Last Letter of Second Lieutenant Osamu Mōri to His Parents
On May 4, 1945, Second Lieutenant Osamu Mōri took off from Bansei Air Base as a
member of the 66th Shinbu Special Attack Squadron and died in a special
(suicide) attack west of Okinawa at the age of 22. He piloted an Army Type 97
Fighter (Allied code name of Nate). After his death, he received a two-rank
promotion to Captain.
Mōri was from Ōsaka City. In March 1942, he graduated from Tennōji Teachers College and started teaching
at Tamagawa National School. In October 1942, he joined the Army and was a
member of the 9th Class of the Army's Officer Cadet (Kanbu Kōhosei) training
program [1]. In May 1943,
he started at Toyohashi No. 2 Army Officer School in Aichi Prefecture. In
November 1943, he transferred to Tachiarai Flight School in Fukuoka Prefecture.
In December 1944, he transferred to Akeno 3rd Kyōiku Hikō Shidan (Flying
Training Division) in Mie Prefecture.
He wrote to his parents the following final letter on a picture postcard of Nanjing. The
postcard has two sections, one with his final letter and another written by
Masayoshi Matsui, husband of Mōri's older sister, with some comments by Mōri at
the end.
Preliminaries omitted.
- Father, Mother, thank you. I have shown to you only unfilial conduct,
but I will make the final flower bloom.
- Please give my regards to everyone.
- I lived passionately. Satisfied, I will follow an eternal cause.
- During the sortie on the day after tomorrow, I certainly will sink a ship
instantly. Everyone, please enjoy good health.
66th Shinbu Squadron member
Osamu Mōri
Today I met with Osamu in Nanjing. We were absorbed in gossip from the
homeland in a room of a company that faces the avenue in this picture
postcard. Please be at ease since we are both doing extremely well. There is
no excuse for my not writing recently.
Masayoshi Matsui
I am so glad about the unexpected meeting with Older Brother. After
Ishimon [2], Older Brother was ready to be here
and truly has been able to get along pleasantly.
Now I will be treated to a meal by Older Brother and the office head
here.
Osamu Mōri
Letter translated by Bill Gordon
May 2018
The letter and other information on this page come from Naemura
(1993, 153-4, 474).
Notes
1. Osuo 2005, 200.
2. The significance of this name is not clear.
Sources Cited
Naemura, Hichirō. 1993. Rikugun saigo no tokkō kichi: Bansei tokkōtaiin no isho to isatsu (Army's last special attack base: Last
letters and photographs of Bansei special attack corps members). Ōsaka: Tōhō
Shuppan.
Osuo, Kazuhiko. 2005. Tokubetsu kōgekitai no kiroku (rikugun hen)
(Record of special attack corps (Army)). Tōkyō: Kōjinsha.
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