Crashing Into Ships For The Emperor; The Story of the Kamikaze 

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“We used suicide tactics because ordinary tactics were suicide”

Kamikaze instructor “ok pay attention because I’m only doing this once”

Mitsubishi: Make an Impact

I didn't think a video about Kamikaze would have a high quality ball shaving advert in it, but I also didn't think I'd like it. I think you deserve some kind of award for that

American soldier: Hey! Where are your bullets? Japanese pilot: *I am the bullet*

My great uncle was on the USS Sangamon, one of the carriers attacked on October 25th 1944 He actually landed on the wrong carrier that day, and they let him rest in the officer’s quarters. (He was the Lt. Cdr of VF-37) Shortly after he took off of that carrier, it got hit by a Kamikaze and the room he was resting in got vaporized. Edit 2: a little more context to the story, his squadron were among the 400 planes from Taffy 1 that reinforced Taffy 3. He earned the Silver Star for his actions that day, strafing, and I quote, “a Japanese battleship” to draw fire away from torpedo bombers. It’s possible it was the Yamato because I remember him saying “it was the biggest damn ship I’d ever seen.”

Fun fact: The last Kamikaze are kinda worshiped as heroes in Japan, especially in the far right nationalist parts. In the 60's a far right porn actor got so mad at a politician who was caught taking bibes from lockheed he flew a plane into his house to kill him. A surviving kamikaze instructor said "His motives were not as honorable as ours, as it was mostly a self serving act. However his technique was good and executed well. A fine kamikaze dive"

Japanese Pilot: Can we get a demonstration? Japanese Instructor: Fine! But I’m only gonna do this once.

re: the US Navy's AA capability: That happened because, to quote one Drachinifel, the US Navy's approach to AA guns was "is there an empty space? Why isn't there an AA gun there?"

"How do Kamikaze squadrons have Aces?" - Bokeon1

"Tennoheika Banzai," roughly translated: *"I'm about to do what's called a pro-gamer move."*

4:01 Nearly every Kamikaze pilot actually brought wot him a full tank of fuel, not only for more “ammunition”, but also because a not insignificant amount of kamikaze pilots (like any other pilot) would encounter some kind of technical problem or simply lose track of their target, and given Japan’s chronic shortage of both pilots and good pilots, it was useful to be able to “reuse” aircraft/pilots that were unable to actually take part in an attack

Shigematsu Sakaibara’s last words before his execution for war crimes: “I believe my trial was unfair and sentence too harsh, but I obey with pleasure”

As a Japanese American, I can genuinely say that Kamikazes pilots knew very well that the tactic was incredibly retarded. The thing is that it didn't matter. From what my Japanese great grandmother and grandmother have told me, who lived through the Tokyo Firebombings, this is the best way I can explain it. Though plz take it with a grain of salt. Japan is an extremely collectivist nation. When growing up, there is no "I", there is only "my family", there is no "we" there is only "our nation". Last names come first, first names come last. Respect/ honor for the people who have raised you comes highest of all due to families functioning like multigenerational guilds. The honor, awards, and achievements of the hundreds of generations who have come before you is resting completely on your shoulders. Because of this, you don't control your life; your parents control your life. They tell you who you're going to marry, what school you will attend, and what your career will be. You are also expected to be extremely self-sufficient with as little help from your parents as possible. There is no questioning of why you are doing something. You only do it and do it well. If not then you would be considered a failure and potentially disowned. Japan truly was still functioning like a feudal society with modern guns. Instead of a local knight or lords, you have a literal descendent of the sun god himself on a thrown down the street from where you live. A man whose legitimacy is so supreme that his lineage has not been broken for 1000 years straight, with half of that in a constant state of civil war. This guy does not give public addresses, hardly speaks, and basically shows no emotion for his entire life. There are no pictures of any Emperor smiling before the end of WW2. He is responsible for the food on your table, the education that you receive, and almost all the successes in your life. So... When you are asked to be a special air volunteer to bring great honor to your family and to potentially "turn the tide of the war" with extreme peer pressure to say yes, there really was no other option. You will die for your country and that is final.

Sarah: "well I can see it now" Oof my bro. Oof.

THE EMPEROR PROTECTS wait, wrong Emperor

“Fly me closer so I can hit them with my sword” - a Japanese officer probably

“Dive bombing” lost some of its meaning during translation from German to Japanese, creating the missiley bois

Today is going to be a great day since Potential History uploaded

That sponsor announcement was pretty ballsy Potential History ...but seriously that was pretty balsy

Another way the Kamakaze's ran into trouble was against British Aircraft Carriers as they had armoured flight decks, meaning planes instead of prenertrating the hanger would simple bounce along the deck.

As Larry David says "how can you be a Kamikaze pilot if you are still alive?" "He just skimmed the ship"

It should be mentioned that Bushido was also reemphasized under the militarist regime of Japan in the same way Prussian military ideals were reemphasized in Germany. It's not just that these old ideas existed, but the government made it their policy to evangelize them for the purpose of creating zealous soldiers.

