{"id":1655,"date":"2023-11-21T22:17:52","date_gmt":"2023-11-21T22:17:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gunowner-news.com\/?p=1655"},"modified":"2023-11-21T22:17:52","modified_gmt":"2023-11-21T22:17:52","slug":"suicide-boats-japans-shinyo-kamikaze-craft","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gunowner-news.com\/?p=1655","title":{"rendered":"Suicide Boats: Japan\u2019s Shinyo Kamikaze Craft"},"content":{"rendered":"


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By Tom Laemlein<\/a><\/p>\n

T<\/span>he recent successes of Ukrainian \u201csuicide drone boats\u201d against ships of the Russian Black Sea Fleet remind us of earlier fast-attack boats designed to target warships \u2014 the Japanese \u201cShinyo\u201d suicide boats of World War II.<\/p>\n

In late 1944, as the empire of the Rising Sun started to shrink, the Japanese began to take drastic measures to defend their island bases. In an effort to turn back the Allied invasion fleets, the Divine Wind concept of \u201cone plane \u2014 one ship\u201d introduced the term \u201cKamikaze\u201d into the military lexicon of the era. Soon after, suicide methods were introduced by the Japanese infantry, most notably in anti-tank defense.<\/p>\n

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The Shinyo were intended to strike shipping in the crowded anchorages off the coasts of invasion beaches. Image:\u00a0NARA<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

To combat American landing craft and other warships operating close to the invasion beaches, the Japanese Navy brought forth a number of fast-moving, explosive motorboats. The Shinyo joined in the barrage of suicide attackers, with each boat piloted by one man on a one-way mission.<\/p>\n

The crowded anchorages just offshore the landing beaches offered a target-rich environment for the Shinyo pilots. Once they were among the many transport ships there were few defenses specifically prepared to stop them. The U.S. Navy first encountered the explosive boats during the invasion of the Philippines.<\/p>\n

\"fleet\n<\/picture>
A small fleet of Shinyo suicide craft, seen in a harbor in the Japanese home islands after WWII. Image:\u00a0NARA<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The following report describes the new danger from small Japanese craft:<\/p>\n

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A Japanese captured in the Manila Bay area stated that at the time of our landing there were 100 suicide boats around the shores of Corregidor Island. These boats were kept in tunnels at various points around the island (from which they could be launched by means of dollies) or concealed above ground, particularly between San Jose Point and Camp Point.<\/p>\n

\"shinyo-class\n<\/picture>
U.S. servicemen located a camouflaged Shinyo-class boat near the beach on Okinawa. Image:\u00a0NARA<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The boats were described as 20 feet long, having a speed of 20 knots and being manned by a single naval volunteer. Although they mounted no guns, the boats carried a 250 kilo (551 lbs) charge in the bow which could be detonated either by key or on impact. It is considered probable that boats attacking our shipping around Mariveles last week came from Corregidor. As our advances on Corregidor continue, some of these boats as may still be serviceable will probably attempt to retire to CANDAPAT Swamp (the only sector of the Manila Bay area not immediately threatened by our ground forces) until targets in the form of our large vessels enter the inner harbor.<\/p>\n

SWPA Daily Summary, February 20, 1945<\/cite><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Shinyo \u2014 Identified and Described<\/h2>\n

Navy units soon learned how to respond to the new threat. \u201cSmall boat patrols\u201d were quickly organized with available units, night watches were alerted, and radar operators were given instructions on what to watch for. Even so, the small Shinyo-class motorboats had certain advantages as they stalked USN warships at night.<\/p>\n

\"japanese\n<\/picture>
A Japanese Shinyo explosive motorboat captured on Okinawa by U.S. Marines during World War II. The trolley used to launch the boat is also seen in this photo. Image:\u00a0NARA<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The destroyer USS Charles J. Badger (DD-657) was damaged by a Shinyo on May 19, 1945, and the ship\u2019s log succinctly describes the difficulties in locating the small enemy boats:<\/p>\n

Detection is difficult for the following reasons:<\/strong><\/p>\n