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242:, commander of the second air fleet, was inspecting the 341st Air Group, Captain Okamura took the chance to express his ideas on crash-dive tactics. âIn our present situation, I firmly believe that the only way to swing the war in our favor is to resort to crash-dive attacks with our planes. There is no other way. There will be more than enough volunteers for this chance to save our country, and I would like to command such an operation. Provide me with 300 planes and I will turn the tide of war.â
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attack tactics, by arranging with his superiors for the first investigations on the plausibility and mechanisms of intentional suicide attacks on 15 June 1944. He was a veteran fighter pilot, who instructed the
Yokosuka Air Corps at the war's outbreak. He also commanded a fighter group under Vice
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weapons, and by the close of
November, pilot training was well on its way. Captain Motoharu Okamura, one of Japan's most famous senior fighter pilots, became the corps commander; Okamura selected as his first fliers experienced fighter and dive-bomber pilots. Actually, these pilots were selected
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in 1938, Okamura served as a flight leader in the 12th Air Group's fighter squadron, where he was renowned for developing new air tactics for the Navy and was noted as an expert aviator and trainer. He had formed an air demonstration team known as "Genda's Flying Circus" with
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As commander of the new kamikaze unit in 1944, Captain
Okamura commented that "there were so many volunteers for suicide missions that he referred to them as a swarm of bees," explaining: "Bees die after they have stung."
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attacks in the
Philippines. The selection was unnecessary, beyond the critical choices made by Okamura; volunteers poured in by the thousands for the new operation, despite the 'special nature' of their future missions."
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Okamura remarried after his first wife died. He had several children. His brother-in-law was fellow IJN officer and aviator
Takashige Egusa, who was noted for being the Air Group Commander of aircraft carrier
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245:"In August of 1944 the Naval Air Research and Development Center instituted an emergency development program of special piloted glide bombs, which bore the first character of
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project. From late
October to November held accelerated flight tests of the new glide bombs. Tokyo established a new air corps charged with the mission of operating the
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Okumiya, Masatake, and
Horikoshi, Jiro, with Caiden, Martin, "Zero", books, inc., New York, distributed by Simon & Schuster, Inc., March 2004,
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Smith, Peter C., Fist from the Sky: Japan's Dive-Bomber Ace of World War II, Stackpole Books, Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania, 2005,
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Smith, Peter C., Fist from the Sky: Japan's Dive-Bomber Ace of World War II, Stackpole Books, Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania, 2005,
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Mikesh, Robert C., and Abe, Shorzoe, "Japanese
Aircraft 1910-1941", Naval Institute Press, Annapolis, Maryland, 1990,
238:, commander of the Japanese naval air forces in the Philippines, presented the idea to his staff. While Vice Admiral
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Okamura had expressed his desire to lead a volunteer group of suicide attacks some four months before
Admiral
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After the war, Okamura shot himself in the face as penance for sending so many young men to their deaths.
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185:. Okamura bailed out, but lost four fingers in the accident, jeopardizing his career as a fighter pilot.
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who served as a test pilot in the 1930s, and served as the commander of the 341st
Tateyama
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Inoguchi, Rikihei, The Divine Wind, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 1958, page 139.
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In June 1934, Lt. Okamura was flight testing the second prototype of two
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Experimental 7-Shi carrier fighters when it entered an irrecoverable
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Captain Okamura was in charge of the Tateyama Base in
378:"Father of the Kamikaze Liner Notes | AnimEigo"
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487:Japanese military personnel who died by suicide
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482:Japanese military personnel of World War II
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316:Lieutenant Commander - 15 November 1934
417:Axell, Albert; Kase, Hideaki (2002).
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310:Lieutenant (j.g.) - 1 December 1925
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291:through the ship's loss at the
419:Kamikaze: Japan's suicide gods
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502:Suicides by firearm in Japan
319:Commander - 15 November 1939
313:Lieutenant - 1 December 1927
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307:Ensign - 20 September 1923
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40:13 July 1948 (aged 46-47)
304:Midshipman - 1 June 1922
492:Japanese naval aviators
169:attacks in June 1944.
151:, 1901 â 13 July 1948)
77:Imperial Japanese Navy
16:Japanese naval officer
421:. New York: Longman.
83:Years of service
322:Captain - 1 May 1944
207:Nakajima A2N Type 90
289:Pearl Harbor attack
260:prior to the first
199:Yoshita Kobayashi
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240:Shigeru Fukudome
236:Takijiro Ohnishi
179:Mitsubishi 1MF10
163:(Air Group) for
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148:Okamura Motoharu
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136:Motoharu Okamura
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128:World War II
124:Battles/wars
477:1948 deaths
467:1901 births
450:, page 137.
407:, page 149.
287:during the
188:During the
109:Air Group 3
461:Categories
327:References
299:Promotions
45:Allegiance
213:in 1932.
183:flat spin
86:1918â1945
497:Kamikaze
262:Kamakaze
227:Admiral
223:kamikaze
211:Yokosuka
205:, using
166:kamikaze
106:Commands
63:Service/
257:Marudai
253:Marudai
190:Kuangda
160:KÅkÅ«tai
100:Captain
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173:Career
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65:branch
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284:Soryu
218:Tokyo
194:China
142:岡æ åºæ¥
444:ISBN
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423:ISBN
401:ISBN
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341:ISBN
201:and
91:Rank
37:Died
32:1901
29:Born
248:Oka
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