was a
dive bomber pilot
officer
An officer is a person who has a position of authority in a hierarchical organization. The term derives from Old French ''oficier'' "officer, official" (early 14c., Modern French ''officier''), from Medieval Latin ''officiarius'' "an officer," f ...
in 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 surrend ...
(IJN) 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 opposing ...
. He was the leader of the
2nd Air Group
was a unit of the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service (IJNAS) during the Pacific War that was involved in the Guadalcanal Campaign, Solomon Islands Campaign and New Guinea Campaign. The air group was redesignated as the 582nd Air Group on 1 No ...
(later redesignated to 582nd Air Group) during
Guadalcanal Campaign and
New Guinea Campaign and commanded
Rabaul-based
dive bombers in various battles in 1942.
Early career
Fumito Inoue graduated from Kobe Merchant Marine College. In May 1933, he became Reserve
Ensign
An ensign is the national flag flown on a vessel to indicate nationality. The ensign is the largest flag, generally flown at the stern (rear) of the ship while in port. The naval ensign (also known as war ensign), used on warships, may be diffe ...
and entered a
reserve pilot training program of the navy, where he specialized in dive bomber aircraft. On 1 August 1934, he was transferred from reserve officer rank to
regular officer rank. In 1938, he served with the 15th Air Group during the
Second Sino-Japanese War
The Second Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945) or War of Resistance (Chinese term) was a military conflict that was primarily waged between the Republic of China and the Empire of Japan. The war made up the Chinese theater of the wider Pacific Th ...
.
Pacific War
Lieutenant
A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations.
The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often ...
Fumito Inoue became the leader (''
Hikōtaichō
The was a senior naval aviation position in the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service, normally held by a Lieutenant Commander or a very senior Lieutenant, who commanded all flight personnel in an air group.
Administrative role
On the ground, the ' ...
'') of the 2nd Air Group when it was formed on 31 May 1942 in
Yokosuka
is a city in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan.
, the city has a population of 409,478, and a population density of . The total area is . Yokosuka is the 11th most populous city in the Greater Tokyo Area, and the 12th in the Kantō region.
The city ...
,
Empire of Japan
The also known as the Japanese Empire or Imperial Japan, was a historical nation-state and great power that existed from the Meiji Restoration in 1868 until the enactment of the post-World War II Constitution of Japan, 1947 constitu ...
. He and his group embarked on the converted carrier
''Yawata Maru'' and were ferried to
Rabaul on
New Britain. They arrived at Rabaul on 6 August with 16
Aichi D3A
The Aichi D3A Type 99 Carrier Bomber ( Allied reporting name "Val") is a World War II carrier-borne dive bomber. It was the primary dive bomber of the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) and was involved in almost all IJN actions, including the a ...
dive bombers and 15
Mitsubishi A6M3 Zero fighters.
After the unexpected
Allied invasion of Guadalcanal and Tulagi on 7 August, Lieutenant Inoue led nine unescorted dive bombers to strike the shipping near
Tulagi
Tulagi, less commonly known as Tulaghi, is a small island——in Solomon Islands, just off the south coast of Ngella Sule. The town of the same name on the island (pop. 1,750) was the capital of the British Solomon Islands Protectorate from 1 ...
. However, Aichi D3A dive bombers did not possess the combat radius necessary to reach
Guadalcanal and return to Rabaul. Lieutenant Inoue was instructed to
ditch
A ditch is a small to moderate divot created to channel water. A ditch can be used for drainage, to drain water from low-lying areas, alongside roadways or fields, or to channel water from a more distant source for plant irrigation. Ditches ar ...
near the
Shortland Islands
The Shortland Islands is an archipelago of Western Province, Solomon Islands, at . The island group lies in the extreme north-west of the country's territory, close to the south-east edge of Bougainville Island, Papua New Guinea.
The largest isl ...
after the strike, while his dive bombers were equipped only with two 60 kg bombs, instead of a standard load of one 250 kg bomb. He led the attack on the US destroyer
''Mugford'' off Tulagi, which resulted in a single bomb hit. He lost five dive bombers when they were intercepted by a dozen of
Grumman F4F Wildcat fighters from US carriers. Afterwards, he led the surviving four to Shortland Islands, where they ditched and were picked up by the seaplane tender
''Akitsushima'' and one
Kawanishi H8K flying boat.
On 24 August, Lieutenant Inoue led eight dive bombers to
Buna airfield, where they participated
unsuccessful invasion of
Milne Bay. On 27 August, they attacked Milne Bay and lost two dive bombers. The next day, he led the remaining dive bombers back to Rabaul.
[2空飛行機隊戦闘行動調書]
On 1 November 1942, he was promoted to
Lieutenant Commander
Lieutenant commander (also hyphenated lieutenant-commander and abbreviated Lt Cdr, LtCdr. or LCDR) is a commissioned officer rank in many navies. The rank is superior to a lieutenant and subordinate to a commander. The corresponding ran ...
, while his group was redesignated as the 582nd Air Group.
[582空飛行機隊戦闘行動調書] On 16 November, Allies started the
offensive against Buna–Gona, and he led nine dive bombers from Rabaul to attack Allied supply ships east of
Buna on
New Guinea
New Guinea (; Hiri Motu: ''Niu Gini''; id, Papua, or , historically ) is the world's second-largest island with an area of . Located in Oceania in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, the island is separated from Australia by the wide Torr ...
. After the mission, they landed at
Lae and for the time being operated from there. The next day, he led five dive bombers in another attack on the ships. His subordinates led several raids against Allied positions around the Buna area throughout November. On 6 December, he resumed leading the raids himself, where he made an attack on Allied ships around Buna with nine dive bombers. The next day, while leading six dive bombers in another raid, he was wounded in his left ankle and was then withdrawn from combat operations.
[ At the end of the war he was promoted to Commander.][
]
References
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Inoue, Fumito
Japanese naval aviators
Imperial Japanese Navy officers
Imperial Japanese Navy personnel of World War II