I was wondering if anyone knows victory claims made by Japanese pilots on 8 July 1945 over Kyushu? I found this information which is really interesting:
"Smyth was assigned to fly P-47N #44-88059 on July 8, 1945, as one of eight P-47N Thunderbolts to dive bomb enemy targets of opportunity in the Chusan (Zhoushan) archipelago off the coast of China. The group took off from Ie Shima at 1323 hrs and headed northeast.
En route, the flight rendezvoused with their navigating escort, a U.S. Navy PB4Y Privateer. The pilot of the Privateer informed them that their mission had been diverted to the Sasebo/Nagasaki area in northwest Kyushu to attack targets of opportunity.
While the pilots of the 318th had been repeatedly warned of a concentration of enemy power in that area, there were no specific intelligence briefings about this target prior to their mission. They had only been briefed on the original target of Chusan, and could not be certain of what might await them over Kyushu.
Flying at 10,000 feet, the P-47s arrived over the Kyushu area at 4:55 p.m. They dive bombed an enemy radar station at Kabashima island and a boat. Proceeding northwest to Ukushima island, they bombed a dock, trucks and structures, then aimed their aircraft east toward Hirado Shima, and attacked a lighthouse and two boats. Lt. Smyth bombed an enemy ship and sent it to the bottom of the sea.
Then the skies over Kyushu became complicated.
One of Bud's fellow fliers, 2nd Lt. Billie D. Holt, attempted to skip-bomb a boat from a height of 150 feet. When the bomb hit the water, it exploded, sending bomb fragments forward into his plane, which immediately caught fire. Lt. Holt pulled up sharply and bailed out. The Privateer dropped a life raft to him while the other P-47s circled his location.
Without warning, eight or nine Japanese fighters arrived and pounced upon the unsuspecting American fliers. The fighters were thought to be Nakajima Ki-44 "Tojos'' or Kawanishi N1K "Georges," two of the best Japanese aircraft. The Japanese pilots aggressively attacked the outnumbered P-47s.
Smyth's aircraft was hit almost immediately. Flying at only a few hundred feet over water, he didn't have time to escape. His P-47 fell into the sea in flames, about a mile northwest of Hirado Shima's southern peninsula. A search of the area by his fellow fliers failed to reveal any sign of the plane or Lt. Smyth.
Lt. Bud Smyth was never seen again."
Are there any sources which show which Japanese aircraft, kokutai, sentai, pilots etc. were involved in this combat?
Thank you
"Smyth was assigned to fly P-47N #44-88059 on July 8, 1945, as one of eight P-47N Thunderbolts to dive bomb enemy targets of opportunity in the Chusan (Zhoushan) archipelago off the coast of China. The group took off from Ie Shima at 1323 hrs and headed northeast.
En route, the flight rendezvoused with their navigating escort, a U.S. Navy PB4Y Privateer. The pilot of the Privateer informed them that their mission had been diverted to the Sasebo/Nagasaki area in northwest Kyushu to attack targets of opportunity.
While the pilots of the 318th had been repeatedly warned of a concentration of enemy power in that area, there were no specific intelligence briefings about this target prior to their mission. They had only been briefed on the original target of Chusan, and could not be certain of what might await them over Kyushu.
Flying at 10,000 feet, the P-47s arrived over the Kyushu area at 4:55 p.m. They dive bombed an enemy radar station at Kabashima island and a boat. Proceeding northwest to Ukushima island, they bombed a dock, trucks and structures, then aimed their aircraft east toward Hirado Shima, and attacked a lighthouse and two boats. Lt. Smyth bombed an enemy ship and sent it to the bottom of the sea.
Then the skies over Kyushu became complicated.
One of Bud's fellow fliers, 2nd Lt. Billie D. Holt, attempted to skip-bomb a boat from a height of 150 feet. When the bomb hit the water, it exploded, sending bomb fragments forward into his plane, which immediately caught fire. Lt. Holt pulled up sharply and bailed out. The Privateer dropped a life raft to him while the other P-47s circled his location.
Without warning, eight or nine Japanese fighters arrived and pounced upon the unsuspecting American fliers. The fighters were thought to be Nakajima Ki-44 "Tojos'' or Kawanishi N1K "Georges," two of the best Japanese aircraft. The Japanese pilots aggressively attacked the outnumbered P-47s.
Smyth's aircraft was hit almost immediately. Flying at only a few hundred feet over water, he didn't have time to escape. His P-47 fell into the sea in flames, about a mile northwest of Hirado Shima's southern peninsula. A search of the area by his fellow fliers failed to reveal any sign of the plane or Lt. Smyth.
Lt. Bud Smyth was never seen again."
Are there any sources which show which Japanese aircraft, kokutai, sentai, pilots etc. were involved in this combat?
Thank you
