Career
Ordered:	1920
Laid down:	7 December 1920
Launched:	22 April 1925
Commissioned:	27 March 1927
Fate:	Destroyed by US air attack at the battle of Midway on 4 June 1942; scuttled after evacuation.
Struck:	25 September 1942
General characteristics
Displacement:	33,800 tons (original); 42,000 tons (after reconstruction)
Length:	855 ft 3 in (260.68 m)
Beam:	102 ft 9 in (31.32 m)
Draught:	28 ft 7 in (8.71 m)
Propulsion:	Steam turbines, 19 boilers, 4 shafts, 133,000 hp (99.2 MW)
Speed:	31 knots (57 km/h)
Range:	8,200 nmi. at 12 knots   (15200 km at 22 km/h)
Complement:	2000
Armament:	Ten (later six) 8 inch (200 mm) guns Twelve 4.7 inch (120 mm) guns Twenty-eight 25 mm anti-aircraft guns
Aircraft:	61 (original) 91 (after reconstruction)

The Akagi (Japanese: 赤城) was an aircraft carrier serving with the Imperial Japanese Navy during World War II. Image File history File links Size of this preview: 547 × 599 pixel Image in higher resolution (713 × 781 pixel, file size: 79 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) Japanese aircraft carrier Akagi in April, 1942 as seen from an aircraft that has just taken off from her deck. ... Image File history File links Naval_Ensign_of_Japan. ... is the 341st day of the year (342nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1920 (MCMXX) was a leap year starting on Thursday. ... is the 112th day of the year (113th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1925 (MCMXXV) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 86th day of the year (87th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1927 (MCMXXVII) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Combatants United States Empire of Japan Commanders Chester W. Nimitz Frank J. Fletcher Raymond A. Spruance Isoroku Yamamoto Chuichi Nagumo Tamon Yamaguchi â€  Strength 3 carriers, ~50 support ships, 233 carrier aircraft, 127 land-based aircraft 4 carriers, 7 battleships, ~150 support ships, 248 carrier aircraft, 16 floatplanes Casualties 1 carrier... is the 155th day of the year (156th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1942 (MCMXLII) was a common year starting on Thursday (the link will display the full 1942 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 268th day of the year (269th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1942 (MCMXLII) was a common year starting on Thursday (the link will display the full 1942 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... A nautical mile or sea mile is a unit of length. ... American troops man an anti-aircraft gun near the Algerian coastline in 1943 Anti-aircraft, or air defense, is any method of combating military aircraft from the ground. ... Four aircraft carriers, (bottom-to-top) Principe de Asturias, amphibious assault carrier USS Wasp, USS Forrestal and light V/STOL carrier HMS Invincible, showing size differences of late 20th century carriers An aircraft carrier is a warship designed to deploy and in most cases recover aircraft, acting as a sea... For Combined Fleet, please see that article. ... Combatants Allied powers: China France Great Britain Soviet Union United States and others Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Chiang Kai-shek Charles de Gaulle Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tōjō Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000...

The only ship in her class, Akagi played a major part in the Attack on Pearl Harbor, but was sunk along with three other large carriers by dive bombers from US carriers Enterprise and Yorktown in the Battle of Midway.^[1] This article is about the actual attack. ... USS Enterprise (CV-6) was the sixth aircraft carrier of the United States Navy and the seventh US Navy ship of that name. ... The third USS Yorktown (CV-5) was lead ship of the Yorktown class aircraft carrier of World War II, sunk at the Battle of Midway. ... Combatants United States Empire of Japan Commanders Chester W. Nimitz Frank J. Fletcher Raymond A. Spruance Isoroku Yamamoto Chuichi Nagumo Tamon Yamaguchi â€  Strength 3 carriers, ~50 support ships, 233 carrier aircraft, 127 land-based aircraft 4 carriers, 7 battleships, ~150 support ships, 248 carrier aircraft, 16 floatplanes Casualties 1 carrier...

