108.Return to index page
 I will introduce a story of my father .When he was alive my father got on the plane introduces the story of the old navy.

My father was born in February 1925, after graduating from High School and he joined the Navy Flight Training school.I heared Navy's some stories from my father . In the curriculum of the Navy at that time, two years after flight educated, become flight training pilot refining the actual boarding the plane for another 2 years. The photo below is the first aircraft to maneuver, "Red Dragonfly" fly over in Lake Kasumigaura. After training in the trainer, the trainee was assigned as a flight practice around the base. Flight time is only training day value, If the training flight,my father could ride comet(Judy), moon light(Irving), Dive bomber (Val). I heard that he graduated in February 1945, raising the value of the day.

 My father "Hisaju Kato" fighting period of deployment was from February 1945 to August so. Age and appointed as the first Navy flight training, "Miho Airbase" (Yonago Airport today) is. 70 degrees from north to clock direction as a narrow land between the north and the lake Nakaumi Miho Bay facing the Sea of Miho airbase has a runway that is in an east-northeasterly direction towards the sea. This airport had a rule that the Navy was taking off towards the sea. Yonago Airport current route "Miho departure" 70 degrees is the same direction. Since the runway is also facing landward Zhonghai, take off toward the land as if it was possible fighters. Exiting the mountains where there is Nakaumi to take off in the direction of the day Zhonghai low clouds in the actual rule violation, we've heard from my father the story hidden behind the clouds and crashed in the mountains.
1945 "Imperial Navy airfield Miho" is deployed, the aircraft type What was my father appeared. My father when I was young he had a lot of military aircraft produced in Japan at that time. Model airplane was built by my father, the airplane was piloted by the father during the war. The initial production model, "Moonlight(Irving)" "Comet(Judy)," "Raiden(Jack)" there. Moon light(Irving) is equipped with interceptor B29 oblique gun. Mounted machine guns there is also skew the comet is also Raiden(Jack) Navy fighter interceptor. From around March 1945, the U.S.Air Forces had started to raid the mainland will be B29 sorties from the island of Saipan. The major base of the leading West Imperial Navy, "Airfield Miho" is considered the father of air defense sorties in the mainland. It is consistent with the purpose of the flight model of the plastic model was made as a father. The Imperial Navy was also to predict the radar there is no air raid B29. Visual information in response to B29 was flying over Shikoku In other words, Yonago, in munitions factory, also considered the sortie to Hiroshima, Okayama interception direction. Father's testimony "not found in the vast sky is not even taking off enemy aircraft that came and went. Even if it is found even after the bomb dropped." Means that there are only distant radio Morse telegraph key with time, Wireless phones can not talk only about the air base. From Yonago, "disseminating the direction of Hiroshima," even taking off under orders of, B29 has already raised to 10,000 meters altitude the aircraft dropped a bomb had been lean, moonlight, lightning, high above the comet's arrival rising, it is estimated that interception was also impossible pursuit. From my father's story and battle enemy aircraft have not heard.

 I examined the records of the Japanese city raid
3.10・Tokyo  3・12・Nagoya  3.14・Osaka  3.17・Kobe  3.19・Nagoya  4.14・Tokyo  4.15・Kawasaki Tsurumi
5.14・Nagoya  5.17・Nagoya  5.24・Southern Tokyo  5.26・Tokyo  5.29・Yokohama 6.1・Osaka  6.5・Kobe 6.15・Osaka・Amagasaki
6.17−18・Kagoshima、Omuta、Hamamatsu、Yokkaichi
6.19−20・Toyohashi、Fukuoka、Shizuoka
6.28−29・Okayama、Sasebo、Moji、Nobeoka
7.1−2・Kure、Kumamoto、Ube、Shimonoseki・・・・・・・・・・・・・Continue to other small coutry city

 Army Air Corps in charge of homeland security, the Navy is responsible for its absence from, the air defense blast off from the main mission is not in Yonago. In a major raid of the above, can be intercepted from the city of Yonago father is working in Okayama from June 28 through 29.
Moonlight in midnight raids out below are night without a navigation system, in my estimation is on 28 June, is considered the father had already been a transfer of Kyushu. Record of the air-raid experience in Okayama, Japan military patrol aircraft such as the dragonfly in one unit after the raid (East Sea) has been described as the flight is over. If the interceptor took off from the airport of formation from the description that I do not think Miho. Do not many of the training flights at the airport far from the interceptor sorties just Miho. Perhaps the feedback had been outstanding if the interception was more sorties B29.

