|
|
|
|
|
|
At unveiling ceremony
on October 25, 2004
|
|
|
Kamikaze Pilot Statue
Mabalacat Town, Philippines
The town of Mabalacat on Luzon Island in the Philippines unveiled a
life-sized kamikaze pilot statue in October 2004. The statue atop a tall
pedestal stand in a small lot in front of a wall that shows the Japanese rising
sun flag on its right half and the Philippine flag on its left half. The lot
also has a torii, traditional Japanese gate, entrance by the street. Other than
a sign by the street reading "Kamikaze (Divine Wind) East Airfield," the site
provides no information related to the statue or the history of kamikaze pilots
in Mabalacat.
At Mabalacat during the night of October 19 and early morning of October 20,
1944, Vice Admiral Takijiro
Ohnishi formed the first special attack unit to carry out aerial suicide attacks
with Zero fighters each carrying a 250-kg bomb. He named it the Shinpu (often
read as Kamikaze) Special Attack Corps, which consisted of 24 pilots divided
into four squadrons. On October 25, the Shikishima Squadron led by Lieutenant
Yukio Seki took off from Mabalacat Airfield and successfully carried out Japan's
first official aerial suicide attack, which sank the escort carrier St. Lo
(CVE-63) and damaged several other American warships.
The Mabalacat kamikaze statue generated some controversy in 2004, when it was
put up, and afterward. Certain individuals complained that the Philippines
should not be honoring and glorifying Japanese kamikaze pilots, since Japan
brutally occupied the country during WWII. Mabalacat officials have defended the
statue by saying its goal is to promote peace using the lesson of war. More
cynical observers point out the true purpose of the statue is to lure Japanese
tourists. With the lack of any written explanation at the site of the statue's
purpose or the Kamikaze Special Attack Corps' history, it seems quite unlikely
that a visitor would understand the statue's true purpose is to promote peace.
In the past at this site both before and after the erection of the kamikaze
pilot statue in 2004, there was a sign with the following wording that did
describe the history of the Kamikaze Corps at Mabalacat, but this sign no longer
stands in 2009:
This spot is the central frontage of the very first JAPANESE KAMIKAZE AIR
FIELD of WWII - The Mabalacat East Airfield. On 20 October 1944, VICE
ADMIRAL TAKIJIRO OHNISHI founded the KAMIKAZE at Mabalacat, Pampanga, Luzon
Island. The first to volunteer were the 23 fliers [1] of the 201st Air Group,
1st Air Fleet, Imperial Nippon Naval Air Force under CMDR. ASAICHI TAMAI,
then stationed at Mabalacat. The first KAMIKAZE group was called the Shimpu
[2] Special Attack Corps under LT. YUKIO SEKI. The corps was divided into four
units: the SHIKISHIMA UNIT; the YAMATO UNIT; the ASAHI UNIT; and the
YAMAZAKURA UNIT. At 0725 hrs. on October 25, 1944, the Shikishima Unit took
off from this airfield led by LT. YUKIO SEKI. His men were SGT. [3] IWAO NAKANO,
SGT. NOBOUTANI [4], EM 1/C HAGIME [5] NAGAMINE AND EM 2/C SHIGEO OGURO. At 1045 hrs, on the said
date, the unit hit enemy targets near Leyte. LT. SEKI's plane hit first,
blowing up the U.S. Carrier St. Lo which sank 20 minutes later. LT. SEKI's
men also hit and heavily damaged the U.S. Carriers: Kalinin Bay, Kitkun Bay,
Sangamon, Santee, Suwannee and White Plains. This first successful KAMIKAZE
MISSION was witnessed then reported here by C/WO HIROYOSHI NISHIZAWA, Japan's
greatest ace pilot with 103 kills confirmed. War historians considered LT.
YUKIO SEKI as "THE WORLD'S FIRST OFFICIAL HUMAN BOMB!"
N.B. The Mabalacat Tourism Office (MTO) supports the establishment of
Kamikaze Peace Memorial Shrine not for the glorification of the Kamikaze but
rather for the use of war history as a tool for the promotion of peace and
friendship among nations. This shrine serves as a reminder that the Kamikaze
phenomenon shall never happen again.
SGD: GUY "INDRA" HILBERO
HEAD, MABALACAT TOURISM OFFICE
Kamikaze pilot statue in front of
wall showing Japanese rising sun flag
(Philippine flag also on left of statue
but only partly visible in this photograph)
Sign by street in front of lot with kamikaze pilot statue
A short distance from the kamikaze pilot status along the same road, there is
a sign in front of the house where Vice Admiral Ohnishi met to form the Shinpu
Special Attack Corps. The sign with tattered lettering reads as follows:
This house of Mr. and Mrs. Marcos Santos is the official birthplace of
the famous Japanese Kamikaze organization of World War II.
Vice Admiral Takijiro Ohnishi, Commander of the Japanese Naval Air Forces
in the Philippines, founded on this spot and organized on voluntary basis
the very first Kamikaze unit.
Members of 201st Air Group, 1st Air Fleet, 23 veteran pilots "were asked
if they would volunteer to become suicide pilots.
"In a frenzy emotions and joy, the arms of every pilot in the assembly
went up in a gesture of complete accord."
"It was early in the morning of 20 October 1944 that an announcement was
at once drawn up and posted as soon as the Admiral had signed it, in
substance it said:
"That 201st Air Group will organize a special attack corps and will
destroy and disable, if possible by 0725 hours on 25 October, 1944, the
enemy carriers in the water coasts of the Philippines."
The Shimpu Attack Unit will be commanded by Lieutenant Yukio Seki at
exactly 0725 hrs. the first Kamikaze volunteers flew from Mabalacat East
Airfield and were never to return. Thus, was born the very first Kamikaze
unit that was later joined by several thousands Oriental warriors. This was
the "Divine Wind" that subsequently struck dreadful fear, chaos and death to
thousands of American sailors."
By the end of the Pacific War, Kamikaze warriors sunk and damaged a total
of 322 U.S. Naval vessels, killed more than 10,000 U.S. sailors and 1,228
suicide sorties were conducted.
N.B. The Mabalacat Tourism Office (MTO) supports the establishment of
Kamikaze Peace Memorial not for the glorification of the Kamikaze but rather
for the use of war history as a tool for the promotion of goodwill, peace
and friendship among the nations. This serves as a reminder that the
Kamikaze phenomenon shall never happen again.
Guy "Indra" Hilbero
Head, Mabalacat Tourism Office,
Kamikaze Researcher
Daniel Dizon
Kamikaze Researcher
Jose "Ad" Davrit
Kamikaze Researcher
Notes
Fumiko Hattori provided this web page's first two photos taken
on October 25, 2009.
1. Lieutenant Yukio Seki was the 24th
pilot of the Shinpu Special Attack Corps. He volunteered later the same night.
2. Shimbu and Shinpu are romanization
alternatives for the Japanese characters. Inoguchi and Nakajima (1958) use Shimpu.
3. Iwao Nakano's rank was Ensign.
4. This should read Nobuo Tani rather
than the incorrect name of Noboutani.
5. This should be Hajime rather than
Hagime.
Source Cited
Inoguchi, Rikihei, and Tadashi Nakajima, with Roger Pineau.
1958. The Divine Wind: Japan's Kamikaze Force in World War II.
Annapolis: Naval Institute Press.
|
