- Yes
- Maybe
- Unsure
- No
- As built
- 1938/1939 Refit
- 1941 Refit
- Early 1942 Refit
- Late 1942 Refit
- Early 1944 Refit
- Late 1944 Refit
- Unsure
- I said no to the first question
Background
IJN Takao was the lead ship of the 4 strong Takao class heavy cruisers of the imperial Japanese navy which were built between the late 1920’s and the early 1930’s, the class itself was an evolution of the of the preceding Myoko class heavy cruisers and inherited the same general layout including the large superstructure which was made even larger, increased the elevation angels on the main battery, improved protection, and relocating the torpedos more amidship which would in fact be a feature not carried over to future cruiser designs.
The class itself was also officially was the last of the treaty heavy cruisers they would build in accordance with the treaty though as we know this would not be the case as the Takao class would be followed by the Mogami class, and during World War Two would have followed that with the Ibuki class cruiser however that class would never be completed as only the hull of Ibuki was launched and then was in the process of being converted into an aircraft carrier and the other ship which never received a name was scrapped on the slipway due to changing priorities.
The typical armament of the Takao class consisted of 10 20 cm (203mm) /50 3rd Year Type No. 2 guns in 5 twin turrets in the same layout as the Myoko class with 3 turrets at the front of the ship and the other two at the rear of the ship, the secondary armament consisted of originally consisted of just 4 12cm (120mm) 10th Year Type guns in 4 separate mounts for defending against aircraft however these would be later replaced by 8 12.7 cm/40 (127mm) Type 89 guns in 4 twin A1 type mounts, likewise the AA armament originally consisted of 2 40mm/69 Type 91 guns and 2 7.7mm machine guns but prior to the start of the war in Europe was rebuilt which saw her rearmed with 8 25mm Type 96 AA guns in 4 twin mounts and 4 13.2mm Type 93 machine guns and during the Second World War the class would receive more AA guns over time, by the end of the war Takao had 60 25mm Type 96 AA guns with the 13.2mm machine guns being removed during the war. Like every Japanese cruiser the ship also had torpedo tubes with the Takao having originally 8 61 cm torpedo tubes in twin mountings however during the ships rebuild before the war this was increased to 12 61 cm torpedo tubes in quad mountings and as typical the ship had the capacity for a full reload for the torpedo tubes as with other Japanese cruisers, and lastly during the Second World War the ship would also receive a number of radar sets.
History
Spoiler
IJN Takao was laid down on April 27th in 1927 and would be subsequently launched on May 12th 1930, and two years later would be commissioned on May 31st of 1932 just 2 months after her sister Atago entered service. During her early years of service she along with her sisters were assigned to Sentai-4 of the 2nd fleet and would have 4 different captains command her until 1938 when she was taken in for a refit and overhaul which would see her and Atago rebuilt to address stability issues that resulted from the large superstructure and mast and which lasted until 1939. After the rebuild of the ship had concluded during the run up to Japan declaring war on the United States the ship spent her time between 1940 to 1941 patrolling off China.
With the Japanese naval forces being deployed across the Pacific in preparation for war with the United States the four ships of the class were assigned to Sentai-4 and were to take part in the start of the invasion of the Philippines where the ships participated in gun fire support in the Lingayen Gulf, however before that she along with other ships would be tasked with hunting the British Task force Z however they would fail to find the British forces before IJAAF bombers sunk the two capital ships. Throughout the first months of 1942 Takao would take part in going after fleeing Dutch merchant vessels from the Dutch East Indies and would take part in the sinking of multiple warships and merchant vessels, and after returning to Japan in March she undergo a refit before in April she was sent out with Atago and Maya in attempting to pursue the dolomite raid forces. In May of 1942 Takao along with the Maya would be assigned to the landing operations in the Aleutian Islands in the attempt to create a distraction ahead of the battle of midway, during these operations she would also shoot down a B-17E. After the defeat at Midway Takao would begin to take part in operations around the Solomon Islands which would see the ship involved in the battle of the eastern Solomons and battle of Santa Cruz and then both the first and second battles of Guadalcanal, during the latter she helped in damaging the USS South Dakota and early on attempted to launch a salvo of Type 93 torpedos however missed the battleship.
