Battle of Badung Strait
On the night of 19 February 1942, Asashio participated in the Battle of Badoeng Strait. Asashio was guarding the transport Sasago Maru off Bali when an Allied fleet attacked. Asashio has been credited with sinking the Dutch destroyer HNLMS Piet Hein with a torpedo, plus gunnery hits on the Dutch light cruiser HNLMS Tromp and the American destroyer USS Stewart (DD-224). Asashio suffered light damage: she was hit once with a 75 mm (3 in) shell from Tromp, losing a searchlight and four men killed, 11 wounded. She towed her damaged sister ship Michishio to Makassar after the battle.
In March, Desdiv 8 returned to Yokosuka. In April, Desdiv 8 was reassigned to Destroyer Squadron 4 (Desron 4). Desron 4 sailed to Manila Bay to assist in the shelling of Corregidor in late April and May 1942, returning to Kure, before deploying to Guam.
Read more about this topic: Japanese Destroyer Asashio, Operational History
Famous quotes containing the words battle and/or strait:
“In the domain of Political Economy, free scientific inquiry meets not merely the same enemies as in all other domains. The peculiar nature of the material it deals with, summons as foes into the field of battle the most violent, mean and malignant passions of the human breast, the Furies of private interest.”
—Karl Marx (1818–1883)
“We approached the Indian Island through the narrow strait called “Cook.” He said, “I ‘xpect we take in some water there, river so high,—never see it so high at this season. Very rough water there, but short; swamp steamboat once. Don’t paddle till I tell you, then you paddle right along.” It was a very short rapid. When we were in the midst of it he shouted “paddle,” and we shot through without taking in a drop.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)