Japanese Torpedo Boat

The Japanese Torpedo Boat was a feared warship of the Japanese military, the Imperial Japanese Army specifically.

• Types of Japanese Torpedo Boat
  • Kotaka (小鷹, “Little Falcon”) (1885–1927)
  • Hayabusa Class Torpedo Boat (1900–1923)
  • Otori-Class Torpedo Boat

Types of Japanese Torpedo Boat

Kotaka (小鷹, “Little Falcon”, 1885–1927)

The Kotaka (小鷹, “Little Falcon”) was a torpedo boat of the Imperial Japanese Navy. It was ordered in 1885 (manufactured in London by the shipbuilder Yarrows according to Japanese specifications) and sent to Japan where it was assembled at the Yokosuka Naval Arsenal.

The Kotaka participated in the First Sino-Japanese War (1894–1895) and the Russo-Japanese War (1905–1905), and was finally decommissioned on 1 April 1908, becoming a training ship. [2] She was retired on 1 March 1916, but quickly reactivated again from 1917 to January 1927 (triggered around the WWI). [2]

Hayabusa Class Torpedo Boat (1900–1923)

The Hayabusa class torpedo boats are a class of fifteen 1st class torpedo boats constructed for the Imperial Japanese Navy as part of the 1896 Ten Year Naval Expansion Programme. They were completed between 1900 and 1904. [1]

All fifteen of this class served in the Russo-Japanese War, and were notable for their attack on the Russian fleet during the Battle of Tsushima (1905, night of 27/28 May). They inflicted heavy casualties (with minimal damage in return) on the horrendous Russian fleet.

After serving in WWI all ships of the Hayabusa class were decomissioned between 1919—1923. Some were scrapped, while others were turned into auxiliaries. [1] (The Kiji was used at the Navy Torpedo School in Yokosuka from 15 December 1923 to 2 October 1926. ) [1]

Otori-Class Torpedo Boat ()

The Ōtori-class torpedo boat (鴻型水雷艇, Ōtori-gata suiraitei) were a class of eight fast torpedo boats employed by the Imperial Japanese Army. Built and operated during WWII. [3]

Sixteen Ōtori-class boats were ordered in 1934, in the 2nd Naval Armaments Supplement Programme. Eight were completed between 1936–37, but the remainder were cancelled in favour of building more submarine chasers (which the Japanese preferred during WWII). [3]