Akitsu Maru (あきつ丸) was a "Type C" landing craft carrier with a full-length flight deck built for the Imperial Japanese Army (IJA) during World War II. The ship was originally a passenger liner taken over by the IJA before completion. Akitsu Maru's planned role was to provide aircover during amphibious and landing operations; in practice the ship was essentially an aircraft ferry. The ship was sunk by USS Queenfish on 15 November 1944. In some sources, Akitsu Maru (and Nigitsu Maru) are considered to be the first amphibious assault ships. Although, this title can be disputed with the earlier 8,000-tonne (7,900-long-ton) Shinshū Maru that served a similar role, and being a template for Akitsu Maru. With the deployment of the Shinshū Maru and the larger, further refined Akitsu Maru, the Japanese amphibious forces had in hand prototypes for all-purpose amphibious ships. In 1937, British and American observers watched Shinshū Maru at work off Shanghai and immediately recognized a significant development in amphibious warfare. It also carried two catapults for aircraft but did not embark operational seaplanes. It could, however, transport and unload aircraft if necessary, a capability further developed in the Akitsu Maru, which even had a short take-off flight deck.
Design
Armaments
=== Aviation facilities === The ship was fitted with a flight deck above the hull, but had no hangar so the aircraft were stored below the flight deck on the original main deck. Conventional aircraft were able to fly off from her deck but could not land aboard due to lack of landing mechanisms. In July 1944, KX arresting gear was fitted on the flight deck. The Kokusai Ki-76 (Liaison Aircraft Type 3) and Kayaba Ka-1 were flown off Akitsu Maru, as the former was a small, slow aircraft that could land on its short deck and the latter was an autogyro which could even more easily land on a short deck without assistance.
=== Amphibious operation facilities === The ship carried 27 Daihatsu-class landing craft in a well deck that could be flooded, which allowed the landing craft to float free from an open stern gate. The ship could also hold additional craft on davits, but its next-most impressive function was an ability to discharge vehicles from a deck-level parking garage directly onto a pier.
Service history
The IJA Shipping Section expanded its anti-submarine personnel at the same time as the concept of carrier-based anti-submarine patrol aircraft in mid-to-late 1943. A total of 20 individuals entered the Shimosizu Army Air School around the end of that year as special pilot trainee officers (1st class) for anti-submarine personnel. Training began with basic training using basic training aircraft, followed by familiarization flights of the Ki-76 liaison aircraft, and anti-submarine patrol training. On 14 November, she departed for Singapore as part of Convoy HI-81. On 15 November 1944, Akitsu Maru was torpedoed by USS Queenfish; One of the torpedoes set off her aft magazine holding depth charges, the explosion shattering the aft portion of the ship; As the seas hit her boilers, they exploded and she sank in the Korean Strait (33°17′N 128°11′E). 2,046 men, mainly of the Imperial Japanese Army's 64th Infantry Regiment, including the commander, were killed. Also 104 Maru-ni EMB explosive motorboats went down with the ship. The escorts rescued 310 survivors.
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References
Notes
Citations
=== Bibliography === Roscoe, Theodore; Voge, R. G. (1949). United States Submarine Operations in World War II. Naval Institute Press. ISBN 0-87021-731-3. {{cite book}}: ISBN / Date incompatibility (help) Sturton, Ian (1980). "Japan". In Chesneau, Roger (ed.). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1922–1946. Conway Maritime Press. pp. 167–217. ISBN 0-85177-146-7. Brooks, Peter W. (1988). Cierva Autogiros: The Development of Rotary-Wing Flight. Smithsonian Institution Press. ISBN 0-87474-268-4. Murray, Williamson; Millet, Alan R. (1998). Military innovation in the interwar period (1st paperback ed.). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-1-107-26688-9. OCLC 852896224. Cressman, Robert (2000). The Official Chronology of the U.S. Navy in World War II. Naval Institute Press. ISBN 1-55750-149-1. Worth, Richard (2002). Fleets of World War II. Da Capo Press. ISBN 0-306-81116-2. Okumoto, Tsuyoshi (May 2011). 日本陸軍の航空母艦: 舟艇母船から護衛空母まで [Japanese Army Aircraft Carriers: From boat carriers to escort carriers] (in Japanese). Dai Nippon Kaiga. ISBN 9784499230520. Lengerer, Hans (2023). The Aircraft Carriers of the Imperial Japanese Navy and Army: Technical and Operational History. Vol. II. Model Hobby. ISBN 978-83-60041-71-0. Hackett, Bob; Cundall, Peter (2024) [2021]. "IJA Landing Craft Depot Ship AKITSU MARU: Tabular Record of Movement". combinedfleet.com. Retrieved 4 December 2025.
External links
"ビフォアーアフター 揚陸艦 あきつ丸 （1942）→ 航空母艦 あきつ丸 （1944)" [Before and After: Amphibious assault ship Akitsu Maru (1942) → Aircraft carrier Akitsu Maru (1944)]. mokei358.club (in Japanese). 4 January 2025 [25 May 2024]. Retrieved 18 March 2026.
