Japanese destroyer Hatsukaze

Kagerō class destroyer

Hatsukaze (初風) was the seventh vessel to be commissioned in the 19 vessel s built for the Imperial Japanese Navy in the late 1930s under the Circle Three Supplementary Naval Expansion Program (Maru San Keikaku). She survived four major fleet actions against the Allies, but was finally sunk in November 1943 after being damaged through collision with Japanese cruiser Japanese cruiser Myōkō.

The Kagerō class destroyers were outwardly almost identical to the preceding light cruiser sized , with improvements made by Japanese naval architects to improve stability and to take advantage of Japan’s lead in torpedo technology. They were designed to accompany the Japanese main striking force and in both day and night attacks against the United States Navy as it advanced across the Pacific Ocean, according to Japanese naval strategic projections. Despite being one of the most powerful classes of destroyers in the world at the time of their completion, only one survived the Pacific War. Hatsukaze, built at the Kawasaki Shipbuilding Corporation, was laid down on 3 December 1937, launched on 24 January 1939 and commissioned on 15 February 1940.

At the time of the attack on Pearl Harbor, Hatsukaze, was assigned to Destroyer Division 16 (Desdiv 16), and a member of Destroyer Squadron 2 (Desron 2) of the IJN 2nd Fleet, and had deployed from Palau, as part of the escort for the aircraft carrier Japanese aircraft carrier Ryūjō in the invasion of the southern Philippines and minelayer Japanese minelayer Yaeyama. In early 1942, Hatsukaze participated in the invasion of the Netherlands East Indies, escorting the invasion forces for Menado, Kendari and Ambon in January, and the invasion forces for Makassar, Timor and eastern Java in February. Hatsukaze was removed from the navy list on 5 January 1944.