Harold Fudenna, a Japanese American who graduated from the Military Intelligence Service, intercepted the message that Yamamoto will be flying the day in question.
Well, thank you for adding that. That's great information. With the internment of so many Japanese Americans it's very interesting that someone of that ancestry was allowed to be in such an important position.. My best wishes to you from the UK.
@@paulreilly3904 Those Japanese Americans who served as interpreters, translators & interrogators were not allowed to discuss their service until the mid-1970s. They served in every Pacific Theater Campaign. My Uncle was drafted from one of those internment camps and was stationed in Japan during the occupation. If you are ever visiting San Francisco, please visit the Military Intelligence Learning Center
@@paulreilly3904 There is a book out there called "Yankee Samurai" that tells the story of Nisei troops who specialized in Japanese intelligence during the Pacific War. Their activities were Top Secret the entire war and are not listed in any official monographs of any Marine or Army units that engaged the Japanese. It was many-many years before there was even a hint of what they accomplished.
Near the end of his life, I had the distinct honour of meeting Lieutenant Lawrence Graebner (ret.). He told me the story of his role in Operation Vengeance, as well as of the times he was shot down over Iwo Jima. The world is a little less each day as that generation leaves us.
There is a Reader’s Digest article of the one remaining killer pilots going to court and asking the judge to declare him the pilot who killed Yamamoto. The judge refused to do so. What a shameful act to end one of the greatest stories of WWII. The Japanese never learned of the fact that our Intelligence analysts were deciphering their military messages. God Bless AMERICA!!!
Thank you again, A.L. I shudder to think what would have happened to Europe & then Our Country had then rats like Hitler and the then vicious Japanese had won that war! Also, if you haven’t seen The Gallant Hours, a magnificent movie following Admiral Bill Halsey through The Battle of Guadalcanal, and The Solomon Islands , and others , you can see it Free on Tubi .It shows how crucial it was for us to hold on to it at all costs, while the Japs likewise were in a maniacal death defying mindset to take it back at any cost. Luckily, Happily, after many months of bitter fighting , they’d had enough and withdrew after taking much worse losses than us ! Had they taken Guadalcanal, they would have been nothing stopping them from going across to Australia and New Zealand cutting our line of supply to those countries and extending the war any number of years, or worse.
My father was a senior NCO at Wheeler Field on Oahu on December 7, 1941. He was forced to take over command of his unit when the CO was killed by a straffing Japanese Zero. He managed to safely organize the men into vehicles to move equipment out of the hangar targets. He also established small gunnery units to provide defensive ground fire aimed at the attacking zeroes. For his efforts he was awarded the Bronze Star with Combat V and a Purple Heart.
You can say that and know for sure you are correct, it seems like the best of us have already been born. I am embarrassed by my generation and the one after, Jesus we are going in the wrong direction
I also read that Ray Hines was later seen by a PBY for the last time flying much further south. He was flying at very low altitude with an engine feathered. Tragically, he never reached Henderson Field and died alone, forever to be remembered. Matome Ugaki survived the crash indeed, and in the last days of war he _insisted_ in climbing aboard a _Judy_ Bomber for a Kamikaze mission. As happened so often, the aircraft was shot down by American Fighters before hitting any target.
@@carolecarr5210 Yes, Ugaki in a separate plane survived..and that is chilling..it means if the two planes switched position, sheer chance, Yamamoto would probably have survived...after all this, mission could have easily failed.. Ugaki himself MAY have been worth mounting the mission to kill, in his own right...still a major card in the IJN.Japanese military deck..
This is a signature moment for the USAAF in the SW Pacific theater of operations. They pulled it off by using a compass and clock all while enduring an environment made to sap the strength and concentration of each aviator. Impressive doesn’t begin to describe this incredible mission.
To me what impresses me most about this mission is the fact that they flew for so many hours without autopilot, flush with the waves and with their nerves on edge the whole time, along with the heat, the noise, the fatigue. The fact that only one allied pilot was lost is incredible.
... true. However if taking aside the flying so close to the water, perhaps the most challenging P-38 missions were of late in 1944 being flown from Morotai and Sansapoor (or, Saipan) with 9 or 9.5 hours. In early 1945 one mission of the 12th Fighter Squadron lasted 10 hours and a handful of minutes.
@@francescofissore161 Incredible inner discipline of each of the crew members. I have to believe our guys today have that as their emblematic encouragement to be just as great for Our Country 🇺🇸
@@jerometaperman7102You are right. According to the post war books, the famous "eleven o'clock, high" broke radio silence. This is important, because operations in the Pacific area were usually impossible without radio messages. The Japanese raid to Pearl Harbor being another and major exception. In the present case, the US intelligence services and the US admirals had been consulted beforehand, but not admiral Halsey, who was operating near Japan. Now, nobody can explain, it seems , how Halsey 's warm approval nevertheless reached headquarters. ("Codebreakers" by David Kahn)
Merely a technical term. Usually to make the distinction between the soldier killed in combat & the one gotten in a carefully prepared ambush. No derogatory meaning here. If Rommel had been had during the 1941 Keyes commando operation at his villa in Libya, it would be said too that he was assassinated. While the death of general Gott shot down in his plane by a German fighter was attributed to fatality (or Destiny) because he was replaced by Monty whom Churchill didn’t want at 1st !
Agreed. He was a military man in uniform in a plane with military markings, shot down by enemy planes with military markings in war zone fought over by two countries that had declared war on each other.
The old Rabaul airstrip is now buried under metres of volcanic ash after the 1994 Tavurvur eruption. I believe Admiral Yamamoto's bunker is also buried. I was fortunate enough to see it before the event and see the maps drawn on the cement walls. Hundreds of aircraft remain missing in the jungles and waters of PNG.
My dad was a Marine and was stationed at Henderson field on the Marine flight crews. He said when the P-38s came back, they were doing victory rolls so the ground crews knew they had shot him down. The Army P-38s were the only fighters that had the range to make the interception.
That is a fantastic info to the end of this story. Your Dad is one of my heroes, & how fantastic he saw this piece of history. Oh, I'm a bit of airplane lover. P38 was my favorite in WW2.
An often overlooked point when people discuss fighter ranges and the early unescorted bomber missions in Europe that had high losses, especially the infamous "Black Thursday" mission on Schweinfert, is that this mission happened a full six months before the Schweinfert raid and it covered more distance than the Schweinfert mission did, it's proof that those missions didn't have to go unescorted if only the fighter's in Europe had been provided with the US made all metal pressurized drop tanks. I've shut down more than one argument about that using this mission as proof. Using the relay system the P47 variant's that were in Europe in numbers at the time could have flown the first and third legs of an escort mission and P38's could have flown the second (longest) leg taking them to the targets, it absolutely could have been done, the same P38 variant's that were used on this mission were available in Europe at that time.
Note: the US fighters took off from Kukum airfield next to Henderson field. I unfortunately missed this detail. This video is slightly late due to significant rendering issues, but it has turned out to be one of my better videos. I hope to continue more videos like this. Also, reuploaded to fix some errors.
You say late, but its here just in time for the 80th Anniversary! I call that an unintended win :) Fantastic video as always. The research and quality is top notch, especially with all the skins and such. Masterful.
Rex Barber was a great man. I knew him when I was much younger. He was my Grandpa's insurance agent. We was very active with Little League Baseball in our county. Never heard of this story until I was an adult.
I hate it when people say this was an assassination. Yamamoto was in uniform and in a military aircraft flying the insignia of a country that the US was in a declared war with. He is just another casualty of war.
