Operation Rising Sun: The Sinking of Japan’s Secret Submarine I-52

Extremely well researched, well documented, and well illustrated, this fast-paced tale of aircraft carrier and submarine operations, codebreaking, undersea research, maritime leadership, and perseverance against almost insurmountable odds will appeal to both novices and experts with an interest in the history and technology of naval aviation, submarines, early antisubmarine warfare techniques and weapons, and underwater search and recovery.—Rear Adm. Thomas A. Mercer, USN (Ret.), former commanding officer, USS Carl Vinson (CVN-70)
In 1944 Allied codebreakers learned the Imperial Japanese Navy had dispatched the cargo submarine I-52 to occupied France with tons of military supplies and payment—in gold—for German assistance. I-52 undertook the mission as part of the Yanagi missions, a military program meant to alleviate Japan’s desperate need for military material and technical knowledge. After tracking I-52 from Asia to the Atlantic, the Allies destroyed the vessel in a battle that ended the Yanagi missions and left I-52 an unlikely treasure ship on the seafloor.

David W. Jourdan adds to the history of I-52 with a spellbinding account of his efforts to find the sunken submarine. One of the first joint American-Russian research expeditions, the search for the wreck combined a team effort, exhaustive detective work, and a dramatic battle with the sea. The effort paid off when the group found I-52’s nearly intact hull three miles down. The expedition also earned an unexpected historical dividend when it uncovered one-of-a-kind recordings of American Avenger torpedo bomber attacks on an enemy submarine.

Part war tale and part seagoing adventure, Operation Rising Sun tells the story of the two very different missions to find submarine I-52.