Ikazuchi
Contents
Description
The Ikazuchi-class, JDS Ikazuchi (DE-202) (いかづち, namesake: Thunder) was a Japanese destroyer escort and the lead ship of her class. Laid down in 1954, she was among the first domestically built Japanese vessels after WWII, replacing earlier US lend-lease patrol vessels like the PF- and LSSL-types, which had kickstarted the Coastal Safety Force. By the time of Ikazuchi's introduction, this force had evolved into the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF). Ikazuchi's design drew inspiration from US destroyer escorts, incorporating experience from Imperial Japanese coastal defence ships. Developed after Japan's first post-war DE, Akebono, Ikazuchi was slightly smaller but equipped with two high-output, medium-speed diesel engines. These engines, unlike steam turbines, required less space, required less engine crew, and offered better performance once initial defects were resolved. Originally armed with Type 54 3-inch "slow firing" guns (Mk.22), Ikazuchi received an upgrade in 1959 to Type 57 3-inch automatic guns (Mk.33), along with new sensors, as the original equipment had quickly become outdated after her 1956 introduction. Unlike Akebono, which had to sacrifice some depth charges to mount better guns, Ikazuchi was able to maintain her full ASW armament while upgrading her guns.
Ikazuchi was introduced in Update 1.97 "Viking Fury". She features relatively fast-firing 3-inch guns with a variety of shell options, including standard HE, HE-VT for anti-aircraft use, and APHE for armoured targets. As a destroyer escort, she does not carry torpedoes, as her primary roles were anti-submarine warfare (ASW) and coastal patrol. The ship's guns are strategically placed at both ends, providing nearly 360° coverage. This allows for excellent firing angles and the ability to execute evasive manoeuvres by swinging the ship from port to starboard without needing to completely reposition the guns.
General info
Survivability and armour
Talk about the vehicle's armour. Note the most well-defended and most vulnerable zones, e.g. the ammo magazine. Evaluate the composition of components and assemblies responsible for movement and manoeuvrability. Evaluate the survivability of the primary and secondary armaments separately. Don't forget to mention the size of the crew, which plays an important role in fleet mechanics. Save tips on preserving survivability for the "Usage in battles" section. If necessary, use a graphical template to show the most well-protected or most vulnerable points in the armour.
Mobility
Write about the ship's mobility. Evaluate its power and manoeuvrability, rudder rerouting speed, stopping speed at full tilt, with its maximum forward and reverse speed.
| Mobility Characteristics | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Game Mode | Upgrade Status | Maximum Speed (km/h) | |
| Forward | Reverse | ||
| AB | |||
| Upgraded | 67 | 38 | |
| RB/SB | |||
| Upgraded | 48 | 27 | |
Modifications and economy
| Seakeeping | Unsinkability | Firepower | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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Armament
Primary armament
Provide information about the characteristics of the primary armament. Evaluate their efficacy in battle based on their reload speed, ballistics and the capacity of their shells. Add a link to the main article about the weapon: {{main|Weapon name (calibre)}}. Broadly describe the ammunition available for the primary armament, and provide recommendations on how to use it and which ammunition to choose.
| Penetration statistics | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ammunition | Type of warhead |
Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm) | |||||
| 100 m | 1,000 m | 2,000 m | 3,000 m | 4,000 m | 5,000 m | ||
| HC Mk.27 | HE | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 |
| APHE | APHE | 121 | 98 | 77 | 61 | 49 | 39 |
| Shell details | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ammunition | Type of warhead |
Velocity (m/s) |
Projectile mass (kg) |
Fuse delay (s) |
Fuse sensitivity (mm) |
Explosive mass (TNT equivalent) (g) |
Ricochet | |||||
| 0% | 50% | 100% | ||||||||||
| HC Mk.27 | HE | 823 | 5.9 | 0 | 0.1 | 500 | 79° | 80° | 81° | |||
| APHE | APHE | 823 | 5.9 | 0.01 | 4 | 63.7 | 47° | 60° | 65° | |||
| Proximity-fused shell details | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ammunition | Type of warhead |
Velocity (m/s) |
Projectile mass (kg) |
Fuse delay (m) |
Fuse sensitivity (mm) |
Arming distance (m) |
Trigger radius (m) |
Explosive mass (TNT equivalent) (g) |
Ricochet | |||
| 0% | 50% | 100% | ||||||||||
| AA Mk.31 | HE-VT | 823 | 5.85 | 0 | 0.1 | 548 | 15 | 352.8 | 79° | 80° | 81° | |
Secondary armament
Some ships are fitted with weapons of various calibres. Secondary armaments are defined as weapons chosen with the control Select secondary weapon. Evaluate the secondary armaments and give advice on how to use them. Describe the ammunition available for the secondary armament. Provide recommendations on how to use them and which ammunition to choose. Remember that any anti-air armament, even heavy calibre weapons, belong in the next section. If there is no secondary armament, remove this section.
