The following has been condensed from an article by author Jim Reardon.
In the raid of 4 June, 20 bombers blasted storage tanks, a warehouse, hospital, a hangar and a beached freighter, while 11 Zeros strafed at will. Chief Petty Officer Makoto Endo led a 3-plane Zero group whose pilots were Flight Petty Officers Tsuguo Shikada and Tadayoshi Koga, 19 years old. Koga’s Zero, serial number 4593, was light gray, with the Imperial Rising Sun insignia on its wings and fuselage. It had left the Mitsubishi Nagoya aircraft factory on 19 February, only 3½ months earlier, so it was the latest design.
Tadayoshi Koga
Earlier that day, soldiers at an US Army outpost had seen 3 Zeros shoot down a lumbering Catalina amphibian. Most of the 7-member crew climbed into a rubber raft and began paddling to shore. The soldiers watched in horror as the Zeros strafed the crew until…
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Another stirring tale from WW2, telling of the bravery of the fliers, and the nasty tactic employed by the Japanese, of machine-gunning survivors. Hard times indeed, and a tribute to men from both sides in this conflict.
Best wishes, Pete.
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Thank you very much, Sarah. Not many people remember these battles and that means the veterans that fought for us are forgotten – your re-blog helps to mend that situation.
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I agree that it’s very important to spread these little-known stories. Thank you for writing what I want to re-blog!
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