 My father received an order for permanent change of station and before the end of June, "Kanoya airfield" is. Chiran along with the famous suicide of a naval base. "Miho Airbase" to "Kanoya airbase" is likely to transfer there are two ways of transport.One is by trains and another is by airplanes , There was few planes that moves people in a hour, my father wants to move by plane, a lot of soldiers wants to take a few days train move While, Kyushu, would arrive in a hours before, seemed to want to move the airplane. Moved or have not heard anything in the model. In order to align the first airfield intact Kanoya order "suicide" that could be either arranged in order from the right who seems to be decided by lottery. In Kanoya are prepared for suicide, "why I have to die for yourself," I heard that was a struggle to build their legitimacy in the minds of it. Before his father's crew received training on a regular flight training was utilized in kamikaze flew away from the soldiers trained to fly Flight student just learning the process of flight speed in the student departure. By August 15, the order of the father did not come. Also at that time, "Cherry(human bomb)" will be shot down by the mother ship to set land attack bomber sorties suspended, and finally set to land attack bomber, the kamikaze sorties as we did not fall by wire strapped to the bomb. (The figure below shows how landed on the ground using a rotating propeller of the galaxy(Frances), it can be better off painting the same galaxy(Frances), but in moonlight)

 "Galaxy(Frances), it was an excellent aircraft." Words are remembered. There are records that the suicide Ulithi Atoll in the U.S. aircraft carrier in 24 Galaxies(Frances) commando unit in March 2008 from bases Kanoya Azusa. Soldiers and aircraft flying in late March Kanoya wear fierce. Emergence of 5000km range of the latest senior military aviation, with a farewell appearance Holding bombs fly 800 kg in honor mover aircraft, or submarine dive bomber type 99. "Galaxy" was also a model made of the father. Sortie aboard the Galaxy story was not told, however. The sortie to attack the U.S. fleet in the Pacific Ocean was distant galaxies, and could return is unlikely. Kanoya is intense at the base of the soldiers flying equipment and consumables, but assumed from the airport of San Miho, and flying soldiers, and was estimated as the replenishment of equipment transfer to Kanoya. From Yonago, I have arrived in a supposed attack to land aboard Kanoya Kanoya set up.

From March 1945 to the table, and models that kamikaze sorties from airfields Kanoya Imperial Navy, describing the approximate number of aircraft sorties.   

year
month
day
Galaxies
(Frances)
Land
Attack
Bomber
(Betty)
Zeke
type 52
Zeke
type 21
1945.3.11 24
1945.3.21 20 10
1945.4.1 2
1945.4.2 4
1945.4.3 6
1945.4.6 18 29
1945.4.7 9
1945.4.11 13
1945.4.12 5 13
1945.4.14 7 6 3
1945.4.16 4 14 12
1945.4.29 10 9
1945.5.4 5
1945.5.11 3 12
1945.5.14 19
1945.5.25 3
1945.6.22 4 7
1945.6.24 4
1945.8.13 2

 With the beginning of April, a transfer, but also thought the ferry from Yonago to Kanoya Galaxies(Frances), and to examine the body of the suicide of Kanoya base, the Galaxy is the first and last of the March 11 attack Ulithi Atoll. Air Attack Team Ulithi is an experienced soldier withdrew from the south. Assumed that the ferry Kanoya Galaxies from Yonago not before the father and therefore does not hold on March 11. March 21 has been wiped out with the mother ship is also filtered before reaching the fleet to 20 aircraft off the coast of Okinawa by the U.S. team set the first land attack Cherry(human bom)+. Zero Fighter type 52 and type 21 days yet but feedback was accompanied machine. Kanoya father's permanent change of station so the crew has lost a considerable number of Galaxies in the attack and land set in March and April, but common thinking of it as replenishment. In the suicide of the Navy in March, has committed to wear the crew of the Galaxy and long-range aircraft. Kanoya base in the case since April have been recorded set of sorties against land attack bomber and zeke. Again assuming that since you arrived in April Kanoya father, moved from Yonago is reasonable to consider a set of possible land attack bomber and many people on board.

 Certainly my father was on board the aircraft during the war, "Moonlight(Irving), Comet(Judy), Raiden(Jack), explosion-level official talks with the pilots had nine (Frances)" was hypothesized. The land attack and set as a non-pilot asked the flight. But the twin-engine aircraft down to the ground, out on the wing, removing more of the cool down landed on the ground using a propeller to rotate downward at the body as it take caought propeller blade was horizontal movers Tasou it. I assumed this was down from the originally set land attacks, and landed on the wing upper surface is set in a land attack should be clear from the hatch at the top of the hemispheric body. And in large twin-engine aircraft, and the larger engine overhanging the wing upper surface, the greater the risk of falling. Therefore, land attack set in "off" Galaxy is not difficult either. Kanoya sorties from the record, not sure my father was aboard the Galaxy certainly after April. Aircraft that can remain in the twin-engine aircraft has landed, "off Moonlight" only. Since there was no moonlight to record Kanoya It also estimated that at the airport and Miho not. Will the training was also at the airport to board Miho comet. Kanoya later at the airport in April have never been enough for flight training. Left the table, "recorded commando <hen Navy> Oshio K.: Using Data Corporation Kojinsha. "There was no suicide sortie any time becomes almost a month in July." Words are remembered as the father's words, too.

  I mind the kids against the father, Did you ride zeke? Heard. "He never rode just zeke." He said. Raiden(Jack) or soldiers were allowed to board the flight landing speed was 19 years old rookie was bracketed and bracketed it is questionable. Memory model of lightning has certainly made my father. Deep fondness for these airplanes, airplane model learned the name of the father I was making elementary school students. Heavenly Father has come at the age of 59 on December 13, 1985. Prayer for the souls, that his father was grateful to receive our earthly life.
Copyright 2007 Watashinouchu