二次世界大戰資料庫 (WW2DB)

Contributor: C. Peter Chen

ww2dbaseI-58, a 2140-ton "B(3) Type" submarine, was built at Yokosuka, Japan. Completed in September 1944, she was modified in 1945 to carry the "Kaiten" manned torpedo. Her captain, Lieutenant Commander Mochitsura Hashimoto, did not get a chance to attack an enemy ship until 30 Jul 1945, when she ran across the unescorted heavy cruiser Indianapolis between the Marianas and the Philippines. After confirming the Indianapolis as a hostile warship (though misidentifying her as a battleship), Hashimoto launched six conventional torpedos toward the American cruiser. Each torpedo carried 1,210 pounds of explosives. Two of them scored hits, and sank the Indianapolis within minutes. Due to a series of miscommunication and blunders by the US Navy, the sinking of the Indianapolis went unnoticed for several days before a rescue effort was launched. Of the approximately 900 men who survived the explosions and the sinking, only 316 survived the shark-infested waters of the Pacific with little food and no water to tell the tale.

ww2dbaseAt the end of the war, I-58 was surrendered to the United States. She was scuttled off Goto, Japan, on 1 Apr 1946.

Submarine I-58 互動地圖

Photographs

I-58 Operational Timeline