . She returned to China in May, but had to return to Japan again in June. In August 1902, ''Akashi'' was deemed unfit for front-line service and was transferred to the reserve fleet.
Unwilling to write off the ship as a loss, the Imperial Japanese Navy General Staff
The was the highest organ within the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN). In charge of planning and operations, it was headed by an Admiral headquartered in Tokyo.
History
Created in 1893, the Navy General Staff took over operational (as opposed to a ...
ordered ''Akashi'' to be completely overhauled at Kure Naval Arsenal in March 1903, and then sent the ship as a training vessel with instructors and cadets from the Imperial Naval Engineering Academy on a cruise around the coasts of China and Korea, marking port calls at Fuzhou
Fuzhou is the capital of Fujian, China. The city lies between the Min River (Fujian), Min River estuary to the south and the city of Ningde to the north. Together, Fuzhou and Ningde make up the Eastern Min, Mindong linguistic and cultural regi ...
, Shanghai, Yantai
Yantai, formerly known as Chefoo, is a coastal prefecture-level city on the Shandong Peninsula in northeastern Shandong province of the People's Republic of China. Lying on the southern coast of the Bohai Strait, Yantai borders Qingdao ...
, Inchon, Busan
Busan (), officially Busan Metropolitan City, is South Korea's second list of cities in South Korea by population, most populous city after Seoul, with a population of over 3.3 million as of 2024. Formerly romanized as Pusan, it is the economi ...
and Wonsan
Wonsan (), previously known as Wonsanjin (), is a port city and naval base located in Kangwon Province (North Korea), Kangwon Province, North Korea, along the eastern side of the Korean Peninsula, on the Sea of Japan and the provincial capital. ...
, returning to Sasebo
is a core city located in Nagasaki Prefecture, Japan. It is the second-largest city in Nagasaki Prefecture, after its capital, Nagasaki. , the city had an estimated population of 230,873 in 102,670 households, and a population density of 540 per ...
in September 1903. In October and November 1903, ''Akashi'' was able to participate in combat maneuvers with other cruisers in the fleet. ''Akashi'' was then assigned to escorting the Japanese cable laying vessels laying the first submarine telegraph cable
A submarine communications cable is a cable laid on the seabed between land-based stations to carry telecommunication signals across stretches of ocean and sea. The first submarine communications cables were laid beginning in the 1850s and car ...
between Sasebo
is a core city located in Nagasaki Prefecture, Japan. It is the second-largest city in Nagasaki Prefecture, after its capital, Nagasaki. , the city had an estimated population of 230,873 in 102,670 households, and a population density of 540 per ...
and Incheon
Incheon is a city located in northwestern South Korea, bordering Seoul and Gyeonggi Province to the east. Inhabited since the Neolithic, Incheon was home to just 4,700 people when it became an international port in 1883. As of February 2020, ...
in Korea from 8–17 January 1904.
During speed trials conducted in January 1904, ''Akashi'' attained a top speed of .
Russo-Japanese War
''Akashi'' was based at Chinkai Guard District
The was the major navy base for the Imperial Japanese Navy in Korea under Japanese rule before and during World War II. Located in southern Korea (at present-day Jinhae, South Korea, ), the Chinkai Guard District was responsible for control of th ...
in Korea at the start of the Russo-Japanese War
The Russo-Japanese War (8 February 1904 – 5 September 1905) was fought between the Russian Empire and the Empire of Japan over rival imperial ambitions in Manchuria and the Korean Empire. The major land battles of the war were fought on the ...
of 1904–1905, and was stationed at sea off the southeastern coast of the Korean Peninsula
Korea is a peninsular region in East Asia consisting of the Korean Peninsula, Jeju Island, and smaller islands. Since the end of World War II in 1945, it has been politically divided at or near the 38th parallel between North Korea (Dem ...
as a telegraphic relay station immediately before the outbreak of hostilities. She participated in the Battle of Chemulpo Bay
The Battle of Chemulpo Bay was a naval battle in the Russo-Japanese War (1904–1905), which took place on 9 February 1904, off the coast of present-day Incheon (then called Chemulpo), Korea.
