Second Battle of the Java Sea

In February 1942, the Japanese command launched an operation to capture the islands of Java and Sumatra, deploying a powerful naval group for this. The joint command of the allied forces decided to resist the forces of the allied fleet under the command of the Dutch rear admiral Karel Doormann . This led to a series of naval battles with the Japanese. The decisive battle took place on February 27, 1942 in the Java Sea. Having lost half of the ships, the Allied squadron, divided into two parts, tried to leave the combat area. On February 28, the American heavy cruiser Houston and the Australian light cruiser Perth attempted to break into the Indian Ocean and stumbled upon a Japanese convoy north of Java and were sunk in battle in the Sunda Strait . The second group, led by the damaged English cruiser Exeter , advanced from Surabaya the next day. The cruiser went to sea at night on February 28, 1942, accompanied by two destroyers: the English Encounter ( Encounter ) and the American Pope ( Pope ).

Exeter speed due to damage did not exceed 23 knots. Before dawn, the squadron met a small Japanese convoy of two transports and a destroyer, but did not attack, fearing to attract the attention of large enemy forces, especially since the command instructions required to avoid fighting. On the morning of March 1, the Allied ships met with two Japanese troops. From the south-west, he began to pursue the detachment of Rear Admiral Takagi (heavy cruisers Nati and Haguro , destroyers Yamakadze and Kavakadze ), and from the north-west he was attacked by the detachment of Vice Admiral Takahashi (heavy cruisers Asigara and Myoko , destroyers Akebono , Inadzu ). ^[1] .

At 10.20, Asigara and Myoko from a distance of 124 cab. fired on port side. The destroyers tried to cover Exeter with a smoke screen. The English cruiser had a damaged fire control system, so volleys lay far from the target. Japanese ships, by contrast, fired more accurately due to adjustments from seaplanes. The destroyers of the allies, trying to bring down the aimed fire of the enemy, put a smokescreen. At around 11:00, Exeter fired torpedoes towards Mioko and Asigara , but the distance was too long and the torpedoes did not hit the target. From the starboard side, the Allied ships were unsuccessfully attacked by destroyers.

At 11.15 a second group of Japanese cruisers joined the battle. At 11.20, Exeter received a hit: a 203-mm shell hit the bow of the boiler room. Soon, the cruiser completely lost its energy, all fire control systems and ammunition supply failed, the speed began to fall rapidly. Unable to help him, both destroyers tried to escape on their own. The commander of the English cruiser ordered to leave the ship. In during the evacuation of the crew, a Japanese torpedo from the destroyer Inazuma hit the cruiser. Exeter rolled over and sank ^[2] .

At 11.35, the Encounter also received a fatal hit, which the crew had to leave. The destroyer sank at 12.05. Pope attempted to hide in a rain squall, but was discovered by a seaplane around noon. At 13.30, 6 dive bombers from the aircraft carrier Ryujo appeared in the sky. One of the bombs exploded in the water opposite the torpedo tube No. 4, and the ship's skin could not stand it. The left propeller shaft failed, many compartments were filled with water. The left turbine immediately began to vibrate strongly and had to be stopped. Despite all the efforts of the emergency parties, water arrived quickly. The team left the ship, which was finished off by artillery heavy cruisers. The ship’s crew was rescued by the destroyer Inazuma , who first lifted 376 people from the crews of Exeter and Encanuter from the water, and the next day in the morning another 151 from the crew of the American destroyer. ^[3] .

During the battle, 4 Japanese cruisers fired 1459 203-mm shells, of which Mioko and Asigara 1171. Nati and Haguro fired 170 and 118 main-caliber shells, respectively. The cruisers also fired 24 torpedoes of type 93: Mioko and Asigara - eight each, the rest - four, but they all passed by. ^[four]

The death of the detachment marked the final victory of the Japanese fleet in the battles for the Dutch colonies. After that, the landed Japanese forces quickly occupied all the islands.

• “The Dutch fleet in World War II” / A. Crozet; per. from English A. Patients. ISBN 5-17-026035-0 (LLC "Publishing house ACT"). ISBN 5-9577-1698-7 (ZAO NPP Ermak). 4000 copies

• Dutch fleet in the second world war
• Imperial Japanese Navy Combat Path: Isolation of Java
• Imperial Japanese Navy Combat Path: From the Fall of Java to the Invasion of Burma