| “ | Unryuu class aircraft carrier, Unryuu, has arrived. Admiral, it's nice to meet you. | „ |
Unryū (雲龍?) was the lead vessel of her class of fleet aircraft carriers of the Imperial Japanese Navy during World War II. She was commissioned on 6 August 1944 and eventually torpedoed and sunk by USN submarine USS Redfish (SS-395) in the East China Sea on 19 December that same year. The name Unryū means literally "cloud dragon."
Appearance[]
he actual ship's design is based on Hiryuu's design. However, the ship-girl has a design completely different to Hiryuu's own, with the reason being that the ship was in chinese waters.
Unryuu wears a blue and white vest with green trimming, a miniskirt and green thighhighs along with greaves and platform rudder shoes. Most parts of her clothes have cloud-like patterning. A cradle-type rigging painted green is attached to her, holding several AA guns and machinery. Like Ryuujou and the Hiyou-class, she uses shikigami as planes but unlike them, her flight deck is attached as a banner to a staff and her hangar is a tiny building-looking thing. Also unlike them is the way she transforms her paper into planes, using energy torii instead of transforming them on the spot. Also attached to the staff is a cloud-shaped plate with her name written on it. Her flightdeck is already painted into a green camouflage pattern.
Her design changes after her remodel. The vest is now teal, green and white, the skirt as well and her thighhighs are now brown. Her flight deck now features a green and brown camouglage pattern. More importantly is the addition of green lightning over her head, featuring like horns; and around the hangar, levitating it in the process, leaving both of her hands free to hold the staff.
When damaged, she will let go curly cloud-shaped smoke puffs.
She has very long silver hair in a long braid, with the head area kept short, in an asymmetrical hairstyle with curled bangs that is shaped like a cloud. A green orb is embedded into her braid. She also has light brown eyes, in a soft but constant flat gaze. One similarity with her 'sisters' is the tendency to be drawn with large breasts.
Her design, which is completely unlike the previous fleet carrier designs, caught off-guard fans who thought she would closely resemble Souryuu and Hiryuu, her models.
Trivia[]
- Unryuu means cloud dragon.
- Unryuu's design is a modification of Souryuu & Hiryuu's
- A factor in why Unryuu shares the -ryuu naming scheme rather than the Shoukaku-class' -kaku naming scheme.
- Her name exist on Souryuu-class Submarines in JMSDF for her naming conventions along with Souryuu.
- Although commissioned, she never possessed an air wing due to losses during the war, & as such, she never traveled far from a port.
- The exception was her first & only sortie involving Yokosuka MXY7 Ōhka kamikaze rocket planes destined for Manila, Philippines.
- Sunk by USS Redfish (SS-395) on December 19th, 1944 in the East China Sea (29°59′N 124°03′E).
- A torpedo wrecked Unryuu's hangar, which detonated the Ōhkas within & the highly volatile aviation fuel underneath.
- She is the last carrier sunk at sea during the Pacific War (WWII).