JS Kashima in
Pearl Harbor during April 2008
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History | |
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Japan | |
Name |
|
Namesake | Kashima |
Ordered | 1992 |
Builder | Hitachi, Osaka |
Laid down | 20 April 1993 |
Launched | 23 February 1994 |
Commissioned | 26 January 1995 |
Homeport | Kure |
Identification |
|
Status | Active |
General characteristics | |
Type | Training ship |
Displacement | 4,050 tons Standard displacement |
Length | 143 m (469 ft) |
Beam | 18 m (59 ft) |
Draft | 4.6 m (15 ft) |
Propulsion |
|
Speed | 25 knots (46 km/h; 29 mph) |
Complement | 370 |
Armament |
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Aviation facilities | Helipad |
JS Kashima (TV-3508) is a training ship of the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF). Built to a unique design during the mid-1990s, Kashima is flagship of the JMSDF Training Fleet. The name Kashima comes from the famous Shinto Kashima Shrine in Ibaraki prefecture, located to the northeast of Tokyo.
Kashima is of a unique design referred to as the "Kashima class cadet training ship". [1] She is 143 metres (469 ft) long, with a beam of 18 metres (59 ft), and a draft of 4.6 metres (15 ft). [1] Kashima has a full load displacement of 4,050 tons. [1] She is powered by a combined diesel or gas (CODOG) system, which uses two Mitsubishi S16U-MTK diesel engines[ citation needed] for cruising, and two Kawasaki- Rolls-Royce Spey SM1C gas turbines (providing 26,150 shaft horsepower each): a diesel and a gas turbine are connected to each of the two controllable-pitch propeller shafts. [1]
The ship is armed with a single Otobreda 76 mm gun and two triple 324 mm torpedo tube sets. [1] Four saluting cannon are also carried. [1] Kashima has a ship's company of 370, including officer cadets. [1] Cadets are accommodated in two-person staterooms, allowing cadets of both sexes to train aboard the ship. [1] The open aft deck was designed for use as a ceremonial and exercise assembly area, but can be used as a temporary helicopter landing zone. [1]
The ship was originally authorised under the Financial Year budget ending in 1991, but construction did not start because of Japan's financial involvement in the Gulf War. [1] The ship was requested again under the 1992 budget, and was approved. [1] Kashima was laid down by the Hitachi Zosen Corporation at the former Maizuru Naval Arsenal shipyards on 20 April 1993. [1] She was launched on 23 February 1994, and commissioned into the JMSDF on 26 January 1995. [1] She is flagship of the JMSDF Training Fleet, and is homeported at Kure. [1]
In July 2000, while visiting New York, Kashima was involved in a minor collision with Queen Elizabeth 2. [2] The collision left a long scratch down the flank of the liner, and a dent in the warship's hull. [2] The Japanese took the incident with good humour, with a Japanese admiral onboard commenting "it was an honour to be kissed by the Queen Elizabeth". [2]
In June 2022, the Kashima made a port call in London as part of an exchange event between Japan and Britain and to commemorate the 120th anniversary of the Anglo-Japanese Alliance in 2022. [3] The ship will participate in an exercise with Britain's Royal Navy. [3]