Destroyer Shirayuki

Shirayuki was the second ship of the Fubuki-class, built at Yokohama Dock Company, laid down 19 March 1927, launched 20 March 1928, and commissioned 18 December 1928. The Fubuki class represented a revolutionary leap in destroyer design — displacing roughly 1,750 tons, armed with six 127mm guns in three enclosed twin turrets and nine torpedo tubes in three triple mounts, capable of 38 knots.

Shirayuki served extensively throughout the early Pacific War, participating in operations around Malaya, the Dutch East Indies, and later the Solomons campaign. In early 1943 she was assigned as flagship of Rear Admiral Masatomi Kimura, commanding the escort of the "Lae Convoy" — a major troop reinforcement operation from Rabaul to Lae, New Guinea.

On 3 March 1943, during the Battle of the Bismarck Sea, U.S. and Australian aircraft employing the newly developed skip-bombing technique attacked the convoy with devastating effect. A skip-bomb exploded in Shirayuki's after magazine and severed her stern. She sank about 55 nautical miles southeast of Finschhafen at approximately 7°15′S 148°30′E, with 32 of her crew killed. Admiral Kimura and the ship's captain were among the survivors taken off by the destroyer Shikinami.

The battle effectively ended Japan's ability to reinforce New Guinea by convoy.