特攻に出撃した提督と

自殺した提督

Admiral Ugaki as the last Special Attack Soldier &

Admiral Ryujiro Ohnishi who killed himself at the end of war with apology to the Tokko soldiers

Matome Ugaki and Takijiro Onishi both graduated from the 40th term of the Naval Academy. At the end of the war, both were lieutenant generals of the Navy. The two were deeply involved in the last major battle of World War II, which followed the Naval Battle off Leyte Gulf, Iwo Jima, and Okinawa, and the accompanying special attack. 

In the Battle of Leyte Gulf, Ugaki boarded the battleship Yamato and marched toward the US military in the Leyte Gulf, and to help this, Onishi organized a Kamikaze special attack corps and attacked the US military from the sky. Knowing that they could not win the war, they continued to order the kamikaze to sortie. 

On the day of the end of the war on August 15, 1945, Ugaki made a special attack from a base in Kyushu and died in the war. The next day, August 16th, Onishi left a suicide note in Tokyo to apologize to the kamikaze members and their families. 

Ohnishi spent his all the Naval carrier for aviation and was an early battleship useless person.

On October 5, 1944, Onishi was appointed Secretary of the 1st Air Fleet located in the Philippines. (Although it is called "fleet", it was the aviation corps.) Before leaving for the Philippines, Ohnishi told the Navy Minister Mitsumasa Yonai that he would make a special attack, saying, "The Philippines will be the last," and obtained approval. He also spoke to Koshiro Oikawa, the president of the Imperial Japanese Navy General Staff. Oikawa approved, "Never give orders. We will consider the treatment of the special attack dead as special. We will not give instructions, but we will not oppose the voluntary implementation of the site."

After arriving at the philippines, Onishi explained to the staff, including Maj. Gen. Toshihiko Odawara, Chief of Staff of the 1st Air Fleet, the reason for establishing the Kamikaze corps as follows. (Onishi knows most about Japan's miserable situation because he was in a key position in the munitions bureau.) Heavy oil and gasoline will stop functioning in less than half a year, and the war should end. We have to conclude a peace, but the war situation is bad and there are no materials, so we have to fight back with a single blow Leyte, conclude a peace under the condition of 7: 3, and rewind Japan until the time of the Manchurian Incident. The Philippines will be the last battlefield. If you make a special attack, His Majesty the Emperor will also ask you to stop the war. Also, the history of this sacrifice will revive Japan. 

Maru "Record of Special Attack" Kojinsha NF Bunko Page 26

On October 19, 1944, Lieutenant General Onishi invited Lt. Col. Asaichi Tamai, Lieutenant Colonel Asaichi Tamai, Lt. Col. Convened and held a meeting. Onishi said, "I don't think there is a definite attack method other than ramming the US military aircraft carrier with a 250-kilo bomb in the Zero fighter to make it unusable for about a week and succeed in Operation No. 1. of Leite recovery"

On October 24,1944 the first Kamikaze attacked US Navy.

Since then until January 1945, Ohnishi kept ordering Kamikaze attack, but the result was not great.

On January 5 and 6, remaining almost all the planes of Navy and Army made the last large Kamikaze attack, but Ohnishi and other officials flew out from the Philippines to Taiwan on January 10. The Philippines were recovered by the US troops. Japanese soldiers tried to ship out to Taiwan, but many soldiers including some pilots remained in the Philippines to keep fighting on the ground, but many of them died from starvation. 450 soldiers among 15,000 survived. 

Ohnishi insisted to keep fighting without surrender until the end of the war on August 15, 1945 when the emperor accepted the Potsdam declaration. 

The next day, on August 16, 1945, Onishi left a suicide note at the official residence in Nanpeidai-cho, Shibuya, and decided to commit suicide. Around 2 am to 3 am, he cut his abdomen in a cross and stabbed his neck and chest, but he could not die immediately. Discovered by a servant of the official residence, Deputy Secretary Takeo Tada took a military doctor and rushed to Deputy Secretary Maeda and Yoshio Kodama. Kazuo Yatsugi, who was in Atami, also rushed in, but it was past noon. Ohnishi told the army surgeon, "Don't let me live," and to Kodama he said, "I see you again just because the sword you gave me wasn't sharp enough. Everything is written in the suicide note. Tell me that Ohnishi was saying to be modest. " When Kodama tried to kill himself, Ohnishi said, "Idiot, your death can be anything useful?  Young people should live. Live and make a new Japan." He died in the evening of the same day while continuing to refuse to be stabbed the end and life-prolonging treatment. Age 55.

The suicide note was put in an envelope dated "August 16th, 445 self-blade." 

Humbly expressing to the noble souls of the kamikaze corps

Deeply thank you for your precious fighting

Believing in the final victory you made yourself a bullet and scattered like cherry blossoms

However your belief cannot be accomplished 

I apologize all the fellow soldiers and their family with my death 

Next, I tell you, the general youth 

In spite of my death, if you endure the suffering and live long without helping our enemy by killing yourselves

that is the spirit of our emperor, I shall be happy

Do not lose the pride of Japanese

You are the treasure of the country

Stick to the spirit of Tokko Kamikaze even in the peace

Contribute to the peace of world

Navy Vice Admiral Takijiro Ohnish

宇垣纒　Matome Ugaki

Unlike Ohnishi, Matome Ugaki had a career on ships and was a large warship cannon principle, but lost the main ships in the Battle of Leyte Gulf, and finally in February 1945, he was the commander of the Air Fleet as Commander-in-Chief of the 5th Air Fleet and commanded the special attack units.

On April 18, 1943 , Ugaki was attacked by an ambushed U.S. military aircraft while riding on two sets of land attack aircraft with Isoroku Yamamoto and inspecting the front line, and the first aircraft on board genera Yamamoto. Ambushed and crashed into the jungle of Cape Moira. 11 people killed in action, including Yamamoto. The second aircraft, which was boarded by Chief of Staff Matome Ugaki, was also hit by fire and crash landed at sea. Three people, including Ugaki, were injured but rescued.

Ugaki returns to the mainland with the remains of Yamamoto on the battleship "Musashi". After that, he received a dagger as a keepsake of Yamamoto. With that dagger, he will sortie in the final special attack. 

In the Battle of Leyte Gulf, he served as the commander of the 1st Fleet (including battle ships Yamato and Musashi) and marched toward the US Army in the Leyte Gulf. Ohnishi, who was in sync with the Army Military School, played a role in supporting this from the air, and Ohnishi ordered the first special attack, seeing that the Battle of Leyte Gulf was the last chance to reach the end of the war without losing to the U.S. military. 

 In spite of the help of general Ohnishi with the first special attack from the air, the fleet withdrew the port with a large loss and damage of the fleet. He lost his big ships and became the commander of the airplanes which were mainly Kamikaze special attack.

 August 15th. The radio repeatedly announced that there was an emperor's broadcast at noon from the morning. Also, Sun Francisco Broadcasting reported that Japan officially accepted the Potsdam Declaration and that the war was over, which was being communicated to Ugaki every moment. And Ugaki had the staff write an order. "The 701 Sky Oita Detachment should attack the Okinawa enemy fleet with five bombers. I myself lead this. Commander-in-Chief of the 5th Air Fleet, Lieutenant General Matome Ugaki "

He ordered to send the farewell telegram to all his local units.

"Despite the strenuous battles of your heroes of each of the subordinates over the past six months, the ability to crush the enemies and fulfill the role of protecting the empire was failed. This is my responsibility. I shall advance and crush into the ship of enemy in Okinawa where our soldiers were scattered like cherry blossoms, as the imperial warrior. ”                                                                                        「指揮官たちの特攻」