During
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, , also called ''shimbu-tai'', were specialized units of the
Imperial Japanese Navy
The Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN; Kyūjitai: Shinjitai: ' 'Navy of the Greater Japanese Empire', or ''Nippon Kaigun'', 'Japanese Navy') was the navy of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945, when it was dissolved following Japan's surrender ...
and
Imperial Japanese Army
The was the official ground-based armed force of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945. It was controlled by the Imperial Japanese Army General Staff Office and the Ministry of the Army, both of which were nominally subordinate to the Emperor o ...
normally used for
suicide missions. They included ''
kamikaze
, officially , were a part of the Japanese Special Attack Units of military aviators who flew suicide attacks for the Empire of Japan against Allied naval vessels in the closing stages of the Pacific campaign of World War II, intending to d ...
'' aircraft, ''
fukuryu
were a part of the Japanese Special Attack Units prepared to resist the invasion of the Home islands by Allied forces. The name literally means "crouching dragon," and has also been called "suicide divers" or "kamikaze frogmen" in English texts ...
'' frogmen, and several types of suicide
boats and
submarines
A submarine (or sub) is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability. The term is also sometimes used historically or colloquially to refer to remotely o ...
.
Background
Towards the end of the Pacific War, the Japanese were increasingly anticipating an American attack into the country and preparation was made for its defense.
This was called
Ketsu Go and the operation included the formation of specialized Japanese units. The move was driven by the realization that, in order to defend their homeland,
conventional warfare was no longer sufficient.
The recruitment of soldiers willing to die in the suicide missions was, therefore, easily carried out. The suicide attack is also an accepted method of fighting and this is largely attributed to Japan's highly militaristic society as demonstrated by the
samurai system with its
bushido code
is a moral code concerning samurai attitudes, behavior and lifestyle. There are multiple bushido types which evolved significantly through history. Contemporary forms of bushido are still used in the social and economic organization of Japan. ...
, which established a legacy that honors and idealizes self-sacrifice.
Japan saw the efficacy of the specialized units during their deployment in the Philippines in summer-fall 1944 when special attack units executed their first missions.
Japan saw that they were able to achieve results with limited resources.
Historians view the success of the suicide tactics as an important driver to Japanese war policies after 1943.
Aircraft
Ohka suicide rocket aircraft
The
Yokosuka MXY-7 was a purpose-built ''kamikaze'' aircraft employed by the
Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service
The was the Naval aviation, air arm of the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN). The organization was responsible for the operation of naval aircraft and the conduct of aerial warfare in the Pacific War.
The Japanese military acquired their first air ...
towards the end of World War II. The
US gave the aircraft the
Japanese name ''
Baka
Baka, baká or BAKA may refer to:
Ethnicities and languages
* Baka people (Cameroon and Gabon), an African ethnic group
* Baka people (Congo and South Sudan), an African ethnic group
* Baka language, a dialect cluster of Cameroon and Gabon
* Baka ...
'' ("idiot").
It was a small
flying bomb
A flying bomb is a manned or unmanned aerial vehicle or aircraft carrying a large explosive warhead, a precursor to contemporary cruise missiles. In contrast to a bomber aircraft, which is intended to release bombs and then return to its base for ...
that was carried underneath a
Mitsubishi G4M2e "Betty",
Yokosuka P1Y ''Ginga'' "Frances" (guided Type 22) or planned Heavy
Nakajima G8N ''Renzan'' "Rita" (transport type 33)
bomber
A bomber is a military combat aircraft designed to attack ground and naval targets by dropping air-to-ground weaponry (such as bombs), launching aerial torpedo, torpedoes, or deploying air-launched cruise missiles. The first use of bombs dropped ...
to within range of its target; on release, the pilot would first glide towards the target and when close enough he would fire the ''Ohka''s engine(s) and dive onto the ship to destroy it. That final approach was almost unstoppable (especially for Type 11) because the aircraft gained tremendous speed. Later versions were designed to be launched from coastal air bases and caves, and even from
submarine
A submarine (or sub) is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability. The term is also sometimes used historically or colloquially to refer to remotely op ...
s equipped with
aircraft catapults, although none were actually used this way.