I'm somewhat neutral on the assassination description, but your points are well made, and I respect your opinion. There are other comments calling it cold-blooded murder, which just does not seem to take into account that Yamamoto was in uniform and in command of large enemy forces. He was riding in and escorted by armed combat aircraft. He was on a mission to instill morale and fighting spirit into enemy forces. Last but certainly not least, he planned the first surprise attack for what was at the time an undeclared war. I don't recall there being any concern for collateral damage to innocents at Pearl Harbor... If someone whacked him while he was tending a bonsai tree in his kimono... that might come within a light year of murder... If anyone doesn't understand what a no-quarter business that WWII in the Pacific theater was, they have a lot to catch up on.
@@nbforrest9 Did you know that Yamamoto thought Japan had declared war on the US before the bombing of Pearl Harbor. Sneak attacks are considered a War Crime and when he got back to Japan he was not happy about it.
Yamamoto was responsible for the deaths of 2800 American lives at Pearl harbour He was not assassinated he was the enemy and in uniform This is very bad corruption of the English language Since when have rules applied in wartime tell that to the thousands of people murdered by the Japanese over 5 years I object to the way this is written which in puts those P 38s pilots in an extremely bad light get you facts straight first
There's a great book by Donald Davis called " Lightning Strike" that chronicles the Cactus Air Force in general and the Vengeance mission in particular.
I am a 80 born pilot however I always wanted to be a pilot of the 40s.. pure talent, expertise, experience and courage.. no missiles or BVR engagements.. JUS DOG FIGHTS ❤
I object to the term "assassinated". Why is killing a Japanese rifleman or a Japanese pilot "KIA" but killing their commander is "assassination". He was a combatant pure and simple.
It may not have been an assassination in the true sense of the word, but is worth considering the similarities between an 'assassination' and a 'targeted killing'. This is a personal creative decision.
@@airwarchronicles true so it’s more like taking down Bin laden tactical elimination operation always great to take out a high figure in a rival leadership role
Seems to me I remember reading somewhere that they flew the same mission for several days afterward so that the Japanese wouldn’t know that we had broken their code. Any input ?
You are 100% correct. They did not want the Japs to think Yamamoto's death was related to intelligence. They wanted to guarantee that the Japs believe it was just a chance encounter of American planes.
The pilot of the P38 who attacked Yamamoto's plane said in the 1970s that it was during the test fighting before starting the fight, that a bullet hit the plane's engine.
I do not believe the Japanese account that Yamamoto was seated in his seat still holding his ceremonial sword. The man is shot through the shoulder and jaw and experiences an extreme crash in the jungle but is still holding his sword? No way.
This was retribution. On December 7, 1941 my dad was serving aboard USS Raleigh CL-7 at Pearl Harbor. In the opening minutes Raleigh took a torpedo hit. About an hour later, Raleigh was struck by an armor piercing bomb. Fortunately, the crew succeeded in keeping her afloat. Raleigh returned to service after repairs and served for the duration of WWII. Early in 1964 my ship's homeport was Apra Harbor, Guam. On our first cruise out of Guam, we steamed to Rabaul, New Britain. I had the pleasure of riding the back roads around Rabaul while driven by an Aussie who lived there.
I heard a story once that the then-widowed wife of a sailor killed at Pearl upon hearing of Yamamoto's death took the only alcoholic drink in her lifetime in a toast to it!
Just getting to the rendezvous point is tough enough … then you gotta get onto an all out air fight 400+ miles away and get home.. I can’t get over how tough my dads generation was.. they were the high water mark of our culture..
Excellent as always. My one wrinkle is (sadly) a political one-the use of the term “assassinated.” I have no problem with this term if it means a targeted attack. I do have a problem with it if it casts shade. In terms of legitimacy, Yamamoto’s death wasn’t any more an assassination than the death of any other common soldier of any side killed in combat.
Many of the upper chain of command involved also felt this operation was an "assassination", but followed their orders. Many felt that Yamamoto was a more reasonable voice among the imperialist fanatics in the Japanese command. There is a debate that the war may have ended sooner if Yamamoto was not killed.
@@drewbertola Well, that would be then a third definition of the term. All that may very well be true (we’ll never know about the possibility of a shorter war), but to apply the term as we would, say, to the killing of Abraham Lincoln is out of bounds. A strategically inadvisable military attack, then-but not assassination of the sense most think of it.
@@davidx9901 not my opinion, necessarily, just telling you the feelings and analysis of the ones that were there. Some thought it was, debatably, better to have Yamamoto's voice of reason remain. Hindsight...
@@drewbertola In general the Army was more fanatical than the Navy. There was a US propaganda poster during the war that depicted Yamamoto saying "I am looking forward to dictating peace to the United States in the White House at Washington." This was a misrepresentation: what actually happened is that the Army fanatics had informed Yamamoto of their war aims, and Yamamoto had responded something like "the only way you'll get _that_ is if you march into Washington and dictate peace in the White House."
While stationed on the Island of Okinawa in the early 90's, a building we used to frequent on Camp. Lester had a large painting of Yamamoto. I worked with an older Japanese gentlemen. Every time we walked by that picture he saluted Yamamoto - with a very prominent middle finger. He had a particular disdain for him after what he'd witnessed as a child.
The intelligence gathering that made this mission possible is amazing- for allied planes to even be there blows my mind... and then they have to BOTH be shot down- no way to know FOR SURE with plane Yamamoto is in
And really, the Japanese should have realized their codes were broken because of this mission. The US got away with it, but I'm not sure the reward was worth the risk.
The operation was decided on relatively short term. Also in the Pacific in 1943, especially on Guadalcanal, there were other priorities. Plane gun-cameras were much harder to come by than combat cameras. The 1943 P-38s which had cameras were for reconnaissance. Anyway that’s much regrettable for the missing records. At Midway, USS Yorktown films of the attack on the Japanese carriers were just in the dark room when the avenging Japanese from the Hiryu hit the Yorktown the only 🇺🇸 carrier they knew the position, & the films were all lost in the fire. Re Thaddeus V. Tuleja ‘Midway’ Google for ‘Midway actual footage and photos’
What matters is that Lanphier tried to make himself look great by lying about it and trying to take credit for something he didn't do. Lanphier's overall time in the military wasn't spectacular and he was just embellishing it.
@@GermanShepherd1983 You're making my.point. What does it matter? Why keep pushing it? The whole thing was a very large team effort. No Pilot could have shot him down without all the others.
@@GermanShepherd1983 Did it without trying. Even if he had been in the right position and shot him you can't take lone credit in an operation like that.
I was trying to figure out what happened to the sword Yamamoto was carrying. The crash site was found by a Japanese Army patrol. Supposedly, according to their records, the admiral's seat had been ejected and he was found sitting upright and still clenching his katana in a death grip. It seems a rather dignified outcome. Who knows what actual mayhem they encountered at the crash site. The sword incidentally was one his brother had made for him as a gift in the 1930s. It was delivered back to his family and allegedly has damage from .50 caliber rounds to it. That airplane is still in the jungle, by the way, which is surprising considering its immense historical value.
Since you said the sword was delivered back to his family, why are you also wondering what happened to it?? Obviously, it must still be with his family!
just a little point of note. the p38s of vengeance, needed a lot of fuel to get to the interception point so yes, they mounted drop tanks. But if you read Dan Hamptons book about the mission, each p38 had one 165-gallon tank and another, much larger 310-gallon tank mounted under the wing roots. This combined with the 38's internal supply would be just enough to get them to the interception point and to do what they needed to do. but all in all, this was a very good representation of the actual mission. keep up the good work.
HOLY ISHT! I first read about this over 30 years ago around age 11 and I am just now learning that three people on the second bomber SURVIVED??? History is amazing. 🙂
Ah, IL-2. Brings back wonderful memories. I've even flown that mission in that game with my squad my way back to the day. A game well ahead of its time. Honestly, great job using the cinematic view in the game! You did a great job capturing this. Also, kudos to any human pilots you had flying the aircraft for this.
