Minoru Wada

Minoru Wada was an Imperial Japanese Army officer who was taken prisoner on Mindanao by the members of U.S. Marine Corps, in 1945. He provided Marine bomber crews with vital intelligence, and led the aircraft in a highly successful attack on the headquarters of the Japanese 100th Division. He was motivated by a desire to minimize the loss of life through aiding to effect a swift end to the Pacific War.

Events

Minoru Wada was born in the United States, but was a student in Japan when war erupted with the USA. He was a Second Lieutenant in the Imperial Japanese Army transport section, at the time of his capture.^[1] After being taken prisoner, Lt. Wada expressed his strong reservations about the Japanese decision to embark upon a course of war, and further stated a willingness to go to any length, including the sacrifice of his own life, in order to help bring an end to the war, and thus reduce the suffering of the Japanese people. It was suggested that Lt. Wada could bring a rapid end to hostilities on Mindanao by providing information as to the whereabouts of the headquarters of the Imperial Japanese 100th Division. While inititally horrified by the idea of assisting in the killing of his fellow Japanese, he concluded that such an action would actually save lives on both sides, and volunteered to personally direct the bomber squadron from the lead plane.^[2] The mission was undertaken on August 10, 1945.^[3]

Aftermath

The attack on the 100th Division headquarters was enormously successful, and succeeded in largely ending combat in Mindanao, as without a functioning command-and-control apparatus, Japanese troops on the island were effectively reduced to the status of disorganized stragglers. Subsequently, Minoru Wada was given a new identity, and his whereabouts today are unknown.^[4]

References

1. ^ Life magazine, "Japanese Defector" (retrieved on August 30th, 2011).
2. ^ Merriam Press, "Japanese Officer Led a U.S. Air Strike Against His Own Troops" (retrieved on August 30th, 2011).
3. ^ Titusville Herald, "Captured Jap Officer Shows Targets to Marine Flyers" (retrieved on August 30th, 2011).
4. ^ Merriam Press, "Japanese Officer Led a U.S. Air Strike Against His Own Troops" (retrieved on August 30th, 2011).

External links

• Life magazine photograph of Lt. Minoru Wada during the August 10, 1945 attack of on the Imperial Japanese Army's 100th Divisional headquarters
• Marine Corps photo #130966
• Marine Corps photo #130972
• Marine Corps photo #130974
• Marine Corps photo #130976