He is wounded over Cuadalcanal whwn flying from Lae. He attaced SDB Dauntless planes and believed they were Hellcats. So he got .50 calibre in his head, Later a warm feiend of US Navy.

Sakai

Soichi Sugita shot down 2 P-28  in accompany flight of admiral Yamanoto (BTW  to avoid the discrace the pilots were KIAs in some months in combat, they desided themselves). Ota was wild head and this led to his death over Kanyon airfield 15th April 1945.

Sugita

Captain (later Admiral) Isoroku Yamamoto, with US Secretary of the Navy Curtis D. Wilbur, during Yamamoto's period as Naval Attaché at the Japanese Embassy to the United States of America, 1925-1928.  Yamamoto's stint in Washington gave him ample opportunity to gain a good appreciation of the potential military strength of his hosts, resulting in somewhat mixed feelings at the prospect of Japan getting into a war with the USA.  His conclusion, however, could be summed up in a comment attributed to him during the war - "I am the sword of my Emperor".  Best regards, JR.