With the start of 1943 Takao would be involved in the final operations around Guadalcanal as the Japanese made the decision to evacuate the island after which she returned to Japan to undergo another refit which saw her AA armament increase in number. After her refit she would only take part in some attempt to hunt raiding forces however with no success until taking part in the battle of the Empires of Augustus bay on November 2nd in which the ship managed to remain undamaged, 3 days later on the 5th however she would find herself in the middle of the carrier raid on Rabaul during which she would be hit by 2 500 lb bombs causing her to be holed below the waterline and damage to here steering, despite the damage she would alongside Atago depart Rabaul later that day and make her way to Truk and then back to Japan where she underwent repairs and further refit for more AA guns to be installed.
With repairs completed on the Takao in 1944 she was sent back to Truk near the end of January but instead was diverted along the way to escort the damaged carrier Unyo all the way back to Japan, after this she would arrive instead at Palau in late February. After cruiser division 4 spent the first 4 days of April the force would see 3 failed attacks by US submarines take place between the 6th and 7th with two on the first day. After being present during the battle of the Philippines sea she would undergo another 2 refits as she was first send back to Japan and then to Singapore, and in October she would take part in the Battle of Leyte Gulf however she would be heavily damaged in the Ambush in the Palawan Passage where the ship had lost one shaft and was almost unsteerable and was sent to Singapore and was reassigned to cruiser divisions 5.
By mid November 15th which was 3 days after she arrived it was determined that the damage was too severe to repair in Singapore which would require her to be towed back to Japan however by that point in the war it was deemed for both her and Myoko who were in Singapore it was just not possible to accomplish this, as a result both ships were moved to Seletar harbor and were used as AA batteries, she would also have a number of her 25mm guns moved ashore and camouflage applied to the ship. By 1945 the British had begun to retake territory from the Japanese and it was considered that both of the cruisers would pose a problem resulting in operation struggle which would involve midget subs sneaking into the harbor and placing limpet charges under the ships to sink them. Due to the amount of time the ship had been sitting in the harbor the hull had become covered in marine growth and plants which had to be cleared away to place the mines, after successfully detonated the ship had 7 compartments flooded with damage to two 12.7 cm ammunition magazines, the main gun plotting room and the lower communications room however unknown to the British at the time the Japanese had already removed all the 8 inch ammunition and had only a skeleton crew due leading to no deaths from the attack on the ship. After the Japanese forces in Seletar surrendered the ship would have most of her crew sent off as prisoners of war and 157 would remain onboard the cruiser. After the war had ended Takao herself would be kept around until 1946 when she was taken in the Strait of Malacca to be sunk where she had explosive charges placed in the ship and after arriving had the remaining crew taken off and sent back to Singapore, after opening the valves in one of the the ship engine rooms she was used as a target by HMS Newfoundland and would by 4:38 pm sink by her stern, and the ship would be stricken of the naval list in 1947.
Specifications
Displacement -
11,350 t (Standard) (As built)
