Kamikaze is a word of Japanese origin. It is derived from kami which means god and kaze which means wind. It is the Japanese word for the s wind that wrecked a fleet of Mongol ships in the thirteenth century. Incidentally these ships were going to invade Japan.
During the Second World War (1939-1945) the word kamikaze referred to the Japanese suicide pilots. These aviators usually targeted Allied shipping vessels and ports. The pilots would purposely crash their planes into naval vessels. Occasionally they would load their aircrafts with explosives. All the kamikazes were extremely young almost all were between the ages of 18 to 22. The youngest kamikaze pilot was sixteen years old.
Ultimately the Japanese naval air force sent out over two thousand kamikazes, while the army air force sacrificed over a thousand. All together the kamikaze attacks accounted for eighty percent of America's total war losses.
During the Second World War (1939-1945) the word kamikaze referred to the Japanese suicide pilots. These aviators usually targeted Allied shipping vessels and ports. The pilots would purposely crash their planes into naval vessels. Occasionally they would load their aircrafts with explosives. All the kamikazes were extremely young almost all were between the ages of 18 to 22. The youngest kamikaze pilot was sixteen years old.
Ultimately the Japanese naval air force sent out over two thousand kamikazes, while the army air force sacrificed over a thousand. All together the kamikaze attacks accounted for eighty percent of America's total war losses.