I have enough respect for the fact that Yamamotu's knowledge of Harvard led him to advise the Emperor not to attack the USA, that I am pleased by the fact that he died honorably in war, instead of suffering the ignominy of Japan's military when the entire Empire admitted defeat. We were of course better off that Japan no longer had his military skills. Targeting his aircraft was a Good Idea.
Best recreation of this out there! Very well done Thank you for going the extra mile Love the fact is was confirmed A6m3-32 and their markings were done perfectly Thanks again Time to go build models !!!
I read that the P38 fighter wings at Guadal Canal were coached by Charles Lindbergh (off Transatlantic crossing fame) to get optimum fuel efficiency and thereby range. This factor was critical in allowing the intercept to take place. Years later the bomber was found and Yamamoto’s body found.
Both the bomber and Yamamoto's body were found at the time. According to Walter Boyne's "Clash of Wings", Yamamoto's ashes were returned to Japan after his death. It is possible that the wreck of the Betty's location was lost, then found later.
You are correct sir , Charles Lindbergh showed them they could run the engines in a leaner condition than they had been trained thus making the mission possible
No Charles Lindbergh was in the Pacific in 1944, a year after this battle. But he did help teach the pilots to use their planes better- P38 and Corsairs.
Lanphier always stated the kill was his credit. The mission results were kept secret untill the end of the war. Lanphier's youngest brother Charlie was shot at the same spot, leading a flight of Corsairs in an attack to the airfield were Yamamoto was expected some weeks before. The American bailed out and died in a Japanese Pow camp before the war was over.
There's been controversy for a long time. Lanphier put in the first claim for credit, but over time, according to several sources, it's more likely that Barber's shots took down the Betty. I've never heard that about Lanphier's brother. Amazing.
@@gregmead2967 Charlie Lanphier was in VMF-214, Pappy Boyington's Black Sheep. As they were both based on 'Cactus' at the time. Tom Lanphier came over to see his brother and party with the Blacksheep after that mission. Tom let spill about the mission, and Boyington's people got in trouble with G2 for knowing too much. Charlie Lanphier's F4U was shot down later. It is unknown whether the Japanese knew they had the brother of Adm Yamamoto's killer. [Or one of them.]
The death of Yamamoto was not an assignation in the illegal sense. It was an air battle with casualties on both sides. In the long run if Yamamoto had not been killed in battle, he would eventually committed suicide.
I'd say it was an assassination in that the Americans tried to specifically kill him, but he was a legitimate military target, just as any military figure would be. Nothing against the laws of war. Not sure he would have killed himself at the end. He studied in the US and was fairly well Americanized. He reputedly liked America and wasn't for the attacks against the US. But he did as he was told. But it's pointless to argue the point because it was moot after he was killed.
Nah, it's all in the Maths 😉 Don't skip classes like these blokes ua-cam.com/video/XeyfBurShd4/v-deo.html 🤭 & maybe heaps load of Luck some call it Divine Grace 😇
Yamamoto was a stickler for punctuality. The intercepted Japanese message told the Americans when Yamamoto was due to land and where. The Americans knew where he was taking off from and they knew the route he would have to take due to fuel requirements of the Japanese planes, avoidance of American activity in the area and his schedule. From all this the Americans worked out where he would be and when. The thing that really got Yamamoto was his predictability. The Lockheed Lightnings had 1/2 hour of fuel to wait and loiter at the intercept position. As it was they only had to wait a few minutes. This was a product of great navigation and great timing. Non of these aircraft had radars.
Yeah, they found the bombers without gps, inertial navigation, or any other electronic navigation gizmos. It’s called old fashion flying using a compass and a map. You figure out the course you’ll take and compute how long it’ll take to get there using old fashioned math. I seriously doubt most pilots could do it now. They’re too dependent on electronics nowadays.
All Private and Commercial license written tests and flight tests in Canada have cross country flight planning sections which have to be completed using solely paper maps, pencils and old fashion computation techniques. It’s hammered into us so we can rely on it if we lose avionics just as you say!
Awesome video!!! When the Americans intercepted and decrypted the Japanese codes and learned of Yamamoto's schedule, they started training vigorously with the only fighter that was capable enough to complete the mission, the P-38. However, Yamamoto's route was beyond the extreme range of the P-38, even with drop tanks. The Americans recruited the famous aviator, CHARLES LINDBURG to help figure out how to get the best fuel performance from the P-38. Lindburg went to Guadalcanal and trained the mission pilots how to cut back on fuel usage and other "tricks of the trade" that he learned and/or invented since he was the 1st person to fly across the Atlantic solo. Also, during the training for the mission, even though Lindburg was flying the P-38 showing the pilots what to do, it is "rumored" that on one such training mission that he may have actually shot down an enemy aircraft that they stumbled across
... Lindbergh went to the Pacific theater NOT before May 1944 (about one year after the Yamamoto mission) and stayed first with the Marine Corsair pilots, like the VMF-222. Only later was he advisor for P-38 units.
@@francescofissore161 THANKS!! for the correction!! Do remember reading about him being in the Pacific teaching pilots how to get the best fuel performance from their aircrafts. Was watching a video about him just before watching this video and may have gotten "confused".
@@jamesbednar8625 glad being helpful. As a sidenote - this particular mission is top famous but if talking of flight duration, it is just an average one for the P-38s. In October - November 1944 some missions from Morotai and Sansapoor reached 9 or 9.5 hours.
Great job as always, meticulous in the details 👍 The who-got-him dispute between Lanphier & Barber has been long running but I believe your depiction is among the most accurate.
No. It's not. Both of them fired on the plane so the Army gave both of them half a kill. That happened all the time. Saying that just Barber did it - is bull shit. .
Hated the Japanese during WWII. They were brutal savages Supreme scum. Germans not much. The Germans conducted warfare fair and square. Not talking political agenda
... actually, Lindbergh went to the Pacific theater not before May 1944 and started with the Marine pilots of VMF-222, flying Corsairs. Later, he got to P-38 units, but all this came more than one year after the Yamamoto mission.
Such an awesome presentation, Yamamoto died the way a soldier should in combat with your sword 🗡️ in hand, he was a great warrior, and sadly told his superiors that awakening the sleeping giant, would only see to encounter it’s wrath! The fact that we made a long range mission strike to eliminate him shows his immense importance to the Japanese war effort! Rest In Peace!!
But he really wasn't important anymore. By 1943, Japan was a shadow of what it was when it attacked Pearl Harbor. This was straight up revenge. Not saying anything is wrong about getting revenge, but killing Yamamoto was irrelevant to the war at that point.
@@lordgarion514 ivory tower. Couldn't be more wrong. Some men need killing, and some men just need to do it. Not about his decisions or future strategy, it's about killing a man who earned it. Pretty simple.
@@ricardocorbie6803 It doesn't matter how good someone is if they don't have the money, natural resources, or soldiers to fight. And by 1943, Japan was running out of all those things. And considering how against attacking America Yamamoto was, the fact is there was a good chance that he could (and would) have gotten Japan to surrender sooner. Yamamoto was deeply concerned for his country and its people. Most of the others were quite happy to sacrifice even the children to keep fighting.
My uncle was wounded at Pearl Harbor. Getting Yamamoto was payback. However, everything I have read about the man says he would have appreciated the honor of being singled out for vengance and dying in battle.
Yamamoto was against the war between Japan and the USA, being in the USA and knowing its economic potential, which over time will overwhelm the inefficient economy of Japan. But as a true samurai, he honorably fulfilled his soldierly duty, fighting for his homeland as best as he could, trying at least to postpone the inevitable - Japan's defeat.
