Posted on Apr 18, 2021
Killing Yamamoto: Operation Vengeance in World War II
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On April 18, 1943, Isoroku Yamamoto, Japanese WWII Marshall, Admiral, and Commander-in-Chief of the Japanese fleet who led the attack on Pearl Harbor, was killed in action at the age of 59 by a US ambush after the "Magic" code-breaking team intercepted and decoded his flight plan. From the article:
On April 14, 1943, Fleet Radio Unit Pacific intercepted message NTF131755 as part of project Magic. Having broken the Japanese naval codes, US Navy cryptanalysts decoded the message and found that it provided specific details for an inspection trip that the Commander-in-Chief of the Japanese Combined Fleet, Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto, intended to make to the Solomon Islands. This information was passed to Commander Ed Layton, the intelligence officer for the Commander-in-Chief of the US Pacific Fleet, Admiral Chester W. Nimitz.
Meeting with Layton, Nimitz debated whether to act on the information as he was concerned that it might lead the Japanese to conclude that their codes had been broken. He was also concerned that if Yamamoto was dead, he might be replaced with a more gifted commander. After much discussion, it was decided a suitable cover story could be devised to alleviate concerns regarding the first issue, while Layton, who had known Yamamoto before the war, stressed that he was the best the Japanese had. Deciding to move forward with intercepting Yamamoto's flight, Nimitz received clearance from the White House to move forward."
On April 14, 1943, Fleet Radio Unit Pacific intercepted message NTF131755 as part of project Magic. Having broken the Japanese naval codes, US Navy cryptanalysts decoded the message and found that it provided specific details for an inspection trip that the Commander-in-Chief of the Japanese Combined Fleet, Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto, intended to make to the Solomon Islands. This information was passed to Commander Ed Layton, the intelligence officer for the Commander-in-Chief of the US Pacific Fleet, Admiral Chester W. Nimitz.
Meeting with Layton, Nimitz debated whether to act on the information as he was concerned that it might lead the Japanese to conclude that their codes had been broken. He was also concerned that if Yamamoto was dead, he might be replaced with a more gifted commander. After much discussion, it was decided a suitable cover story could be devised to alleviate concerns regarding the first issue, while Layton, who had known Yamamoto before the war, stressed that he was the best the Japanese had. Deciding to move forward with intercepting Yamamoto's flight, Nimitz received clearance from the White House to move forward."
Killing Yamamoto: Operation Vengeance in World War II
Posted from thoughtco.comPosted in these groups: 
WWII World War Two
Intelligence
Special Operations
American History
Military History
WWII World War Two Intelligence Special Operations American History Military History
Posted >1 y ago
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Thank you for the history. I suspect, as many do, that this proved to be an important event in the Pacific battles to come. I think Yamamoto, if he had lived, would have made the US fight harder, and with more difficulty.
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If I recall correctly this mission was made possible by a technique taught to pilots by Charles Lindbergh. On evaluation missions he would return with a couple hours more worth of fuel than the rest of the flight. When asked about it he told them that when cruising he would reduce his rpms and shallow the pitch of the props on his P-38 to improve his fuel economy. It was a technique he developed in his record making flight to Paris. If or when the enemy was sighted he set for full power for the engagement. This added approximately three hours of flight time to P-38 Lightnings. The increased range allowed a flight of Lightnings to ambush Yamamoto’s transport in an area the Japanese thought safe.
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