Japanese submarine I-179

	Sister ship I-176 at sea, 1942
History
Empire of Japan
Name	I-179
Builder	Kawasaki Dockyard Co., Kobe
Laid down	21 August 1941, as Submarine No. 157
Launched	16 July 1942
Completed	18 June 1943
Renamed	1 November 1941, as I-179
Stricken	15 April 1944
Fate	Sunk during sea trials, 14 July 1943; Salvaged and scrapped, 1957;
General characteristics
Class and type	Kaidai type, KD7-class
Displacement	1,862 t (1,833 long tons) (surfaced); 2,644 t (2,602 long tons) (submerged);
Length	105.5 m (346 ft 2 in)
Beam	8.25 m (27 ft 1 in)
Draft	4.6 m (15 ft 1 in)
Installed power	8,000 bhp (6,000 kW) (diesels); 1,800 hp (1,300 kW) (electric motors);
Propulsion	Diesel-electric; 2 × diesel engines; 2 × electric motors;
Speed	23 knots (43 km/h; 26 mph) surfaced; 8 knots (15 km/h; 9.2 mph) submerged;
Range	8,000 nmi (15,000 km; 9,200 mi) at 16 knots (30 km/h; 18 mph) surfaced; 50 nmi (93 km; 58 mi) at 5 knots (9.3 km/h; 5.8 mph) submerged;
Test depth	80 m (260 ft)
Complement	86
Armament	6 × 533 mm (21 in) torpedo tubes (all bow); 1 × 120 mm (4.7 in) deck gun; 1 × twin 25 mm (1.0 in) Type 96 AA gun;

The Japanese submarine I-179 (originally I-79) was a Kaidai type cruiser submarine of the KD7 sub-class built for the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) during the 1940s. She was lost with all hands when a valve was accidentally left open during her sea trials in July 1943. Her wreck was later salvaged and scrapped in 1957.

Design and description

The submarines of the KD7 sub-class were medium-range attack submarines developed from the preceding KD6 sub-class. They displaced 1,862 metric tons (1,833 long tons) surfaced and 2,644 metric tons (2,602 long tons) submerged. The submarines were 105.5 meters (346 ft 2 in) long, had a beam of 8.25 meters (27 ft 1 in) and a draft of 4.6 meters (15 ft 1 in). The boats had a diving depth of 80 m (260 ft) and a complement of 86 officers and crewmen.^[1]

For surface running, the boats were powered by two 4,000-brake-horsepower (2,983 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 KD7s had a range of 8,000 nautical miles (15,000 km; 9,200 mi) at 16 knots (30 km/h; 18 mph); submerged, they had a range of 50 nmi (93 km; 58 mi) at 5 knots (9.3 km/h; 5.8 mph).^[2]

The boats were armed with six internal 53.3 cm (21.0 in) torpedo tubes, all in the bow. They carried one reload for each tube; a total of a dozen torpedoes. They were originally intended to be armed with two twin-gun mounts for the 25 mm (1.0 in) Type 96 anti-aircraft gun, but a 120 mm (4.7 in) deck gun for combat on the surface was substituted for one 25 mm mount during construction.^[3]

Construction and career

Built by the Kawasaki Dockyard Co. at their shipyard in Kobe, I-179 was laid down on 21 August 1941 under the name of Submarine No. 157 and renamed I-179 on 1 November 1941.^[4] The boat was launched on 16 July 1942 and completed on 18 June 1943.^[1] While conducting her sea trials in the Inland Sea on 14 July, she sank with the loss of all 85 officers and crewmen. Her wreck was located four days later at a depth of 81 meters (265 ft) at 32°29′N 131°54′W / 32.483°N 131.900°W / 32.483; -131.900 with several hatches and her bow buoyancy tank vent valve open. I-179 was struck from the Navy List on 15 April 1944. Her wreck was salvaged from April 1956 to 1 March 1957 and scrapped at Kure.^[4]

Notes

^ ^a ^b Carpenter & Polmar, p. 105
^ Chesneau, p. 199
^ Bagnasco, pp. 183, 186
^ ^a ^b Hackett & Kingsepp

References

Bagnasco, Erminio (1977). Submarines of World War Two. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 0-87021-962-6.
Carpenter, Dorr B. & Polmar, Norman (1986). Submarines of the Imperial Japanese Navy 1904–1945. London: Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 0-85177-396-6.
Chesneau, Roger, ed. (1980). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1922–1946. Greenwich, UK: Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 0-85177-146-7.
Hackett, Bob & Kingsepp, Sander (2015). "IJN Submarine I-179: Tabular Record of Movement". combinedfleet.com. Retrieved 8 November 2015.
Jentschura, Hansgeorg; Jung, Dieter & Mickel, Peter (1977). Warships of the Imperial Japanese Navy, 1869–1945. Annapolis, Maryland: United States Naval Institute. ISBN 0-87021-893-X.