@@kakitakenzo5013 Yes he did they tried to assassinate him for being a coward for not wanting to fight the US. But, he followed duty and did his best. I respect him
Finally someone got it right and said Lou Kittel was flying #125! Most say it wasn't on the mission because its wing was damaged hitting a Japanese frigate
The thing about this mission is that the US military had to make it look like they just stumbled upon Yamamoto's plane because they didn't want to give it away that we were copying the Japanese codes. If they realized that we knew where Yamamoto was going to be because we read it from their codes, they'd have changed all their codes.
Delicious, Soto, simply delicious. Thank you so much for all the work. May I suggest that you remind viewers to sub and leave comments, you have way too few subs for this level of work. About a year ago I watched an interview with a '38 pilot who was on the base but not a participant in the raid. He said when the pilots got back they drove around in a jeep yelling that they had got Yamamoto. The base commander ordered them to his tent and they assumed they were to be commended but instead he called them an angry string of names and told them to get out. The attack was supposed to be happen-chance, to announce that we knew he was on one of the planes was to also announce that we could read Japanese code. If I can find the interview I'll post it later. But again, very well done on all your efforts.
Thankyou, Ive looked into the reports and found the same information. I believe the British were also furious with the Americans for the same reason and suspended intelligence reports temporarily,
Thank you for the suggestion on subs and comments... I would have never thought of doing so, if I enjoy a creator's content. Always love listening to someone whine and beg EVERY video they post to LIKE, SUB, and SHARE... it doesn't even get 'annoying', video after video, smh. It was a great video, though.
when you name off people and pilots it would be so cool if you told us what state they are from so we can look them up after the video and see if any of their stuff is still around here or maybe in museums.
In the Movie, "The Gallant Hours" the movie starts with Yamamoto ordering Zeros to shoot down a PBY coming to Guadalcanal. Halsey being a pilot knew the dangers of staying on one course too long and diverted to another base. The movie ends with Halsey getting Yamamoto. Interesting juxtaposition,.
The 339th TFS existed up until 1983 when some genius wanted the 3 squadrons at then Moody AFB to be in numerical order. So instead of 68th TFS, 70th TFS, 339th TFS, it was changed to 68th TFS, 69th TFS and 70th TFS.
Considering the loss of one Pilot, Hine, it was one loss too many. They successfully killed Yamamoto, which is incredible given the challenges of the mission. Rex Barber is an Oregon Native. Barber, Lamphier and all the others are True American Heroes.
Yamamoto já havia perdido a Batalha de Midway e 4 Porta Aviões. Muito estranha essa viagem ser assim tão perto da aviação americana. Até parece que alguém em Tokio, queria que o matassem não acham. Vocês iriam nesse vôo tão perto dos inimigos.
It's not "assassination" it was a proper war act, and remember every thing is fair in love and war. If this was assassination then what was "pearl harbour" since America was not even a party to WWII at that time. And the Japanese admiral was the culprit.
@@airwarchronicles That's what I do too, but I find I have to choreograph some external shots to get the pacing right. I just spent all night doing that for the video that's about to go live
@@airwarchronicles that's lots of work and I appreciate it as I was thinking about doing the same in my video's. Unfortunately I didnt had enough time last few months. Good stuff Soto!
@@tauront Once you get used to the mission builder and have assets saved that you can copy paste, it's a lot smoother than it sounds. Still a ton of overhead just to get 20 seconds of footage
@@ThunderBatSims I got used to mission editor in great battles and 1946 isnt my stuff due to fact that theres no proper vr support. Otherwise I would stick to it like "theres no tomorrow" cause japan planes lol.
It was justice, an act of war, revenge if you like, not an assassination. You can't assassinate murderers. America was at peace when Yamamoto attacked Pearl Harbor.
Harold Fudenna, a Japanese American who graduated from the Military Intelligence Service, intercepted the message that Yamamoto will be flying the day in question.
Well, thank you for adding that. That's great information. With the internment of so many Japanese Americans it's very interesting that someone of that ancestry was allowed to be in such an important position.. My best wishes to you from the UK.
@@paulreilly3904 Those Japanese Americans who served as interpreters, translators & interrogators were not allowed to discuss their service until the mid-1970s. They served in every Pacific Theater Campaign. My Uncle was drafted from one of those internment camps and was stationed in Japan during the occupation. If you are ever visiting San Francisco, please visit the Military Intelligence Learning Center
the first school of its kind established in 1941. I will be your docent.
@@paulreilly3904 There is a book out there called "Yankee Samurai" that tells the story of Nisei troops who specialized in Japanese intelligence during the Pacific War. Their activities were Top Secret the entire war and are not listed in any official monographs of any Marine or Army units that engaged the Japanese. It was many-many years before there was even a hint of what they accomplished.
Near the end of his life, I had the distinct honour of meeting Lieutenant Lawrence Graebner (ret.). He told me the story of his role in Operation Vengeance, as well as of the times he was shot down over Iwo Jima. The world is a little less each day as that generation leaves us.
Yes, A.L. They were The 🏅Greatest Generation , And you and I have pride in being the Sons & Daughters of that Greatest Generation 🇺🇸
There is a Reader’s Digest article of the one remaining killer pilots going to court and asking the judge to declare him the pilot who killed Yamamoto. The judge refused to do so. What a shameful act to end one of the greatest stories of WWII. The Japanese never learned of the fact that our Intelligence analysts were deciphering their military messages. God Bless AMERICA!!!
Thank you again, A.L.
I shudder to think what would have happened to Europe & then Our Country had then rats like Hitler and the then vicious Japanese had won that war!
Also, if you haven’t seen The Gallant Hours, a magnificent movie following Admiral Bill Halsey through
The Battle of Guadalcanal, and The Solomon Islands , and others , you can see it Free on Tubi .It shows how crucial it was for us to hold on to it at all costs, while the Japs likewise were in a maniacal death defying mindset to take it back at any cost. Luckily, Happily, after many months of bitter fighting , they’d had enough and withdrew after taking much worse losses than us !
Had they taken Guadalcanal, they would have been nothing stopping them from going across to Australia and New Zealand cutting our line of supply to those countries and extending the war any number of years, or worse.
My father was a senior NCO at Wheeler Field on Oahu on December 7, 1941. He was forced to take over command of his unit when the CO was killed by a straffing Japanese Zero. He managed to safely organize the men into vehicles to move equipment out of the hangar targets. He also established small gunnery units to provide defensive ground fire aimed at the attacking zeroes. For his efforts he was awarded the Bronze Star with Combat V and a Purple Heart.
You can say that and know for sure you are correct, it seems like the best of us have already been born. I am embarrassed by my generation and the one after, Jesus we are going in the wrong direction
I also read that Ray Hines was later seen by a PBY for the last time flying much further south. He was flying at very low altitude with an engine feathered. Tragically, he never reached Henderson Field and died alone, forever to be remembered.
Matome Ugaki survived the crash indeed, and in the last days of war he _insisted_ in climbing aboard a _Judy_ Bomber for a Kamikaze mission. As happened so often, the aircraft was shot down by American Fighters before hitting any target.
Ah so, I didn't know any of them survived. Interesting he went back to war like so.
@@carolecarr5210 Yes, Ugaki in a separate plane survived..and that is chilling..it means if the two planes switched position, sheer chance, Yamamoto would probably have survived...after all this, mission could have easily failed..
Ugaki himself MAY have been worth mounting the mission to kill, in his own right...still a major card in the IJN.Japanese military deck..
@@KateLicker
Very good comment, and yes... Ugaki would have made a worthwhile target himself
Great to see useful or interesting information like this posted. Thanks.
This is a signature moment for the USAAF in the SW Pacific theater of operations. They pulled it off by using a compass and clock all while enduring an environment made to sap the strength and concentration of each aviator. Impressive doesn’t begin to describe this incredible mission.
Brilliant, but it was the standard way to navigate back then, dead reckoning.
@@georgemalkin6546 ua-cam.com/users/shortsBmc9NFfhx74?feature=share
@@georgemalkin6546 I read they used a different, more accurate, navy compass.
