| Attack On Sydney Harbour |
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In late May and early June, 1942 , a group of five Imperial Japanese Navy submarines made a series of attacks on Sydney, Australia and the nearby port of Newcastle . These attacks are one of the best known examples of Axis Naval Activity In Australian Waters during World War II . On the night of May 31 - June 1 , the submarines launched three ''Ko-hyoteki'' Class Midget Submarine s against Allied shipping in Sydney Harbour . A Torpedo exploded under a small Royal Australian Navy (RAN) Depot Ship HMAS ''Kuttabul'' , killing 21 people. On June 8 , two of the submarines Shelled Sydney and Newcastle, with little effect. THE FORCES On May 18, the submarines I-22 , I-24 and I-27 left the major naval base at Truk Lagoon , in the Japanese territory of the Caroline Islands . Each was carrying a midget submarine. They later made a rendezvous with two other submarines, I-21 , I-29 and 56 kilometres (35 miles) off Sydney. The submarine group, known as the Eastern Advanced Detachment, was commanded by Captain Hankyu Sasaki . Its main mission was reconnaissance, although it was planned that any "major enemy warships" sighted would be attacked with the midgets. The Allied Naval Officer in Charge, Sydney, was a Heavy Cruiser USS ''Chicago'' , the Destroyer s USS ''Perkins'' and USS ''Dobbin'' , the Minelayer HMAS ''Bungaree'' and the Royal Indian Navy Minesweeper HMIS ''Bombay'' , all in Man-of-War Anchorage ; the heavy cruiser ''' HMAS ''Canberra'' ''' in Farm Cove ; the Armed Merchant Cruiser s HMAS ''Kanimbla'' and HMAS ''Westralia'' in Neutral Bay ; the ageing Light Cruiser HMAS ''Adelaide'' on the west side of Garden Island ; and the Corvette s HMAS ''Whyalla'' and HMAS ''Geelong'' on the north-west corner of Garden Island, and; the Royal Netherlands Navy submarine K-IX and the converted Suburban Ferry ''Kuttabul'', at the south-east corner of Garden Island. Other defences included an electromagnetic Indicator Loop at Sydney Heads . At the inner entrance to the harbour there was a semi-completed antitorpedo net, between George's Head on Middle Head , and Green Point on Inner South Head . The centre part of the net, including boom gates, was complete but there were gaps at each end. The net had gates to allow vessels to enter and leave the harbour. The anti-submarine vessel HMAS ''Yandra'' on duty patrolling near the harbour entrance and a similar vessel, HMAS ''Bingera'' , was on stand-by at the Naval Anchorage in Woolloomooloo . The minesweepers HMAS ''Goonambee'' and HMAS ''Samuel Benbow'' were located in Watson's Bay . Six channel patrol boats armed with Depth Charge s and four unarmed auxiliary patrol boats were also on duty in the vicinity of the boom gates. THE MIDGET SUBMARINE ATTACK Three of the Japanese submarines carried spotter seaplanes. On May 23, the pilot of a Yokosuka E14Y1 from I–29 made a brief flight over the Sydney-Newcastle area, detecting a large number of ships in Sydney Harbour. However, the plane's wing was damaged shortly after landing near I-29. On May 30, at 3.45am, I-21 launched its own E14Y1. The pilot, Warrant Officer Susumu Ito, made several reconnaissance circuits over Sydney Harbour. P-39 fighters from the United States Army Air Forces 's 41st Pursuit Squadron, based at Bankstown Airport , were sent up to investigate, but by that time Ito had spotted ''Chicago'', believing it to be a Battleship and had returned to I-21. Ito's plane capsized soon after landing and was then scuttled. The following afternoon, the Japanese force approached to within 11 kilometres of Sydney Heads , and at about 4.30pm the three midget submarines were launched. Midget No. 14 was detected by harbour defences at about 8.00pm, but was not precisely located until it became entanged in the net. The channel patrol boat HMAS ''Lolita'' , a converted Yacht , dropped three depth charges that failed to explode, due to a lack of water depth. Before a similar