Who became kamikazee

that ever-lasting happiness would follow their mission, there was

nothing for them to fear. Those who were not brainwashed (the college graduates) may

have felt fear. If they were able to detach themselves totally from life, they might have

felt better. Yet is detaching oneself from life really possible?

In any case, it seems that they were all optimistic. They volunteered, believing their

death might save their family, the ones they loved, and Japan. However, as a student

investigating fifty years after the events, it was not possible for me to understand exactly

how the pilots had felt towards their mission.

Appendix One

The Different Pilots' Training Schools in The Imperial Army Where the Kamikaze Pilots

Were Trained

The Youth Pilot Training School

The students who had graduated from the Youth Pilot Training schools had the

best flying skills of the Imperial Army. This schooling system had begun in 1933,

and lasted until the end of the Pacific War. The age range that was accepted into

this school was between 14 and 17. Originally, the time spent in the school was

three years. One year of general education in Tokyo and two years of

specialized education in various parts of Japan. However, by the end of the war,

the students of the 15th term were trained in only a year and 8 months and were

made into soldiers just in time for the Okinawa Tokko.

Candidates for Second Lieutenant

Non-commissioned officers whose excellence was recognized were educated in

the Air Corps Academy. Because of their experience and career, their skill was

of a high level.

Imperial Army Air Corps Academy

Students who had completed the four-year course of Middle School or the

Higher Elementary School took an examination to enter. They became civil

servants who had decided to work in the Army. Graduates of the 56th and 57th

term were involved in the Okinawa Tokko.

Pilot Trainee

The pilot trainees had to have a pilot's license, and had to be an Officer

Candidate. After one month in a squadron, they received six months of flight

training in the Imperial Army Air Corps Academy of Kumagaya, and after six

months as probationary Officer, became Second Lieutenants. Among the

students of the Ninth term, there were graduates of the Higher Pilot training

schools.

Flight Officer Candidates

Officer candidates consisted of drafted men with at least Middle School

education. After four months of preliminary education, a test was taken. If they

passed the test, they received the required education for officers, and if found fit

for the position were ranked as Higher Officer Candidates. After serving as

probationary officers, they were ranked as Second Lieutenants. If they were not

found fit as an officer, they became the Lower Officer Candidates and became

non-commissioned officers. Those who had the interest in flying received training

with the Special Flight Officer Probationary Cadet in the Imperial Air Corps

Academy. The students of the 7th, 8th, and 9th term were involved in the

Okinawa Tokko.

Special Flight Officer Probationary Cadets

This was for the college students drafted into the war by the Gakuto Shutsujin

who were interested in the Air Corps. The 1st term entered in October 1943,

the 2nd in December 1943, and the 3rd in June 1944. They were made into

Second Lieutenants in one year, half a year earlier than planned. One sixth of the

entire Okinawa Tokko of the Army was made up of these 312 cadets.

Pilot Training Schools

This was not an institution belonging to the Army, but belonged to the Ministry of

Communications. However, the content was almost the same. There were

twelve of these schools and the students were separated into the regular course

and flight training course. Students of fourteen to fifteen years old entered the

regular course. After three years of regular education, the students received one

year of flight training which the students of the flight training course had

completed. To enter the flight training school from the beginning, an educational

background of more than Middle School graduation was required. 108 of the

graduates died in the Okinawa Tokko.

Appendix Two

The 72nd Shinbu Squadron

Many of the Kamikaze pilots mentioned in the Essay were pilots of the 72nd Shinbu-tai

of the Imperial Army. The following are pilots of the squadron:

Title Name Age at Departure

Captain:

First Lieutenant Mutsuo Sato 24

Sergeant Nobuyoshi Nishikawa

Sergeant Kazuo Arai 21

Corporal Yukio Araki 17

Corporal Tsutomu Hayakawa 19

Corporal Kairyu Kanamoto

Corporal Atsunobu Sasaki

Corporal Kaname Takahashi 18

Corporal Mineyoshi Takahashi 17

Corporal Masato Hisanaga 20

Corporal Toshio Chizaki 19

Corporal Takamasa Senda 19

This squadron was formed on January 30, 1945 as the 113 Educational Flight Corps,

then was transformed to the 23rd Rensei Flight Corps. On March 30, 1945, the same

unit was renamed the 72nd Shinbu Squadron. (Shinbu refers to the squadrons of the

Imperial Army which made the suicide attacks by aircraft.) They were stationed in

Heijo, what is now P'yongyan of North Korea. From March 25, 1944, they were in

Kagamihara, Gifu prefecture for about one month. Before the mission in May, the unit

returned to Kyushu, and stayed in Metabaru, for a few days, and flew over to Bansei

Air Base. Their attack was first planned to be made on May 20, 1945, however it was

postponed to May 27, 1945 due to rainy weather.

Of the twelve pilots, three did not depart for the suicide attack. Corporal Atsunobu

Sasaki was killed by an American P-51 on May 2, 1945 in China. On the same day,

Sergeant Nobuyoshi Nishikawa was injured, and could not take part in the mission.

The aircraft of Kairyu Kanamoto malfunctioned on the day of their mission, and could

not take off. The remaining nine made their mission from Bansei Air Base at 6:00 a.m.,

May 27, 1945.

Appendix Three

The Research Method

The first time I learned of this topic was in August, 1992. It was the time when I went

with my parents to Japan and visited manmuseums and talked to many people whose

age varied from12 to 60 and they have told me many stories about war.

There, a great number of primary sources and photographs were displayed, which

made me even more interested in the topic.

Since the summer of 1992, the collection of information started, with no academic

purpose. In 1993, the book Rikugun Saigo no Tokko Kichi by Shichiro Naemura

was published. This book was about the Kamikaze pilots who departed from Bansei

Air Base.

That summer of 1993 was crucial to my interest in the Kamikaze pilots. First, I visited

Chiran Tokko Heiwa Kaikan again on August 21, and looked in more detail at the

letters, diaries and photographs of the pilots. The photographs were extremely inspiring

in a sense, since in none of them were the pilots showing an expression of fatigue, or

regret. Most of them were smiling.

On the same night, I decided to spend the evening at "Tomiya Ryokan" which is what

used to be the small restaurant Ms. Tome Torihama ran during the war, and which the

Kamikaze pilots used frequently. There were several photographs of the Kamikaze

pilots remaining there. Mr. Yoshikiyo Torihama, the grandson of Ms. Tome Torihama,

talked to me