Fujikawa Maru
 The wreck of the Fujikawa Maru
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The Fujikawa Maru ( Japanese 富 士川 丸 ) was originally a passenger and cargo ship that was converted and sunk in World War II .
history
The first owner of the ship built in Nagasaki was Tōyō Kaiun. He used the Fujikawa Maru on the route between Japan and North America, but chartered it to Mitsui Busan after just a few months. The ship now mainly operated between India and South America. It was rebuilt several times and also received several upper class passenger cabins. In peacetime, the freighter mainly transported textiles.
On December 9, 1940, the Fujikawa Maru was requisitioned by the Imperial Japanese Navy to transport aircraft and track construction material. Equipped with cannons and an anti-aircraft gun, it was first used in Indochina and then in the Truk area. The armament was already antiquated when it was assembled; some of them were relics from the Russo-Japanese War . The cannons were from 1899. However, the war material with which the ship was equipped has been thoroughly modernized; the Fujikawa Maru even received an automatic anti-aircraft aiming device and an anti-magnetic coating to protect against sea mines .
A torpedo hit by an American submarine on September 12, 1943 damaged the Fujikawa Maru , which was en route from the Marshall Islands to Truk. However, it was able to achieve its goal and be repaired with welded steel plates. She then went to Japan, where she was converted into the main freighter for important war goods. On the way back to Truk, she transported, among other things, torpedoes with which the American Pacific Fleet should be fought.
On February 17, 1944, she was bombed and torpedoed during Operation Hailstone . The ship was hit by a torpedo amidships, caught fire and sank the following day. A large part of the crew was killed in the attack.
Every year on February 18 and 19 a memorial service is held in honor of the war victims; the remains of the Fujikawa Maru are now part of a national ship cemetery .
The wreck lies about 500 meters from the coast at a maximum depth of 40 meters; the bridge behind which the torpedo struck is about 15 meters below the surface of the water. A memorial plaque has been attached to the deck since 1994 to commemorate the sinking; Cannons and other artillery can still be seen. The holds, which contain aircraft parts and weapons as well as lanterns, sake and beer bottles, are a popular destination for wreck divers. A special feature for a transport ship is the bathtub, which was installed in one of the bathrooms belonging to the cabins. The Fujikawa Maru wreck is considered by wreck divers to be one of the most rewarding destinations in its region and even around the world.
literature
- Vincenzo Paolillo, Fujikawa Maru , in: Egidio Trainito (ed.), Adventure wreck diving. On the traces of sunken worlds , White Star Verlag, Wiesbaden 2009, ISBN 978-3-86726-120-3 , pp. 214-219
Footnotes
- ↑ Herbert Frei, Truk Lagoon: Fujikawa Maru ( Memento from December 8, 2012 in the Internet Archive )
- ↑ memorial plaque
- ↑ Vincenzo Paolillo, Fujikawa Maru , in: Egidio Trainito (ed.), Adventure wreck diving. On the traces of sunken worlds , White Star Verlag, Wiesbaden 2009, ISBN 978-3-86726-120-3 , pp. 214-219
- ↑ top 20 wreck dives
Coordinates: 7 ° 20 ′ 48 " N , 151 ° 53 ′ 23.9" E