Background
The opening stage of the Russo-Japanese ...
at the start of the war, taking part in the line of battle
The line of battle or the battle line is a tactic in naval warfare in which a fleet of ships (known as ships of the line) forms a line end to end. The first example of its use as a tactic is disputed—it has been variously claimed for date ...
behind the cruiser and assisting in the sinking of the Russian
Russian(s) may refer to:
*Russians (), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries
*A citizen of Russia
*Russian language, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages
*''The Russians'', a b ...
cruiser and the gunboat . During the battle, a shell from ''Varyag'' passed in between her funnels.
In April and May, ''Akashi'' escorted transports conveying the Japanese Second Army
The was an army of the Imperial Japanese Army. It was raised and demobilized on four occasions.
History
The Japanese 2nd Army was initially raised during the First Sino-Japanese War from September 27, 1894, to May 14, 1895, under the command o ...
to Manchuria
Manchuria is a historical region in northeast Asia encompassing the entirety of present-day northeast China and parts of the modern-day Russian Far East south of the Uda (Khabarovsk Krai), Uda River and the Tukuringra-Dzhagdy Ranges. The exact ...
, and escorted destroyer squadrons from Japan to the front-lines. On 15 May, she assisted in the rescue of survivors from the crew of the ill-fated battleship
A battleship is a large, heavily naval armour, armored warship with a main battery consisting of large naval gun, guns, designed to serve as a capital ship. From their advent in the late 1880s, battleships were among the largest and most form ...
s and after those ships struck naval mine
A naval mine is a self-contained explosive weapon placed in water to damage or destroy surface ships or submarines. Similar to anti-personnel mine, anti-personnel and other land mines, and unlike purpose launched naval depth charges, they are ...
s off the coast of Port Arthur. She then joined the list of Japanese ships blockading the Russian naval base in the Battle of Port Arthur
The of 8–9 February 1904 marked the commencement of the Russo-Japanese War. It began with a surprise night attack by a squadron of Imperial Japanese Navy, Japanese destroyers on the neutral country, neutral Imperial Russian Navy, Russian fl ...
.
On 16 May, ''Akashi'', with the cruiser and , bombarded Russian troops and buildings from the Bohai Gulf
The Bohai Sea ( zh, c=渤海, p=Bó Hǎi, l=Bo Sea) is a gulf/ inland sea approximately in area on the east coast of Mainland China. It is the northwestern and innermost extension of the Yellow Sea, to which it connects via the Bohai Strait. I ...
. The operation was cancelled due to dense fog on 17 May, in which the gunboats and collided, causing ''Ōshima'' to sink.
On 7 June, ''Akashi'', together with ''Suma'' and the gunboat
A gunboat is a naval watercraft designed for the express purpose of carrying one or more guns to bombard coastal targets, as opposed to those military craft designed for naval warfare, or for ferrying troops or supplies.
History Pre-steam ...
s , and a detachment of destroyers entered the Gulf of Bohai
The Bohai Sea ( zh, c=渤海, p=Bó Hǎi, l=Bo Sea) is a gulf/inland sea approximately in area on the east coast of Mainland China. It is the northwestern and innermost extension of the Yellow Sea, to which it connects via the Bohai Strait. It ...
to support the landings of elements of the Japanese Second Army, and later bombarded Russian shore installations and a railway line along the coast of Manchuria.
On 10 August, during the Battle of the Yellow Sea
The Battle of the Yellow Sea (; ) was a naval battle of the Russo-Japanese War, fought on 10 August 1904. In the Russian Navy, it was referred to as the Battle of 10 August. The battle foiled an attempt by the Russian fleet at Lüshunkou (Port ...
, ''Akashi'' did not participate in the first phase of the battle as she arrived too late. However, she did participate in the pursuit of the fleeing Russian cruisers and , but was unable to prevent the escape of the Russian ships.
On 10 December, ''Akashi'' struck a naval mine
A naval mine is a self-contained explosive weapon placed in water to damage or destroy surface ships or submarines. Similar to anti-personnel mine, anti-personnel and other land mines, and unlike purpose launched naval depth charges, they are ...
while patrolling off of Port Arthur. The explosion blew a large hole in her bow, flooding several compartments, and creating a strong list to starboard. Because of the ice on the upper deck and darkness at night, the rescue attempt was difficult, but the crew was able to stabilize the ship, and accompanied by the cruisers and , reached Dalian
Dalian ( ) is a major sub-provincial port city in Liaoning province, People's Republic of China, and is Liaoning's second largest city (after the provincial capital Shenyang) and the third-most populous city of Northeast China (after Shenyang ...
for repairs.
