Ryūnosuke Kusaka

Photos with Ryūnosuke Kusaka

Born to a director of the Sumitomo zaibatsu in Tokyo in 1893, Kusaka's family registry officially listed him as a native of Ishikawa Prefecture, and he was schooled in Osaka.

He entered the 41st class of the Imperial Japanese Navy Academy graduating 14th out of a class of 118 in 1917 and graduating from the Naval Gunnery School in 1920. He did his midshipman service on the cruisers Azuma and Otowa. After he was commissioned as ensign, he was assigned to the battleship Kawachi and cruiser Yakumo. He later served on the battleship Kongō and destroyer Kuwa. After his promotion to lieutenant on 1 December 1919, he was assigned to the battleships Mutsu and Yamashiro, destroyer Susuki, and repair ship Kantō. He was promoted to lieutenant commander in 1925, and graduated from the Naval Staff College the same year, specializing in naval aviation. He subsequently captained a naval fighter group based at Kasumigaura and served in numerous staff positions.

On 1 September 1933, he was appointed executive officer of the cruiser Iwate, and on 16 November 1936—after his promotion to captain—he was given his first command: the aircraft carrier Hōshō. In 1939, he became captain of the aircraft carrier Akagi.

Promoted to rear admiral on 15 November 1940, he was commander of the 24th Air Flotilla before being appointed Chief of Staff of the 1st Air Fleet under Admiral Chūichi Nagumo in April 1941. He was involved in strategic and tactical planning and execution, including the attack on Pearl Harbor and Battle of Midway. During the Battle of Midway, a Martin B-26 Marauder, after being seriously damaged by anti-aircraft fire, flew directly towards the bridge of the aircraft carrier Akagi, where Kusaka and Nagumo stared stunned and wide-eyed back at the approaching plane. They instinctively ducked as a collision seemed certain, certain they were done for, Kusaka felt sure they were done for. The aircraft, either attempting a suicide ramming, or out of control due to battle damage or a wounded or killed pilot, narrowly missed crashing into the carrier's bridge, which could have killed Kusaka and Nagumo, before it cartwheeled into the sea. Nagumo and Kusaka let out a collective shout of relief but were left shaken. Whether the B-26 was out of control due to battle damage or a wounded or killed pilot, or whether the aircraft was attempting a suicide ramming was unknown, but to Kusaka it certainly looked like the latter, and he offered a silent prayer for the American pilot.[2] After the Akagi was critically damaged, Kusaka was able to persuade Nagumo to save himself.[3] Kusaka was able to dissuade the fleet commander and senior officers from committing suicide after the Japanese defeat. Kusaka badly sprained both ankles and was burned during the evacuation from the critically damaged Akagi during the battle.[4]

Kusaka remained with the fleet until November 1942, and accepted a number of staff positions thereafter. He was promoted to vice admiral on 1 May 1944 and transferred to the Combined Fleet as Chief of Staff under commander-in-chief Admiral Soemu Toyoda in November 1944. His final assignment was command of the 5th Air Fleet after the suicide of Matome Ugaki, exactly the day Japan surrendered to the Allies.

In the 1960s, Kusaka was interviewed by Walter Lord and gave a detailed account of his roles for the books Day of Infamy (1957) and Incredible Victory (1967).

• Lord, Walter (1967). Incredible Victory. New York: Harper and Row. ISBN 1-58080-059-9.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)