Sub Lieutenant Sub-lieutenant is usually a junior officer rank, used in armies, navies and air forces. In most armies, sub-lieutenant is the lowest officer rank. However, in Brazil, it is the highest non-commissioned rank, and in Spain, it is the second high ...

was a Japanese student who joined 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 ...

. On May 11, 1945, he flew a

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 ...

suicide mission against during the

Battle of Okinawa The , codenamed Operation Iceberg, was a major battle of the Pacific War fought on the island of Okinawa by United States Army (USA) and United States Marine Corps (USMC) forces against the Imperial Japanese Army (IJA). The initial invasion of ...

near the end of

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 ...

Early life

Yasunori was born on a farm outside of Akō, Hyōgo Prefecture.

Military career and death

Kamikaze pilots were generally 18–20 years old, poorly trained, and flew poorly maintained aircraft. As leader of the Navy's Kamikaze Corps 7th Showa Special Attack Squadron, he led a group of four young men to attack

US Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage of ...

ships. Yasunori led a group of six planes which departed Kanoya Air Base between 0640 and 0653 on May 11, 1945. Yasunori dropped a 550-lb bomb and then crashed his

A6M Zero The Mitsubishi A6M "Zero" is a long-range carrier-based aircraft, carrier-based fighter aircraft formerly manufactured by Mitsubishi Aircraft Company, a part of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, and was operated by the Imperial Japanese Navy from 19 ...

into the aft portion of the flight deck of the . The bomb tore a hole in the port side of the ship and his plane crashed onto the flight deck. The ensuing explosion destroyed many of the planes on the deck. His plane dragged another plane overboard. His wingman,

Kiyoshi Ogawa Kiyoshi Ogawa ( ja, 小川清 ''Ogawa Kiyoshi'', October 23, 1922 – May 11, 1945) was a Japanese naval aviator ensign () of the Imperial Japanese Navy during World War II. As a Kamikaze, kamikaze pilot, Ensign Ogawa's final action took place o ...

, crashed into the ship a few seconds later. A third plane crashed into the sea before reaching the ship. The fate of the remaining three planes is unknown. He and his wingman killed 393 Americans and wounded an additional 264. It was the most devastating suicide attack in the Pacific War. Three hundred fifty-two of the dead were

buried at sea Burial at sea is the disposal of human remains in the ocean, normally from a ship or boat. It is regularly performed by navies, and is done by private citizens in many countries. Burial-at-sea services are conducted at many different location ...

the next day.

References

Imperial Japanese Navy personnel of World War II Suicides in Japan 1945 deaths Kamikaze pilots Japanese military personnel killed in World War II Imperial Japanese Navy officers 1924 births {{Japan-mil-bio-stub