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Tue, May 10, 2016

Gone West: Japanese WWII Pilot Kaname Harada

Thought To Be Last Surviving Pilot From Pearl Harbor Attack

The man thought to be the last surviving Japanese pilot from the Pearl Harbor attack has Gone West at the age of 99.

Kaname Harada was Japan's oldest ace, according to a report from the New York Times. He had enlisted in the Japanese Marines in 1933 at the age of 17, and became a pilot. He was credited with shooting down nine aircraft, and shared 10 other kills with other pilots between 1937 and 1942.

While Harada did fly at Pearl Harbor, he said at one time he was disappointed that his mission was to protect the aircraft carriers and not attack the base.

After a crash-landing at Guadalcanal, he returned to Japan and became one of the pilots training others how to become Kamikazes. After the war, he became a farmer and a pacifist. He said war "robs you of your humanity by putting you in a situation where you must either kill perfect strangers or be killed by them."

It was not until he visited Pearl Harbor on the 50th anniversary of the attack that he learned that it was a sneak attack and Japan had not formally declared war on the U.S.

(Image from file)

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