Japanese seaplane tender Kamikawa Maru

Kamikawa Maru (神川丸) was a seaplane tender in the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN). The ship was initially built at Kawasaki's Kōbe Shipyard and launched on 13 December 1936 as a merchant vessel for the Kawasaki Kisen K. K. Line. On 18 September 1937 the IJN requisitioned her as an aircraft transport ship and she was refitted in 1939 as a seaplane tender. The ship subsequently saw service in the Second Sino-Japanese War and the Pacific Campaign of World War II. On May 4, 1943 Kamikawa Maru was torpedoed by the submarine USS Wahoo, but managed to survive the attack. However, on May 29, 1943, Kamikawa Maru was torpedoed again, and sunk by the submarine USS Scamp approximately 250 miles (400 km) northwest of Kavieng, New Ireland at 01°36′S 150°24′E.

Kamikawa Maru at Amoi, China sometime between 1938 and 1940.
History
Empire of Japan
Name:	Kamikawa Maru
Builder:	Kawasaki, Kōbe Shipyard
Laid down:	August 5, 1936
Launched:	December 13, 1936
Acquired:	March 15, 1937
Commissioned:	September 18, 1937
Out of service:	May 29, 1943
Stricken:	July 15, 1943
Fate:	Torpedoed and sunk by United States Navy submarine Scamp
General characteristics
Class and type:	Kamikawa Maru-class seaplane tender
Displacement:	6,863 tons standard
Length:	479 ft (146.0 m)
Beam:	62 ft (18.9 m)
Draft:	30 ft (9.1 m)
Installed power:	7,600 shp (5,700 kW)
Propulsion:	1 Kawasaki-MAN diesel engine, 1 shaft
Speed:	28 knots (52 km/h; 32 mph)
Armament:	2 x 5.9 in (150 mm) guns 2 x Type 96 25 mm (0.98 in) AA guns 2 x 13.2 mm (0.52 in) machine guns
Aircraft carried:	12 seaplanes (24 stored)
Aviation facilities:	Two catapults, cranes