Description

Akagi was laid down as an Amagi class battlecruiser at Kure, Japan. Under the constraints of the Washington Naval Treaty, 1922, she and her sister Amagi were to be converted into aircraft carriers. However, Amagi was destroyed during an earthquake on 1 September 1923 and the remaining battlecruisers of the class, Atago and Takao, were in 1924, cancelled and scrapped in accordance with the terms of the Washington Treaty. Akagi, the only remaining member of her class, was launched on 22 April 1925 and completed at Yokosuka Navy Yard as one of Japan's first two large aircraft carriers in on 27 March 1927. Akagi was massively reconstructed in 1935–1938 to include a full length flight deck, and to increase her capacity from 61 to 91 aircraft. However, an increase in the size of the aircraft carried by the vessel reduced this capacity by the time of the ship's sinking. The reconstruction placed the island superstructure on the port side of the ship, which was an unusual arrangement; the only other carrier to share this feature was a contemporary, the Hiryū. The Akagi and the Hiryū were intended to work in a tactical formation with starboard-sided carriers, in order to improve the flight pattern around the formation, but the experiment was not continued beyond those two carriers. [1] [[Image:HMS Hood and HMS Barham. ... Kure (呉市; -shi) is a city located in Hiroshima, Japan. ... The Washington Naval Treaty limited the naval armaments of its five signatories: the United States, the British Empire, the Empire of Japan, the French Third Republic, and Italy. ... Great Kanto Earthquake The Great Kanto Earthquake (関東大震災 Kantō daishinsai) struck the Kanto plain on the Japanese main island of Honshu at 11:58 on the morning of September 1, 1923. ... is the 244th day of the year (245th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1923 (MCMXXIII) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... is the 112th day of the year (113th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1925 (MCMXXV) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Categories: Cities in Kanagawa Prefecture | Japan geography stubs ... is the 86th day of the year (87th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1927 (MCMXXVII) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... HiryÅ« (Japanese: 飛龍, meaning flying dragon) was a SōryÅ«-class aircraft carrier of the Imperial Japanese Navy. ...

The history of this ship's development reflects the logic of Imperial Japanese Navy admirals in moving from a reliance on battleships and battlecruisers, to a reliance on aircraft carriers. Originally, the Akagi and a similar ship, the Kaga (originally laid down as a battleship) were intended in the event of war to be quickly converted to capital ships. They contained the turret barbettes, magazines and other equipment to support big gun turrets. Gun turret crews and fire control crews received training. The wooden flight deck and hangar deck were designed to be quickly stripped off, to make room for big gun turrets to be mounted.^{[citation needed]} Kaga (Japanese: 加賀, formerly Kaga Province, in present-day Ishikawa Prefecture) was an aircraft carrier of the Imperial Japanese Navy. ...

By 1935-1938, the IJN admirals believed the aircraft carrier to be the equal of the capital ship. Akagi and Kaga received extensive rebuilds to improve aircraft handling capacity because plans to convert them to capital ships were abandoned. By 1941, the IJN was launching ships that were designed from the keel up as aircraft carriers. By 1944, old battleships such as the Ise and the Hyuga had their aft turrets removed and replaced by small flight decks to launch a squadron of aircraft, and a new superbattleship, the Shinano, was converted while under construction and launched as a super aircraft carrier. The Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) (大日本帝國海軍 Dai-Nippon Teikoku Kaigun or 日本海軍 Nippon Kaigun) was the navy of Japan before 1945. ... Ise (伊勢) was the Imperial Japanese Navys first Ise-class battleship, and laid at the Kawasaki Heavy Industries shipyard in Kobe on May 5, 1915, launched on November 12, 1916, and completed on December 1, 1917. ... Hyuga (日向), named for Hyuga Province in Kyushu, was an Ise class battleship laid down by Mitsubishi on 6 May 1915, launched on 27 January 1917 and completed on 30 April 1918. ... Shinano (Japanese:信濃) was an aircraft carrier operated by the Imperial Japanese Navy in World War II. It was laid down as the third of five projected Yamato-class superbattleships. ...

