Myōkō-class cruiser
1927 class of Japanese heavy cruisers
The Myōkō-class cruisers (妙高型巡洋艦, Myōkō-gata jun'yōkan) were a series of four heavy cruisers built for the Imperial Japanese Navy in the late 1920s. Three were lost during World War II.
The ships of this class displaced 11,633 tons (standard), were 201 metres (659 ft) long, and were capable of steaming at 36 knots (67 km/h; 41 mph). Their main armament were ten 20 cm/50 3rd Year Type naval guns in five twin turrets which were complemented by a heavy torpedo armament; at the time, this was the heaviest armament of any cruiser class in the world. They were also the first cruisers the Japanese Navy constructed that exceeded the (10,000 ton) limit set by the Washington Naval Treaty.
Design
The Myōkō class displaced 13,500 t (13,300 long tons), with a hull design similar to the preceding Aoba-class cruiser. The displacement was substantially more than the designed 2/3 trial displacement of 11,850 t (11,660 long tons), a consequence of the demand to put as much as possible on a hull limited by the Washington Naval Treaty, and were likely unintentional as it adversely affected the seakeeping qualities and endurance of the class. They were 203.8 metres (669 ft) long with a beam of 19.5 metres (64 ft), and a draft of 6.36 metres (20.9 ft). Propulsion was by 12 Kampon boilers driving four sets of single-impulse geared turbine engines, with four shafts turning three-bladed propellers propelling the ship to 35.5 knots (65.7 km/h; 40.9 mph). Design endurance was 8,000 nautical miles; however, the increased weight issues reduced it to 7,000.
Protection was superior to the preceding Aoba class and accounted for about 16 percent of trial displacement.
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