vessel, HMAS ''Yarroma'' , was able to launch its own depth charges, No. 14's self-demolition explosives were ignited, destroying the vessel and killing the two crew members, Lieutenant Kenshi Chuma and Petty Officer Takeshi Ohmori. At 9.48pm, Midget "A" (also known as Midget No. 24, or M-24) entered the harbour and headed west towards the Sydney Harbour Bridge . It was also detected and a general alarm was sounded at 10.27pm. Midget No. 21 entered the harbour after Midget "A". At 10.52pm, the crew of the unarmed auxiliary patrol boat ''Lauriana'' spotted Midget No. 21's conning tower above the surface and signalled HMAS ''Yandra''. Just after 10.54pm, ''Yandra'' attempted to ram the sub, near Taylor's Bay , and at 11.07pm ''Yandra'' dropped six depth charges. These caused serious damage to Midget No. 21 and the crew of Lieutenant Keiu Matsuo and Petty Officer Masao Tsuzuku committed suicide with their handguns to avoid capture. By this time the waters of the inner harbour were well-illuminated by searchlights and Midget "A" was spotted by Allied personnel about 200 metres from Garden Island, and was fired on by ''Chicago'' and ''Geelong''. Some 5-inch shells from ''Chicago'' accidentally hit a small fortified island, . As a result of the explosion K-IX was severely damaged by an impact from ''Kuttabul''. Midget "A" then disappeared with its crew, before it reached the larger Japanese submarines. (See the Aftermath section of this article for further details.) THE SHELLING OF SYDNEY AND NEWCASTLE Over the next week, the Allied navies and air forces searched, without luck, for the mother submarines. On June 8, just after midnight, I-24 surfaced off Sydney, about 10 km (6 mi) off Maroubra . For a four minute period, the submarine's deck gun was fired at the Sydney Harbour Bridge. Every shot landed well short of its target, with at least 10 shells hitting the residential suburbs of Rose Bay , Woollahra and Bellevue Hill . All but one of the shells failed to explode and there were no fatalities or serious injuries. Several houses were destroyed or badly damaged. Lt George Cantello of the 41st PS took off from Bankstown, but suffered mechanical failure soon afterwards, crashed and was killed. I-24 submerged and left the scene before it could be located by defence forces. About two hours later, I-21 surfaced about 9 km (5.5 mi) north east of Newcastle. At about 2.17 am, its deck gun fired the first of eight lilluminating star shells and 26 live rounds towards the Newcastle shipyards, at Carrington . From about 2.26, the coastal artillery at Fort Scratchley returned fire. I-21 continued firing for about another 10 minutes. There were no casualties and little damage was caused. I-21 submerged and left the scene. AFTERMATH The raid was the first time that Sydney had been attacked by enemy military forces. It remains the only such attack to have taken place. Although the raid lacked the psychological impact of the Air Raids On Darwin Several Weeks Earlier , and it failed to sink any major warships, it nevertheless represented a symbolic victory for Japan, soon after its setback at the Battle Of The Coral Sea . Like the bodies from the ''Kuttabul'', the bodies of four of the Japanese submariners were recovered. The Japanese seamen were cremated with full military honours and their ashes were returned to their families in Japan by way of a neutral country. ''Chicago'' and ''Canberra'' were both lost in battle within a year. I-21 and I-22 both disappeared at sea within a year of the Sydney attack. I-24 was sunk by Allied forces off Alaska in 1943. I-27 was sunk in the Indian Ocean in 1944. I-29 became one of only a few Japanese submarines to reach Nazi -occupied Europe , but was sunk off the Philippines on its return trip in 1944. On Planning Minister Frank Sartor announced that sonar scans conducted by the New South Wales Heritage Office at the location specified had found no trace of the lost submarine. {Link without Title} REFERENCES/EXTERNAL LINKS |