Japanese Submarine I-19-- Part 2: Guadalcanal, Fiji and Loss

That single torpedo salvo that ended up sinking an aircraft carrier, destroyer and damaged a battleship so badly it was out of action for quite a while was a major feat on naval warfare.

After causing the sinking of the aircraft carrier USS Wasp and destroyer USS O'Brien and seriously damaging the battleship USS North Carolina, the Japanese submarine I-19 assisted in nocturnal resupply  and reinforcement deliveries to the Japanese  forces on Guadalcanal from November 1942 to February 1943.  These missions were labeled the "Tokyo Express" by the Allies.

The I-19 later was involved in the evacuation of those troops.

Between April and September 1943, the I-19 was stationed off Fiji.  During this time, the submarine under the command of Kinashi Takakuzi, sank two Allied cargo ships and heavily damaged another one.  Reportedly, after sinking the SS William K. Vanderbilt, on May 16, 1943, the I-19 surfaced on machine-gunned the survivors in their lifeboats, killing one.

On November 25, 1943, at 20:49, about 50 nautical miles off Makin Island, the destroyer USS Radford detected the I-19 on the surface by radar and attacked with depth charges after the submarine dived.  The I-19 was lost with all hands.

--GreGen

Japanese Submarine I-19-- Part 1: Sank the USS Wasp, USS O'Brien and Damaged the USS North Carolina All in One Day

In the timeline on the battleship USS North Carolina I mentioned that it was damaged by the Japanese submarine I-19, which at the same time sank the aircraft carrier USS Wasp and destroyer  USS O'Brien.  Quite a haul for any submarine any time, any where.

From Wikipedia.

The I-19 was a Japanese Type B1 submarine  During the Guadalcanal Campaign, with a single torpedo salvo, she sank the USS Wasp, USS O'Brien and damaged the USS North Carolina.

It was completed April 28, 1941 and took part in the attack on Pearl Harbor December 7, 1941.

On September 15, 1942, while patrolling off the south coast of the Solomon Islands, the I-19 spots a task force of American ships including the carrier Wasp, battleship North Carolina and destroyer O'Brien.  A salvo of six torpedoes were fired.  Three hit the Wasp causing heavy damage so bad that it had to be scuttled.  Other torpedoes hit the North Carolina and O'Brien.

Like I said, that was some good shooting.

--GreGen

USS North Carolina (BB-55) Timeline-- Part 2: Hit By a Torpedo

SEPTEMBER 15, 1942--   The USS North Carolina was struck by a Japanese torpedo, which caused a massive hole in the hull.  The crew was able to recover and the ship did not sink.  (The torpedo was fired by the Japanese submarine I-19.  The spread of six torpedoes it fired that day also sank the aircraft carrier Wasp and the destroyer USS  O-Brien.  Pretty good shooting.)

SEPTEMBER 30, 1942--  The battleship goes to Pearl Harbor for repairs and remains there until November.

JANUARY 1944--  After being mostly out of action in 1943, and after another stint for repairs in Pearl Harbor, the North Carolina arrived at the Gilbert and Marshall islands.  By late March, it had shot down a Japanese aircraft.

JUNE 15, 1944--  In the Mariana and Palau islands, the North Carolina shot down another Japanese aircraft.

JUNE 20, 1944--  In the Battle of the Philippine Sea, along with other battleships, the North Carolina hit the Japanese hard and shot down two more aircraft.

--GreGen

Stern of USS Abner Read Found-- Part 4: A First Hand Account

Seaman First Class Daryl Weathers, 19, from Los Angeles was in the radar room on the bridge, standing the mid-watch --  midnight to 4 a.m..  "Everything was peaceful," he said, and the exhausted skipper, Cmdr. Thomas Burrowes, had just gone to his quarters for rest.

Burrowes had already lost one ship, the USS O'Brien the year before and was reluctant to leave the bridge.

"I got a responsibility here for everyone of these kids' mothers to bring them back home again," Weathers remembers him saying.

"I was very touched by that, he said.  "But he went down to his cabin and about 30 minutes later, 'Bam!'"

--GreGen