@@Fastbikkel Hahaha!!!! This!!!
Great moment
The firepower of 4 concentrated .50cal with a 20 mm cannon was fearsome.
That’s why on those early models of the P-38, there’s no place for a gun camera in this particular mission
To me what impresses me most about this mission is the fact that they flew for so many hours without autopilot, flush with the waves and with their nerves on edge the whole time, along with the heat, the noise, the fatigue. The fact that only one allied pilot was lost is incredible.
... true. However if taking aside the flying so close to the water, perhaps the most challenging P-38 missions were of late in 1944 being flown from Morotai and Sansapoor (or, Saipan) with 9 or 9.5 hours. In early 1945 one mission of the 12th Fighter Squadron lasted 10 hours and a handful of minutes.
@@francescofissore161 to
@@francescofissore161
Incredible inner discipline of each of the crew members.
I have to believe our guys today have that as their emblematic encouragement to be just as great for Our Country 🇺🇸
I assume they had to maintain radio silence, as well.
@@jerometaperman7102You are right. According to the post war books, the famous "eleven o'clock, high" broke radio silence.
This is important, because operations in the Pacific area were usually impossible without radio messages. The Japanese raid to Pearl Harbor being another and major exception.
In the present case, the US intelligence services and the US admirals had been consulted beforehand, but not admiral Halsey, who was operating near Japan. Now, nobody can explain, it seems , how Halsey 's warm approval nevertheless reached headquarters. ("Codebreakers" by David Kahn)
he wasn't assassinated. he was military commander at war he was killed in action.
So I guess Privates and NCO's are just KIA but Admirals/Generals are assasinated? Rubbish
I totally agree!!
Él no fue asesinado, era un comandante militar en guerra y fue muerto en acción.
Merely a technical term.
Usually to make the distinction between the soldier killed in combat & the one gotten in a carefully prepared ambush.
No derogatory meaning here.
If Rommel had been had during the 1941 Keyes commando operation at his villa in Libya, it would be said too that he was assassinated.
While the death of general Gott shot down in his plane by a German fighter was attributed to fatality (or Destiny) because he was replaced by Monty whom Churchill didn’t want at 1st !
Agreed. He was a military man in uniform in a plane with military markings, shot down by enemy planes with military markings in war zone fought over by two countries that had declared war on each other.
The old Rabaul airstrip is now buried under metres of volcanic ash after the 1994 Tavurvur eruption. I believe Admiral Yamamoto's bunker is also buried. I was fortunate enough to see it before the event and see the maps drawn on the cement walls. Hundreds of aircraft remain missing in the jungles and waters of PNG.
There is a video on UA-cam of people visiting the wreck.
.
Thanks for that info
Thanks. I'd heard about that eruption.
You are the adventurer!
A propeller from Yamamoto's Betty bomber is on display at the South Australian Aviation Museum. It was recovered from the wreck of his plane.
My dad was a Marine and was stationed at Henderson field on the Marine flight crews. He said when the P-38s came back, they were doing victory rolls so the ground crews knew they had shot him down. The Army P-38s were the only fighters that had the range to make the interception.
P38 my favorite fighter of WW2
That is a fantastic info to the end of this story. Your Dad is one of my heroes, & how fantastic he saw this piece of history. Oh, I'm a bit of airplane lover. P38 was my favorite in WW2.
An often overlooked point when people discuss fighter ranges and the early unescorted bomber missions in Europe that had high losses, especially the infamous "Black Thursday" mission on Schweinfert, is that this mission happened a full six months before the Schweinfert raid and it covered more distance than the Schweinfert mission did, it's proof that those missions didn't have to go unescorted if only the fighter's in Europe had been provided with the US made all metal pressurized drop tanks.
I've shut down more than one argument about that using this mission as proof.
Using the relay system the P47 variant's that were in Europe in numbers at the time could have flown the first and third legs of an escort mission and P38's could have flown the second (longest) leg taking them to the targets, it absolutely could have been done, the same P38 variant's that were used on this mission were available in Europe at that time.
@@dukecraig2402
Schweinfert was bad...
@@tbone1574
Yep, and it didn't have to be.
YAMAMOTO must have flipped his lid when those Lightnings showed up to shoot him down on a routine flight.
Well presented, informative, well animated, and straight to the point.
Excellent work.
yo moma
Note: the US fighters took off from Kukum airfield next to Henderson field. I unfortunately missed this detail.
This video is slightly late due to significant rendering issues, but it has turned out to be one of my better videos. I hope to continue more videos like this. Also, reuploaded to fix some errors.
Fantastic video 😊
You say late, but its here just in time for the 80th Anniversary! I call that an unintended win :)
Fantastic video as always. The research and quality is top notch, especially with all the skins and such. Masterful.
My favorite so far!
I was texting him during attack. He was swearing non stop. Something about F Americans ?
Don’t sweat it, great contribution.
Rex Barber was a great man. I knew him when I was much younger. He was my Grandpa's insurance agent. We was very active with Little League Baseball in our county. Never heard of this story until I was an adult.
My grandfather was one of the code breakers that intercepted this communication leading tho the death of Yamamoto
I hate it when people say this was an assassination. Yamamoto was in uniform and in a military aircraft flying the insignia of a country that the US was in a declared war with. He is just another casualty of war.
I'm somewhat neutral on the assassination description, but your points are well made, and I respect your opinion. There are other comments calling it cold-blooded murder, which just does not seem to take into account that Yamamoto was in uniform and in command of large enemy forces. He was riding in and escorted by armed combat aircraft. He was on a mission to instill morale and fighting spirit into enemy forces. Last but certainly not least, he planned the first surprise attack for what was at the time an undeclared war. I don't recall there being any concern for collateral damage to innocents at Pearl Harbor...
If someone whacked him while he was tending a bonsai tree in his kimono... that might come within a light year of murder...
If anyone doesn't understand what a no-quarter business that WWII in the Pacific theater was, they have a lot to catch up on.
Leave it to a civilian to tell the story. U.S. Navy Vet. 🇺🇲
@@nbforrest9 Did you know that Yamamoto thought Japan had declared war on the US before the bombing of Pearl Harbor. Sneak attacks are considered a War Crime and when he got back to Japan he was not happy about it.
Yamamoto was responsible for the deaths of 2800 American lives at Pearl harbour He was not assassinated he was the enemy and in uniform This is very bad corruption of the English language Since when have rules applied in wartime tell that to the thousands of people murdered by the Japanese over 5 years I object to the way this is written which in puts those P 38s pilots in an extremely bad light get you facts straight first
@@michaelnaisbitt7926 Admiral Kimmel was equally responsible for not having his fleet on alert given the clear threat of Japanese aggression.
The P-38, Kelly Johnson's baby, was a magnificent airplane!
A superb piece of intelligence, planning and execution.
There's a great book by Donald Davis called " Lightning Strike" that chronicles the Cactus Air Force in general and the Vengeance mission in particular.
I am a 80 born pilot however I always wanted to be a pilot of the 40s.. pure talent, expertise, experience and courage.. no missiles or BVR engagements.. JUS DOG FIGHTS ❤
I object to the term "assassinated". Why is killing a Japanese rifleman or a Japanese pilot "KIA" but killing their commander is "assassination". He was a combatant pure and simple.
It may not have been an assassination in the true sense of the word, but is worth considering the similarities between an 'assassination' and a 'targeted killing'. This is a personal creative decision.
@@airwarchronicles true so it’s more like taking down Bin laden tactical elimination operation always great to take out a high figure in a rival leadership role
English for absolute beginners.... Willkommen im Club.
I agree, it wasn’t an assassination . Nothing but taking out the enemy commander
@@martinbrode7131 Jahwohl mein herring
I’ve seen one of the propellers from Yamamoto’s plane, it’s very cool that it’s in the same city as me.
