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The Akagi was a Japanese aircraft carrier launched in 1925 and obtained from the reconversion of one of the two battlecruisers of the
Amagi class that were cancelled in 1922; the Amagi resulted severely damaged during the earthquake in Tokio in 1923 and she was
scrapped instead of being finished. The charasteristic small isle, which was just a conning tower, was not even intended to be included
in the original design.
The Akagi suffered a reconversion during 1936-38; the upper flight deck was enlarged, covering all the length of
the hull, while the two lower flight decks were replaced by enclosed hangars; it was suppressed one of the funnels and enlarged the
remaining one, as well as the two elevators, which were complemented with a third one; four of the ten 200-millimeter hull cannons were
suppressed and 14 antiaircraft 25-millimeter twin-mountings were added. After this remodeling, the Akagi had increased her standard
displacement to 37080 tonnes and carried 30 extra aircraft, but the propulsion power remained practically the same.
The Akagi took part in the attack to Pearl Harbor and in 1942 she performed raids in the Indian and Pacific oceans. During the
Battle of Midway in June 1942 she was severely damaged by an aircraft that dropped two bombs upon her, causing a fire. She was
finally sunk in the next day by torpedoes launched from Japanese destroyers. The illustration shows the Akagi as she was in 1941.
Note the 200-millimeter batteries astern integrated in the hull, a reminiscence from the era of the dreadnought.
Class: Akagi (1 unit - Akagi)
Type: Aircraft carrier
Length: 260 meters in 1927; 260.6 meters in 1938
Beam: 30.5 meters
Draught: 8.1 meters in 1927; 8.6 meters in 1938
Displacement (standard): 27330 tonnes in 1927; 37080 tonnes in 1938
Propulsion (in 1927): 4 x shaft, 4 x steam turbine Gijutsu Honbu, 8 x coal boiler Kampon, 11 x coal/petrol boiler Kampon, 131200 horsepower
Propulsion (in 1938): 4 x shaft, 4 x steam turbine Kampon, 19 x petrol boiler Kampon, 133000 horsepower
Speed: 31 knots (57.3 kilometers/hour)
Range: 8000 nautical miles (14800 kilometers) at 16 knots
Fuel (in 1927): 2130 tonnes of coal and 3960 tonnes of petrol
Fuel (in 1938): 5860 tonnes of petrol
Complement: 1340 in 1938
Armament (in 1927): 10 x 200-millimeter 50-caliber cannon, 12 x 120-millimeter cannon
Armament (in 1938): 6 x 200-millimeter 50-caliber cannon, 12 x 120-millimeter cannon, 28 x 25-millimeter cannon
Armor: 152 millimeters in belt, 79 millimeters in deck
Aircraft: 60 in 1927; 91 in 1938 (including Mitsubishi A6M "Zero" fighters, Aichi D3A "Val" dive bombers and Nakajima B5N "Kate" torpedo bombers)
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