Fubuki-class destroyer

Following the ratification of the Washington Naval Treaty in 1922, the Imperial Japanese Navy General Staff issued requirements for a destroyer with a maximum speed of 39 knots (72 km/h; 45 mph), range of 4,000 nautical miles (7,400 km; 4,600 mi) at 14 knots (26 km/h; 16 mph), and armed with large numbers of torpedoes. As the treaty placed Japan in an inferior position vis-a-vis the United States and Great Britain in terms of capital ships, the obvious course of action would be to build large numbers of other types of ships not restricted by the treaty, with the most powerful weaponry possible.[4] These destroyers were intended to operate with the new series of fast and powerful cruisers also under consideration as part of a program intended to give the Imperial Japanese Navy a qualitative edge with the world's most modern ships.[5]

The resultant Fubuki class was ordered under the 1923 fiscal year budget, based on a smaller 1750 ton design, with ships completed between 1926 and 1931. Their performance was a great improvement over previous destroyer designs, so much so that they were designated Special Type destroyers (特型, Tokugata). The large size, powerful engines, high speed, large radius of action, and unprecedented armament gave these destroyers the firepower similar to many light cruisers in other navies.[6] The closest equivalents in the United States Navy were the Porter and Somers-class destroyers, of which only thirteen vessels were constructed in the 1930s to function as destroyer squadron leaders.[7]

The initial design for the Fubuki class was based on a 2000-ton displacement hull with a single 12.7 cm (5.0 in) battery, two twin 24-inch torpedo tubes (as introduced in Mutsuki), and capable of 40 knots (74 km/h). Following the effective abandonment of the Washington Naval Treaty from 1923, the design was modified to 1680 standard tons with more guns and more torpedo tubes. However, their increased displacement more than offset their more powerful engines, resulting in a slower top speed than originally planned.[8]

The engines were powered by four Kampon boilers running two-shaft geared turbines at 50,000 shp, yielding a rated speed of 35 knots (65 km/h), with a range of 5000 nautical miles.

The S-shaped curved bow introduced on the Mutsuki class was retained; however, the well deck in front of the bridge was removed, which made it possible to extend the forecastle further aft and to flare the hull back to the first stack, which increased seaworthiness. The forecastle was also raised one deck in height into reduce the effect of heavy seas on the forward gun mount. The bridge enlarged and enclosed.[9] The bow was given a significant flare, to offer protection against weather in the Pacific.

The Fubuki-class vessels were originally intended to have only hull numbers. This proved to be extremely unpopular with the crews and was a constant source of confusion in communications with the earlier Kamikaze and Mutsuki classes, and naval policy was changed in August 1928. Hence, the Fubuki-class vessels were assigned names as they were launched.

Between June 1928 and March 1933, twenty-four Fubuki-class destroyers were built. Several modifications took place over the course of production, and the twenty-four units can be broken down into three groups. The final four ships were so different they were given a new class name. As completed, Fubuki had twin 5-inch guns in "A", "X", and "Y" positions, with triple torpedo tubes in "D", "P", and "Q",[10] making them the most powerful destroyers in the world at the time of their completion.

Office of Naval Intelligence recognition drawing of the Fubuki class

The first group, or Fubuki class, consisting of the first ten vessels completed in 1928 and 1929, were simpler in construction than the vessels that followed. They had a rangefinder on the compass bridge and an exposed gun-fire control room, and were equipped with a “Type A” gun turret that elevated both of its barrels at the same time and only to 40 degrees.[12] The first group can be distinguished from later ships by their massive circular air ducts abreast the two stacks leading to the boiler room, with the exception of Uranami, which integrated the ventilation ducts into the platforms built around the stacks.[4]

The second group, or Ayanami class, were built in 1930 and 1931, and had larger bridges that encompassed the rangefinder, an azimuth compass sighting device and the gun-fire control room, as well as a range finding tower. Furthermore, the boiler room's air inlet was changed from a pipe to a bowl shape. They also benefited from the deployment of “Type B” turrets, which could elevate each gun separately to 75° for AA use, making them the world's first destroyers with this capability.[12]

The third group, also known as the Akatsuki class, were built from 1931 to 1933. These vessels had three larger boilers instead of the previous four and a narrower fore funnel. Improvements included a unique splinter-proof torpedo launcher-turret, which allowed the torpedo launcher tubes to be reloaded in action.[12]

However, the Fubuki class also had a number of inherent design problems. The large amount of armament combined with a smaller hull displacement than in the original design created issues with stability. Despite design features intended to reduce weight, including use of welding on the hull and lighter alloys above the main deck, the ships exceeded their design weight by over 200 tons, which was even more of a problem with the Group II ships, with their larger bridge and heavier gun mounts. After the Tomozuru Incident, in which the top-heavy design of many Japanese warships called basic design issues into question, additional ballast had to be added.

In the Fourth Fleet Incident, during which a typhoon damaged virtually every ship in the Fourth Fleet, issues with the longitudinal strength of the Fubuki-class hull was discovered. As a result, all vessels were reconstructed between 1935 and 1937. An additional 40 tons of ballast was added, the bridge reduced in size and the height of the smoke stacks was decreased. The number of torpedo reloads were reduced from nine to three (for the center launcher only), and fewer shells were stored for the guns. The amount of fuel carried was also increased to help lower the center-of-gravity. Eight of the Ayanami class were retrofitted with the lighter "Type C" gun mounts, These changes increased the displacement to 2050 tons standard tons and over 2400 tons full load. The rebuild reduced the top speed slightly to 34 knots.

Of the 24 Fubuki-class vessels completed, one (Miyuki) was sunk in a collision in 1934.[13] The remaining vessels served throughout the Pacific War. In November 1942, the Ayanami damaged the battleship USS South Dakota with her gunfire during the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal before being attacked by USS Washington, which crippled the battleship Kirishima as well. She was scuttled the following day by Uranami. In August 1943, John F. Kennedy's PT-109 was rammed, split asunder and sunk by Amagiri of this class.

Eight ships of the class were sunk by submarines, and two by mines, the rest by air attacks. Only Hibiki and Ushio survived the war. Hibiki was taken by the Soviet Navy as a prize of war, and continued to be used until 1964.

• Nishida, Hiroshi. "Materials of IJN: Fubuki class destroyer". Imperial Japanese Navy. Archived from the original on 11 July 2012. Retrieved 29 July 2009.
• Globalsecurity.org. "IJN Fubuki class destroyers".
• Globalsecurity.org. "IJN Akatsuki class destroyers".
• Combined Fleet.com. "Nihon Kaigun: Fubuki Class".