Order of battle

Warships

IJN at time of Pearl Harbor Attack in December 1941:

Battleships

10 (plus 3 building) (1) 4 Kongō class — converted from battlecruisers. Built in 1913–1915. Kongō — †November, 1944 Hiei — †November, 1942 Kirishima — †November, 1942 Haruna — †July, 1945 2 Fusō class — built 1915-1917 Fusō — †October, 1944 Yamashiro — †October, 1944 2 Ise class — built 1917-1918 Ise — †July, 1945 Hyūga — run aground in July, 1945 2 Nagato class — built 1920-1921 Nagato Mutsu — †June, 1943 0 Yamato class (3 building (1 converted to aircraft carrier Shinano) and 1 cancelled later in 1941). Yamato — commissioned 1941, † 1945 Musashi — commissioned 1942, † 1944 The fourth of the class, Hull Number 111 was scrapped in 1942 when only 30% complete, and a proposed fifth hull, Number 797, proposed in the 1942 5th Supplementary Program, was never ordered.

Imperial Japanese Navy order of battle 1941

Aircraft carriers

6 heavy and 6 light (plus 7 building )(1) Hōshō built in 1922 Akagi (2) (ex-battlecruiser converted by 1927) — †1942 Kaga (ex-battleship converted in 1928) — †1942 Ryūjō completed 1933 — †1942 Sōryū — †1942 Hiryū — †1942 2 Zuihō class commissioned as aircraft carriers 1940-1941 Shōhō - †1942 Zuihō - †1944 2 Shōkaku class built 1941 Shōkaku — †1944 Zuikaku — †1944 3 Taiyō class Taiyō — †1944 Chūyō — †1943 Unyō — †1944 2 Hiyō class Hiyō — †1944 Jun'yō Shinano (ex-battleship converted in 1942–44) — †1944

Imperial Japanese Navy order of battle 1941

(1) Does not include Imperial Japanese Army built aircraft transports. (2) Amagi — sister ship to Akagi both as a battlecruiser and as a conversion to an aircraft carrier, was destroyed during construction by an earthquake and replaced with the Kaga.

Imperial Japanese Navy order of battle 1941

Heavy cruisers

18 (plus 1 building) (1) 2 Furutaka built 1926-1927 2 Aoba built 1926-1927 4 Myōkō built 1928-1929 4 Takao built 1932 4 Mogami built 1935-1937(2) 2 Tone built 1941 (1) Ibuki ordered but not laid down (2) Mogamis designated light cruisers but were built to be up-gunned as heavies once the London Naval Treaty was broken.

Light cruisers

20 (plus 5 building) (1) 2 Tenryū built 1919 5 Kuma built 1920-1921 1 Yubari built 1923 3 Sendai built 1924-1925 6 Nagara built 1922-1925 3 Katori (1 cancelled) built 1938-1940 (1) 4 Agano and 2 Ōyodo (1 cancelled).

Destroyers

115 (plus 43 building) (1) 3 Momi-class destroyer (3) built 1920-1922 13 Minekaze-class destroyer built 1920-1922 6 Wakatake-class destroyer built 1922-1923 9 Kamikaze-class destroyer built 1922-1924 12 Mutsuki-class destroyer built 1925-1927 19 Fubuki-class destroyer built 1926-1933 (included Ayanami subclass) 4 Akatsuki-class destroyer built 1932-1933 (subclass of Fubuki class) 6 Hatsuharu-class destroyer built 1933-1935 10 Shiratsuyu-class destroyer built 1936-1937 10 Asashio-class destroyer built 1937-1938 19 Kagerō-class destroyer built 1939 4 Yūgumo-class destroyer built 1941 (1) 27 Yūgumo class and 16 Akizuki-class building (2) Others ships of the Momi-class were re-rated as patrol vessels. Also, note than Momi name was assigned in 1944 to a Matsu-class destroyer ship

Submarines

68 Fleet submarines

50 Ko-hyoteki-class midget submarines

Others

90 patrol ships, gunboats, armed merchant ships, and submarine chasers

6 minelayers

Itsukushima

42 minesweepers

55 auxiliaries

Merchant ships

Many under direct navy control as armed merchantmen. 1939 - 2,337 with 5,629,845 tons World War II construction of 4,250,000 tons 2,346 sunk

Aircraft

Total 1750 first line with 370 trainers

660 Fighters

330 Carrier based strike aircraft

240 Land-based twin engine bombers

520 Seaplanes and flying boats.

Commanders

Imperial Japanese Navy commanders at the time of the Attack on Pearl Harbor:

See also

List of Japanese Navy ships and war vessels in World War II

Notes

Imperial Japanese Navy

World War II naval ships of Japan

1941 in Japan

World War II orders of battle