During the Battle of Tsushima
The Battle of Tsushima (, ''Tsusimskoye srazheniye''), also known in Japan as the , was the final naval battle of the Russo-Japanese War, fought on 27–28 May 1905 in the Tsushima Strait. A devastating defeat for the Imperial Russian Navy, the ...
on 27 May 1905, ''Akashi'' was under the 4th Combat Detachment headed by Rear Admiral Uryu Sotokichi and consisting of the ''Akashi'', , ''Takachiho'', and ''Suma''. On the discovery of the Russian fleet, the 4th Detachment attacked Russian transports and the cruisers , , and , and sinking the already damaged battleship and repair ship ''Kamchatka''. During the battle, ''Akashi'' took five rounds, which knocked her smokestack overboard, killed three crewmen and injured seven more. The following morning, ''Akashi'' was initially delayed due to repair work, but joined in the search for the remaining Russian vessels, assisting in the sinking of the armored cruiser
The armored cruiser was a type of warship of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It was designed like other types of cruisers to operate as a long-range, independent warship, capable of defeating any ship apart from a pre-dreadnought battles ...
s ''Dmitrii Donskoi'' [Howarth, ''The Fighting Ships of the Rising Sun'';] and . She returned with the captured Russian destroyer to Sasebo on 30 May.
After the battle, on 14 June, "Akashi" returned to Takeshiki Guard District to start patrols of the Korea Strait
The Korea Strait is a strait, sea passage in East Asia between the Korean Peninsula and Japan. It connects the East China Sea, the Yellow Sea and the Sea of Japan in the northwest Pacific Ocean. The strait is split by Tsushima Island into two par ...
. She was overhauled at Kure Naval Arsenal
was one of four principal naval shipyards owned and operated by the Imperial Japanese Navy.
History
The Kure Naval District was established at Kure, Hiroshima in 1889, as the second of the naval districts responsible for the defense of the ...
from 4–29 July. On 10 October, ''Akashi'' intercepted the German-flagged steamer, ''M Struve'' (1582 tons), which was attempting to smuggle a cargo of rice, salt, bread and flour to Vladivostok
Vladivostok ( ; , ) is the largest city and the administrative center of Primorsky Krai and the capital of the Far Eastern Federal District of Russia. It is located around the Zolotoy Rog, Golden Horn Bay on the Sea of Japan, covering an area o ...
. The steamer was sent with a prize crew to Sasebo.
''Akashi'' arrived in Yokohama
is the List of cities in Japan, second-largest city in Japan by population as well as by area, and the country's most populous Municipalities of Japan, municipality. It is the capital and most populous city in Kanagawa Prefecture, with a popu ...
to participate in a naval review
A Naval Review is an event where select vessels and assets of the United States Navy are paraded to be reviewed by the President of the United States or the Secretary of the Navy. Due to the geographic distance separating the modern U.S. Na ...
celebrating the Japanese victory on 23 October 1905.
World War I
From 1908–1909, future Prime Minister of Japan
The is the head of government of Japan. The prime minister chairs the Cabinet of Japan and has the ability to select and dismiss its ministers of state. The prime minister also serves as the commander-in-chief of the Japan Self-Defense Force ...
Suzuki Kantarō served as captain of ''Akashi''. In 1912, ''Akashi'' was re-boilered, with her nine horizontal locomotive-style boilers replaced with nine Niclausse boilers.[
In ]World War I
World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
, ''Akashi'' was part of the IJN 2nd Fleet
The was a fleet of the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) created as a mobile strike force in response to hostilities with Russia, and saw action in every IJN military operation until the end of World War II.
History
Established on 27 October 1903, ...
in combat against the Imperial German Navy
The Imperial German Navy or the ''Kaiserliche Marine'' (Imperial Navy) was the navy of the German Empire, which existed between 1871 and 1919. It grew out of the small Prussian Navy (from 1867 the North German Federal Navy), which was mainly for ...
at the Battle of Tsingtao
The siege of Tsingtao (; ; zh, s=青岛战役, t=青島戰役) was the attack on the German port of Qingdao (Tsingtao) from Jiaozhou Bay during World War I by Japan and the United Kingdom. The siege was waged against Imperial Germany between 2 ...
