Kamikaze, Japan turns to desperate tactics to avoid defeat.
The suicidal campaign of trained attack squadrons also makes use of a new jet-powered, the Yokosuka MXY-7 Ohka, but the sacrifice of Japanese pilots is futile.
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Among their tactics. kamikazes approached as a group, but once within range of a TF’s fighter direction system, they broke up. Planes made their way to the target individually or in small groups.
Kamikazes exploited everything the Japanese had learned about Navy radars and their limitations. By closely following strike aircraft that were returning to their carriers, kamikazes could blend into their radar return and approach undetected. Low-altitude approaches reduced the distance at which search radars could detect kamikazes; often, defending fighters could make just one pass on low flyers before they dove at ships. Other kamikazes loitered in the radar “blind spot” directly overhead until they suddenly attacked. The use of “window” (chaff) allowed kamikazes to “inhibit radar tracking just long enough” to close. Finally, because Navy search radars had difficulty detecting targets over land, kamikazes learned to fly over it before attacking. Clever uses of altitude, terrain, and radar countermeasures all minimized the effectiveness of the Navy’s air defense system.
Although kamikaze attacks were unanticipated and extremely deadly, the U.S. Navy was able to overcome the threat. Adaptations in the combat theater began to mitigate specific Japanese tactics and improve the survivability of the fleet. At the same time, an extensive investment in experimentation sought to explore new approaches and evolve the Navy’s air defense capabilities.
In many respects, kamikazes foreshadowed the age of guided missiles, presenting the Navy’s ships with multiple radically maneuvering threats that deliberately tried to overwhelm existing air defense systems.
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11 сен 2023