"A 73% loss rate for a 4.1% hit probability" USSR: Gotta pump those numbers up, those are rookie numbers.

Japanese families be like: “T-t-t” “Oh, honey he’s saying his first words!” “T-t-TENNO HEIKA, BANZAAAAIIIIII!!”

Last time I was this early to a Potential History video, people thought Russia would crush the japanese.

US: so how many bombs are you going to use? Kamikazes: yes.

First, as a Japanese viewer who views your channel, I thank you for making this video and talking about the Kamikaze`s I think, for the most part, You`ve done an excellent job in explaining the situation, even the society factor. At the same time though, I also would like to tell my opinion, not just from a Japanese perspective but as a person who is descendant from a Bushi family and who is also American ^^" (personally to me, the war itself feels like self inflicted stupidity, having family on both sides in most fronts really hurts. ) The one thing I always have trouble with the Kamikaze is how they say, this is Bushido, the spirit of the warrior. which is something, from what I was told from my great grand father, who they were thought by their great granfather and ect ect, said that it was not. The thing about Bushidoism is that its not a unified concept, and I think most people dont know that, not even the Japanese themselves, Japanese Samurai`s had more of a Clan honor system, where each clans had their own believes, their own view of honor and how they lived by them. basically it never was unified. Only after the Meiji restoration, and Japan wanting to unify its country in a new way and have this identity as Japanese, did this unified Bushido idea came to be. To which a lot of it is broad, such as 文武両道 or 七つの徳. The reason why I mention these is context, that most modern day views on Bushido is not wrong but not right either. And I think the Kamikaze were a result of this brad, not wrong, not right understanding of Bushidoism. It was propaganda for the war effort, that this is how we, as the Japanese live and die. But real Bushi`s would never do that. They are skilled, cool minded and never get drunk by the romance of the warrior, they had the responsibility of young men under their soldiers. I just wanted to let you know that, as a person who was thought by relatives who learned under their relatives for generations, they all told me that the Kamikaze was anything but Bushido. I`ll stop here since the comment is so long and I hope you read this Johnny, you are a man who really tries to bring, truth, reality and also objective facts into the light, I respect that. thank you for reading.

Manscaped: The new Raid: Shadow Legends.

I've been doing too much 40k shit and so I was confused at first.

Pilot instructor : so that’s how you fly the plane Me : cool but how do I land Pilot instructor : *good question*

It’s also a narrative. “Omg why would someone fight to the death and never surrender it’s hopeless don’t they know that??” Also then: “Remember the Alamo!!”

"well i can see it now" thats a whole lot of damage.

When my grandfather was stationed in Japan during the Korean War he stayed in Kamikaze barracks. He described them as, "Alright."

"When you surround an army, leave an outlet free. Do not press a desperate foe too hard." - Sun Tzu, Art of War, Maneuvering

Military history visualised made a really good video about the Japanese suicide planes.(special attack units)

It's important to remember the coercion also included their families and how they would be affected by him declining the "honor" of being a kamikaze pilot.

"Only fuel for one way trips" Really? A lot of times they came back, often because they could not find a target. A LOT of times, one pilot came back 7 times if I remember correctly. Also because of technical problems with the plane, but I guess you wouldn't need the full fuel amount for that, but you would if you didn't find any targets. Source: did my japanstudies bachelor degree on the special attack corps.

The Japanese would never even attempt to kamikaze a Bob Semple.

1:32 never have I ever been offended by something I a hundred percent agree with

Have the TENNO HEIKA BANZAI spam started yet?

"i can see it now" oof

This just makes me want to play the "Black Cats" mission in WAW

2:06 Sara is a SAVAGE!

Huh, I always thought she was your sister....please don't tell me she's your sister after that ad...

Me and the boys going to sink the US Carrier with our planes in the name Emperor Hirohito.

USA *Holding nuke* : Japanakin don’t do it! Japan: You underestimate my bushido traditions. *Jumps* USA: *Throws nuke*

Pilot: Sir I’ve run out of ammo! Officer: You’ve got fuel right? Pilot: Yes sir but I don’t know h- Officer: Ram the ship.

Kusanogi can pat himself on the back, he inspired a new generation to fail their emperor all over again.

Kamikaze instructor: right everyone, pay attention cause I’m only doing this once

To understand how Japans philosopy of 'samurai honor' got so twisted and became so inhuman I would suggest Mark Feltons audio episode 'WW2 Japanese Military Brutality Explained'. The level of philosophical gymnastics is very well explained there.

“I can show you a before and after” “Sarah Sarah!”

I cannot even begin to imagine how it would feel to be a kamikaze pilot and go for that final dive at a ship and then miss, the feelings one would have in that final split second before you crash into the sea at high speed would probably be pretty intense.

