Destroyer Isokaze

Isokaze was laid down at Sasebo Naval Arsenal on 25 November 1938, launched 19 June 1939, and commissioned 30 November 1940. She was one of the nineteen Kagerō-class destroyers and participated in major operations across the Pacific: the Battle of Midway, the Guadalcanal campaign, the Battle of the Philippine Sea, and the Battle of Leyte Gulf. By 1945 her anti-aircraft armament had been significantly enhanced, with 28 25mm guns replacing original lighter weaponry. On 6 April 1945, Isokaze sortied with the battleship Yamato on Operation Ten-Go, the final suicide mission to Okinawa. On 7 April 1945, the formation was attacked by over 380 U.S. carrier aircraft. Yamato, the light cruiser Yahagi and three other destroyers were sunk. Isokaze, going to the aid of the crippled Yahagi, was holed by a near miss that flooded her engine room, and eventually lost all power. She was scuttled by gunfire from her sister Yukikaze approximately 150 miles southwest of Nagasaki at about 30°46′N 128°09′E in the East China Sea; 20 of her crew had been killed. A wreck filmed during a diving survey in May 2016 was identified as Isokaze in February 2018.