Pearl Harbor Veteran
Taisuke Maruyama
Nakajima B5N2 "Kate"
By Sir Ernie Hamilton Boyette
Aviation Art Store
Print Size 12x18"
Limited Edition $75.00
Limited Edition prints are signed and numbered by the artist and signed by the aviator.
Open Edition $18.00
Open Edition prints are signed by the artist.
Taisuke Maruyama was born November 11, 1922.
He wanted to join the Imperial Japanese Navy to improve his education.
Maruyama joined the Navy at age 16 and was assigned to the Yokosuka Naval
Air Base. The 19-year old cadet
later completed his flying courses on March 25, 1941.
Maruyama's first assignment was onboard the carrier Hiryu as a "Kate" torpedo bomber crewman. To this day, he remembers the strenuous training that was done to prepare him and his comrades for the big Pearl Harbor attack that would start the war with America. During his training, the naval aviators did two things to prepare for the attack.
First, they did low altitude torpedo attack
training above Kinko Bay, which was nearby the island of Kyushu.
Second, the aviators also did nighttime torpedo attack training above the
Bungo Channel, located between the islands of Kyushu and Shikoku.
During the infamous attack, he claimed a hit on the battleship Oklahoma,
which subsequently capsized.
In January 1942, while still assigned to
Hiryu, the young aviator bombed Port Darwin, Australia.
Compared to the Pearl Harbor mission, this mission was much easier
because the Japanese faced very little opposition. The final results of the
attack were 11 enemy ships sunk, over 20 enemy aircraft destroyed and the
installations severely damaged. Maruyama
also participated in the strike against the island of Ceylon later that same
The Battle of Midway was the turning point
in the war for the Japanese. Admiral
Yamamoto pledged to destroy the American carrier force by surprising them nearby
the island of Midway. During the
beginning of the battle, he was one of the airmen to attack the island.
Unfortunately for the Japanese, later that same day, the Americans
destroyed three of their carriers, Akagi, Soryu and Kaga.
Maruyama was onboard the last surviving carrier Hiryu.
The surviving airmen decided to make a
last-ditch attack on the American carrier Yorktown.
During the attack, Maruyama's plane was hit by enemy fire, and white fog
began to leak from the fuel tank. Luckily
for him, it did not catch fire and he dropped his torpedo on the enemy carrier.
As the young aviator passed the deck of the carrier, Maruyama could see
the faces of the American sailors on the ship.
After completing his attack on the Yorktown, he returned back to his ship
Hiryu. Later during the battle,
While stationed on the carrier Hiyo, he
bombed the island of Guadalcanal on October 17, 1942.
Maruyama later transferred to the carrier Junyo and he torpedoed the
U.S.S. Hornet on October 26, 1942 during the Battle of Santa Cruz. As the tide
of the war began to turn, Maruyama continued to fly missions against the enemy.
Luckily for him, he always managed to beat the odds and return home
unscathed. On December 26, 1944,
the experienced aviator bombed the American airfields on the island of Saipan,
which was a large base for the B-29 Superfortress bombers.
Towards the end of the war, he made several
torpedo attacks against the United States Fleet off the coast of Okinawa.
Throughout the war Maruyama participated in several dangerous missions,
but he was fortunate and managed to survive the conflict.
In his post-war years, he managed a timber company and raised his family. Maruyama also participated in several WW II documentaries and a Midway Symposium at the United States Navy Museum in Pensacola, Florida.
I can tell you in no uncertain
terms that this is a very brave man. To attack and assist in the destruction of
three major capital warship of the US Navy, fly and fight the whole war, and
live. My hat off to you Taisuke, good job! I am not saying that as-in making an
anti-American statement, no way. You have to judge him on his achievement, his
skill, and his unwavering command of himself and the situation under the highest
odds, under the most violent
Aviator in his flight suit.
Kate in flight
Print signing.
This is how each Limited Edition is signed.
Maruyama stands next to the Oklahoma Memorial. I though it appropriate for him to be photographed next to the memorial of the warship he sank. Maruyama put the third of three torpedoes into the battleship sealing its fate.
All research, writings and artwork are by Sir Ernie Hamilton Boyette.
No one is permitted to republish any part of this story with out my personal permission.
Please call or e-mail me for any use of this story.
I do not mind sharing, I do not mind people or groups linking to this page, I just need to register them on my "LINKS" page. Thanks!
Sir. Ernie Hamilton Boyette
904-282-4198
2-10-07