Shinryu
The Mizuno was a proposed rocket-powered ''kamikaze'' aircraft designed for the
Imperial Japanese Navy
The Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN; Kyūjitai: Shinjitai: ' 'Navy of the Greater Japanese Empire', or ''Nippon Kaigun'', 'Japanese Navy') was the navy of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945, when it was dissolved following Japan's surrender ...
towards the end of World War II. It never reached production.
Tsurugi
The
Nakajima Ki-115
The was a one-man ''kamikaze'' aircraft developed by the Imperial Japanese Army Air Force in the closing stages of World War II in 1945. The Imperial Japanese Navy called this aircraft Tōka (藤花, "Wisteria Blossom").
Historical context
The ...
was a one-man ''kamikaze'' aircraft developed by the
Imperial Japanese Army Air Force
The Imperial Japanese Army Air Service (IJAAS) or Imperial Japanese Army Air Force (IJAAF; ja, 大日本帝國陸軍航空部隊, Dainippon Teikoku Rikugun Kōkūbutai, lit=Greater Japan Empire Army Air Corps) was the aviation force of the Im ...
in the closing stages of World War II in late
1945
1945 marked the end of World War II and the fall of Nazi Germany and the Empire of Japan. It is also the only year in which nuclear weapons have been used in combat.
Events
Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix.
Januar ...
.
Baika
The was a
pulsejet
300px, Diagram of a pulsejet
A pulsejet engine (or pulse jet) is a type of jet engine in which combustion occurs in pulses. A pulsejet engine can be made with few or no moving parts, and is capable of running statically (i.e. it does not need ...
-powered ''kamikaze'' aircraft under development for the
Imperial Japanese Navy
The Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN; Kyūjitai: Shinjitai: ' 'Navy of the Greater Japanese Empire', or ''Nippon Kaigun'', 'Japanese Navy') was the navy of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945, when it was dissolved following Japan's surrender ...
towards the end of World War II. The war ended before any were built. The design was inspired by the manned version of the German
V1 flying bomb, the
Fieseler Fi 103R "''Reichenberg''".
Boats
Shinyo and Maru-Ni
The were Japanese suicide boats developed during World War II. They were part of the wider Special Attack Units program. These fast motorboats were piloted by one man, to speeds of around . The ''Maru-Ni'' was an Army version with two depth charges the operator would drop and try to escape before detonation.
Around 6,200 ''Shinyo'' were produced for the
Imperial Japanese Navy
The Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN; Kyūjitai: Shinjitai: ' 'Navy of the Greater Japanese Empire', or ''Nippon Kaigun'', 'Japanese Navy') was the navy of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945, when it was dissolved following Japan's surrender ...
and 3,000 ''
Maru-Ni'' for the
Imperial Japanese Army
The was the official ground-based armed force of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945. It was controlled by the Imperial Japanese Army General Staff Office and the Ministry of the Army, both of which were nominally subordinate to the Emperor o ...
. Around 400 were deployed to
Okinawa
is a prefecture of Japan. Okinawa Prefecture is the southernmost and westernmost prefecture of Japan, has a population of 1,457,162 (as of 2 February 2020) and a geographic area of 2,281 km2 (880 sq mi).
Naha is the capital and largest city ...
and
Formosa
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is an island country located in East Asia. The main island of Taiwan, formerly known in the Western political circles, press and literature as Formosa, makes up 99% of the land area of the territorie ...
, and the rest were stored on the coast of Japan for the ultimate defense against the invasion of the Home islands.
Submarines
Kaiten
The was a
torpedo
A modern torpedo is an underwater ranged weapon launched above or below the water surface, self-propelled towards a target, and with an explosive warhead designed to detonate either on contact with or in proximity to the target. Historically, su ...
modified as a
suicide weapon
A suicide weapon is a weapon designed to be used in a suicide attack, typically based on explosives.
History
Suicide weapons have been used both in conventional warfare, as well as in terrorism.
