Mitsuo Fuchida Living in Infamy, Part 1

At 7:48 a.m. on December 7, 1941, the sleepy calm on the island of Oahu was suddenly broken by the piercing sound of dive bombers, torpedoes, and gunfire. Japan’s naval air arm, in a surprise attack, had ambushed the Pearl Harbor naval base, killing 2,403 Americans and effectively entering the United States into World War II.

The man who led the slaughter, Mitsuo Fuchida, was a zealous aviator who, from childhood, had idolized Japan’s war heroes. Fueled by historical Western dominance and the Immigration Act of 1924, which barred all Asian nationals from the United States, Fuchida fervently hated any and all things American. After the attack on Pearl Harbor, Fuchida’s dream was realized, and he returned to Japan a celebrated war hero.

But what was not so well known was the flight commander’s near-death on that infamous day. Upon landing his aircraft, Fuchida learned that, besides the fact that his plane was hit no less than 21 times, one of the cables for his controls was dangling literally by a thread. If that cable had broken, he would certainly have not survived.

Surprisingly enough, that was not the last time this famed soldier escaped death. Six months later, in the crucial Battle of Midway, his life was uncannily spared by an emergency appendectomy, which kept him grounded on the carrier Akagi. With all four Japanese carriers destroyed in the battle, Fuchida, had he been flying, would have had no choice but to crash along with the rest of his pilots. As it was, he did not come away unscathed, breaking both his ankles when the Americans bombed the Akagi.

Then, in August 1945, Fuchida, who had been in Hiroshima planning an aerial maneuver, was, for some unforeseen reason, sent some 500 miles away for a meeting. It was only when he awoke the next morning that he heard about the atomic bomb that was dropped on the city he had just left. But it was not only that. Fuchida, part of a small team of officers, was then ordered back to Hiroshima to assess the damage. Weeks later, all of those other officers— except for Fuchida—died from radiation poisoning.

Did this mere mortal have superhuman powers, or was there something or Someone else at work here?

Reflect: Have there been instances in your life where you have been spared from death? What has been your reaction to your new lease on life?

Key Bible Texts

Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful. (Luke 6:36 KJV)