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Akizuki, first of a dozen-ship class of 2701-ton destroyers optimized for anti-aircraft purposes, was built at Maizuru, Japan. Completed in June 1942, she entered combat as a escort during the Battle of the Eastern Solomons in August 1942. For the next two months, Akizuki continued her involvement in the bitter campaign to retake Guadalcanal. In mid-October she escorted ships taking reinforcements to the embattled island. Later, on 25 October, she was part of a force sent to support a major effort to capture the American positions on Guadalcanal, but was hit and damaged in the same air attacks that sank the light cruiser Yura.
Following repairs, Akizuki rejoined the Mobile Fleet. She escorted the largest aircraft carriers during the Battle of the Philippine Sea in June 1944 and was assigned a similar role in the operation that led to the Battle of Cape Engaño on 25 October 1944. During the first U.S. carrier plane attacks in that action she was hit amidships and set afire. Within a few minutes of receiving this damage, Akizuki exploded and sank.
This page features our only image of the Japanese destroyer Akizuki.
| If you want higher resolution reproductions than the digital images presented here, see: "How to Obtain Photographic Reproductions." |
Click on the small photograph to prompt a larger view of the same image.
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Photo #: 80-G-284703 (cropped) Akizuki (Japanese destroyer, 1942-1944) Blows up during the early phases of Battle off Cape Engaño, 25 October 1944. The damage appears to involve an large and intense fire in the vicinity of the ship's torpedo tubes. This view is cropped from Photo # 80-G-284703. Official U.S. Navy Photograph, now in the collections of the National Archives. Online Image: 47KB; 740 x 530 pixels Reproductions of this image may also be available through the National Archives photographic reproduction system. |
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Photo #: 80-G-284703 Battle off Cape Engaño, 25 October 1944 Japanese destroyer Akizuki blows up during the battle's early phases. The battleship maneuvering in the left background is either Ise or Hyuga. See Photo # 80-G-284703 (cropped) for an enlargement of a portion of this image, emphasizing Akizuki. Official U.S. Navy Photograph, now in the collections of the National Archives. Online Image: 69KB; 740 x 605 pixels Reproductions of this image may also be available through the National Archives photographic reproduction system. |
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| If you want higher resolution reproductions than the digital images presented here, see: "How to Obtain Photographic Reproductions." |
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