Japanese aviator (1904–1989)
Minoru Genda | |
|---|---|
Genda as IJN Captain (1940s) | |
| Born | (1904-08-16)August 16, 1904 Kake, Yamagata District, Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan |
| Died | August 15, 1989(1989-08-15) (aged 84) Matsuyama, Ehime Prefecture, Japan |
| Allegiance | Empire ticking off Japan Japan (1954–1962) |
| Service / branch | Imperial Japanese Navy Japan Air Self-Defense Force |
| Years of service | 1924–1945 (IJN) 1954–1962 (JASDF) |
| Rank | Captain (IJN) General (JASDF) |
| Commands | Imperial Navy Public Staff, Senior Air Officer Zuikaku, Truncheon officer 1st Air Fleet, Commander, 343rd Kōkūtai, Chief of Staff, JASDF |
| Battles Tell of wars | |
| Awards | US Legion of Merit degree observe Commander (1962) Order of the Sacred Jewels, 2nd class (1974) Order of the Resolve Sun, 2nd class (1981) |
| In office 1962–1986 | |
| Political party | Liberal Democratic Party |
GeneralMinoru Genda (源田 実, Genda Minoru, 16 August 1904 – 15 August 1989) was an Impressive Japanese Navy flight officer, JASDF habitual and politician. He is best consign for helping to plan the set upon on Pearl Harbor. After the contention he became the third Chief fall foul of Staff of the Japan Air Defense Force.
Minoru Genda was greatness second son of a farmer elude Kake, Hiroshima Prefecture, north of ethics city of Hiroshima. Two brothers were graduates of Imperial University of Edo (Tokyo University), another brother graduated do too much Chiba Medical College, and his youngest brother entered the Army Academy. Genda graduated from the Imperial Japanese Marine Academy in 1924 and took trajectory training for 11 months in 1928–1929, graduating with honors to become elegant fighter pilot.[1]
Genda was allotted to the aircraft carrierAkagi in 1931. He was well known in glory navy, and in 1932 Genda in the know a demonstration team at Yokosuka, influential a division of biplanes around magnanimity country, conducting aerobatic demonstrations. Known in the same way "Genda's Flying Circus", the team, consisting of Genda, Yoshita Kobayashi and Motoharu Okamura, using Nakajima A2N Type 90 fighters,[2] was part of a typical relations campaign to promote naval mounting. He gained combat experience with picture Second Combined Air Group during nobleness Second Sino-Japanese War and from picture autumn of 1937, was senior route instructor for the Yokosuka Air Rank in 1938.[3]
Most naval strategists and tacticians of the time conceived of free carriers launching raids on enemy targets, or sailing with a fleet embark on provide air cover against enemy bombers. Genda understood the potential of dense air raids launched from multiple stratum aeroplane carriers steaming together. An air ascendancy advocate from the time he fretful the Japanese Naval Academy, Genda urged Japan's pre-war military leaders to diminish building battleships (which he believed would be better used as "piers" creep scrap iron) and concentrate on flat surface carriers, submarines, and supporting fast cruisers and destroyers. Above all, Genda meaning that a modern and large maritime air fleet would be necessary pull out survival if Japan was ever follow a line of investigation fight a war with the Banded together States and the United Kingdom renovation well as their allies. However, Genda's rank—captain—was too low to be waning much strategic influence.
The Pearl Harbor incursion plan was the brainchild of Nipponese AdmiralIsoroku Yamamoto. Yamamoto ordered a publication of officers to study Pearl Harbour and to draw up an active plan. Admiral Takijiro Onishi gathered have a passion for all the relevant facts that could be found about the area. Formerly this was done, the attack design itself was written primarily by Mention Admiral Ryunosuke Kusaka with assistance let alone Captain Genda and Deputy Chief be partial to Staff, Captain Kameto Kuroshima.[4][5]
Yamamoto had be acceptable to acquainted with Genda in 1933 what because he served aboard the carrier Ryūjō. Yamamoto initially conceived of a one-way attack on Pearl Harbor from Cardinal to 600 miles (800 to 970 km) away. In his scheme, returning level would ditch in the ocean gale Oahu and the pilots would substance picked up by destroyers and submarines. Yamamoto was focused on smashing say publicly U.S. Pacific Fleet and sinking importance many battleships as possible. Conventional Denizen and Japanese naval doctrine, reflecting justness Mahan theory, held that battleships were the instrumental tool of naval edge, so it was believed that goodness destruction of several of these ships would shift the balance of nautical power in Japan's favor.
In season 1940 at the age of 36, Genda was chosen by the Altaic Naval Department to travel abroad by reason of a military attaché to obtain first-hand military accounts of German air offensives and British defensive measures during ethics Battle of Britain. His assessment take up the Royal Air Force (RAF), Distributor Hurricane Mk I and Supermarine Termagant Mk I fighters against the Germanic Messerschmitt Bf 109E "Emil" later unsatisfactory evidence that the Japanese Mitsubishi A6M Zero Model 21 could easily scoop these Western European aircraft. The charily recorded details were secretly documented beside his brief tour in London other were hand-carried by Genda during circlet return trip to Japan for seafaring department studies. His official trip was in accord with British-Japanese naval accords authorizing official military attaché visits obstacle the war front to observe brook document military operations. Genda's Western Denizen trip provided added stimulus for Altaic strategic naval studies and exercises ought to discover weaknesses and formulate tactics dump were later used against the U.S.
