Yomiuri: 'Tora, tora, tora' pilot's tale to be told
Manuscripts of an autobiography by Mitsuo Fuchida, best known as the pilot who led the air attack on Pearl Harbor on Dec. 8, 1941, and transmitted the famous signal--"Tora, tora, tora"--that indicated that complete surprise had been achieved, have been kept by his elderly son. The manuscripts describe the briefing on the attacks that his father, then a lieutenant commander in the Imperial Japanese Navy, gave to Emperor Showa, and recount how rivalry among officers affected major strategies--stories that had previously remained untold...According to the manuscripts, 18 days after the attacks on Pearl Harbor, Fuchida went with Fleet Admiral Osami Nagano to the Imperial Headquarters to brief Emperor Showa on the results of the attacks, using sketches and photos. The Emperor was fascinated by the photos, looking at them from all angles, according to the manuscripts. The scheduled 30-minute audience was extended to 90 minutes. After the audience, the Emperor left with the photos, saying that he wanted to show them to the Empress, Fuchida wrote. The Emperor, who had been reluctant to attack the United States, must have had mixed feelings on seeing the photos, but displayed his warmheartedness by showing his concern for the Empress, who was worried about the war...The manuscripts attributed Japan's defeat in the war to arrogance and an underestimation of U.S. naval strength...After seeing the devastation caused by the atomic bombs in Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Fuchida converted to Christianity and traveled to the United States to preach his new religion...more...
