South of Java, the Japanese fleet was surprised by the appearance of the destroyer . "Hiei" and initially opened fire on the ship but failed to score any hits. After dive-bombers from three of Admiral Nagumo's carriers immobilized the destroyer, "Kirishima" and the other two ships resumed firing on "Edsall" until she sank. In April 1942, "Kirishima" and the Third Battleship division joined five fleet carriers and two cruisers in an attack against British naval bases in the Indian Ocean. On 5 April—Easter Sunday—the Japanese fleet attacked the harbor at Colombo in Ceylon, while seaplanes from the spotted two fleeing British cruisers, both of which were later sunk by aerial attack. A floatplane from "Kirishima" also strafed a withdrawing oil tanker. On 8 April, Japanese carrier aircraft attacked the Royal Navy base at Trincomalee in Ceylon, only to find that all of Admiral James Somerville's remaining warships had withdrawn the previous night. Returning from the attack, a floatplane from "Kirishima"s sister ship "Haruna" spotted the aircraft carrier and escorting destroyer HMAS "Vampire", which were quickly sunk by a massive aerial attack. Upon returning to Japan, "Kirishima" was drydocked and her secondary armament configuration modified with the addition of 25 mm antiaircraft guns in twin mounts. In June 1942, "Kirishima" sailed as part of the Carrier Strike Force during the Battle of Midway, providing escort for Admiral Nagumo's four fast carriers alongside "Haruna". Following the disastrous battle, during which all four Japanese aircraft carriers were destroyed, she took on survivors from the carriers before returning to Japan. In August 1942, she departed Japan for the Solomon Islands in the company of "Hiei", three carriers, three cruisers and eleven destroyers, in response to the American invasion of Guadalcanal. She escorted Japanese carriers during the Battle of the Eastern Solomons, during which the light carrier was sunk. Following the battle, the fleet returned to Truk Naval Base. During the Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands, "Kirishima" was part of Rear Admiral Hiroaki Abe's Vanguard Force, which provided distant cover to Nagumo's carrier groups. She was attacked by American dive-bombers on 26 October, yet remained undamaged. On 10 November 1942, "Kirishima" departed Truk alongside "Hiei" and eleven destroyers in preparation to shell American positions on Guadalcanal in advance of a major transport convoy of Japanese troops.