Junsen type submarine


The Junsen Type Submarine was a ship class of "cruiser submarines" of the Imperial Japanese Navy. There were four submarine designs of the Junsen type: J1 submarine|J1], a modified J1, J2 and the J3. "Junsen" is the abreviation of "cruiser submarine".

Class variants

The Junsen type submarines were divided into four subtypes:Junsen IJunsen I Mod.Junsen IIJunsen III.

Junsen I (''I-1'' class)

Four boats were built in 1923-1929. Genealogy of the large-size submarine in the IJN began with. Japan received six U-boats from Germany as reparations of World War I. The IJN copied, one of the six, producing the I-21-class minelayer submarine. The IJN could not find an optimal design of fleet submarine, so they and Kawasaki Heavy Industries sent many technical officers to the United Kingdom and Germany and got drawings of advanced submarines. The British L class became the Kaidai I, the K class became the Kaidai II, and U-142 became Junsen I.
BoatBuilderLaid downLaunchedCompletedResultsFate
Kawasaki Shipbuilding12-03-192315-10-192410-03-1926Damaged 31-12-1941
Sank Dutch merchant ship Siantar 03-03-1942
Sunk by and at Guadalcanal 29-01-1943.
Kawasaki Shipbuilding06-08-192323-02-192524-07-1926Sank Dutch merchant ship Parigi 01-03-1942
Sank RMS Chilka 11-03-1942
Sunk by north of Rabaul 07-04-1944.
Kawasaki Shipbuilding01-11-192408-06-192530-11-1926Sank RMS Elmdale 07-04-1942
Sank RMS Fultala 08-04-1942
Sunk by USS PT-59 at Kamimbo 09-12-1942.
Kawasaki Shipbuilding17-04-192622-05-192824-12-1929Sank Norwegian merchant ship Hoegh Merchant 14-12-1941
Sank Dutch merchant ship Ban Ho Guan 28-02-1942
Sank USS Washingtonian 06-04-1942
Damaged unknown sailing boat 10-04-1942
Damaged 27-09-1942
Sunk by southeast of Rabaul 20-12-1942.

Junsen I Mod (''I-5'' class)

This is a type which added a floatplane to the Junsen I.
BoatBuilderLaid downLaunchedCompletedResultsFate
Kawasaki Shipbuilding30-10-192919-06-193131-07-1932Sunk by east of Saipan 19-07-1944.

Junsen II (''I-6'' class)

Project number S32. This is a type which added a catapult to the Junsen I Mod. She was built in 1931 under the 1st Naval Armaments Supplement Programme.
BoatBuilderLaid downLaunchedCompletedResultsFate
Kawasaki-Kōbe Shipyard14 October 193231 March 193415 May 1935Damaged aircraft carrier 11 January 1942
Sank Clan Line cargo ship SS Clan Ross 2 April 1942
Sank RMS Bahadar 7 April 1942
Sank two unknown sailing boats 10 April 1942
Accidentally rammed, attacked and sunk by Toyokawa Maru northeast of Hachijo-Shima on 16 June 1944.

Junsen III (''I-7'' class)

Project number S33. These boats combined the good points of the Junsen II and the Kaidai V. They were built in 1934 under the Maru 2 Programme.
Junsen III became a 'typeship' for the Type-A, B and C.
BoatBuilderLaid downLaunchedCompletedResultsFate
Kure Naval Arsenal12 September 19343 July 193531 March 1937Sank Dutch merchant ship Le Maire 04-03-1942
Sank RMS Glenshiel 03-04-1942
Sank USS Arcata 15-07-1942
Damaged by at Kiska 21 June 1943. Scuttled 5 July 1943.
Kawasaki-Kōbe Shipyard11-10-193420-07-193605-12-1938Sank Dutch merchant ship Tjisalak 26-03-1944
Sank RMS City of Adelaide 30-03-1944
Sank Australian merchant ship Nellore 29-06-1944
Sank USS Jean Nicolet 02-07-1944
Sunk by southeast of Okinawa Island 31-03-1945.