Wetherhorn

You can find a reference to all my Japanese ship camouflage posts at:

https//wetherhorn.wordpress.com/2022/07/12/japanese-ship-camouflage-cross-reference/

After putting up pages on my original blog with pictures of Japanese WW II camouflage I realized that a better description of the background to Japanese ship camouflage was probably needed. So, here is the first part. There are other posts that appear later.
At the start of the war the navy ministry handled warships and merchant vessels requisitioned for use as naval auxiliaries. The navy really was not convinced that any kind of disruptive camouflage beyond overall grey was necessary. As a result, with the exception of aircraft carriers late in the war (a subject to be discussed later) ships belonging to the navy rarely had camouflage. There were a very few notable exceptions:
1)A few warships involved in Aleutian operations were painted with white splotches. These were the light cruisers KISO and TAMA and the destroyer MUTSUKI. There is also a photo of light cruiser YURA in similar camouflage but she was not part of that operation and I am unable to date the picture.

2) Merchant cruisers that were to operate as raiders were given camouflage. This includes AIKOKU MARU and HOKOKU MARU who both were painted in two different patterns. LCDR Shizuo Fukui was reported to be responsible for their second pattern. AWATA MARU and KIYOZUMI MARU also carried camouflage patterns/

These are my patterns for the 4 ships, followed by an example of US WWI Pattern Type 9 design K which, except for the colors, was copied for HOKOKU MARU.

3) some seaplane tenders were camouflaged, also by LCDR Fukui. These included AKITSUSHIMA and KIMIKAWA MARU. SAGARA MARU also was given an experimental pattern while in Singapore. The pattern used captured stocks of Royal Navy paints in dark blue and either white or light grey.

Submarine tenders HEIAN MARU and YASUKUNI MARU also were camouflaged.

4) Heavy cruiser Myoko was camouflaged while in port late in the war, but was never expected to set sail without being repainted in overall grey

5) Finally, the fleet oiler IRO began the war with a camouflage pattern as shown below. She was later repainted in a different manner under the direction of LCDR Fukui. The Naval History and Heritage Center has a sketch of her new pattern from the postwar US Navy Technical Mission report. But that sketch has her misidentified as an oiler named Oshiro.

This is already a long posting. I’ll add more about other Japanese ships tomorrow.