Crashing Into Ships (with the lads) For The Emperor

"Duty is heavier than a mountain; death is lighter than a feather."

i got obsessed with this topic a couple years ago and i remember reading that japan does have like real journals from kamikaze pilots and that these journals (some of them at least) ended up getting published years later and i really wish some english publishing house would pick them up for translation. an incredibly depressing part of the war in the pacific that we still don't really understand.

TENNO HEIKA BANZAI

Hey bud, just wanted to say that the opening to this video is awesome. If you're trying a more serious approach to your videos, it's great. Content creators like yourself are why RU-vid should exist. You're precious, and I love you.

I do feel like the cultural and religious factors at play are often overlooked or watered down when discussing Japanese history leading to World War Two. Great work.

The term “Dive Bomber” just got a whole new meaning

PH: I'd like two things - a return to the Unicum Historical Guides, and Meme-Tanks-style content for planes.

Oh my god TIK and Potential History uploaded in the same day, The Emperor has truly blessed our mortal souls

Fun fact:if a kamikaze happened to return from his mission (because he couldn't approach the target or because he really didn't want to die) he wouldn't be executed,in most cases he wouldn't even be punished,it would've been like:"Don't worry,you'll be lucky next time." This was because Japan was running out of pilots and executing them because they were afraid of death was counterproducing (exept for the pilot that returned from his mission 7 times,I guess that day the commander was in a bad mood and was like:"Fine,I'll do it myself."). If you want more informations check out "What if a kamikaze returned from his mission" by History Matters.

The title sounds very warhammery and i like it

3:46 What happens in WoWS when my T8 CV gets stuck in a T10 matchmaking line up

"Tennoheika Banzai!!!" Is the 1940s version of "Leeroy Jenkins!!!"

I wasn't expecting another video for quite a while so this has made my day

Excellent video, thank you.

I would recommend “Wings of Defeat” (2007) documentary if anyone wish to study a bit further into the whole kamikaze thing from the perspective of the surviving pilots. They actually interviewed people who survived the operation (due to their run being failed or the war ceased before they finished their training).

I wonder what has been the reaction nowadays from officials in Japan about the Kamikaze. Or lack of reaction because of how Japan treats it's WW2 history.

LOVE THE STATISTICS MAN! Hope to see more numbers in videos to come!

Great video as always!

The Japanese really took the word "bombing" out of "dive bombing"

if you want to see the japanese point of view of all this, watch "The Eternal Zero", told from the perspective of a flight instructor that have to send his students to die. as a teacher myself this is a very emotional film.

With ought a doubt this was one of the best RU-vid ad I’ve ever seen

Your girl is playing MOH Allied Assault. This is a keeper. Hold on to her.

Still waiting for the history behind the GuP Anzio movie

6:58 there were no savings in fuel, as you wouldn't just fill a plane half the way and then hope they would actually find and hit someone with no way to return to home base. This makes sense as ressources, planes and pilots were precious. I am sure tho, that you made your research and if there are sources, that say otherwise let me know. Great video

I press the like on petty much every PH vid cause its almost garanteed to be a treat. you should too.

Amazing video. Excellent to watch

Broke: "I must sacrifice myself for the honor of Japan and The Emperor" Woke: "If I crash plane-kun I will be Starting Life In Another World"

USA: no you can't just sacrifice yourself to to blow up our ships! Japan: hahaha plane go nyooooooom

Great video my dude

Another great video as always Jonny boy

Acctually, they had enough fuell to return, because they sometimes did and if not it was extra explosive-stuff

When doing somewhat data-heavy segments, it would probably be a good idea to also show the numbers you're talking about on screen, especially when there is a comparison being made.

New video, hell yeah!!!!

Potential History: Monte Cassino part 2 in 1 to 2 weeks Now: 3 Months later still no part 2

"because I have". PH, what ya saying there buddy? By the way, that ad intro was beautiful man.

Benzai!

"An excellent piece of technology that spent 18 months in development. That's twice as long as it took to make your dumb ass." I choked on my drink when I heard that holy shit.

That was the best promotion bit I have ever seen on RU-vid history, if every ad was like yours is buy it all, I might actually buy a Lawnmower 3.0 because your little bit was so relatable and perfect... Also good vid 👍

I wonder if it's just a coincidence that Potential History decided to release a video about Kamikaze just 4 days before 9\11.

"Oh i can see it now"😂😂😂😂

“Oh hey I can see it now” *cries*

Great job buddy!

Potential history: makes a video about kamikaze. The sponsor: Shave your balls without fear!!!

Something about the fact that they could throw so much lead in the air is just fucking insane to me. Like, the second figure given means that they could throw my truck into the air 37 times a minute, consistently. Thats a stupid, absurd amount of energy expended on a scale thats just hard to grasp, which I feel is somewhat emblematic of studying WW2 in general. The conflict was just so mind bogglingly huge that the numbers, the vehicle counts, the civilian deaths, the production capacities, just reach levels that lose all practical meaning. So yeah, that's my soap box for the day

Man that was a great video!!