Ships
- IJN Hagikaze Captain from 5 May 1942
Commander Jiichi Iwagami took command of the Imperial Japanese Navy destroyer Hagikaze on 5 May 1942. A commander was the rank usually held by the captain of a first-class destroyer, and the date placed him on her bridge as the fleet prepared for the Midway operation.
Hagikaze was a Kagerō-class fleet destroyer, the type that filled out the navy's destroyer squadrons in the early Pacific War. She carried six 12.7-centimeter guns in twin mounts and a heavy battery of Type 93 oxygen torpedoes, with the speed to keep station on the carriers. Ships of her kind screened the heavy units, stood ready for a night torpedo attack, and moved troops and supplies when the water close to shore was too dangerous for anything larger.
In June 1942 Hagikaze sailed for Midway in Destroyer Division 4 with Arashi, Nowaki, and Maikaze. The division formed part of the screen around Vice Admiral Chuichi Nagumo's carrier striking force. American dive bombers struck the four carriers and left them burning. Destroyers of the screen closed the damaged ships, took survivors aboard, and covered the withdrawal. Hagikaze came through the battle afloat and retired with the remaining force.
The work of a destroyer captain continued without a pause after Midway. Hagikaze and her division were drawn into the campaign around the Solomon Islands, escorting heavier warships, guarding the movement of troops, and operating at night where aircraft were less likely to find them. Iwagami answered for the ship's place in formation, the condition of her guns and torpedoes, and a company of about two hundred forty officers and men.
Jiichi Iwagami served as captain of Hagikaze from 5 May 1942. The destroyer had already been at war before he came aboard. Under his command she passed through Midway and on into the South Pacific fighting that occupied the Japanese destroyer force through the rest of that year.