Susumu Kimura | |
|---|---|
 Vice Admiral Susumu Kimura | |
| Born | June 1, 1891 Tochigi Prefecture, Japan |
| Died | March 16, 1980(1980-03-16) (aged 88)[1] |
| Allegiance |  Empire of Japan |
| Service |  Imperial Japanese Navy |
| Years of service | 1912–1945 |
| Rank |  Vice Admiral |
| Commands | Uranami,Ushio, 2nd Destroyer Division, 30th Destroyer Division, 19th Destroyer Division,Sendai,Mikuma,Haruna, 10th Squadron, 11th Destroyer Squadron, Naval Navigation School, Naval Hydrography Bureau |
| Battles / wars | |
Susumu Kimura (木村 進,Kimura Susumu, June 1, 1891 – March 16, 1980), was an admiral in theImperial Japanese Navy duringWorld War II. He commanded Destroyer Squadron 10 which participated in several important naval battles at theBattle of Midway,Guadalcanal Campaign, and theBattle of Leyte Gulf.
Kimura was a native ofTochigi prefecture, and graduated 55th out of 144 cadets in the 40th class of theImperial Japanese Navy Academy in 1912. He served hismidshipman duty on thecruiserAzuma andbattleshipAki, and as a sub-lieutenant onTokiwa, repair shipKantō, anddestroyerShiratsuyu. In 1918, he attended theNavy Staff College, where he specialized innavigation. After graduation as a lieutenant, he served as chief navigator in the coastal patrol shipMatsue and destroyerAmatsukaze, becomingexecutive officer onAkikaze in December 1920. He continued to serve as chief navigator on a wide variety of warships through the 1920s, becominglieutenant commander in 1925, and executive officer of the heavy cruiserMyōkō in 1929. Kimura was promoted tocommander in 1930.[1]
Kimura’s first command was that of the destroyerUranami in 1933, followed byUshio later that year. In 1934, he commanded the 2nd Destroyer Division. After a brief stint as executive officer onIwate in 1935, he commanded the 30th Destroyer Division, followed by the 19th Destroyer Division in 1936. Kimura was then appointed captain of thelight cruiserSendai in 1937, followed by the heavy cruiserMikuma in 1939 andHaruna in 1940. However, at the time of theattack on Pearl Harbor, Kimura was attached to theImperial Japanese Navy General Staff.[2]
In May 1942, Kimura was promoted torear admiral. He commanded the destroyer screening force (Destroyer Squadron 10) at theBattle of Midway, during which time hisflagship was the cruiserNagara.[3] He continued to command Destroyer Squadron 10 into theGuadalcanal Campaign (including theBattle of the Santa Cruz Islands[4] and theNaval Battle of Guadalcanal.[5]) During theBattle of Leyte Gulf he commanded Destroyer Squadron 10 from the light cruiserYahagi.[6]
In December 1944, Kimura became head of the Naval Navigational School. He was promoted tovice admiral in April 1945. Kimura died in 1980 at the age of 86.