The Strangest Navigator Any Marine Plane Ever Carried

[Dave Fish]

How about some fun with little known World War II aviation history?

Why is this Japanese officer looking out the waist-gun of a PBJ with a flight of 4FU Corsairs in the background?

[Jesse C.]

He is a Japanese turncoat helping us out or he is being punished by seeing first hand what we can do to them?

[Warbird Kid]

im gonna go with "altered by photoshop"

[tom d. friedman]

an american / japanese who enlisted after being held in in 1 of the u.s.a,'s internment camps??? i can't spell the name correctly but is he a nissea?? as for the japanese style cap....... no clue!!!

[Craig59]

I know the answer but like Dave, as the son of a PBJ pilot, I'll recuse myself.

MB-9 looks to be a brand new PBJ-1J and...check out the full load of rockets hung under the right wing. Hmmm. Wonder what those are about to be used for?

[Ztex]

I've heard this story...I think he was captured and volunteered to locate some general's HQ. So they took him along to make sure they got it right.

Or something like that.

Z

[Jerry O'Neill]

an american / japanese who enlisted after being held in in 1 of the u.s.a,'s internment camps??? i can't spell the name correctly but is he a nissea?? as for the japanese style cap....... no clue!!!

Tom;
FYI...Nisei.
Jerry

[Dave Fish]

im gonna go with "altered by photoshop"

Sorry Warbird Kid...Not altered!

[Dave Fish]

I know the answer but like Dave, as the son of a PBJ pilot, I'll recuse myself.

MB-9 looks to be a brand new PBJ-1J and...check out the full load of rockets hung under the right wing. Hmmm. Wonder what those are about to be used for?

Thanks Craig, let's keep this going for awhile.
MB 9 does look new...but notice how powder burns from the upper blister gun has obscured part of "MB?"

[CWBuff]

I've heard this story...I think he was captured and volunteered to locate some general's HQ. So they took him along to make sure they got it right.

Or something like that.

Z

According to 'Marine Mitchells in World War Two' by Jerry Scutts, that's pretty much it.

Excerpt from the book:

To maintain the pressure on the enemy on Mindanao, VMB-611's missions included rocketing, strafing and bombing Japanese positions in the Sarangani-Upian-Kibawe area. On 10 August (1945) the squadron had some unexpected help in target location at Upian when the name of Second Lieutenant Minoru Wada was added to the flight manifest of the lead PBJ-1J.

VMB-611 had attacked Upian before and the Japanese defector not only pointed out the headquarters of General Harada's 100th Army Division on US maps but offered to guide a mixed formation of PBJ-1Ds and Js by radio. Harada had proved a tough, intelligent commander and a chance to further demoralise the enemy by eliminating him with Wada's help seemed sound. Escorted by F4Us of VMF-115, the mediums duly bombed and rocketed the position. Lieutenant David Duncan was aboard the PBJ to photograph Lieutenant Wada's cooperation and TIME magazine later used the story and pictures.


Fade to Black...

[Richard W.]

Did they get General Harada?

I wonder what happened to Lieutenant Wada after the war. I suppose he could never go back to Japan. Perhaps we set him up somewhere in the U.S.?

[oscardeuce]

It sure does look altered to me too, even if a real photo.

[maxum96]

It sure does look altered to me too, even if a real photo.

I agree with you, it does have the look of being altered. I think the reason it has that look is because the subject (the Japanese soldier) is indoors and illuminated with a flash. The background (the aircraft) are outdoors and only illuminated by natural light.

[oscardeuce]

The shadows on the Mitchells don't seem to match either. The light seems to be coming from directly above, and the man it seems the light is coming over his R shoulder.

[Django]

It's not exactly super light inside the aircraft. A flash would be needed.