Masatomi Kimura was an admiral in the Imperial Japanese Navy during World War II.
15 Facts About Masatomi Kimura
1.
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Masatomi Kimura served his cadet duty on the Asama, making a cruise to Honolulu and to the west coast of the United States.
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Masatomi Kimura subsequently captained the destroyers Asanagi, Oite, Hagi, Hokaze, river gunboats Katata, Atami, destroyer Asagiri, Destroyer Group 16, Destroyer Group 21, Destroyer Group 8, auxiliary seaplane tender Kagu Maru, auxiliary oiler Shiretoko, and cruisers Jintsu and Suzuya.
4.
Masatomi Kimura was captain of Suzuya during the attack on Pearl Harbor.
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Masatomi Kimura later assisted in the rescue of the crew of the Mikuma after that cruiser had been hit and sunk by American bombers during the Battle of Midway.
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On 1 November 1942, Masatomi Kimura was promoted to Rear Admiral.
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Masatomi Kimura subsequently served in a number of staff positions, and was commander of Desron3, with Shirayuki, Shikinami, Uranami, Tokitsukaze, Yukikaze, Asashio, Arashio, and Asagumo.
8.
Masatomi Kimura was assigned to escort eight transports with 6000 soldiers of the IJA 51st Division and 400 marines from Rabaul to Lae, New Guinea.
9.
Admiral Masatomi Kimura was wounded by machine gun fire in the shoulder and stomach, and his flagship, Shirayuki, was among the four destroyers sunk during the engagement.
10.
When poor weather threatened the withdrawal operations, Masatomi Kimura disobeyed orders and remained on station until the last man was recovered.
11.
Still in command of DesRon 1, Masatomi Kimura sortied from Pescadores, Formosa on 22 October 1944 to join Vice Admiral Kiyohide Shima's Second Striking Force in the battle of Surigao strait, transferring his flag from Abukuma when she was disabled by a torpedo fired by Lieutenant Mike Kovar's PT-137.
12.
In December 1944, Masatomi Kimura led a raiding force of cruisers Ashigara, Oyodo, and the destroyers Kasumi, Kiyoshimo, Asashimo, Kaya, Kashi, and Sugi from Cam Ranh Bay to bombard the American beachhead in Mindoro in the Philippines on the night of 26 December 1944.
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On 1 April 1945, Masatomi Kimura became commandant of the Anti-submarine Warfare School, and the Hofu Naval Communications School.
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Masatomi Kimura was promoted to Vice Admiral on 1 November 1945, a few days before he entered the reserves on 10 November.
15.
Masatomi Kimura had a postwar career in the salt industry, and died of stomach cancer in 1960, aged 68.