Japanese Kamikaze Attacks David C. Hanson, Virginia Western Community College
Kamikaze attacks were organized suicide missions in which various types of warplanes were strategically flown by Japanese pilots into an enemy ship during World War II. The word kamikaze means "divine wind.” Its origin has been traced back to the 11th century (1281) when a Mongol armada led by Kublai Khan (grandson of Genghis Khan, emperor of China) was attempting to take over the Japanese islands. A typhoon destroyed the Mongol fleet and was said to have been sent by God. The spirit needed in a kamikaze pilot can be traced back to the Samurai Warrior. The Samurai lived by a demanding code, distinguished by absolute respect for the emperor, Japan, and personal honor. The Samurai would practice ritual suicide to avoid capture by enemy forces, for honor’s sake, and to free the soul. This tradition, and intense military training, made suicide missions possible in WWII; but the Japanese would not have taken such extreme measures had it not been for their deteriorating military situation toward the end of the war.
The Japanese "Ethics in Battle" code stated that "a sublime sense of self-sacrifice must guide you throughout life and death." This was an example of Japanese culture that led to Special Attack forces, which included kamikaze pilots. Unorganized suicide attacks spontaneously occurred in October 1944 at the Battle of Leyte Gulf in the Philippines, where the Imperial Japanese Navy was annihilated by the U.S. Navy. Four Japanese aircraft carriers were destroyed and their planes in the air had two choices: dive into the sea or crash into an enemy ship. The idea of organized suicide attacks had been proposed by young military officers as early as 1943. It was rejected until 1944, when the situation had become desperate, and Prime Minister Tojo ordered the first official kamikaze attack. By the end of the war, the Japanese had sacrificed nearly 4,000 kamikaze pilots. The military effect of kamikaze tactics was significant but not overwhelming. All combined, kamikaze operations sunk 34 ships and damaged 288 others.* The kamikaze pilots were not really expected to win the war, because by the time of the first mission it was almost assured that Japan would be defeated, but this misses the point. Often cited as an example of Japanese military fanaticism and desperation, ultimately the kamikazes stood not for anything tangible, but more for a divine spirit of honor.
*My father, George L. Hanson, Jr., served in the U.S. Navy during World War II. His ship, the aircraft carrier USS Ticonderoga, was crippled by a Kamikaze attack in the Formosa Straights on January 21, 1945 (one penetrated the flight deck; a second hit the bridge). The badly damaged ship limped back home for repairs and returned to action in May 1945. On June 2nd and 3rd, Ticonderoga fighter planes struck the airfields on Kyushu in an effort to neutralize the remnants of Japanese air power--particularly the Kamikaze Corps--and to relieve the pressure on American forces at Okinawa. In July and August her planes pounded Nagoya, Osaka, Miko, Honshu, Hokkaido and Tokyo until the surrender of Japan. (For more information see: USS Ticonderoga.)
DH 10/04
