was an aircraft carrier unit of the Imperial Japanese Navy's First Air Fleet. At the beginning of the Pacific Campaign of World War II, the First Carrier Division consisted of the fleet carriers Akagi and Kaga. The division participated in the Attack on Pearl Harbor and Indian Ocean Raid. After Akagi and Kaga were sunk at the Battle of Midway in June 1942, carriers Shōkaku, Zuikaku, and Zuihō were redesignated as the First Carrier Division.
Organization (extract) Date Ships 1 April 1928 (original) , and Destroyer Squadron 6: , 1 December 1931 , and Destroyer Squadron 2 : , , , 15 November 1934 , Hōshō and Destroyer Squadron 5: , , , 1 December 1937 Kaga and Destroyer Squadron 29: , , , 15 November 1939 Akagi and Destroyer Squadron 19: , , , 10 April 1941 Akagi, Kaga and Destroyer Squadron 7: , 14 July 1942 , , 1 April 1944 , Shōkaku, Zuikaku 15 August 1944 , 15 December 1944 Amagi, Unryū, , , 10 April 1945 dissolved
Commander Rank Name Date1 R.ADM Sankichi Takahashi 1 April 1928x Disbanded 10 December 19282 R.ADM Sankichi Takahashi 1 April 19293 R.ADM Yurikazu Edahara 30 November 19294 R.ADM Takayoshi Katō 1 December 19305 R.ADM Koshirō Oikawa 15 November 19326 R.ADM Isoroku Yamamoto 3 October 19337 R.ADM Hideho Wada 1 June 19348 R.ADM Saburō Satō 15 November 19359 R.ADM Shirō Takasu 1 December 193610 R.ADM Jin'ichi Kusaka 1 December 193711 R.ADM Boshirō Hosogaya 25 April 193812 R.ADM Jisaburō Ozawa 15 November 193913 R.ADM Michitaro Tozuka 1 November 194014 V.ADM Chūichi Nagumo 10 April 194115 V.ADM Jisaburō Ozawa 11 November 194216 R.ADM Keizō Komura 1 October 194417 R.ADM Sueo Ōbayashi 10 December 1944x vacant post 10 February 1945x dissolved 10 April 1945
The First Carrier Division participated in the largest carrier-to-carrier battle in history, the Battle of the Marianas, and specifically the aircraft carrier Battle of the Philippine Sea (the so-called “Great Marianas Turkey Shoot”) on 19–20 June, where the Japanese naval forces were decisively defeated with heavy and irreplaceable losses to their carrier-borne and land-based aircraft. As a result of the massive losses suffered to her airgroup, Zuikaku would play a support role in the Japanese fleet from this point on, up until her sinking during the Battle of Leyte Gulf.
References
The Maru Special series, (Japan) Ships of the World series, , (Japan)
Further reading