The Kamikazes

To me one of the most amazing thing about the story of the Kamikaze, is just how long the truth was kept secret about how effective the suicide pilots were. Right up until the 1980's the government's official story was that while the Kamikaze's had been a minor problem,they had not really made that much difference. And while it's true that the Kamikazes had not stopped any of the island landings,which was their purpose. They had inflected terrible damage to the naval forces they targeted.

During the invasion of Okinawa in April-June 1945 the Kamikaze pilots and their planes were responsible for more than 5000 dead and wounded among the American naval forces standing off the Okinawa landing beaches.

The Japanese began using fully fueled bomb laden planes as suicide attackers during the invasion of the Philippines in October of 1944. These were the first organized suicide attacks. The American sailors were in disbelief. How could anyone do such a thing? But in truth in it had the potential of being a very effective weapon if used right.

With the invasion of the Philippines by American forces,Japan's position in the Pacific would become untenable. With the American Navy in control of the sea lanes in and around the Philippines, the Japanese would be cut off from their main source of oil and rubber in the Dutch East Indies. They would be forced to end the war. Anyone who could read a map could see that if Japan lost the Philippines,Japan would eventually lose the war. So it's no surprise that the Japanese were willing to resort to desperate measures to prevent this from happening.

The Kamikaze was a reasonable tactic at this time considering Japan's desperate shortage of trained pilots. The loses incurred at the Battle of Midway,and in the Mariana's campaign in both experienced pilots and air crews could never be replaced in time to stop the American advance. A kamikaze pilot didn't require a lot of training to do what he had to do.

The word Kamikaze translated into Divine Wind and is in reference to two typhoons in 1274 and 1281. These storms are credited with saving Japan from invading mongols hordes by destroying the enemies fleets.

The Kamikaze attacks hit their peak in the Battle off of the beaches of Okinawa. There were a large source of targets for kamikaze pilots to choose from. The naval forces invading Okinawa were made up of more than 3000 ships of all shapes and sizes. It was only second in size to the D-Day invasion of Northern France.

The Kamikaze pilots were told to try to made their hits upon the American Aircraft Carriers if possible. But in the heat of battle it seems the pilots went after the first American ship they encountered. This meant that the ships on picket duty got hit hard. Now this was just a waste really for the kamikaze pilots to use themselves and their aircraft to take out a destroyer or even a destroyer escort. This is not what the people who sent these pilots on their suicide missions had planned. The pilots were to attack carrier and other capital ships. Not to waste these valuable aircraft on an attack on a destroyer! So yes,the kamikazes did damage but they never reached the main force of some six fleet carriers.

The kamikaze shows just how desperate Japan had become towards the end of the war. In the end it didn't make a difference in the outcome of the war. But it did take a bloody toll. I try to imagine sometimes what it must have been like to have been a young American Sailor on one of those ships being attacked by kamikazes. It must have been a feeling of sheer terror and helplessness combined. i don't think anyone who hasn't experienced it can imagine the fear they must have felt. But they manned their posts and fought back and didn't run and hide below as I probably would have done. They really may have been the Greatest Generation.