JS Michishio (SS-591) is the second boat of the Oyashio-class submarines. She was commissioned on 10 March 1999.

JS Michishio
History
Japan
Name
  • Michishio
  • (みちしお)
Ordered1994
BuilderMitsubishi, Kobe
Cost¥52.19 million
Laid down16 February 1995
Launched18 September 1997
Commissioned10 March 1999
ReclassifiedTSS-3609
HomeportKure
IdentificationPennant number: SS-591
StatusActive, Converted to training submarine (TSS-3608) on 6 March 2015
General characteristics
Class and typeOyashio-class submarine
Displacement
Length81.7 m (268 ftin)
Beam8.9 m (29 ftin)
Draught7.4 m (24 ftin)
Propulsion
  • Diesel-electric
  • 2 Kawasaki 12V25S diesel engines
  • 2 Kawasaki alternators
  • 2 Toshiba motors
  • 3,400 hp (2,500 kW) surfaced
  • 7,750 hp (5,780 kW) submerged
Speed
  • 12 knots (22 km/h; 14 mph) (surfaced)
  • 20 knots (37 km/h; 23 mph) (submerged)
Complement70 (10 officers)
Sensors and
processing systems
  • Sonar: Hughes/Oki ZQQ-6 hull-mounted sonar, flank arrays, 1 towed array
  • Radar: JRC ZPS 6 I-band search radar.
Armament

Construction and career

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Michishio was laid down at Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Kobe Shipyard on 16 February 1995 and launched on 18 September 1997. She was commissioned on 10 March 1999 and deployed to Kure.[1]

The vessel participated in RIMPAC 2007 from 9 January to 11 April 2007.

On 27 February 2017, due to the removal of the training submarine JS Asashio, the designation of Michishio was changed to a training submarine and it was incorporated into the 1st training submarine under the direct control of the submarine fleet. From 18 March to 1 May 2017, the 2016 open sea practice voyage (flight) was carried out with the escort ship JS Akizuki and the two vessels called at Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia.

On 18 June 2020, Lieutenant Risa Takenouchi was the first woman in Japanese service to be appointed to the crew of a submarine. Takenouchi who entered the "submarine education and training corps" for the first time in January, was educated for about five months. After completing the course, she joined the training unit Michishio and started training on a submarine. On 29 October 2020, the first female submarine crew was created. Five female SDF personnel, including Yumeka Taguchi, a third-class sea sergeant, joined the submarine education and training corps in February 2020, and after undergoing a curriculum, conducted practical training on the ship from June for about four months. After completing the training, they were awarded the emblem (commonly known as the "Dolphin Mark"), which is a proof of the crew of the submarine.[2][3]

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Citations

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  1. ^ "Diesel-electric submarine JS Michishio (TSS-3609) — Shipshub". shipshub.com. Retrieved 2 February 2021.
  2. ^ @JMSDF_PAO (29 October 2020). "10月29日、5名の女性海上自衛官が練習潜水艦「みちしお」での実習を終え、潜水艦乗組員の証である🐬ドルフィンマーク🐬を受け取り、初の女性潜水艦乗組員が誕生しました。彼女達が立派な潜水艦乗りになれるよう応援してください!…" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  3. ^ "The first female submarine crew member of the JMSDF". NHK Hiroshima NEWS WEB. 29 October 2020.[dead link]
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