Name

Because she was initially conceived as a battlecruiser, the prevailing ship naming conventions dictated that she (like her sister ships) be named after a mountain. Akagi was named after Mount Akagi, a dormant volcano in the Kantō region (the name literally means "red castle"). After she was repurposed as an aircraft carrier her mountain name remained, in contrast to bespoke aircraft carriers like Sōryū, which were named after flying creatures. The name was previously given to the Maya class gunboard Akagi. Japanese ship naming conventions are different from those in the West. ... Mount Akagi ) is a major mountain in Gunma Prefecture, Japan. ... Kantō region, Japan. ... Soryu (Japanese KyÅ«jitai: 蒼龍, Shinjitai: 蒼竜, soryu, meaning blue (or green) dragon) was an aircraft carrier of the Imperial Japanese Navy. ... Akagi (赤城) was a Japanese gunboat that saw service as a despatch vessel in Admiral Isokuru Itos fleet at the Battle of Yalu River in 1894. ...

History

She was active off China during the next few years as the flagship of Carrier Division 1. Akagi took part in the attack on Pearl Harbor and the Indian Ocean raid, and was sunk on 5 June 1942 by planes of the United States Navy during the Battle of Midway. This article is about the actual attack. ... It has been suggested that Japanese Raids into Indian Ocean be merged into this article or section. ... is the 156th day of the year (157th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1942 (MCMXLII) was a common year starting on Thursday (the link will display the full 1942 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... USN redirects here. ... Combatants United States Empire of Japan Commanders Chester W. Nimitz Frank J. Fletcher Raymond A. Spruance Isoroku Yamamoto Chuichi Nagumo Tamon Yamaguchi â€  Strength 3 carriers, ~50 support ships, 233 carrier aircraft, 127 land-based aircraft 4 carriers, 7 battleships, ~150 support ships, 248 carrier aircraft, 16 floatplanes Casualties 1 carrier...

Photo of Japanese aircraft carrier Akagi from Naval Historical Center. ...

Pearl Harbor

In World War II, under the command of Captain Hasegawa Kiichi, she was Vice Admiral Chuichi Nagumo's flagship for the Striking Force for the attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941. She launched two waves of planes at Oahu. In the first wave 27 Kates targeted Maryland, Tennessee and West Virginia, Oklahoma, and California and 9 Zeros attacked the air base at Hickam Field. In the second wave, 18 Vals targeted Neosho, Shaw and Nevada. Combatants Allied powers: China France Great Britain Soviet Union United States and others Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Chiang Kai-shek Charles de Gaulle Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tōjō Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000... Chuichi Nagumo (Japanese: 南雲 忠一, Nagumo Chūichi, March 25, 1887–July 6, 1944) was a Vice Admiral in the Imperial Japanese Navy and Commander of the 1st Air Fleet of the Imperial Japanese Navy for a while. ... This article is about the actual attack. ... Oʻahu (usually Oahu outside Hawaiian and Hawaiian English), the Gathering Place, is the third largest of the Hawaiian Islands and most populous island in the State of Hawaiʻi. ... Nakajima B5N2 Kate in flight. ... USS Maryland (BB-46), a Colorado-class battleship, was the third ship of the United States Navy to be named in honor of the seventh state. ... It has been suggested that USS Tennessee (BB-43) Part 2, USS Tennessee (BB-43) Part 3, USS Tennessee (BB-43) Part 4 and USS Tennessee (BB-43) Part 5 be merged into this article or section. ... For other ships of this name, see USS West Virginia. ... USS Oklahoma (BB-37), a Nevada-class battleship was the only ship of the United States Navy to be named for the 46th state. ... USS California (BB-44), a Tennessee-class battleship, was the fifth ship of the United States Navy named in honor of the 31st state. ... Mitsubishi A6M2 Zero Model 21 (cowling removed) The Mitsubishi A6M was a light-weight carrier-based fighter aircraft employed by the Imperial Japanese Navy from 1940 to 1945. ... Hickam Air Force Base is a U.S. Air Force base located in the city and county of Honolulu on the island of Oahu, Hawaii. ... Aichi D3A1 in flight. ... USS Neosho (AO–23), a Cimarron class fleet replenishment Oiler (ship), was the 2nd ship of the United States Navy to be named for the Neosho River in Kansas and Oklahoma. ... The second USS Shaw (DD-373), a Mahan-class destroyer was laid down on 1 October 1934 at the United States Navy Yard, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; launched on 28 October 1935; sponsored by Miss. ... The second United States Navy Nevada (BB-36) was a battleship, lead ship of her class of two (Oklahoma (BB-37) being the other). ...