. In 1916, she was assigned to patrol the sea lane
A sea lane, sea road or shipping lane is a regularly used navigable route for large water vessels (ships) on wide waterways such as oceans and large lakes, and is preferably safe, direct and economic. During the Age of Sail, they were determined ...
s from Borneo
Borneo () is the List of islands by area, third-largest island in the world, with an area of , and population of 23,053,723 (2020 national censuses). Situated at the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia, it is one of the Greater Sunda ...
to the Malacca Straits and eastern Indian Ocean against German commerce raiders
Commerce raiding is a form of naval warfare used to destroy or disrupt logistics of the enemy on the open sea by attacking its merchant shipping, rather than engaging its combatants or enforcing a blockade against them. Privateering is a form ...
, as part of Japan's contribution to the Allied war effort under the Anglo-Japanese Alliance
The was an alliance between the United Kingdom and the Empire of Japan which was effective from 1902 to 1923. The treaty creating the alliance was signed at Lansdowne House in London on 30 January 1902 by British foreign secretary Lord Lans ...
, and was based at Singapore.
Rear-Admiral
Rear admiral is a flag officer rank used by English-speaking navies. In most European navies, the equivalent rank is called counter admiral.
Rear admiral is usually immediately senior to commodore and immediately below vice admiral. It is ...
Kōzō Satō commanded the 2nd Special Squadron with ''Akashi'' as flagship
A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of navy, naval ships, characteristically a flag officer entitled by custom to fly a distinguishing flag. Used more loosely, it is the lead ship in a fleet of vessels, typically ...
with the 10th and 11th Destroyer Units (eight destroyer
In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast, maneuverable, long-endurance warship intended to escort
larger vessels in a fleet, convoy, or carrier battle group and defend them against a wide range of general threats. They were conceived i ...
s) based at Malta
Malta, officially the Republic of Malta, is an island country in Southern Europe located in the Mediterranean Sea, between Sicily and North Africa. It consists of an archipelago south of Italy, east of Tunisia, and north of Libya. The two ...
from 13 April 1917. He was reinforced by the 15th Destroyer Unit with four more destroyers from 1 June 1917 to carry out on direct escort duties for Allied troop transports in the Mediterranean
The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern ...
. After being relieved by the cruiser , ''Akashi'' returned to Japanese home waters, where she spent the remainder of the war.
After the end of the war, ''Akashi'' was re-designated as a 2nd class coastal defense vessel from 1 September 1921. She was removed from the navy list
A Navy Directory, Navy List or Naval Register is an official list of naval officers, their ranks and seniority, the ships which they command or to which they are appointed, etc., that is published by the government or naval authorities of a co ...
on 1 April 1928. Deemed obsolete, she was expended as a target for dive bomber
A dive bomber is a bomber aircraft that dives directly at its targets in order to provide greater accuracy for the bomb it drops. Diving towards the target simplifies the bomb's trajectory and allows the pilot to keep visual contact througho ...
s south of Izu Ōshima
is an inhabited volcanic island in the Izu archipelago in the Philippine Sea, off the coast of Honshu, Japan, east of the Izu Peninsula and southwest of Bōsō Peninsula. As with the other islands in the Izu Island group, Izu Ōshima forms ...
on 3 August 1930.
The main mast of ''Akashi'' is preserved at the Japan Maritime Self Defense Academy at Etajima, Hiroshima
is a city (formerly a town) located on the island of Etajima in Hiroshima Bay in southwestern Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan.
The modern city of Etajima was established on November 1, 2004, from the merger of the town of Etajima (from Aki Di ...
.
Notes
References
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External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Akashi
Suma-class cruisers
Ships built by Yokosuka Naval Arsenal
1897 ships
Naval ships of Japan
Russo-Japanese War cruisers of Japan
World War I cruisers of Japan
Shipwrecks in the Philippine Sea
Cruisers sunk by aircraft as targets
Ships sunk by Japanese aircraft
Maritime incidents in 1930