Name I-73 Draft 4.57 m (15 ft 0 in) Length 105 m | Beam 8.2 m (26 ft 11 in) Launched 1935 | |
Fate Sunk by USS Gudgeon, 27 January 1942 Class and type Kaidai type (KD6A sub-class) Displacement 1,814 tonnes (1,785 long tons) surfaced
2,479 tonnes (2,440 long tons) submerged | ||
The Japanese submarine I-73 was a Kaidai type cruiser submarine of the KD6A sub-class built for the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) during the 1930s. One month after participating in the IJN's attack on Pearl Harbor, she was sunk by United States Navy submarine USS Gudgeon.
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Design and description
The submarines of the KD6A sub-class were versions of the preceding KD5 sub-class with greater surface speed and diving depth. They displaced 1,814 tonnes (1,785 long tons) surfaced and 2,479 tonnes (2,440 long tons) submerged. The submarines were 104.7 meters (343 ft 6 in) long, had a beam of 8.2 meters (26 ft 11 in) and a draft of 4.57 meters (15 ft 0 in). The boats had a diving depth of 75 m (246 ft)
For surface running, the boats were powered by two 4,500-brake-horsepower (3,356 kW) diesel engines, each driving one propeller shaft. When submerged each propeller was driven by a 900-horsepower (671 kW) electric motor. They could reach 23 knots (43 km/h; 26 mph) on the surface and 8 knots (15 km/h; 9.2 mph) underwater. On the surface, the KD6As had a range of 14,000 nautical miles (26,000 km; 16,000 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph); submerged, they had a range of 65 nmi (120 km; 75 mi) at 3 knots (5.6 km/h; 3.5 mph).
The boats were armed with six internal 53.3 cm (21.0 in) torpedo tubes, four in the bow and two in the stern. They carried a total of 14 torpedoes. They were also armed with one 100 mm (3.9 in) deck gun for combat on the surface and an 13.2 mm (0.52 in) anti-aircraft machinegun.
Construction and career
I-73 participated in the attack on Pearl Harbor as part of the 3rd Submarine Squadron in the 6th Fleet of the IJN. It was one of the vessels created as part of Japan's 1st Naval Armaments Supplement Programme in 1931. On 27 January 1942, I-73 became the first warship to be sunk by a United States Navy submarine; USS Gudgeon fired three torpedoes at I-73 and destroyed it. Gudgeon claimed that the torpedoes only damaged I-73, but Station HYPO confirmed the loss.