14,260 t (Full load) (As built)
12, 570 t (Standard) (1938/1939 refit onwards)
15,490 t (Full load) (1938/1939 refit onwards)
Length -
192.5 m (pp)
201.7 m (wl)
203.8 m (oa)
Beam -
19 m (62 ft) (As built)
20.4 m (67 ft) (1938/1939 refit onwards)
Draft -
6.11 m (20.0 ft) (As built)
6.32 m (20.7 ft) (1938/1939 refit onwards)
Propulsion - 4-shaft geared turbine, 12 Kampon boilers, 132,000 [shp] (98,000 kW)
Speed-
35.5 knots (65.7 km/h) (As built)
34.2 knots (63.3 km/h) (1938/1939 refit onwards)
Complement -
773 (As built)
920 (During WW2)
Radars -
Late 1942 Refit
1 x Type 21 radar
Early 1944 Refit
1 x Type 21 radar
2 x Type 22 radars
Late 1944 Refit
1 x Type 21 radar
2 x Type 22 radars
1 x Type 13 radar
Armament -
As built
Main armament
10 x 20 cm (203mm) /50 3rd Year Type No. 2 guns (5 x 2 Model E turrets)
Secondary armament
4 x 12 cm (120mm) 10th Year Type guns (4 x 1)
AA armament
2 x 40mm/69 Type 91 AA guns
2 x 7.7mm machine guns
Torpedo armament
8 x 61 cm torpedo tubes (4 x 2)
16 torpedos carried total
1938/1939 Refit
Main armament
10 x 20 cm (203mm) /50 3rd Year Type No. 2 guns (5 x 2 Model E turrets)
Secondary armament
4 x 12 cm (120mm) 10th Year Type guns (4 x 1)
AA armament
8 x 25mm Type 96 AA guns (4 x 2)
4 x 13.2mm Type 93 machine guns (2 x 2)
Torpedo armament
16 x 61 cm torpedo tubes (4 x 6)
24 torpedos carried total
1941 Refit
Main armament
10 x 20 cm (203mm) /50 3rd Year Type No. 2 guns (5 x 2 Model E turrets)
Secondary armament
4 x 12 cm (120mm) 10th Year Type guns (4 x 1)
AA armament
12 x 25mm Type 96 AA guns (6 x 2)
Torpedo armament
16 x 61 cm torpedo tubes (4 x 6)
24 torpedos carried total
Early 1942 Refit
Main armament
10 x 20 cm (203mm) /50 3rd Year Type No. 2 guns (5 x 2 Model E turrets)
Secondary armament
8 x 12.7 cm/40 (127mm) Type 89 guns (4 x 2 A1 type mounts)
AA armament
12 x 25mm Type 96 AA guns (6 x 2)
Torpedo armament
16 x 61 cm torpedo tubes (4 x 6)
24 torpedos carried total
Late 1942 Refit
Main armament
10 x 20 cm (203mm) /50 3rd Year Type No. 2 guns (5 x 2 Model E turrets)
Secondary armament
8 x 12.7 cm/40 (127mm) Type 89 guns (4 x 2 A1 type mounts)
AA armament
18 x 25mm Type 96 AA guns (2 x 3 + 6 x 2)
Torpedo armament
16 x 61 cm torpedo tubes (4 x 6)
24 torpedos carried total
Early 1944 Refit
Main armament
10 x 20 cm (203mm) /50 3rd Year Type No. 2 guns (5 x 2 Model E turrets)
Secondary armament
8 x 12.7 cm/40 (127mm) Type 89 guns (4 x 2 A1 type mounts)
AA armament
26 x 25mm Type 96 AA guns (2 x 3 + 6 x 2 + 8 x 1)
Torpedo armament
16 x 61 cm torpedo tubes (4 x 6)
24 torpedos carried total
Late 1944 Refit
Main armament
10 x 20 cm (203mm) /50 3rd Year Type No. 2 guns (5 x 2 Model E turrets)
Secondary armament
8 x 12.7 cm/40 (127mm) Type 89 guns (4 x 2 A1 type mounts)
AA armament
60 x 25mm Type 96 AA guns (6 x 3 + 6 x 2 + 30 x 1)
Torpedo armament
16 x 61 cm torpedo tubes (4 x 6)
24 torpedos carried total
Armor -
belt: 102mm (machinery) - 127mm (magazines)
bulkheads: 100mm - 75mm
deck: 35mm (90mm - 70mm over machinery)
turrets: 25mm
barbettes: 75mm
CT: 16mm
Spoiler
Aircraft carried -
3 x Floatplanes
(2 E4N2 and 1 E7K1 as built)
(2 F1M2 and 1 Aichi E13A1 by WW2)
Aviation facilities -
2 x catapults
Sources
Spoiler
http://www.navypedia.org/ships/japan/jap_cr_takao.htm
Imperial Cruisers
Takao class heavy cruisers - Imperial Japanese navy (1930)
Takao-class cruiser - Wikipedia
Japanese cruiser Takao (1930) - Wikipedia
Image Sources
Spoiler
Category:Takao (ship, 1932) - Wikimedia Commons
Takao class heavy cruisers - Imperial Japanese navy (1930)
https://www.reddit.com/r/WorldOfWarships/comments/4nkjzk/takao_heavy_cruiser_of_the_ijn_in_singapore_upon/
https://www.reddit.com/r/WarshipPorn/comments/hy60mb/japanese_heavy_cruiser_takao_the_lead_ship_of_her/