In the Second Sino-Japanese War, Chinese used ...
, and used by the
Imperial Japanese Navy
The Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN; Kyūjitai: Shinjitai: ' 'Navy of the Greater Japanese Empire', or ''Nippon Kaigun'', 'Japanese Navy') was the navy of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945, when it was dissolved following Japan's surrender ...
in the final stages of World War II.
Early designs allowed for the pilot to escape after the final acceleration towards the target, although whether this could have been done successfully is doubtful. There is no record of any pilot attempting to escape or intending to do so, and this provision was dropped from later production ''kaitens''. The inventor of the Kaiten, Lt. Hiroshi Kuroki was lost during one of the first training missions. When the sub was raised, a note written during his final minutes before death was found, sending his respects to his family and detailing the cause of the accident and how to repair the defect.
Kairyu
The was a class of Suicide
midget submarine
A midget submarine (also called a mini submarine) is any submarine under 150 tons, typically operated by a crew of one or two but sometimes up to six or nine, with little or no on-board living accommodation. They normally work with mother ships, ...
s of the
Imperial Japanese Navy
The Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN; Kyūjitai: Shinjitai: ' 'Navy of the Greater Japanese Empire', or ''Nippon Kaigun'', 'Japanese Navy') was the navy of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945, when it was dissolved following Japan's surrender ...
, designed in 1943–1944, and produced from the beginning of 1945. These submarines were designed to meet the invading American Naval forces upon their anticipated approach of Tokyo.
These submarines had a two-man crew and were armed with two torpedoes and an internal warhead for suicide missions. Over 760 of these submarines were planned, and by August 1945, 200 had been manufactured, most of them at the
Yokosuka shipyard.
Divers
were a part of the Special Attack Units prepared to resist the invasion of the Home islands by Allied forces. They were armed with a
mine
Mine, mines, miners or mining may refer to:
Extraction or digging
* Miner, a person engaged in mining or digging
*Mining, extraction of mineral resources from the ground through a mine
Grammar
*Mine, a first-person English possessive pronoun
...
containing of explosive, fitted to a bamboo pole. They would dive and stick the pole into the hull of an enemy ship, destroying themselves in the process. They were equipped with a diving jacket and trousers, diving shoes, and a diving helmet fixed by four bolts.
They were typically weighed down with of lead, and had two bottles of compressed air at 150 bars. They were expected to be able to walk at a depth of , for about six hours.
Several deaths occurred during training due to malfunctions, but this weapon is only known to have been used a few times operationally:
*January 8, 1945: Damage by suicide divers to Infantry landing craft (gunboat) ''LCI(G)-404'' in Yoo Passage,
Palaus
Palau,, officially the Republic of Palau and historically ''Belau'', ''Palaos'' or ''Pelew'', is an island country and microstate in the western Pacific. The nation has approximately 340 islands and connects the western chain of the Caro ...
.
*February 10, 1945: Attempted attack by suicide divers on surveying ship in Schonian Harbor, Palaus.
See also
*
Banzai charge
*
Chiran Special Attack Peace Museum
The airbase at Chiran, Minamikyūshū, on the Satsuma Peninsula of Kagoshima, Japan, served as the departure point for hundreds of Special Attack or kamikaze sorties launched in the final months of World War II. A peace museum dedicated to the p ...
* ''
Jibakutai
The were suicide attack units formed during the Japanese occupation of the Dutch East Indies (present-day Indonesia) of World War II. The corps was created on 8 December 1944, coinciding with the third anniversary of the "Greater East Asia War". T ...
''
*
Kaoru Special Attack Corps
*
*
List of Imperial Japanese Navy air-to-surface special attack units
*
Piso Point Piso Point is a former Japanese naval base throughout World War II which is located at the eastern portion of the Davao Gulf, across from Davao City, Philippines.
It was also a harbor for Japanese suicide boats which had been harassing American sh ...
References
External links
Japanese suicide weapons
{{IJN
Military history of Japan during World War II
Imperial Japanese Army
Imperial Japanese Navy
Japan campaign