From WIKIPEDIA:
The FUJIKAWA MARU was requisitioned in 1940 by the Japanese Navy,
and was based in Indo-China under the command of the 11th Fleet.
She saw service in the Battle of Midway as part of AiRon 7.
On 12 September 1943, she was hit by a torpedo fired by the U.S. Submarine PERMIT,
and returned to Japan for repairs. Subsequently on 5 December 1943,
she was hit by torpedo bombers from the USS YORKTOWN,
suffering minor damage. From thence she was taken to Truk Lagoon
(now Chuuk Lagoon) in the Federated States of Micronesia,
to undergo repairs.
On 17-18 February 1944,
she was hit repeatedly by US bombers and torpedo bombers
as part of OPERATION HAILSTONE, before she finally sank
on 18 February at approximately 7.15 am.
Memorial plaques
From SEAWOLF PRODUCTIONS:
The FUJIKAWA MARU was built in 1938 by the
Mitsubishi Company as passenger/cargo carrier for the Toyo Kaiun Line.
Her peacetime duties consisted of carrying raw silk & cotton between South America & India.
Rice bowl and shell cases
The Japanese Navy took control of her in December 1940
and converted her to an aircraft ferry. As part of her conversion,
she was fitted out with six inch guns on her bow and stern.
These guns were from the Russo-Japanese War and
had been "cannibalized" from decommissioned cruisers.
The breech plate on the forward guns displays an 1899 manufacture date.
Hot Pot for soup or tea and bottles
Note how clear one glass bottle in middle
towards the back is;
it must have been buried in silt or far inside the hull
where no light would allow coral encrustation.
Just prior to the "Hailstone" attack,
FUJIKAWA MARU arrived in Truk and off-loaded thirty
"JILL" B5N2 bombers onto Eten Airfield.
Since these aircraft had been disassembled for shipment,
they were unable to help defend Truk and were destroyed on the ground.
The FUJIKAWA MARU was sunk by a single aerial torpedo that struck amidship.
Although the torpedo failed to run properly,
its momentum carried it into the ship and allowed it to detonate.
Shoes and bottles
Shoes and uniforms
Gun maker's mark.
Gas masks on tripod
Fire extinguisher
Bow engine telegraph
Bow deck gun
Battle lantern and gas mask
Clown anemonefish
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