I-169 – Class I 168 Kadai Submarine sitting upright with severely damaged bow and conning tower. All hands lost – NO PENETRATIONS. Depth: 90-140ft/27-43m The I-169 Submarine was a 337ft/102m, 1,400 ton Cruiser-Submarine launched on February 15th, 1934, and one of a class of six known as Kaidai Type 6A that had been developed from large British submarine technology. Originally known as ‘I-69’, her class of submarine was built under the 1931 Fleet First Replenishment Law by the Mitsubishi Zosensho shipyard in Kobe, Japan. It was much faster than prior Japanese submarines with a surface speed of 23.9 knots, a submerged speed of 8.8 knots (electric) and a safe diving depth of 230ft/70m. However, the submarines of this class did little to distinguish themselves during World War II with the exception of the I-168 that sank the carrier USS Yorktown and the destroyer USS Hamman at the Battle of Midway. None of the submarines of this class survived the war.
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