Kashi Maru

History
Japan
NameKashi Maru
BuilderOsaka Iron Works, Sakurajima
Launched21 March 1940
Completed30 April 1940
FateBombed and sunk, 2 July 1943
General characteristics
TypeCargo ship
Tonnage654 GRT
Displacement1,365 long tons (1,387 t)
Length52.43 m (172 ft 0 in)
Beam8.6 m (28 ft 3 in)
Draught4.18 m (13 ft 9 in)
Propulsion1 × 6-cylinder 4-stroke 550 hp (410 kW) diesel engine
Speed11.5 knots (21.3 km/h; 13.2 mph)
Complement20

Kasi Maru or Kashi Maru (橿丸, Kashi Maru, "live oak") was a Japanese auxiliary minelayer/merchant ship, sunk in Mbaeroko Bay, near Munda, during a World War II bombing raid on 2 July 1943.

Kashi Maru was built in 1940 at the Osaka Iron Works. The ship was unloading a cargo of fuel and vehicles when she was attacked and sunk by USAAF B-25 bombers, escorted by USN F4U fighters.

The site of the shipwreck is popular for divers, and was featured in the Nature episode "War Wrecks of the Coral Seas".