The Kamikaze Pilots
Dan Snow's History Hit
History Hit
4.7 • 13.7K Ratings
🗓️ 28 April 2024
⏱️ 34 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Please note, this episode contains discussion of suicide.
By October 1944, the Japanese were in real trouble. The Allies had made great strides in their Pacific island-hopping campaign and were advancing on the Japanese home islands. In a desperate attempt to stem the tide, Japan created the 'Special Attack Units', which included the kamikaze - young pilots tasked with launching suicidal missions against Allied forces.
For the first episode in our three-part series on the kamikaze, Dan is joined by Christopher Harding, a cultural historian of India and Japan and author of 'The Light of Asia'. Chris explains the ideological and tactical messages of the kamikaze, and raises an important question - were these pilots enthusiastic zealots or terrified young men with nothing to lose?
Produced by James Hickmann and edited by Dougal Patmore.
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Transcript
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