Photos and the story

Zuikaku

Class	Shokaku class
Type	Aircraft carrier (CV)
Fate	Sunk. Not hit at Coral Sea. Her air group was used up, and she missed Midway. American carrier aircraft sank her off Cape Engano on 25 October 1944. Not credited to one ship.
Armament (class)	Fleet carrier. Flight deck, with the island forward of amidships.
Command	Yokokawa, Ichibei Captain from 25 September 1941 Nomoto, Tameki Captain from 5 June 1942 Kikuchi, Tomozo Captain from 21 June 1943; Relieved on 18 December 1943 Kaizuka, Takeo Captain from 18 December 1943; In command when she was lost, 25 October 1944 Ozawa, Jisaburo Flag, not her captain, 25 October 1944

Laid down, displacement, length, beam, draft, speed, and complement are not stored for each hull, so this table leaves them out.

The armament line is the class drawing, not a measurement of this hull.

Zuikaku was a Shokaku-class aircraft carrier of the Imperial Japanese Navy. Captain Ichibei Yokokawa took command on 25 September 1941. On 7 December 1941, in the attack on Pearl Harbor, she launched her aircraft and received no hit herself.

At the Battle of the Coral Sea on 8 May 1942 the ship again came through without a hit. Her air group was used up in the fighting, and she missed Midway.

Tameki Nomoto became captain on 5 June 1942. On 24 August 1942 Zuikaku was in the Battle of the Eastern Solomons and was not sunk.

Tomozo Kikuchi took command on 21 June 1943, and Takeo Kaizuka succeeded him on 18 December 1943. On 19 June 1944, at the Battle of the Philippine Sea, the carrier was not sunk.

Kaizuka was still in command when American carrier aircraft sank Zuikaku off Cape Engano on 25 October 1944. The loss is not credited to any one ship.

The pictures on this page are the originals.