was an officer and

ace An ace is a playing card, die or domino with a single pip. In the standard French deck, an ace has a single suit symbol (a heart, diamond, spade, or a club) located in the middle of the card, sometimes large and decorated, especially in the ...

fighter pilot 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, Potsdam Declaration, when it was dissolved followin ...

(IJN) during the

Second Sino-Japanese War The Second Sino-Japanese War was fought between the Republic of China (1912–1949), Republic of China and the Empire of Japan between 1937 and 1945, following a period of war localized to Manchuria that started in 1931. It is considered part ...

and the

Pacific theater The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...

of World War II. In aerial combat over China and the Pacific, he was officially credited with destroying seven enemy aircraft. Kudō was killed in action while participating in an air attack on Broome, Australia on 3 March 1942. He was shot down by ML-KNIL Lieutenant Gus Winckel, who had dismounted the 7.99mm machine gun from his

Lockheed Lodestar The Lockheed Model 18 Lodestar is an American passenger transport aircraft of the World War II era, developed as part of the Model 10 Electra family, specifically from the Lockheed Model 14 Super Electra. Design and development Sales of the 1 ...

and balanced it on his shoulder while firing.

References

* 1915 births 1942 deaths Military personnel from Ōita Prefecture Imperial Japanese Navy officers Japanese naval aviators Japanese World War II flying aces Imperial Japanese Navy personnel killed in World War II Aviators killed by being shot down {{Japan-mil-bio-stub