POSTAVENO

HISTORY

The man who sank

the Arizona

(Jan Bobek)

Some researchers have suggested that

the fatal hit on the battleship Arizona was

achieved by the crew of the B5N bomber

„Kate“, commanded by PO1c Noboru Kanai

of the aircraft carrier Hiryū. This aviator

was killed during Wake Atoll raid on December 22, 1941 by Wildcat pilot Capt. Herbert C. Freuler of VMF-211. Only recently

has Kanai‘s diary been published, proving

that his formation at Pearl Harbor attacked two other vessels. This confirmed the

original theory about the identity of the

airman who caused the explosion of the

Arizona. It was Lt. Cdr. Tadashi Kusumi of

the same carrier. His biography has never

been published.

The forward magazines of USS Arizona explode after she was hit by a Japanese bomb.

Frame clipped from a color motion picture taken from on board USS Solace (AH-5) (photo:

National Archives).

bomb would still have been thoroughly

adequate in terms of its deck penetration capability. Nevertheless, there is a list

of theories explaining exactly what led to

the catastrophic explosion on board the

Arizona, and an analysis of these is beyond the scope of this article. The fact remains that approximately seven seconds

after the bomb’s impact, there was an explosion of six 14-inch munitions storage

spaces and two others housing 4-inch

munitions for a total of over 600 tons of

explosives.

The hit is attributed to the lead plane of

the formation (flown by Frigate Capt.

Tadashi Kusumi, Observer/Bombardier

Lt. Shojiro Kondo and Gunner Non-commissioned Officer 1st Class Masao

Fukuda). Some sources also suggest two

more hits to the mid-section of the ship,

one directly striking the smokestack and

the other at the fifth port strut of the forward mast. Some sources claim the mid-section damage was the result of flames

and subsequent explosions of the 4-inch

ammunition stores.

USS Arizona burning furiously, after her forward magazines had exploded when she was hit

by a Japanese 800 Kg bomb. At left, men on the stern of USS Tennessee (BB-43) are playing

fire hoses on the water to force burning oil away from their ship (photo: National Archives).

The famous Japanese aviator Mitsuo

Fuchida remembered Kusumi as a gentle,

quiet, polite and sincere man who had

a methodical mindset and usually spoke slowly. Tadashi Kusumi was born in

Tokyo on July 10, 1907. After studying at

Keika Junior & High School, he was admitted to the Etajima Naval Academy and

graduated at the end of March 1927 as

the 60th student out of 122 graduates in

its 57th Class. No records of his service

on warships have survived. Every cadet

had to undergo training on warships, and

Kusumi was promoted to Ensign in December 1930 thento Lieutenant (junior

grade) exactly two years later. At the end

of 1932 he entered the flight training (23rd

Class) and graduated in July the following

year. He underwent further training at

Tateyama Kōkūtai and in April 1934 was

assigned to the aircraft carrier Hōshō‘s

Air Group, which had participated in the

so-called Shanghai Incident two years

earlier. After a year service aboard that

ship, Kusumi was assigned to the Ōmura

Kōkūtai in May 1935 and transferred to the

Kasumigaura Kōkūtai in October of that

year. He probably served as an instructor

in both units. In November he was promoted to Lieutenant.

He assumed his first command in November 1936. As the so-called Buntaichō, he

April 2022

INFO Eduard

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