Summary
Oigawa Maru (大井川丸) was a 6,494 GRT transport ship of the Imperial Japanese Army during World War II.
| History | |
|---|---|
 Japan | |
| Name | Oigawa Maru |
| Owner | Toyo Kaiun K.K. |
| Builder | Kawaminami Kogyo K.K., Nagasaki |
| Laid down | c. 1940[1] |
| Launched | 30 January 1941 |
| Completed | 8 May 1941 |
| In service | 1941 |
| Fate | Requisitioned by the Imperial Japanese Army as an auxiliary transport ship, 23 September 1941 |
| History | |
 Imperial Japanese Army | |
| Name | Oigawa Maru |
| Operator | Imperial Japanese Army |
| Acquired | 23 September 1941 |
| In service | 1941-1943 |
| Identification | No. 408[1] |
| Fate | Sunk by PT boats off Finschhafen, 3 March 1943 |
| General characteristics [1][2] | |
| Tonnage | |
| Length | 445 ft 10 in (135.89 m) |
| Beam | 58 ft 5 in (17.81 m) |
| Height | 32 ft 2 in (9.80 m) |
| Propulsion | 3500 shp gas turbine engine |
| Speed | 15 kn (28 km/h; 17 mph) max |
| Armament | Anti-aircraft guns |
On 10 December 1941, while unloading troops at Pandan, Philippines, she was bombed and damaged and beached to prevent sinking.
She left Rabaul, New Britain on 1 March 1943, as part of Operation 81, carrying a cargo of troops, equipment, fuel, landing craft and ammunition for Lae, New Guinea.[3] The convoy was attacked by aircraft of the United States Army Air Forces and Royal Australian Air Force from 2 March 1943, known as the Battle of the Bismarck Sea. Oigawa Maru was bombed and damaged on 3 March, and was later sunk by motor torpedo boats PT-143 and PT-150 and sank at (06°58′S 148°16′E / 6.967°S 148.267°E)
There were 78 crewmen and 1,151 troops of the 51st Division who were killed in action.[4]