Seems to me I remember reading somewhere that they flew the same mission for several days afterward so that the Japanese wouldn’t know that we had broken their code. Any input ?
Absolutely.
You are 100% correct. They did not want the Japs to think Yamamoto's death was related to intelligence. They wanted to guarantee that the Japs believe it was just a chance encounter of American planes.
A Gruelling mission and an outstanding presentation.
Excellent graphics and correct detail even showing the p38 engines with "Counter Rotating Props" - Excellent
Rex Barber was from my home town in Oregon. He was a living legend.
Almost three hours to break the exact minute, entirely relying on compass and wristwatch.
That's sick, an insane mission!
Amen
This mission was exactly one year after the Doolittle Raid on Japan.
Boy had things changed.
The pilot of the P38 who attacked Yamamoto's plane said in the 1970s that it was during the test fighting before starting the fight, that a bullet hit the plane's engine.
I do not believe the Japanese account that Yamamoto was seated in his seat still holding his ceremonial sword. The man is shot through the shoulder and jaw and experiences an extreme crash in the jungle but is still holding his sword? No way.
This was retribution. On December 7, 1941 my dad was serving aboard USS Raleigh CL-7 at Pearl Harbor. In the opening minutes Raleigh took a torpedo hit. About an hour later, Raleigh was struck by an armor piercing bomb. Fortunately, the crew succeeded in keeping her afloat. Raleigh returned to service after repairs and served for the duration of WWII.
Early in 1964 my ship's homeport was Apra Harbor, Guam.
On our first cruise out of Guam, we steamed to Rabaul, New Britain. I had the pleasure of riding the back roads around Rabaul while driven by an Aussie who lived there.
Your Dad is in elite group I call "my heroes", & thank him for my freedom.
@@carolecarr5210 Thank you. I'm honored by your encouraging words.
I heard a story once that the then-widowed wife of a sailor killed at Pearl upon hearing of Yamamoto's death took the only alcoholic drink in her lifetime in a toast to it!
The P38’s left Kukum airfield, to the east of Henderson Field which is now the local golf course.
Just getting to the rendezvous point is tough enough … then you gotta get onto an all out air fight 400+ miles away and get home.. I can’t get over how tough my dads generation was.. they were the high water mark of our culture..
And don't forget the precision timing.
@@andrewvelonis5940 what you mean precision timing!!?! They were a minute early to the rendezvous point !!! Gotta do better than that!! Ha!
Thank you Mr Lindberg!
This flight happened before Lindbergh was in the PTO
Great attention to graphic detail on your presentation, even down to the Marsden mat covered runways the P-38's are taking off from.😀👍
Ein wirklich tolles Video! Die Schilderung der Aktion, die Visualisierung! Einfach toll!
👍😎🇦🇹
This was not an “assassination”. He was an enemy combatant. He was killed in compliance with the rules of war.
A poor choice of words on their part
Excellent as always. My one wrinkle is (sadly) a political one-the use of the term “assassinated.” I have no problem with this term if it means a targeted attack. I do have a problem with it if it casts shade. In terms of legitimacy, Yamamoto’s death wasn’t any more an assassination than the death of any other common soldier of any side killed in combat.
Many of the upper chain of command involved also felt this operation was an "assassination", but followed their orders. Many felt that Yamamoto was a more reasonable voice among the imperialist fanatics in the Japanese command. There is a debate that the war may have ended sooner if Yamamoto was not killed.
@@drewbertola Well, that would be then a third definition of the term. All that may very well be true (we’ll never know about the possibility of a shorter war), but to apply the term as we would, say, to the killing of Abraham Lincoln is out of bounds. A strategically inadvisable military attack, then-but not assassination of the sense most think of it.
@@davidx9901 not my opinion, necessarily, just telling you the feelings and analysis of the ones that were there. Some thought it was, debatably, better to have Yamamoto's voice of reason remain. Hindsight...
@@drewbertola Yes, point taken. Tremendous irony that he was the one who was rubbed out, even at that time.
@@drewbertola In general the Army was more fanatical than the Navy.
There was a US propaganda poster during the war that depicted Yamamoto saying "I am looking forward to dictating peace to the United States in the White House at Washington." This was a misrepresentation: what actually happened is that the Army fanatics had informed Yamamoto of their war aims, and Yamamoto had responded something like "the only way you'll get _that_ is if you march into Washington and dictate peace in the White House."
While stationed on the Island of Okinawa in the early 90's, a building we used to frequent on Camp. Lester had a large painting of Yamamoto. I worked with an older Japanese gentlemen. Every time we walked by that picture he saluted Yamamoto - with a very prominent middle finger. He had a particular disdain for him after what he'd witnessed as a child.
The intelligence gathering that made this mission possible is amazing- for allied planes to even be there blows my mind... and then they have to BOTH be shot down- no way to know FOR SURE with plane Yamamoto is in
And really, the Japanese should have realized their codes were broken because of this mission. The US got away with it, but I'm not sure the reward was worth the risk.
@@GermanShepherd1983 Yes it was.
It is something quite curious that one year exactly aafter the Doolitle raid on Japan, Yamamoto was killed in action.
The operation was decided on relatively short term.
Also in the Pacific in 1943, especially on Guadalcanal, there were other priorities.
Plane gun-cameras were much harder to come by than combat cameras. The 1943 P-38s which had cameras were for reconnaissance.
Anyway that’s much regrettable for the missing records.
At Midway, USS Yorktown films of the attack on the Japanese carriers were just in the dark room when the avenging Japanese from the Hiryu hit the Yorktown the only 🇺🇸 carrier they knew the position, & the films were all lost in the fire.
Re Thaddeus V. Tuleja ‘Midway’
Google for ‘Midway actual footage and photos’
What difference does it make who actually shot Yamamoto? It was a big team effort. No pilot by himself could have done it.
What matters is that Lanphier tried to make himself look great by lying about it and trying to take credit for something he didn't do. Lanphier's overall time in the military wasn't spectacular and he was just embellishing it.
@@GermanShepherd1983
You're making my.point. What does it matter? Why keep pushing it? The whole thing was a very large team effort. No Pilot could have shot him down without all the others.
@@douglasturner6153 I don't want a liar like Lanphier profiting from the gallant work of others. And, I'm not trying to make your point.
@@GermanShepherd1983
Did it without trying. Even if he had been in the right position and shot him you can't take lone credit in an operation like that.
I was trying to figure out what happened to the sword Yamamoto was carrying. The crash site was found by a Japanese Army patrol. Supposedly, according to their records, the admiral's seat had been ejected and he was found sitting upright and still clenching his katana in a death grip. It seems a rather dignified outcome. Who knows what actual mayhem they encountered at the crash site. The sword incidentally was one his brother had made for him as a gift in the 1930s. It was delivered back to his family and allegedly has damage from .50 caliber rounds to it. That airplane is still in the jungle, by the way, which is surprising considering its immense historical value.
Since you said the sword was delivered back to his family, why are you also wondering what happened to it?? Obviously, it must still be with his family!
just a little point of note. the p38s of vengeance, needed a lot of fuel to get to the interception point so yes, they mounted drop tanks. But if you read Dan Hamptons book about the mission, each p38 had one 165-gallon tank and another, much larger 310-gallon tank mounted under the wing roots. This combined with the 38's internal supply would be just enough to get them to the interception point and to do what they needed to do. but all in all, this was a very good representation of the actual mission.
keep up the good work.
HOLY ISHT! I first read about this over 30 years ago around age 11 and I am just now learning that three people on the second bomber SURVIVED??? History is amazing. 🙂
The surprise and panic that must have been experienced aboard the Japanese plane
The code breakers were Australian service women, “the Garage Girls”, working at Gen McArthur’s HQ in Brisbane, Queensland.