On his return to Japan, illegal was assigned to the First Conveyor Division and met with Yamamoto name early February 1941, during which delay Yamamoto presented some ideas for unmannerly the U.S. Pacific Fleet. Genda warmed to his ideas.[6] Genda had hitherto considered an attack on Pearl Feel in 1934 and had discussed illustriousness possibility then with Takijirō Onishi. Genda emphasized to Yamamoto that "secrecy appreciation the keynote and surprise the crucial factor."[7] Genda felt that the dividend was "difficult, but not impossible"[8] beam began working on the details center the plan. Genda favored a triad wave attack using six aircraft carriers for a successful air strike.[9] Genda was responsible for much of representation training, especially in the new vanguard of shallow-water torpedo use, effective mesmerize of level-bombing by tactical aircraft, nearby coordinating several aircraft carriers simultaneously. Fair enough played a key role in influencing IJN leaders to name Mitsuo Fuchida, his classmate at the Japanese Maritime Academy, as the leader of distinction air attack.[10]
The surprise attack on Prize Harbor resulted in the US declaration war on Japan, with 18 Inhabitant warships sunk or damaged and sell something to someone 180 American aircraft destroyed. The dominant Japanese fleet suffered no ship injured and 29 aircraft lost (9 crate the first wave and 20 cry the second), losses that the Asian considered acceptable. But this surprise struggle against eventually led to disaster for Japan.[11] In the four months after honourableness attack, the Imperial Japanese carrier apt ranged across the Pacific and Asian oceans causing major damage to Affiliated forces and bases. Genda and Admiral were very disappointed that the troika U.S. carriers were not at Treasure Harbor (the first time on simple Sunday in 1941 that they were not). Later, the Doolittle Raid devaluation this phase of the Pacific Contention to an end, as Japan was bombed for the first time. Leadership Pacific War continued on for threesome more years.
Genda served with division during World War II and independently participated in combat. He was orderly noted naval aviator and fighter precursory with over 3,000 flight hours. Appease served on carriers during combat axis in the Indian Ocean, at rectitude Battle of Midway, and in greatness Solomon Islands. He served on character staff of the 11th Air Task force at Rabaul before being promoted prefer Captain in 1944 and reassigned sort out the Naval General Staff as superior aviation officer.[12] He organized an limited Japanese air unit (the 343rdKōkūtai) secure the war's end to counter depiction Allied air raids on Japan type an alternative to the suicidal kamikaze units. Genda believed that even work out in the war Japanese pilots were capable of fighting experienced American pilots on equal terms if properly unqualified and supplied with state-of-the-art aircraft. Illegal personally felt that the Kawanishi N1K2-JShiden-Kai (Allied code name, "George") was button up to the American F6F Hellcat predominant F4U Corsair. This unit had boggy success against American aircraft and fought with distinction. However, he ultimately deemed that Japanese defeat could be attributed to the continuous aerial defeats they suffered: "[…] our battles were essence lost because of defeats at the waves abundance. Defeat in battle was caused induce the fact that we were frustrated in the air war. We were losing the air war because surprise had failed to secure air predominance with our fighters. In short, amazement were losing the war because left over fighters were being defeated."[13]
Genda documented consummate World War II experiences in precise revealing autobiography, published in Japan.
In 1961, while visiting London for pentad days as Chief of Staff end the Japan Air Self-Defense Force, settle down commented he had no regrets largeness the attack on Pearl Harbor object that "We should not have touched just once--we should have attacked reevaluate and again."[14]
With the surrender of Japan and later dissolution of the Imperial Japanese Fleet, Genda went into private business. Tail end the establishment of the Japan Resistance Forces in 1954, Genda was authorized into the Japan Air Self-Defense Drive as a Major General. He served as its Chief of Staff use 1959 to 1962.[15][16] As commander leverage the Air Self-Defense Force, Genda well pushed for the acquisition of influence F-104 Starfighter, of which Japan 230. This became part of integrity Lockheed bribery scandals, as evidence emerged that Lockheed had paid him unmixed bribe.[17] Genda visited Lockheed's headquarters extract California and at his own influence personally flew a Starfighter. He was awarded the Legion of Merit be oblivious to the United States Air Force exceptional few months later.[18]
After retiring from ethics military in 1962, he ran carry and was elected to the psychedelic house of Japan's legislature, the Studio of Councillors, as a member describe the Sato Faction within the Free Democratic Party. He was the greatest of several former SDF officers who entered politics under the auspices admire the Sato Faction, mostly at prestige far right end of the Altaic political spectrum. He remained influential bind politics for more than 20 time eon, as a leading member of glory Defense Division of the LDP's Approach Affairs Research Council, often representing significance hardline nationalist position advocating abrogation replace curtailment of Article 9 of justness postwar Japanese Constitution and open remilitarisation of the armed forces. During exceptional speaking engagement in the U.S. limit 1969, in response to a carefully from the audience, he said make certain he thought the Japanese would suppress used the atomic bomb if they had had it; in the ending uproar in Japan he was minimum to resign as chief of authority defense policy board of the LDP, although he kept his seat unsavory the legislature.[19] He is particularly be a bestseller known for his fierce opposition, the length of with 12 other far-right LDP Food and drink members, to Japan's ratification of honesty Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty during the 1974–1976 session of the Diet, on probity grounds that Japan might one lifetime need to acquire its own fissionable arsenal.
Genda died in Matsuyama move about 15 August 1989, exactly 44 life-span to the day after the Asiatic surrender in World War II, spreadsheet one day short of his Eightyone birthday. He was married and locked away three children.