- Universal: AP-T · HEFI-T
- 40 mm HE clips: HEFI-T · HEFI-T · HEFI-T · AP-T
- 40 mm AP clips: AP-T · AP-T · AP-T · HEFI-T
| Penetration statistics | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ammunition | Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm) | ||||||
| 10 m | 100 m | 500 m | 1,000 m | 1,500 m | 2,000 m | ||
| HEFI-T | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | |
| AP-T | 81 | 78 | 68 | 58 | 49 | 41 | |
| Shell details | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ammunition | Velocity (m/s) |
Projectile mass (kg) |
Fuse delay (m) |
Fuse sensitivity (mm) |
Explosive mass (TNT equivalent) (g) |
Ricochet | ||||||
| 0% | 50% | 100% | ||||||||||
| HEFI-T | 874 | 0.9 | 0 | 0.1 | 67.13 | 79° | 80° | 81° | ||||
| AP-T | 874 | 0.89 | - | - | - | 47° | 60° | 65° | ||||
Additional armament
Describe the available additional armaments of the ship: depth charges, mines, torpedoes. Talk about their positions, available ammunition and launch features such as dead zones of torpedoes. If there is no additional armament, remove this section.
Usage in battles
Describe the technique of using this ship, the characteristics of her use in a team and tips on strategy. Abstain from writing an entire guide – don't try to provide a single point of view, but give the reader food for thought. Talk about the most dangerous opponents for this vehicle and provide recommendations on fighting them. If necessary, note the specifics of playing with this vehicle in various modes (AB, RB, SB).
Pros and cons
Pros:
- Modern naval FCS
- Capable of equipping APHE and HE-VT shells for versatile combat
- Each gun is placed at opposite ends of the ship, providing 360° coverage
- Secondary armament is effective against a variety of targets
Cons:
- The 3" (76mm) guns overheat quickly, requiring disciplined fire control to avoid gun failure
- Gun mounts lack surrounding turret armor, making them vulnerable to being knocked out easily
- Limited number of guns means the vessel can be left without any firepower if they are specifically targeted and destroyed
History
Describe the history of the creation and combat usage of the ship in more detail than in the introduction. If the historical reference turns out to be too long, take it to a separate article, taking a link to the article about the ship and adding a block "/History" (example: https://wiki.warthunder.com/(Ship-name)/History) and add a link to it here using the main template. Be sure to reference text and sources by using <ref></ref>, as well as adding them at the end of the article with <references />. This section may also include the ship's dev blog entry (if applicable) and the in-game encyclopedia description (under === In-game description ===, also if applicable).
Media
- Skins
See also
Links to articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:
- reference to the series of the ship;
- links to approximate analogues of other nations and research trees.
External links
Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:
- topic on the official game forum;
- other literature.
| Kawasaki Shipyard Co. (川崎造船) | |
|---|---|
| Destroyer Escorts (DE) | |
| Ikazuchi-class | Ikazuchi |
| Heavy Cruisers (CA) | |
| Furutaka-class | IJN Kako |
| Battleships (BB) | |
| Kongō-class | IJN Haruna* |
| Ise-class | IJN Ise |
| Notes | *Initially laid down as battlecruiser, later modified and reclassified as (Fast) Battleship (FBB). |
| See also | Kawasaki Aircraft Industries |
| Japan frigates | |
|---|---|
| IJN | |
| Escort | IJN Syonan |
| JMSDF | |
| Destroyer Escort | JDS Akebono · JDS Ikazuchi · JDS Isuzu · JDS Chikugo |
| Destroyer | JDS Ayanami |