Ah, IL-2. Brings back wonderful memories. I've even flown that mission in that game with my squad my way back to the day. A game well ahead of its time.
Honestly, great job using the cinematic view in the game! You did a great job capturing this. Also, kudos to any human pilots you had flying the aircraft for this.
😊❤
I have enough respect for the fact that Yamamotu's knowledge of Harvard led him to advise the Emperor not to attack the USA, that I am pleased by the fact that he died honorably in war, instead of suffering the ignominy of Japan's military when the entire Empire admitted defeat.
We were of course better off that Japan no longer had his military skills.
Targeting his aircraft was a Good Idea.
Some of the best CGI on the net.
Best recreation of this out there!
Very well done
Thank you for going the extra mile
Love the fact is was confirmed A6m3-32 and their markings were done perfectly
Thanks again
Time to go build models !!!
Now you're talking! 😀
@@duartesimoes508 thank you friend!
I read that the P38 fighter wings at Guadal Canal were coached by Charles Lindbergh (off Transatlantic crossing fame) to get optimum fuel efficiency and thereby range. This factor was critical in allowing the intercept to take place.
Years later the bomber was found and Yamamoto’s body found.
Both the bomber and Yamamoto's body were found at the time. According to Walter Boyne's "Clash of Wings", Yamamoto's ashes were returned to Japan after his death. It is possible that the wreck of the Betty's location was lost, then found later.
Yamamoto's body was found and recovered the next day.
You are correct sir , Charles Lindbergh showed them they could run the engines in a leaner condition than they had been trained thus making the mission possible
Fascinating! Thanks for that detail.
No Charles Lindbergh was in the Pacific in 1944, a year after this battle. But he did help teach the pilots to use their planes better- P38 and Corsairs.
Glad Barber finally got recognition. Sorry about Hines, it was probably quick.
Glad to see you putting some Pacific War content on channel.
Lanphier always stated the kill was his credit. The mission results were kept secret untill the end of the war. Lanphier's youngest brother Charlie was shot at the same spot, leading a flight of Corsairs in an attack to the airfield were Yamamoto was expected some weeks before. The American bailed out and died in a Japanese Pow camp before the war was over.
There's been controversy for a long time. Lanphier put in the first claim for credit, but over time, according to several sources, it's more likely that Barber's shots took down the Betty.
I've never heard that about Lanphier's brother. Amazing.
@@gregmead2967 Charlie Lanphier was in VMF-214, Pappy Boyington's Black Sheep. As they were both based on 'Cactus' at the time. Tom Lanphier came over to see his brother and party with the Blacksheep after that mission. Tom let spill about the mission, and Boyington's people got in trouble with G2 for knowing too much. Charlie Lanphier's F4U was shot down later. It is unknown whether the Japanese knew they had the brother of Adm Yamamoto's killer. [Or one of them.]
@@gregmead2967 I knew he was in captivity. Wasn't aware that he did not survive it. 🙁
@@duartesimoes508 Mortality rate in Japanese POW camps was 30-40%, 2% in German POW camps. That says a lot.
@@HootOwl513 I think the Japanese never knew.
Thanks for the great video. Always a pleasure.
The death of Yamamoto was not an assignation in the illegal sense. It was an air battle with casualties on both sides. In the long run if Yamamoto had not been killed in battle, he would eventually committed suicide.
I'd say it was an assassination in that the Americans tried to specifically kill him, but he was a legitimate military target, just as any military figure would be. Nothing against the laws of war.
Not sure he would have killed himself at the end. He studied in the US and was fairly well Americanized. He reputedly liked America and wasn't for the attacks against the US. But he did as he was told.
But it's pointless to argue the point because it was moot after he was killed.
Good point. The Americans saved him from committing the sin of suicide at the end of the war. Probably hung though for war crimes.
It’s insane that they found them with no gps guidance
Nah, it's all in the Maths 😉 Don't skip classes like these blokes ua-cam.com/video/XeyfBurShd4/v-deo.html 🤭 & maybe heaps load of Luck some call it Divine Grace 😇
Modern aircraft don't use GPS to intercept targets either.
Some planes were equipped with radar at the time.
Yamamoto was a stickler for punctuality. The intercepted Japanese message told the Americans when Yamamoto was due to land and where. The Americans knew where he was taking off from and they knew the route he would have to take due to fuel requirements of the Japanese planes, avoidance of American activity in the area and his schedule. From all this the Americans worked out where he would be and when.
The thing that really got Yamamoto was his predictability.
The Lockheed Lightnings had 1/2 hour of fuel to wait and loiter at the intercept position. As it was they only had to wait a few minutes.
This was a product of great navigation and great timing.
Non of these aircraft had radars.
Lucky
Yeah, they found the bombers without gps, inertial navigation, or any other electronic navigation gizmos. It’s called old fashion flying using a compass and a map. You figure out the course you’ll take and compute how long it’ll take to get there using old fashioned math. I seriously doubt most pilots could do it now. They’re too dependent on electronics nowadays.
All Private and Commercial license written tests and flight tests in Canada have cross country flight planning sections which have to be completed using solely paper maps, pencils and old fashion computation techniques. It’s hammered into us so we can rely on it if we lose avionics just as you say!
It seems incredidle that the timing could be so spot on. Those American pilots are real heroes, especially the one that was killed. RIP!!!
This is the first info I’ve seen that showed what happened to the one missing p38
The good thing about Japanese aircraft of WW 2 they were all lightly armoured making them vulnerable to heavy calibre guns on fighters 😊
What a great video. You told the story well. I watched it three times.
Excellent video. But nobody went to help Hine when he was in trouble ??? poor effort.
Great work. Really nice to see these details and good camera shots!
Awesome video!!! When the Americans intercepted and decrypted the Japanese codes and learned of Yamamoto's schedule, they started training vigorously with the only fighter that was capable enough to complete the mission, the P-38. However, Yamamoto's route was beyond the extreme range of the P-38, even with drop tanks. The Americans recruited the famous aviator, CHARLES LINDBURG to help figure out how to get the best fuel performance from the P-38. Lindburg went to Guadalcanal and trained the mission pilots how to cut back on fuel usage and other "tricks of the trade" that he learned and/or invented since he was the 1st person to fly across the Atlantic solo. Also, during the training for the mission, even though Lindburg was flying the P-38 showing the pilots what to do, it is "rumored" that on one such training mission that he may have actually shot down an enemy aircraft that they stumbled across
Lindbergh is a legend.
I highly doubt that rumor is true, but I don't doubt that Lindbergh was capable of winning a dogfight.
... Lindbergh went to the Pacific theater NOT before May 1944 (about one year after the Yamamoto mission) and stayed first with the Marine Corsair pilots, like the VMF-222. Only later was he advisor for P-38 units.
@@francescofissore161 THANKS!! for the correction!! Do remember reading about him being in the Pacific teaching pilots how to get the best fuel performance from their aircrafts. Was watching a video about him just before watching this video and may have gotten "confused".
@@jamesbednar8625 glad being helpful. As a sidenote - this particular mission is top famous but if talking of flight duration, it is just an average one for the P-38s. In October - November 1944 some missions from Morotai and Sansapoor reached 9 or 9.5 hours.
@@francescofissore161 Also, the "Kings & Generals" put out a video about this incident -pretty good!!
Great job as always, meticulous in the details 👍
The who-got-him dispute between Lanphier & Barber has been long running but I believe your depiction is among the most accurate.
No. It's not. Both of them fired on the plane so the Army gave both of them half a kill. That happened all the time. Saying that just Barber did it - is bull shit.
.
Beautiful. Yamamoto had to go and it's wonderful. His plane in flame. Remember Pearl Harbor.
