Japanese aircraft carrier Kaga

Japanese aircraft carrier Kaga was a prominent aircraft carrier of the Imperial Japanese Navy during the Interwar period and World War II. Originally laid down as a Tosa-class battleship, its construction was halted by the Washington Naval Treaty. Converted into an aircraft carrier, Kaga became one of the largest and most formidable carriers in the world during the 1930s, forming a key part of the Kido Butai, the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service's main carrier strike force. It played a central role in early Japanese offensives, including the attack on Pearl Harbor, before its dramatic sinking at the Battle of Midway.

Design and construction

Kaga was initially ordered in 1920 as the third member of the Tosa-class battleship under the Eight-eight fleet plan. Following the signing of the Washington Naval Treaty in 1922, which limited capital ship construction, the incomplete hull was slated for scrapping. However, after the loss of the battlecruiser Amagi in the 1923 Great Kantō earthquake, Kaga was selected as a replacement for conversion into an aircraft carrier. The conversion, undertaken at the Yokosuka Naval Arsenal, gave Kaga a distinctive multi-level flight deck arrangement and a large, downward-sloping funnel on the starboard side. Its design was heavily influenced by lessons from the earlier carrier Akagi, and a major reconstruction from 1934 to 1935 at the Sasebo Naval Arsenal replaced the tiered decks with a single full-length flight deck, enhanced its arresting gear, and increased its aircraft capacity to 90.

Service history

Commissioned in 1928, Kaga initially operated in Chinese waters, supporting Imperial Japanese Army operations during the January 28 Incident in 1932 and the early stages of the Second Sino-Japanese War. By the late 1930s, it was integrated into the 1st Air Fleet, the core of Japan's naval aviation power. As a flagship unit of the Kido Butai, Kaga's air group was instrumental in the opening attacks of the Pacific War. It launched two attack waves against Oahu during the attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941. In early 1942, it participated in the Battle of Rabaul, the air raids on Darwin, and supported operations in the Dutch East Indies campaign. Kaga also took part in the Indian Ocean raid, striking targets at Colombo and Trincomalee in Ceylon and contributing to the sinking of the British carrier HMS Hermes.

Battle of Midway and sinking

In June 1942, Kaga sailed as part of the Combined Fleet's operation to capture Midway Atoll. On the morning of 4 June, while its aircraft were being rearmed for a second strike, the ship was caught vulnerable by dive bombers from the American carrier USS Enterprise. A concentrated attack by SBD Dauntless aircraft from VB-6 and VS-6 scored at least four direct hits with 1,000-pound bombs. The bombs ignited fueled and armed aircraft in the hangar deck, triggering catastrophic fires and secondary explosions that quickly overwhelmed damage control teams. The conflagration reached the ship's magazines, and after hours of burning, the vessel was scuttled by torpedoes from the Japanese destroyers Hagikaze and Maikaze. The sinking of Kaga, along with the carriers Akagi, Sōryū, and Hiryū, marked a decisive turning point in the Pacific War.

Discovery of the wreck

The wreck of Kaga remained lost for over seven decades. In October 2019, the research vessel RV Petrel, funded by the late Paul Allen, located the carrier's wreckage. The site was confirmed by the Naval History and Heritage Command to be approximately 5,400 meters deep in the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument northwest of Midway Atoll. Sonar imagery and ROV footage revealed the heavily damaged hull resting upright on the seabed, with significant blast damage from the internal explosions evident on the flight deck. The discovery provided significant archaeological data on the final moments of the battle and confirmed historical accounts of the ship's destruction.

Legacy

Kaga is remembered as a symbol of both the formidable reach of the Imperial Japanese Navy in the early war and the pivotal reversal of fortunes at Midway. Its design innovations and operational history influenced subsequent Japanese carrier development, including the Taihō-class aircraft carrier. The name was revived for a helicopter-carrying destroyer, JS Kaga, commissioned in 2017, which represents a significant step in the modern Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force's capabilities. The carrier's wreck is considered a war grave and is protected under international law, serving as a solemn historical monument on the deep ocean floor.

Category:Aircraft carriers of the Imperial Japanese Navy Category:World War II aircraft carriers of Japan Category:Ships sunk in the Battle of Midway