Military History
When World War 2 came to its dramatic end, Saburō Sakai was a bona fide legend; the descendant of a samurai family had become arguably the best Japanese pilot in the war with over 60 successful hits under his belt. However, the man didn’t feel like a victor; the US had dropped two atomic bombs on top of his homeland, and all his sacrifices, including getting shot in the head during a dogfight and losing an eye, seemed to have been in vain. Two days after the cease-fire, an urgent report came into what remained of the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service: a group of Boeing B-29 Superfortresses like the ones that had dropped the atomic bombs had pierced the Japanese airspace. The mere possibility of having another Japanese city obliterated by the unspeakable American weapon made Sakai’s blood boil, and he and a group of pilots did the unthinkable; they took to the skies in one last suicide mission that defied every international accord. Surprisingly, Sakai chose a Zero to face the Americans. The aircraft was practically obsolete by then, but he wouldn’t have it any other way: (QUOTE): “The Pacific War was started by the Zero. […] and I would want to let the Zero place its name in history as having fought that last battle!”
Credit Dark Skies
