Baya soon returned to her patrol. While prowling the South China Sea on 7 October 1944, Baya encountered the only significant contact of the patrol when her radar detected three Japanese ships, an 8,407-gross register ton passenger-cargo ship, later identified as Kinugasa Maru, accompanied by two escorts, part of Japanese convoy HI-77. Baya and Hawkbill, each aware of the other’s presence in the area but unaware that they are attacking the same ship, both joined in an attack on the merchant ship. Hawkbill′s first salvo of torpedoes missed, but Baya′s scored two hits. On her next try, Hawkbill also struck home with two torpedoes and, seconds later, Kinugasa Maru exploded and disappeared. On 9 October 1944, Baya departed the South China Sea and headed for Fremantle in Western Australia, where she arrived on 22 October 1944. Second war patrol After a short refit and training period, Baya got underway from Fremantle for her second war patrol, forming an attack group with the submarines and in the South China Sea. In four separate incidents between 8 and 10 December 1944, Baya made contact with three Japanese destroyers and a Japanese hospital ship but failed to achieve a suitable attack position on any of the destroyers, and the hospital ship enjoyed immunity from attack. After that series of contacts, Baya took station in a scouting line deployed off Mindoro in the Philippine Islands between 14 and 25 December1944. While shifting to the west on 27 December 1944, Baya sighted a Japanese task force consisting of two heavy cruisers and four destroyers attempting to retreat from the Philippines. She closed for an attack and fired a full spread of torpedoes at the leading heavy cruiser, but scored no hits. Soon thereafter, she received orders to proceed to Australia, and she arrived at Fremantle on 12 January 1945. Third war patrol After refit alongside the submarine tender , Baya put to sea once again on 19 February 1945 for her third war patrol, this time in company with the submarine , and proceeded to a patrol area in the South China Sea off Cap Varella on the coast of Japanese-occupied French Indochina. The submarines sighted no significant targets until 4 March 1945, when the five-ship Japanese convoy HI-98, consisting of the tanker Palembang Maru, a cargo ship, and three escorts, appeared on Baya′s radar scope. Numerous sailboats hampered Baya as she attempted to approach