''Nissan Maru'' () was a Japanese cargo ship completed in 1939 owned by Nissan Kisen K.K. that was requisitioned for service as an auxiliary collier and oiler by 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 ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. She served with the 5th Fleet and was sunk by

United States Army Air Forces The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

bombers during the

Japanese occupation of Kiska The Japanese occupation of Kiska took place between 6 June 1942 and 28 July 1943 during the Aleutian Islands campaign of the American Theater and the Pacific Theater of World War II. The Japanese occupied Kiska and nearby Attu Island in order ...

in the

Aleutian Islands Campaign The Aleutian Islands campaign () was a military campaign fought between 3 June 1942 and 15 August 1943 on and around the Aleutian Islands in the American theater (World War II), American Theater of World War II during the Pacific War. It was t ...

Building and civilian service

The vessel was laid down on 30 June 1938 by the

Osaka Iron Works , formerly , is a major Japanese industrial and engineering corporation. It produces waste treatment plants, industrial plants, precision machinery, industrial machinery, steel mill process equipment, steel structures, construction machinery, ...

at its shipyard for Nissan Kisen K.K.. Launched on 6 November of that year and named ''Nissan Maru'', she was completed and registered at

Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...

on 15 January 1939. ''Nissan Maru'' was a 6,534 GRT cargo ship with a

net register tonnage Net register tonnage (NRT, nrt, n.r.t.) is a ship's cargo volume capacity expressed in "register tons", one of which equals to a volume of . It is calculated by subtracting non-revenue-earning spaces i.e. spaces not available for carrying cargo, ...

of 3,887. She was equipped with a direction finder, and had two decks with a cruiser stern. She had a length of 424.1 feet, a beam of 57.4 feet, and a depth of 34.4 feet. The ship was powered by two oil-burning

Hitachi () is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in 1910 and headquartered in Chiyoda, Tokyo. The company is active in various industries, including digital systems, power and renewable ener ...

steam turbines double reduction geared to one screw shaft rated at 500 NHP. On 19 July 1939, while steaming down the

Huangpu River The Huangpu (), formerly romanized as Whangpoo, is a river flowing north through Shanghai. The Bund and Lujiazui are located along the Huangpu River. The Huangpu is the biggest river in central Shanghai, with the Suzhou Creek being its ...

Shanghai Shanghai, Shanghainese: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: is a direct-administered municipality and the most populous urban area in China. The city is located on the Chinese shoreline on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the ...

, she suffered a twisted bow after colliding with the SS ''President Coolidge'' while the latter was tied up at a pier. No injuries occurred on either ship.

Military service

On 9 September 1941, as Japan prepared to enter

, ''Nissan Maru'' was requisitioned by the

. She became an auxiliary collier and oiler attached to the

Maizuru Naval District was one of four main administrative districts of the pre-war Imperial Japanese Navy. Its territory included the entire Sea of Japan coastline from northern Kyūshū to western Hokkaidō. History The strategic importance of the location of Maizur ...

, homeported at

Maizuru is a city in Kyoto Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 78,644 in 34,817 households and a population density of 230 persons per km2. The total area of the city is . Geography Maizuru is located in northern Kyoto Prefectu ...

on 20 September. On the same day the auxiliary was assigned to the 5th Fleet, and Captain Sakuma Takao was appointed its supervisor. The vessel began conversion to military service on 24 September at the Osaka Iron Works shipyard; the conversion was finished on 15 October. On 25 November Sakuma was relieved by Captain Naotsuka Hachiro, and on the next day she departed

Yokosuka is a city in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. , the city has a population of 373,797, and a population density of . The total area is . Yokosuka is the 11th-most populous city in the Greater Tokyo Area, and the 12th in the Kantō region. The city i ...

. ''Nissan Maru'' spent the next months on duty around

Hokkaido is the list of islands of Japan by area, second-largest island of Japan and comprises the largest and northernmost prefectures of Japan, prefecture, making up its own list of regions of Japan, region. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaidō fr ...

and the

Kuriles The Kuril Islands or Kurile Islands are a volcanic archipelago administered as part of Sakhalin Oblast in the Russian Far East. The islands stretch approximately northeast from Hokkaido in Japan to Kamchatka Peninsula in Russia, separating the ...

, before arriving at

Chichijima is the largest and most populous islands of Japan, island in the Japanese archipelago of Bonin Islands, Bonin or Ogasawara Islands. Chichijima is about north of Iwo Jima. in size, the island is home to about 2,120 people (2021). Connected to ...

on 23 January 1942. On 28 January she returned to Yokosuka, before being assigned to supply the

invasion force on 1 February. On 7 March she was assigned to transport ammunition by the 5th Fleet, with an additional personnel transport mission being added on 17 March. In April she was fitted with fourteen

Daihatsu-class landing craft The was a type of landing craft used by the Imperial Japanese Army from 1937 to 1945, in the Second Sino-Japanese War and World War II. It was designated the "Type A" landing craft by the United States. History was a landing craft of the Imper ...

, as well as a rangefinder and related equipment in May. On 5 May ''Nissan Maru'' was assigned to the operation for the seizure of Attu and

Kiska Kiska (, ) is one of the Rat Islands, a group of the Aleutian Islands of Alaska. It is about long and varies in width from . It is part of Aleutian Islands Wilderness and as such, special permission is required to visit it. The island has ...

; Naotsuka was relieved by Captain Ishii Saburo on 15 May. She arrived at

Mutsu Bay is a bay located within Aomori Prefecture, in the northern Tōhoku region of northern Japan. It has an east-west distance of approximately and a north-south distance of approximately at its eastern end, with a total area of approximately . Na ...

in preparation for the invasion on 22 May, but was transferred to Kawauchi Bay on 26 May. She was briefly diverted to the Kuriles, and unloaded 200 tons of coal at Attu on 10 June. ''Nissan Maru'' arrived at Kiska on 12 June and unloaded her cargo. At 08:30 on 15 June, still at Kiska, she was heavily damaged by several bomb hits during an airstrike of

Eleventh Air Force The Eleventh Air Force (11 AF) is a Numbered Air Force of the United States Air Force Pacific Air Forces (PACAF). It is headquartered at Joint Base Elmendorf–Richardson, Alaska.This unit is not related to the Eleventh Air Force headquart ...

Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress The Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress is an American four-engined heavy bomber aircraft developed in the 1930s for the United States Army Air Corps (USAAC). A fast and high-flying bomber, the B-17 dropped more bombs than any other aircraft during ...

and

Consolidated B-24 Liberator The Consolidated B-24 Liberator is an American heavy bomber, designed by Consolidated Aircraft of San Diego, California. It was known within the company as the Model 32, and some initial production aircraft were laid down as export models desi ...

heavy bombers, killing one crewman. She sank in Kiska Harbor at 07:00 on 19 June 1942 after being hit in a 05:00 air strike composed of three B-17s, four B-24s, and one Consolidated LB-30 from the Eleventh Air Force. The mission that sank her was the first combat mission of the 36th Bombardment Squadron, led by Major Russell A. Cone. The wreck of the ''Nissan Maru'' was identified and filmed by the

National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an List of federal agencies in the United States, agency of the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government, within the US Department of the Interior. The service manages all List ...

's Submerged Cultural Resources Unit after the program began in 1989.

References

External links

wrecksite.eu page
{{June 1942 shipwrecks 1938 ships Shipwrecks of the Alaska coast Ships sunk by US aircraft World War II shipwrecks in the Pacific Ocean World War II auxiliary ships of Japan Maritime incidents in June 1942 World War II merchant ships of Japan Ships of the Aleutian Islands campaign Ships built by Osaka Iron Works