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Did the A6M come thus equipped or is this more apt for larger aircraft?Here is study by Takehiko Shibata of the National Institute for Defense Studies in 2007 about -
"Safety Measures for Flight Crews of the Japanese Naval Air Force: The Evolution of Survival Equipment and Other Developments"
(Excerpts)
There was no classification as the life-saving equipments among the items that Japanese Navy aircraft were equipped with. Therefore, I list the equipments classified as the security equipments and the seat equipments that did not directly contribute to the performance of the aircraft itself and was provided to ensure the safety of the crew. The outline is explained as referring to the in-flight equipment and personal equipment.
(1) Safety belt "Anzentai"
(details )..................................
(2) Parachute "Rakka-san"
(details )..................................
(3) Life jacket "Kyuumeishin or Kapok"
(details )..................................
(4) Floating device of airframe "Fuhen Souchi"
(details )..................................
(5) Life preserver "Kyuumeigu"
as life rafts and life buoys,
(details )..................................
2 Accident Examples, Lessons Learned and Countermeasures
(details )..................................
Source for the full contexts : 戦史研究年報 第10号
Admiral Beez said
Did the A6M come thus equipped or is this more apt for larger aircraft?
Just how likely were those bags to survive gunfire, or a ocean landing.I have pics of some of the IJNAF rescue devices described in Shinpachi's post.
(3) Life jacket "Kyuumeishin or Kapok"
LIFE VEST: Usually canvas material with pockets filled with Kapok. Uncomfortable to wear in the tropics but you almost never see a IJNAF pilot not wearing one.
View attachment 713067
View attachment 713069
(4) Floating device of airframe "Fuhen Souchi"
The A6M Zero had canvas flotation bags in wings and aft fuselage which were inflated by air pressure according to the diagram below:
View attachment 713066
MOKY for JEC
As far as checked, A6M and B5N were equipped with the floating device. Emergency ration with a bottle of wine were not equipped with the fighters.Did the A6M come thus equipped or is this more apt for larger aircraft?
On 3 Jan 1944 Boyington was shot down during a sweep over Rabaul and ended up in the water about 5 miles out to sea.Ironically, Pappy Boyington was rescued by a Japanese submarine after he got shot down in 1944. Even more bizarre, he was one of the very few aviators who was relocated to Japan and therefore didn't suffer through the same treatment that most Allied fliers got when imprisoned in a war zone. I can't explain how the Japanese sub managed to find him and his book didn't explain it either.
Certainly, the treatment handed out at local bases in the WAR ZONE such as Rabaul was brutal and many USAF pilots were executed there. I'm not so sure that there was less brutality at POW camps in the home islands (Japan) though.Boyington ... was one of the very few aviators who was relocated to Japan and therefore didn't suffer through the same treatment that most Allied fliers got when imprisoned in a war zone.
Minor point here, the Japanese never withdrew from Rabaul and it was occupied until the end of the war. The reason he wasn't held at Rabaul was because Boyington's interpreter tricked his superiors into relocating himself and Boyington to Japan. The interpreter thought that Rabaul would be overrun, although it was instead strategically bypassed.On 3 Jan 1944 Boyington was shot down during a sweep over Rabaul and ended up in the water about 5 miles out to sea.
At the same time the submarine I-181 was returning to Rabaul, the main IJN base in the SW Pacific, after a supply run to New Guinea when it came across Boyington, who by then had been in the water for about 8 hours. It picked him up, took him to Rabaul where he was allowed no medical treatment for 10 days. After 6 weeks, as the IJN withdrew from Rabaul, he was flown to Truk, arriving during Operation Hailstone (the US carrier strikes in Feb 1944). From there he went to Japan.
Even today, some uncooperative immigrants are treated violently at Japanese immigration bureau.Oddly, Boyington said he was well treated aboard the sub. The worst treatment that he received came from undisciplined prison guards. Japanese prison guards were oftentimes the worst of the worst. Usually, these were poorly performing soldiers with a history of disciplinary problems. Oftentimes they were transferred to prison guard units and themselves were frequently beaten by their superiors.
I was secretary of the aces assn. when Kawato appeared in the US. Eventually we queried the Zero Fighter Pilots Assn because Kawato's claims were um suspect. It was a Big to Huge Deal when the Japanese said, IIRC, "Masajiro Kawato is no longer Japan's disgrace. Now he is America's disgrace."At an airshow where Boyington had a table and some distance away Mike Kawato had his table selling Rising Sun headbands, someone asked Boyington about Kawato. Greg's answer, "He would have been too young to see out of the cockpit!" There were also some added vulgarities.
The only way anyone could survive a 20mm hit was from explosive splinters. A marvelous instructor of mine with a Navy Cross survived a 20 exploding in his F4U cockpit that resulted in serious blood loss. He climbed out and fainted.Minor point here, the Japanese never withdrew from Rabaul and it was occupied until the end of the war. The reason he wasn't held at Rabaul was because Boyington's interpreter tricked his superiors into relocating himself and Boyington to Japan. The interpreter thought that Rabaul would be overrun, although it was instead strategically bypassed.
Boyington's recollection of how he got downed was a wild read. He got into a turn-fight with Zeroes after having exhausted his altitude trying to save his squadron mates.
It's a mystery how the sub managed to find him. My guess is that a Japanese aviator reported the exact position where Boyington had been downed (and that aviator probably wasn't Mike Kawato).
Oddly, Boyington said he was well treated aboard the sub. The worst treatment that he received came from undisciplined prison guards. Japanese prison guards were oftentimes the worst of the worst. Usually, these were poorly performing soldiers with a history of disciplinary problems. Oftentimes they were transferred to prison guard units and themselves were frequently beaten by their superiors.
The horrible thing is that Boyington reported that he had been hit by a 20mm shell to his leg. He described the wound as being a hole in his leg. I'd guess this was actually either a 7.7mm round or a 20mm fragment. I've never heard of a pilot getting directly hit with a 20mm round.
Does this mean Kawato was Japan's disgrace?Masajiro Kawato is no longer Japan's disgrace.
Many IJN and IJAF combat aircraft had little protection of the aircrew and the IJN seemingly had no SAR plan for recovering pilots.