Mikura class coastal defense ship

The "Mikura" class coastal defense ships were a class of ships in the service of the Imperial Japanese Navy during World War II.

The Japanese called them "Type B" coastal defense ships, and they were the third class of "Kaibokan" ("Kai" = sea, ocean, "Bo" = defense, "Ka" = ship), a name used to denote a multi-purpose vessel.

The "Mikura"s, unlike the two preceding with the loss of 76 men.
* "Kurahashi", constructed at Nihon Kokan, Tsurumi, being laid down on June 1, 1943, launched on October 15, 1943 and commissioned on March 10, 1944
* "Nomi", constructed at Nihon Kokan, Tsurumi, being laid down on August 10, 1943, launched on December 3, 1943, and commissioned on March 15, 1944. Sunk on April 14, 1945, by two torpedoes from the USS|Tirante|SS-420|6, that hit her under her bridge and sink her with the loss of 134 men as she was attacking the submarine.
* "Chiburi", constructed at Nihon Kokan, Tsurumi, laid down on July 20, 1943, launched on November 30, 1943 and commissioned on May 13, 1944. Sunk in an air attack on January 12, 1945, losing 88 men.
* "Yashiro", constructed at Hitachi, Sakurajima, laid down on November 18, 1943, launched on February 16, 1944, and commissioned on June 6, 1944
* "Kusagaki", constructed at Nihon Kokan, Tsurumi, laid down on September 7, 1943, launched on January 12, 1944, and commissioned on July 1, 1944. Sunk on August 7, 1944, by torpedoes from "USS Guitarro", with the loss of 97 men.

References

* http://www.combinedfleet.com/Mikura_c.htm (Retrieved November 25, 2007)
* http://homepage2.nifty.com/nishidah/e/stc0703.htm (Retrieved November 25, 2007)
* Worth, Richard, "Fleets of World War II", Da Capo Press (2001), ISBN 0-306-81116-2