SORYU

Soryu was one of the first third generation aircraft carriers within the Kaigun, (Imperial Japanese Navy). It entered service on December 29, 1937 and was the first Japanese aircraft carrier to have a small command tower since its conception, in this case to starboard. Usually another ship is assigned to its same class, the Hiryu, but due to several notable differences the Hiryu is considered a class in itself. Soryu had a rectangular flight deck of 216.8 x 26.0 meters and three lifts. One lift was located in the bow, on the ship’s axis, and two were in the second half of the ship, a little diverted to starboard. At the beginning of WWII, its embarked wing consisted of 54 aircraft and that was formed by 18 “Zero” fighters, 18 “Val” dive bombers and 18 “Kate” torpedo bombers. In the early stages of War, Soryu and Hiryu ships formed the 2nd Aircraft Carriers Naval Division commanded by Admiral Yamaguchi. She participated in the attack on Pearl Harbor and was sunk on June 4, 1942 during the Battle of Midway after being hit by three bombs.

SORYU gallery and more info