Name Azumasan Maru Displacement 7,623 gross ton Weight 7,745 tons Beam 18 m | Status Shipwreck Length 138 m Draft 11 m | |
Owner Mitsui Bussan Kaisha (1933–??)
Imperial Japanese Navy (??-1942) Builder Mitsui Bussan Kaisha, Tama Fate Sunk by Allied aircraft 1942 | ||
The Azumasan Maru was a 7,623 gross ton freighter that was built by Mitsui Bussan Kaisha, Tama for Mitsui Bussan Kaisha launched in 1933. She was requisitioned by the Imperial Japanese Navy and fitted out as a troop transport.
She was part of the invasion fleet that landed troops during the invasion of Tulagi on 3 May 1942. She was anchored at Purvis Bay, Florida Island when the Tulagi invasion fleet was attacked by aircraft of the United States Navy's aircraft carrier USS Yorktown, with the Azumasan Maru being damaged in the attack.
Azumasan Maru left Rabaul in a convoy to resupply Guadalcanal. Disembarkation began near Bunani Point on 15 October. The ships of the convoy came under bombardment from SBD Dauntless dive bombers from Henderson Field. The ship was beached to prevent sinking after suffering severe damage. On 16 October, B-17's further damaged the ship, with the result that at night she slipped off the reef and sank to a depth of 100–200 feet at coordinates 9-25S, 159-55E.