Introduction
This is the autobiography of Yutaka Yokota, one of the few kaiten crewmen to survive the war. Never before translated into English in its entirety, this thoughtful exposé gives readers an intimate look at the dark and disturbing world of the most sinister weapon of WWII, the kaiten human torpedo.
In the waning years of WWII, with their once mighty warships resting on the bottom of the Pacific and the American fleet advancing inexorably towards Japan, the Imperial Japanese Navy resorted to the most desperate measure of all — they equipped torpedoes with a pilot’s compartment and trained young men to steer them into American ships.
This personal narrative tells the story as it has never been told before, not through the words of an historian but in the words of one who was there. Yutaka Yokota survived unimaginable horrors and, against all odds, miraculously survived. How he did so is a harrowing tale. Did the hand of fate reach out and save him so he could tell the world the story that would otherwise have gone untold? The story of how the men responsible for starting the war with America betrayed the idealism of their nation’s best and brightest, sacrificing their lives in a futile attempt to prolong a war they knew was lost. It is a story of stolen youth.
Yokota’s epic and wide-ranging memoir gives a detailed description of how kaiten crew members were selected, trained and indoctrinated. Also covered in depth are the private lives of these young men and how they coped with the certain death awaiting them. Included are vivid and horrifying accounts of the kaiten launches from submarines at sea and what it was like for the crewmen on Japanese submarines who endured depth charge attacks from U.S. destroyers
However, this is not an account of non-stop naval action. Rather, it is an intimate first-person look at how idealistic young men who set out to become naval aviators were sidetracked into the human torpedo program. Yokota describes how these young men lived, how they coped with a life that was soon to end and — in a disturbing look at the dark side of the Japanese military — how they were disciplined.
It is also the story of the price a man pays when his comrades in arms have died in battle and he survives. Among the special attackers, survival was the most despicable crime of all. Continuing to live while your comrades died was seen as the worst form of treachery. It was this survivor’s guilt that made Yutaka Yokota’s life and the lives of the other surviving kaiten crewmen such a torment.
One of the recurring themes in Yokota’s account — and what makes the study of this conflict so fascinating — is that in the final analysis the Pacific War was a clash of civilizations. The ancient culture of Japan, with its faith in divine intervention, past glories and mysticism, against the young nation of America and its mighty juggernaut of high technology.
Nicholas Voge lived in Japan for many years where he worked for Kawasaki Heavy Industries, Yamaha Motor Company and other major Japanese corporations as a translator, interpreter and writer. He is also a commercial airline pilot and a former marine engine mechanic and yachtsman. He is thus uniquely qualified to translate this epic memoir into English.
This is the autobiography of Yutaka Yokota, one of the few kaiten crewmen to survive the war. Never before translated into English in its entirety, this thoughtful exposé gives readers an intimate look at the dark and disturbing world of the most sinister weapon of WWII, the kaiten human torpedo.
In the waning years of WWII, with their once mighty warships resting on the bottom of the Pacific and the American fleet advancing inexorably towards Japan, the Imperial Japanese Navy resorted to the most desperate measure of all — they equipped torpedoes with a pilot’s compartment and trained young men to steer them into American ships.
This personal narrative tells the story as it has never been told before, not through the words of an historian but in the words of one who was there. Yutaka Yokota survived unimaginable horrors and, against all odds, miraculously survived. How he did so is a harrowing tale. Did the hand of fate reach out and save him so he could tell the world the story that would otherwise have gone untold? The story of how the men responsible for starting the war with America betrayed the idealism of their nation’s best and brightest, sacrificing their lives in a futile attempt to prolong a war they knew was lost. It is a story of stolen youth.
Yokota’s epic and wide-ranging memoir gives a detailed description of how kaiten crew members were selected, trained and indoctrinated. Also covered in depth are the private lives of these young men and how they coped with the certain death awaiting them. Included are vivid and horrifying accounts of the kaiten launches from submarines at sea and what it was like for the crewmen on Japanese submarines who endured depth charge attacks from U.S. destroyers
However, this is not an account of non-stop naval action. Rather, it is an intimate first-person look at how idealistic young men who set out to become naval aviators were sidetracked into the human torpedo program. Yokota describes how these young men lived, how they coped with a life that was soon to end and — in a disturbing look at the dark side of the Japanese military — how they were disciplined.
It is also the story of the price a man pays when his comrades in arms have died in battle and he survives. Among the special attackers, survival was the most despicable crime of all. Continuing to live while your comrades died was seen as the worst form of treachery. It was this survivor’s guilt that made Yutaka Yokota’s life and the lives of the other surviving kaiten crewmen such a torment.
One of the recurring themes in Yokota’s account — and what makes the study of this conflict so fascinating — is that in the final analysis the Pacific War was a clash of civilizations. The ancient culture of Japan, with its faith in divine intervention, past glories and mysticism, against the young nation of America and its mighty juggernaut of high technology.
Nicholas Voge lived in Japan for many years where he worked for Kawasaki Heavy Industries, Yamaha Motor Company and other major Japanese corporations as a translator, interpreter and writer. He is also a commercial airline pilot and a former marine engine mechanic and yachtsman. He is thus uniquely qualified to translate this epic memoir into English.
