Wreck of HIJMS Hiei (比叡)

 Second World War 1939-1945, military, shipwreck, battleship

The HIJMS Hiei was a Kongo Class Battleship in service with the Imperial Japanese Navy during the Second World War, and by November 1942 the ship had taken part in numerous battles including the Indian Ocean Raids, the Battle of the Eastern Solomons and the Battle of Santa Cruz Island.

November 1942 found the Hiei and her sistership HIJMS Kirishima in the waters now known as "The Slot" or New Georgia Sound, where Japanese supply convoys known as the "Tokyo Express" would attempt to resupply troops fighting Allied forces on Guadalcanal and the surrounding islands. On November 12th 1943 the Hiei, serving as flagship to Vice Admiral Abe Hiroaki, assembled with the Kirishima, one light Cruiser and twelve Destroyers to escort a resupply convoy to Guadalcanal. Once separated from the transports, Hiei and Kirishima were to lead the other warships in a shore bombardment mission to destroy Henderson Field and any US transport ships in the area. Steaming at low speed down "The Slot" the large Japanese force was spotted by American recon planes which alerted the US Fleet at Guadalcanal, which quickly assembled a force of five Cruisers and eight Destroyers to meet the Japanese force.

Steaming towards the rear of the shore bombardment force as it detached from the transports and made its way around the Northern shore of Savo Island at approximately 0030hrs, the Hiei and her crew had no way of knowing they had been picked up on long-range radar screens aboard several of the US vessels, and as the Japanese force moved into several rain squall lines the formation began to scatter as strict radio silence prevented the ships from communicating their positions. Emerging from the squall line shortly before 0130hrs, Hiei began to receive terse radio signals from her van of Destroyers saying that American ships had been spotted only 3,000 yards away and lying in between to arms of the Japanese formation. Ordering all ships in the formation to switch their armaments from shore bombardment artillery shells to armor-piercing anti-ship shells, Vice Admiral Abe’s orders attempted to ready his ships for surface combat but cost his ships precious time and lost much of the surprise they had gained on the now-enveloped American battle line. Still waiting on confirmation that all ships were ready for combat before issuing his order to fire, a searchlight from the HIJMS Akatsuki precluded Admiral Abe’s orders as it lit the USS Atlanta, causing the entire American formation to open fire followed seconds later by the entire Japanese force. With battle joined, the First Naval Battle of Guadalcanal quickly degenerated into an aptly termed 'a bar room brawl with the lights shot out' as both the American and Japanese formations began intertwining and engaging each other at point blank range, with all operational control of both fleets disappearing into a confused and violent melee.

Aboard Hiei, gun director crews tried to find a target among the dozens of ships in the area as she turned South to expose her broadside weaponry to the American ships steaming her East, only to see the Destroyer USS Laffey passing directly behind her, a mere 20 feet from her stern. The stunned gunners aboard the Hiei were unable to lower their guns enough to fire on the Laffey, but the smaller Destroyer was able to fire every gun onboard into the massive Battleship, devastating the entire superstructure and bridge area of the Hiei with 5-inch, 40mm, anti-aircraft machine gun fire before disappearing back into the night. Reeling from this sudden attack with the majority of her Flag Officers, including Vice Admiral Abe, killed or wounded, the Hiei lost her communication system and was set heavily aflame as she continued her Southward course and within moments came into the crosshairs of numerous US ships. Struck across her length by 5, 6 & 8-inch shells from no fewer than five American ships, the Hiei’s hull absorbed two torpedoes hits before she shifted her course, allowing her gunners a chance to target the American Flagship USS San Francisco with her main battery, unleashing several salvoes onto the Cruiser with incredible accuracy from nearly point-blank range. Despite scoring several hits on the enemy ship, Hiei’s gunners were unable to sink her as they were still firing shore bombardment artillery shells, her turret crews unable to complete the ordered ammunition switch before the battle began. As a result Hiei’s attack on the San Francisco, while severely damaging the US Cruiser topside and killing Captain Cassin Young and Admiral Norman Scott, did little to harm the Cruisers hull, main battery and vital spaces as armor-piercing shells would have, and allowed gunners on the San Francisco to return fire onto the Hiei. Struck across her Stern by at least one full salvo of 8-inch armor-piercing fire, Hiei’s steering gears were severely damaged and eventually failed, leaving the Battleships rudders locked hard to Starboard. Forced to stop as her damage control teams attempted to restore rudder control, Hiei’s radio crews issued orders to the entire Japanese force to break contact and withdraw, after only 40 minutes of intense combat.

Towed out of the immediate battle area around Savo Island by her sistership HIJMS Kirishima, dawn on the 13th found the damaged Hiei steaming off Pavuvu trailing a long stream of oil and still unable to steer. Kirishima was ordered to abandon her tow of her sister shortly before daybreak as American ships were reported to be closing in, leaving Hiei steaming in wide circles with a small escort as her crew labored to correct her damaged steering systems. Located by American recon planes in this state, Hiei came under over 70 separate attacks by US Navy and US Marine Corps aircraft during the daylight hours, absorbing two more torpedoes, at least three 1000lb bombs and several 500lb bombs, causing massive damage both above and below decks. With the ship still unable to steer, heavily damaged and under immediate threat of further air and surface attack, Vice Admiral Abe ordered the ship abandoned and scuttled in the early evening of November 13th. Hiei’s colors were struck and the Emperors Portrait removed before her surviving crew removed by escorting Destroyers, and as she was left to her fate scuttling charges went off deep below decks, sinking the Battleship stern first during the night of November 13th in this general area. HIJMS Hiei had lost 188 of her crew in the preceding battles which sank her.

www.combinedfleet.com/hiei.htm