Strana 65
#84208
BOXART STORY
The floatplane variant of the Zero, designated
A6M2-N and known to the Allies under the
codename Rufe, ranks among the most elegant
aircraft designs to emerge during the World War
II. Its mission was to protect newly established
island air bases during their construction and
to carry out reconnaissance, patrol, and fighter
sorties. A detailed account of the development and
operational history of this floatplane can be found
in the two-part article Rufe published in the April
and June 2023 issues of INFO Eduard.
Rufes were not used aboard Japanese warships,
which typically operated two-seat observation
aircraft. The Rufe was not designed for catapult
launches, and as a result the only vessel from
which this type operated was the seaplane tender
Kamikawa Maru.
This ship was completed in 1936 as an ocean-
going passenger liner for Kawasaki Kisen K. K.
Line. The name Kamikawa Maru later designated
an entire class of seaplane tenders, of which three
additional vessels were commissioned. Following
the outbreak of the war against China, Kamikawa
Maru was requisitioned by the Navy in September
1937, and from October of that year she operated
several E8N2 floatplanes (known to the Allies as
Dave). Her aircraft first saw action in December
1937.
Kamikawa Maru took part in securing the
Yangtze River landing on July 4, 1938. During
October she operated off Shanghai, and before the
year’s end the IJN formally took her over. She then
supported operations in Canton area.
Her conversion into a dedicated seaplane
tender was completed in November 1939. The ship
displaced 6,853 tons, made 17 knots, and carried
six 120 mm guns. Embarked were four E7K Alf and
eight E8N2 Dave floatplanes.
In mid-November her former skipper, Captain
Ichihei Yokogawa, assumed command of the carrier
Hiryū, and he was succeeded by Captain (later Rear
Admiral) Shigeki Andō, formerly executive officer
of the carrier Hōshō. Later that same month the
ship again supported operations around Canton,
remaining in this task until the summer of 1940.
She returned briefly to Chinese waters in April 1941
during operations in the Shanghai area.
From December 7, 1941, Kamikawa Maru took
part in the Malayan campaign. Her air unit at the
time was equipped with E13A Jake and F1M Pete
floatplanes. On the first day of the Pacific War,
an E13A crew achieved the unit’s inaugural
combat success when they damaged a Catalina of
No. 205 Squadron RAF. With its radio knocked out,
the flying boat later fell victim to Japanese Army
fighters.
The unit achieved a more notable success on
17 December, when an F1M forced down a Dutch
Dornier Do 24 “X-34” of GVT-7. Two Allied airmen
were killed in the engagement. F1M crews claimed
additional victories on 19 and 20 December,
downing one Dutch Glenn Martin B-10 VIG
-
I bomber
on each occasions. During the fighting for the
Netherlands East Indies, Kamikawa Maru’s aviators
also successfully engaged other enemy aircraft,
including Hawker Hurricanes.
In early May 1942, Kamikawa Maru covered the
Japanese landings on Santa Isabel, Tulagi, and
Guadalcanal. During the Battle of Midway, the ship
carried fourteen F1M2 and four E8N2 floatplanes,
slated to remain ashore once the island was
secured. In June and July she operated in the
Aleutians, both ferrying aircraft for other units and
conducting patrols with her own planes.
In September 1942, Kamikawa Maru joined
the seaplane units committed to the struggle for
Guadalcanal, deploying Rufe and Pete floatplanes.
Operating from Shortland Base near Bougainville,
the Rufes began flying on September 4, 1942,
scoring their first victory on 13 September. That day,
CPO Jirō Kawai and WO Makio Kawamura took off
from Rekata to determine whether Henderson Field
on Guadalcanal was back in Japanese hands. They
found no Japanese troops, but they did encounter
a lone SBD Dauntless from VMSB-231, which they
shot down before attacking ground targets. Both
American crewmen were killed, including gunner
Cpl. Horace B. Thomas, who had survived the Battle
of Midway with VMSB-241. The final moments of
this unexpected engagement are depicted on Piotr
Forkasiewicz’s box art.
By November 7, 1942, Kamikawa Maru’s fighter
unit had carried out 360 combat sorties in
211 missions. Fourteen aerial victories were
claimed, but nine pilots were lost. After this date,
the remaining Rufes were transferred to Kōkūtai
802.
Kamikawa Maru continued operations with
her Pete biplanes, and in early March 1943 her
air unit was merged with that of her sister ship
Kunikawa Maru to form Kōkūtai 938. On May
28 1943, shortly after noon near Kavieng, Kamikawa
Maru was heavily damaged by three torpedoes
from the submarine USS Scamp. Although the crew
managed to keep her afloat, the submarine struck
again shortly after midnight, and Kamikawa Maru
was finally lost.
Illustration: Piotr Forkasiewicz
Kamikawa Maru
Text: Jan Bobek
INFO Eduard
65
December 2025