in negotiations came to the fore, lest Japan missed its chance and faced absolute defeat in the future.
The catalyst that finally forced Japan’s hand was the Hull note (“Outline of Proposed Basis for Agreement Between the United States and Japan”) which was delivered to Japan on November 26, 1941. It demanded that Japan abandon its interests and claims in China, not only those which had been acquired by invasion, but also those rights and interests which were legally procured through negotiation after the Russo-Japanese War. It was essentially an ultimatum that Japan could never agree to, and was thus equivalent to a declaration of war.
Commander in Chief of the Combined Fleet, Isoroku Yamamoto, was strongly opposed to the Tripartite Pact and any thought of entering a war against America. Now he was obliged to plan and prepare the Navy for an attack on Pearl Harbor on December 8, 1941. The operation resulted in a spectacular victory and solidified America’s resolve for war. Many have since observed that Roosevelt and Churchill actually desired that Japan make the first move to force America’s hand.
In the early stages of the war, Japan achieved some outstanding victories on the Malay Peninsula, Singapore, Philippines, etc. It expanded its control over the West Pacific and even closed in on the north of Australia. It was the Battle of Midway in June 1942, northwest of the Hawaiian archipelago that proved to be a major turning point in the war. Japan lost many carriers, aircraft, and experienced pilots.
In February 1943, Guadalcanal in the Solomon Islands was captured by the U.S. after some furious fighting. In February 1944, Truk Lagoon, Japan’s main military base in the South Pacific theater, was laid to waste by naval air attack and hundreds of Japanese fighter planes were destroyed. In June to July 1944, Japan’s stronghold in Saipan was annihilated in the Battle of Mariana Sea. In October of that year, the Japanese Naval Fleet was routed in the Battle of Leyte Gulf which Odachi participated in while stationed in the Philippines.
In February to March 1945, the U.S. recaptured the Philippine islands which General MacArthur departed with his famous words “I shall return.” Shortly after, Japanese military might was decimated in the Pacific following their defeat at the famous Battle of Iwojima. The Japanese mainland was now the target of ferocious air raids. In the spring of 1945, the U.S. began its operation to take Okinawa. The Japanese Army and Navy stationed there were wiped out by June.
Meanwhile, the war in China was also going badly for the Japanese. Supported by the United States, the staunch anti-Japanese resistance led by Chiang Kai-shek was a constant thorn in Japan’s side. Japan won most of its battles in China initially, and came to occupy major cities throughout the country but could not make China yield completely. The Americans even commenced with B-24 and B-29 raids against mainland Japan and Taiwan from deep within the Chinese mainland.
On July 26, 1945, the Potsdam Declaration demanded Japan’s unconditional surrender. Cabinet, Army and Navy leaders debated furiously about the pros and cons of accepting the conditions. On August 6 and 9, atomic bombs were dropped on the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The Soviet Union took this opportunity to declare war against Japan and rushed in to take over Manchuria and the northern territories formerly occupied by Japan.
It was with an official declaration by Emperor Hirohito that Japan surrendered to the Allies. At noon on August 15, Hirohito made his official announcement to the Japanese people over the radio. This was just as Odachi’s was about to depart on his final Kamikaze mission from Taiwan. Odachi and his comrades fought against Allied forces for around one year, a relatively short period. However, it was the time in which the writing was on the wall for the Japanese. As many veteran senior pilots had died, the now hopeless responsibility of protecting the country fell on the shoulders of Odachi and his friends through the most desperate of tactics—Kamikaze.
Although we didn’t know it at the time, the Imperial Japanese Navy 1st Air Fleet had been routed. The gravity of our losses wasn’t immediately clear to us then, but it was precisely at this juncture that I entered the war.9
I sensed beforehand that I would be dispatched to a base somewhere in the south, either Taiwan or Saipan. In mid-August 1944, we were transferred from Kasanohara to Hsinchu Air Base on the northwest side of Taiwan. New intelligence reported that 11 American carriers were preparing to mount an assault on Taiwan. The IJN’s 2nd Fleet was directed to Taiwan to defend. As our carriers had already been destroyed, naval aircraft were only deployable from ground bases.
The 221st Naval Air Group had little more than 60 airmen. We headed to Taiwan separately in four or five squadrons, of which I was in second or third group to leave. We carried personal effects in our blue zippered parachute bags. My possessions fitted in but there was no room left for the parachute.
I dropped the bag behind the seat and secured it with a cord to stop it falling on me in case of some sudden maneuver. A spanner left in the cockpit by mechanics once smacked me fair in the head.
I was impressed by the majestic mountains of Yakushima and the beautiful coral reefs of Okinawa as we flew overhead. Taiwan came into view before long. I was happy to arrive but there was little indication that we were within spitting distance of the combat zone. I was taken aback when I flew into Hsinchu Airbase with its four long runways forming a tetragon, and one more runway set on an angle. All of them were paved with asphalt or concrete with the zones between the landing strips covered in lush green grass. It was an impressive base of the likes I had never seen before, designed to facilitate landing from all directions in any wind condition. Moreover, several planes could land simultaneously. As it was our first landing, however, we took our aircraft down with extreme caution.
Hopping out of my cockpit, I was once again awestruck by the quality and size of the base. It was so big that I had trouble identifying any of the other crews. All I could see were a few big aircraft parked in the distance. There were several other air bases in Taiwan besides Hsinchu including Taichung, Tainan, Kaohsiung, Yilan, and Hualien. The oldest were Kaohsiung and Tainan, the latter being particularly spacious allowing us to land in any grassy zone we liked. The runways in Kaohsiung and Tainan were paved, but Hsinchu was the best.
Our orders were to intercept B-24 bomber raids, fly patrol, and provide air cover for an Army convoy sailing to Xiamen. When not out on sorties we continued training. Our first taste of action, however, didn’t happen until the middle of October.
Gearing Up
New improved fighters like the Grumman F6F Hellcat were making life difficult for Japanese airmen. Faced with such formidable opposition, fewer of our planes were making it back, and our fleets were frequently rearranged to compensate for losses. The airplanes of the 1st Air Fleet were originally tasked with patrolling the southwest Pacific. We were supposed to provide back up when necessary, but with the 1st having been routed in the Battle of Mariana, there were hardly any operational fighters left in the area. It seemed inevitable that we’d be in the thick of it a lot sooner than we had envisaged.
The island of Taiwan.
For the first few months, however, all we did was train in the same format as Kasanohara except for tactical training which involved eight vs. eight Zeros instead of four vs. four. It was as close to real combat as possible so there was no room for mistakes. If information came in that Americans were approaching the east coast of Taiwan, we would fly to Hualien Airbase. If there was intelligence of the enemy somewhere in the south, we would fly to Tainan or Kaosiung. All the air bases in Taiwan became home as we pogoed around the island.
Although we were still officially in training, there was always a high degree of tension. We were never that far from the action and were ready to scramble without delay. We heard about losses being sustained here and there, and flight