In January, 1942 Akagi supported the invasion of Rabaul in the Bismarck Islands. On 19 February 1942 she launched air strikes against Darwin, Australia, sinking nine ships, including USS Peary. In March, 1942 Akagi covered the invasion of Java. The Battle of Rabaul, around the main town of Rabaul on the island of New Britain, in early February 1942, represented a strategically-significant defeat of Allied forces by Japan, in the Pacific campaign of World War II. Following the capture of Rabaul, Japanese forces turned it into a major... The Bismarck Archipelago is a group of islands off the coast of New Guinea in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, named in honour of the German chancellor Otto von Bismarck and belonging to Papua New Guinea. ... [[Media:Italic text]]{| style=float:right; |- | |- | |} is the 50th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1942 (MCMXLII) was a common year starting on Thursday (the link will display the full 1942 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Combatants Australia; United States Japan Commanders David V. J. Blake Chuichi Nagumo Strength 30 planes 242 planes Casualties At least 243 killed; (possibly 1,100 dead in total) 23 planes destroyed 10 ships sunk 1 killed  ? missing; 6 POW Four planes destroyed in Australian airspace; ? failed to return. ... Port Darwin redirects here. ... USS Peary (DD-226) was a Clemson-class destroyer in the United States Navy during World War II. She was named for Robert Edwin Peary. ... Java (Indonesian, Javanese, and Sundanese: Jawa) is an island of Indonesia, and the site of its capital city, Jakarta. ...

In early April, 1942, under the command of Captain Aoki Taijiro, Akagi took part in the Indian Ocean raid. On 5 April 1942 she launched air strikes against Colombo, Ceylon, helping sink the cruisers Cornwall and Dorsetshire. On 9 April she struck at Trincomalee and sank Hermes and her escorts. It has been suggested that Japanese Raids into Indian Ocean be merged into this article or section. ... is the 95th day of the year (96th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1942 (MCMXLII) was a common year starting on Thursday (the link will display the full 1942 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Map of Colombo with its administrative districts Coordinates: , District Colombo District Government  - Mayor Uvaiz Mohammad Imitiyaz (Sri Lanka Freedom Party) Area  - City 37. ... HMS Cornwall (56) was a 9,750-ton County-class heavy cruiser of the Royal Navy. ... HMS Dorsetshire (pennant number 40) was a heavy cruiser of the Royal Navy, named after the English county (now called Dorset). ... is the 99th day of the year (100th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Trincomalee District Map Trincomalee (Tamil: (Thirukonamalai, hist: Sirigonakanda); Sinhala: (Thirikunamalaya)) is a port city on the northeast coast of Sri Lanka, about 110 miles northeast of Kandy. ... For other ships with the same name, see HMS Hermes. ...

On 19 April 1942 she took part in the unsuccessful pursuit of the American carriers Hornet and Enterprise after they launched the Doolittle Raid. is the 109th day of the year (110th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1942 (MCMXLII) was a common year starting on Thursday (the link will display the full 1942 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... The seventh USS Hornet (CV-8) of the United States Navy was an aircraft carrier of World War II, notable for launching the Doolittle Raid, as a participant in the Battle of Midway, and for action in the Solomons before being mortally wounded in the Battle of the Santa Cruz... USS Enterprise (CV-6) was the sixth aircraft carrier of the United States Navy and the seventh US Navy ship of that name. ... Combatants  United States  Japan Commanders James H. Doolittle Hideki Tojo Strength 16 B-25 Mitchells Unknown number of troops and homeland defense Casualties 3 dead, 8 POWs (4 died in captivity); 5 interned in USSR all 16 B-25s About 50 dead, 400 injured Lt. ...