Hated the Japanese during WWII. They were brutal savages
Supreme scum. Germans not much. The Germans conducted warfare fair and square. Not talking political agenda
Great vid! I never knew how Yamamoto was shot down, thx telling this story! :)
This mission was made possible by Charles Lindbergh's discovery of the range-extending method known today as "running lean of peak".
... actually, Lindbergh went to the Pacific theater not before May 1944 and started with the Marine pilots of VMF-222, flying Corsairs. Later, he got to P-38 units, but all this came more than one year after the Yamamoto mission.
I'm glad they got him to this day I have not time for these people for the havoc they caused in the past!!!
Such an awesome presentation, Yamamoto died the way a soldier should in combat with your sword 🗡️ in hand, he was a great warrior, and sadly told his superiors that awakening the sleeping giant, would only see to encounter it’s wrath! The fact that we made a long range mission strike to eliminate him shows his immense importance to the Japanese war effort! Rest In Peace!!
But he really wasn't important anymore.
By 1943, Japan was a shadow of what it was when it attacked Pearl Harbor.
This was straight up revenge.
Not saying anything is wrong about getting revenge, but killing Yamamoto was irrelevant to the war at that point.
@@lordgarion514 ivory tower. Couldn't be more wrong.
Some men need killing, and some men just need to do it.
Not about his decisions or future strategy, it's about killing a man who earned it. Pretty simple.
@@lordgarion514 I see your point but disagree on him not being important, Revenge I agree with you on that point! Thanks
@@ricardocorbie6803
It doesn't matter how good someone is if they don't have the money, natural resources, or soldiers to fight.
And by 1943, Japan was running out of all those things.
And considering how against attacking America Yamamoto was, the fact is there was a good chance that he could (and would) have gotten Japan to surrender sooner.
Yamamoto was deeply concerned for his country and its people. Most of the others were quite happy to sacrifice even the children to keep fighting.
That is fiction for the movies. After a major jungle crash he held nothing in his hands but his ass. The sword was dug up by natives. Read a book
P-38's ....what a marvellous aircraft!
This was the first anniversary of the Doolittle Raid.
My uncle was wounded at Pearl Harbor. Getting Yamamoto was payback. However, everything I have read about the man says he would have appreciated the honor of being singled out for vengance and dying in battle.
Yamamoto was against the war between Japan and the USA, being in the USA and knowing its economic potential, which over time will overwhelm the inefficient economy of Japan.
But as a true samurai, he honorably fulfilled his soldierly duty, fighting for his homeland as best as he could, trying at least to postpone the inevitable - Japan's defeat.
@@kakitakenzo5013 Yes he did they tried to assassinate him for being a coward for not wanting to fight the US. But, he followed duty and did his best. I respect him
Finally someone got it right and said Lou Kittel was flying #125! Most say it wasn't on the mission because its wing was damaged hitting a Japanese frigate
The thing about this mission is that the US military had to make it look like they just stumbled upon Yamamoto's plane because they didn't want to give it away that we were copying the Japanese codes. If they realized that we knew where Yamamoto was going to be because we read it from their codes, they'd have changed all their codes.
Do you not think ? It's strange that there's No actual gun camera footage from the P 38 's?
I actally got Rex Barber's P-38 "Miss Virginia" in my collection.
Delicious, Soto, simply delicious. Thank you so much for all the work.
May I suggest that you remind viewers to sub and leave comments, you have way too few subs for this level of work.
About a year ago I watched an interview with a '38 pilot who was on the base but not a participant in the raid. He said when the pilots got back they drove around in a jeep yelling that they had got Yamamoto. The base commander ordered them to his tent and they assumed they were to be commended but instead he called them an angry string of names and told them to get out.
The attack was supposed to be happen-chance, to announce that we knew he was on one of the planes was to also announce that we could read Japanese code.
If I can find the interview I'll post it later.
But again, very well done on all your efforts.
Thankyou, Ive looked into the reports and found the same information. I believe the British were also furious with the Americans for the same reason and suspended intelligence reports temporarily,
I met one of the lawyers of the two pilots that was under dispute back in the 1990s, while I was a docent at a fighter aircraft museum.
Thank you for the suggestion on subs and comments... I would have never thought of doing so, if I enjoy a creator's content. Always love listening to someone whine and beg EVERY video they post to LIKE, SUB, and SHARE... it doesn't even get 'annoying', video after video, smh.
It was a great video, though.
@11:40 The US Army controlled the US's air power during WW2. The US Air Force was only established in 1947.
Great graphics and excellent learning experience. Thank you
Each P-38 had a 165 USGL tank and a 310 USGL tank attached......NOT 2 x 310 USGL tanks, as mis-stated in the video.
Man, I love the graphics in your video. Well done. 👍
Another excellently done cinematic.
Charles Lindberg was also consulted to lean out the engines to the point of burn out out in order to gain maximum mileage.
when you name off people and pilots it would be so cool if you told us what state they are from so we can look them up after the video and see if any of their stuff is still around here or maybe in museums.
In the Movie, "The Gallant Hours" the movie starts with Yamamoto ordering Zeros to shoot down a PBY coming to Guadalcanal. Halsey being a pilot knew the dangers of staying on one course too long and diverted to another base. The movie ends with Halsey getting Yamamoto. Interesting juxtaposition,.
I read Operation Vengeance: The Astonishing Aerial Ambush That Changed World War II by Dan Hampton an interesting tale of the shoot down.
Yamamoto paid for what he did at Pearl Harbor with his life. He did it on my grandfather's birthday. Rip Cmdr Carl C. Foster USNR.
Vid was so good I've watched it twice already. 👍
Fantastic video!!!!
The 339th TFS existed up until 1983 when some genius wanted the 3 squadrons at then Moody AFB to be in numerical order. So instead of 68th TFS, 70th TFS, 339th TFS, it was changed to 68th TFS, 69th TFS and 70th TFS.
Considering the loss of one Pilot, Hine, it was one loss too many. They successfully killed Yamamoto, which is incredible given the challenges of the mission. Rex Barber is an Oregon Native. Barber, Lamphier and all the others are True American Heroes.
That was fascinating. Thanks for posting this !
Excellent voice-over.
80 years ago coming up on the anniversary !!
Yamamoto já havia perdido a Batalha de Midway e 4 Porta Aviões. Muito estranha essa viagem ser assim tão perto da aviação americana. Até parece que alguém em Tokio, queria que o matassem não acham. Vocês iriam nesse vôo tão perto dos inimigos.
Carlos Americo no. Yamamoto told his son he would not live to see the end of the war. He probably new we.would pay him back for Pearl Harbor.
It's not "assassination" it was a proper war act, and remember every thing is fair in love and war. If this was assassination then what was "pearl harbour" since America was not even a party to WWII at that time. And the Japanese admiral was the culprit.
This is fantastic, it is not easy to get the footage. How much of it do you have to fly yourself, and how much is Ai with commands?
I use the full mission builder to create the various parts of the flight then record the AI and fly all cockpit shots
@@airwarchronicles That's what I do too, but I find I have to choreograph some external shots to get the pacing right. I just spent all night doing that for the video that's about to go live
@@airwarchronicles that's lots of work and I appreciate it as I was thinking about doing the same in my video's. Unfortunately I didnt had enough time last few months. Good stuff Soto!
@@tauront Once you get used to the mission builder and have assets saved that you can copy paste, it's a lot smoother than it sounds. Still a ton of overhead just to get 20 seconds of footage
@@ThunderBatSims I got used to mission editor in great battles and 1946 isnt my stuff due to fact that theres no proper vr support. Otherwise I would stick to it like "theres no tomorrow" cause japan planes lol.
It was justice, an act of war, revenge if you like, not an assassination. You can't assassinate murderers. America was at peace when Yamamoto attacked Pearl Harbor.
But America's colonial and nitpicking nature contributed to the ww2. America isn't always innocent. War is war.
I love your videos. Keep up your work ❤️