Quartermasters can also fight the devils

Chapter 775: Japanese Navy Combined Fleet Maritime Kamikaze Fleet

Afterwards, the Japanese military headquarters ordered that all the original Japanese training aircraft be converted into kamikaze suicide aircraft to increase the number of kamikaze suicide aircraft.

On May 24 and 25, 1945, and May 27 and 28, 1945, the Japanese military headquarters launched the "Kikusui No. 7" and "Kikusui No. 8" operations respectively. The Japanese army dispatched a total of 737 aircraft, including 208 suicide aircraft for kamikaze special attacks.

On June 3, June 21 and June 22, 1945, the Japanese military headquarters made an all-out effort to dispatch 502 aircraft, including 114 kamikaze suicide planes, to launch the "Kikusui 9" and "Kikusui 10" operations.

In addition to launching ten large-scale "Kikusui Operations" against the American army attacking Okinawa Island, the Japanese military headquarters also organized small batches of Japanese aircraft to attack the American army attacking Okinawa Island every day as long as the weather on Okinawa Island permitted.

From April 6 to June 22, 1945, the total number of aircraft dispatched by the Japanese military headquarters to launch sporadic attacks on the United States' attacking Okinawa Island was as high as 4,109. Among them, the Japanese military headquarters dispatched 917 suicide planes for kamikaze special attacks. Together with the Japanese military aircraft dispatched by the Japanese military headquarters in the ten "Kikusui Operations", the total number of aircraft was 7,851.

Among them, although more than 4,200 of the 2,423 kamikaze suicide planes sent by the Japanese military headquarters were shot down by the American army, it also caused huge losses to the American troops attacking Okinawa Island.

During this period, 33 American warships were sunk by Japanese aircraft and more than 360 American warships were damaged. Among the 33 American warships sunk by Japanese aircraft, 26 were sunk by Japanese kamikaze suicide planes, accounting for 78% of the total number of American Navy warships sunk this time.

Even the USS Bunker Hill, the flagship of Vice Admiral Mitchell, commander of the 58th Task Force of the United States Navy, was hit by two kamikaze suicide planes during the "Kikusui VI" operation launched by the Japanese headquarters on May 11, 1945, causing extremely serious damage.

This attack by Japanese aircraft resulted in the death or disappearance of 396 officers and soldiers on the USS Bunker Hill, and the injury of 264. One of the Japanese kamikaze suicide planes also crashed into the engine of the USS Bunker Hill. The blast and bullets generated by the explosion flew into the cabin where the Fifth Fleet headquarters was located, killing 14 staff officers in the cabin on the spot.

Vice Admiral Mitchell, commander of the 58th Task Force of the United States Navy, had to lead the rest of the personnel of the 58th Task Force command to move to the USS Enterprise of the United States Navy to continue commanding the operations. However, three days later, the USS Enterprise of the United States Navy was also hit by a Japanese kamikaze suicide plane and lost the ability to continue sailing. This forced Vice Admiral Mitchell, commander of the 58th Task Force of the United States Navy, to change flagships twice in three days.

Due to the crazy attacks of the Japanese Kamikaze suicide planes, the senior generals of the United States Navy had to stay in the waters of Okinawa Island to command their troops to fight. In contrast, although the four aircraft carriers of the British Navy participating in the battle were also hit by the Japanese Kamikaze suicide planes, the damage to the British Navy aircraft carriers was far less than that of the United States Navy aircraft carriers.

Because the English Navy's aircraft carriers have armored flight decks and sturdily designed enclosed hangar structures, their damage resistance and impact resistance are much stronger than those of the United States Navy's aircraft carriers. This also meant that the English Navy's aircraft carriers did not suffer much damage under the attacks of the Japanese kamikaze planes.

After a great battle between the Japanese Navy Combined Fleet and the United States Navy in the Leyte Gulf, the main force of the Japanese Navy Combined Fleet had been destroyed by more than half. The Japanese headquarters also ordered the remaining surface ships of the Japanese Navy Combined Fleet to retreat to Brunei and reorganize into the Second Fleet, with Vice Admiral Seiichi Ito as the commander of the Second Fleet, replacing Vice Admiral Takeo Kurita who was removed as commander due to major command errors in the Battle of Leyte Gulf.

On November 24, 1944, the Second Fleet of the Japanese Navy Combined Fleet returned to the port of Kure in Japan for rest and replenishment.

On March 17, 1945, the Japanese Navy Combined Fleet Command judged that the landing operation of the American army on Okinawa Island was imminent, so it ordered the Japanese Navy Combined Fleet's Second Fleet to go to the Tokuyama anchorage in the western Seto Inland Sea and be prepared to attack at any time.

On April 5, 1945, the Japanese Navy Combined Fleet Command decided to form the Japanese Navy Combined Fleet's Maritime Kamikaze Fleet with the Yamato battleship, Yahagi cruiser and eight destroyers including Fuyutsuki, Suzutsuki, Isokaze, Hamakaze, Yukikaze, Asaka, Kasumi and Hatsushimo of the Japanese Navy Combined Fleet's Second Fleet to cooperate with the Japanese Army Headquarters' "Kikusui No. 1" aviation kamikaze operation.

At dawn on April 8, 1945, the Japanese Navy Combined Fleet Command ordered the Japanese Navy Combined Fleet's Kamikaze Special Attack Fleet to rush into the waters west of Okinawa Island, preparing to annihilate the United States' landing formation and support the Japanese troops on Okinawa Island to retake the airport.

However, due to the severe fuel shortage of the Japanese army, even the Japanese Navy Combined Fleet Command had to work very hard to collect 2,500 tons of fuel. This amount of fuel was less than half of the 6,400 tons fuel tank capacity of the Yamato battleship, and could only barely guarantee the one-way fuel consumption required for the ships of the Japanese Navy Combined Fleet's Kamikaze Special Attack Fleet to Okinawa Island.

Moreover, because the Japanese military headquarters invested all its air forces in the "Kikusui Operation", the attacking fleet of the Japanese Navy Combined Fleet's Maritime Kamikaze Fleet was in a state of no air cover.

Therefore, this attack by the Kamikaze Fleet of the Japanese Navy Combined Fleet was a completely suicidal maritime special attack operation. All the naval officers and soldiers who participated in the battle were also very clear that this operation to Okinawa Island was a one-way trip.

Even at the routine farewell party before the Japanese Navy Combined Fleet's Kamikaze Special Attack Fleet set out on an expedition, many Japanese naval officers and soldiers couldn't help but lose their composure.