Midway

On 25 May 1942 the Akagi set out with the Striking Force for the attack on Midway Island. Her aircraft complement consisted of 21 Mitsubishi A6M "Zero" fighters, 21 Aichi D3A "Val" dive bombers, and 21 Nakajima B5N "Kate" torpedo bombers. [2] On 4 June she launched an air strike against the island and was attacked by American land- and carrier-based planes. At 10:26 she was attacked by dive-bombers from USS Enterprise and hit by one bomb. This hit set off explosions among the armed and fueled planes on her hangar deck that were being prepared for an air strike against the American carriers. The burning aviation fuel proved impossible to control. The same attack produced two near misses, one of which, by virtue of exploding in the water alongside the stern area, caused the rudder to jam off-center after an evasive maneuver 20 minutes later. is the 145th day of the year (146th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1942 (MCMXLII) was a common year starting on Thursday (the link will display the full 1942 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... Mitsubishi A6M2 Zero Model 21 (cowling removed) The Mitsubishi A6M was a light-weight carrier-based fighter aircraft employed by the Imperial Japanese Navy from 1940 to 1945. ... Aichi D3A1 in flight. ... Nakajima B5N2 Kate in flight. ... is the 155th day of the year (156th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... USS Enterprise (CV-6) was the sixth aircraft carrier of the United States Navy and the seventh US Navy ship of that name. ...

At 10:46 Admiral Nagumo transferred his flag to Nagara. Akagi stopped dead in the water at 13:50 and her crew, except for Captain Aoki and damage-control personnel, was evacuated. She burned through the night but did not sink. On 5 June Yamamoto ordered her scuttled by torpedoes from the destroyers Arashio, Hagikaze, Maikaze, and Nowaki. She sank at 05:20 with the loss of 263 men. Compared to the other Japanese fleet carriers lost in the battle, she was the luckiest, suffering the fewest casualties.^[2] Nagara was the lead ship of her class of light cruiser in the Imperial Japanese Navy, named after the Nagara River. ... is the 156th day of the year (157th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Arashio (荒潮) was a Asashio-class destroyer of the Imperial Japanese Navy. ... Hagikaze Wind Before the Horn Clover Blooms) was a Kagero-class destroyer of the Imperial Japanese Navy. ... Maikaze Whirlwind) was a Kagero-class destroyer of the Imperial Japanese Navy. ... Nowaki was a Kagero-class destroyer of the Imperial Japanese Navy. ...

Commanding Officers

Capt. Ryutaro Kaizu - 25 March 1927 - 1 December 1927

Capt. Seizaburo Kobayashi - 1 December 1927 - 10 December 1928

Capt. Isoroku Yamamoto - 10 December 1928 - 1 November 1929 Fleet Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto ) (4 April 1884 – 18 April 1943) was Commander-in-Chief of the Combined Fleet during World War II, graduate of Imperial Japanese Naval Academy and an alumnus of U.S. Naval War College and Harvard University (1919–1921). ...

Capt. Kiyoshi Kitagawa - 1 November 1929 - 26 October 1930

Capt. Goro Hara - 26 October 1930 - 1 December 1930

Capt. Hideho Wada - 1 December 1930 - 28 August 1931

Capt. Jiro Onishi - 28 August 1931 - 1 December 1931

Capt. Baron Masaki Shibayama - 1 December 1931 - 1 December 1932

Capt. Eijiro Kondo - 1 December 1932 - 20 October 1933

Capt. Nishizo Tsukahara - 20 October 1933 - 1 November 1934

Capt. Rokuro Horie - 1 November 1934 - 15 November 1935

Capt. Toshio Matsunaga - 15 November 1935 - 1 December 1936

Capt. Kokichi Terada - 1 December 1936 - 27 August 1937

Capt. Shinichi Moizumi - 27 August 1937 - 1 December 1937

Capt. Junichi Mizuno - 1 December 1937 - 15 November 1938

Capt. Kinpei Teraoka - 15 November 1938 - 15 November 1939

Capt. Rynosuke Kusaka - 15 November 1939 - 15 October 1940

Capt. Ko Ito - 15 October 1940 - 25 March 1941

Capt. Kiichi Hasegawa - 25 March 1941 - 25 April 1942

Capt. Taijiro Aoki - 25 April 1942 - 5 June 1942

Notes

1. ^ Akagi @ www.history.navy.mil
2. ^ Akagi @ www.history.navy.mil

See also

• List of aircraft carriers
• List of World War II ships

The list of aircraft carriers contains all aircraft carriers listed alphabetically by name. ... The List of ships of World War II is an alphabetical list of major military ships of World War II. Only warships with a displacement of 1000 tons or greater are listed. ...

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

HIJMS Akagi

• Tabular record of movement from combinedfleet.com
• United States Navy photos
• WW2DB: Akagi