Japanese Forces

Lieutenant Takashi Kaneda

japanese navy pilot Lieutenant Takashi Kaneda, he first served as a recon plane pilot during the pacific war in 1942 and in 1944 he was called to use the special Submarine-launched dive bomber Aichi M6A Seiran, the plane was intended to be used with the I-400, a 4,082 tonne (4,500 ton) submarine aircraft carrier. the objective was to launch a surprise air strike on the Panama Canal, This mission was assigned to the 1st Submarine Flotilla, which comprised two submarines, the I-400 and the flagship I-401, each carrying three Seirans. lieutenant kaneda was in the I-400 submarine. The flotilla departed Japan on 23 July 1945 and proceeded towards Ulithi. However, on 15 August, the flagship I-401 received a radio message from headquarters, informing them of Japan's surrender. They were ordered to return to the nearest port in Japan, ending the flotilla's first and only mission, and preventing the Seiran from ever entering combat, Lieutenant Kaneda later described the moment of the surrender message as the worst day of his life, after the war he enlisted in japan air self defence force