Nisshin

Nisshin (日進) was a seaplane tender of the Imperial Japanese Navy during World War II.

Nisshin was laid down on 2 November 1938 and launched on 30 November 1939 at Kure Naval Arsenal. Her completion was delayed by design changes and the onset of the Pacific War and was not commissioned until 27 February 1942. Shortly after commissioning, on 20 March 1942 Nisshin was assigned to Vice Admiral Teruhisa Komatsu’s IJN 6th Fleet together with the seaplane tender Chiyoda and the auxiliary cruiser Aikoku Maru, and participated in training exercises in the Inland Sea, during which time she recovered a miniature submarine which had been lost by Chiyoda.

During the first half of 1943, Nisshin continued to be used primarily as a fast transport between the Japanese home islands and Truk and Rabaul. During a refit at Kure in February 1943, an additional 18 Type 97 25 mm AA guns were installed.

With the start of the large-scale Allied offensive in June 1943 against Japanese-occupied New Guinea and the Solomon Islands, Nisshin rushed troop reinforcements from Yokosuka to Bougainville Island. Loaded with 630 soldiers, 22 light tanks, ammunition and food supplies, she stopped at Truk and on 22 July, escorted by three destroyers, Nisshin attempted to run Bougainville Strait towards Buin. The convoy was attacked at 13:45 approximately 40 nautical miles (74 km; 46 mi) southwest of Buin by three waves of American bombers, including 34 Douglas SBD Dauntless and twelve Consolidated B-24 Liberator bombers. Nisshin was able to evade the B-24s, working up to 34 knots, but was hit by four 500-pound (230 kg) and two 1,000-pound (450 kg) bombs dropped by the dive bombers during the second and third strikes, which exploded her aviation fuel stores and caused many casualties among the crowded soldiers. Severely damaged, Nisshin capsized to starboard and sank some fourteen minutes after the start of the air raid. Of the 1263 on board at the time (633 crewmen and 630 embarked troops), only 178 were rescued by the escorting destroyers, their efforts severely hampered by renewed air attacks.

Appearance

 * She wore a shrine maiden kimono (Miko). The miko's attire consists of a white kosode and a red hakama. The hair is tied in a ponytail with a white and red hair ribbon.
 * She had a black hair.