Japanese submarine I-48

Upon commissioning, I-48 was attached to the Yokosuka Naval District and assigned to Submarine Squadron 11 in the 6th Fleet.^[4] She was configured to carry four kaiten manned suicide attack torpedoes on her after deck, two of them with access tubes that allowed their pilots to enter them while she was submerged.^[4] On 7 December 1944, she was reassigned to Submarine Division 15 in the 6th Fleet, and on 8 December she was assigned to the Kongo ("Steel") kaiten unit.^[4]

I-48 completed work-ups in the Seto Inland Sea on 26 December 1944 and proceeded to the naval base at Otsujima.^[4] She embarked her kaitens and their pilots there, and on 9 January 1945, became the last submarine of the Kongo unit to get underway for the U.S. naval base at Ulithi Atoll in the Caroline Islands to participate in a kaiten attack on the U.S. fleet there scheduled for 21 January 1945.^[4] The Japanese never heard from her again.^[4]

On 21 January 1945, I-48 was 18 nautical miles (33 km; 21 mi) west of Ulithi Atoll proceeding toward the atoll on the surface at 18 knots (33 km/h; 21 mph) when a Tinian-based PBM Mariner flying boat of U.S. Navy Patrol Bombing Squadron 20 (VPB-20) spotted her on radar at 19:30.^[4] When the plane tried to ascertain I-48′s nationality, she submerged, and the Mariner attacked her with two depth charges and a Mark 24 "Fido" acoustic homing torpedo.^[4] She survived, but aborted her kaiten attack on the anchorage.^[4]

After the Mariner′s crew reported the sighting, a hunter-killer group of three destroyer escorts — USS Corbesier (DE-438), USS Conklin (DE-439), and USS Raby (DE-698), with Conklin serving as flagship — from U.S. Navy Escort Division 65 began a search for I-48.^[4] The hunter-killer group′s commander made the assumption that I-48 was damaged and would head for Japanese-held Yap at an average submerged speed of 3 knots (5.6 km/h; 3.5 mph).^[4] After the group made no contact with I-48, the group expanded its search all the way to Yap on 22 January 1945.^[4]

At 03:10 on 23 January 1945, I-48 was on the surface 15 nautical miles (28 km; 17 mi) northeast of Yap, proceeding southwest at 18 knots (33 km/h; 21 mph) when Corbesier detected her on radar at a range of 9,800 yards (9,000 m).^[4] Corbesier closed the range and I-48 submerged.^[4] Corbesier picked up sonar contact on I-48 at 03:36 and fired a Hedgehog salvo that missed.^[4] Conklin and Raby also arrived on the scene.^[4] Corbesier fired five more Hedgehog salvoes without scoring any hits, then lost contact.^[4]

Corbesier regained contact on I-48 at 09:02 and fired another Hedgehog salvo, which missed.^[4] Corbesier again gained sound contact at 09:12, but lost it before she could attack again.^[4] Conklin, however, was able to launch a Hedgehog attack at 09:34 from a range of 550 yards (500 m).^[4] Seventeen seconds later, she heard four or five explosions at an estimated depth of 175 feet (53 m), followed at 09:36 by a violent explosion that knocked out Conklin′s engines and steering gear.^[4] Conklin observed huge air bubbles rising to the surface, soon followed by oil, wreckage, and large quantities of human remains.^[4] It marked the end of I-48, sunk with the loss of all 122 men aboard — her crew of 118 and four embarked kaiten pilots — at either 09°55′00″N 138°17′30″E / 9.91667°N 138.29167°E / 9.91667; 138.29167 (I-48) or 09°45′N 138°20′E / 9.750°N 138.333°E / 9.750; 138.333 (I-48), according to different sources.^[4] A motor whaleboat from Conklin later recovered pieces of planking, splintered wood, cork, interior woodwork with varnished surfaces, a sleeve of a knitted blue sweater containing human flesh, chopsticks, and a seaman's manual from the water 17 nautical miles (31 km; 20 mi) north of Yap.^[4]

The Japanese 6th Fleet attempted to contact I-48 on 31 January 1945, ordering her to proceed to Kure, Japan.^[4] She did not acknowledge the order. She was stricken from the Navy list on 10 May 1945.^[4]

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