Saburō Sakai
Imperial Japanese Navy WWII fighter pilot (1916–2000) / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Saburō Sakai (坂井 三郎, Sakai Saburō, 25 August 1916 – 22 September 2000) was a Japanese naval aviator and flying ace ("Gekitsui-O", 撃墜王) of the Imperial Japanese Navy during World War II. Sakai had 28 aerial victories, including shared ones, according to official Japanese records,[1][2] though he and his ghostwriter Martin Caidin claimed much higher numbers.[3]
Quick Facts Native name, Nickname(s) ...
Saburō Sakai | |
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Native name | 坂井 三郎 |
Nickname(s) | Sky Samurai |
Born | (1916-08-25)25 August 1916 Saga, Japan |
Died | 22 September 2000(2000-09-22) (aged 84) Atsugi Naval Air Station, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan |
Allegiance | Empire of Japan |
Service/ | Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service (IJN) |
Years of service | 1933–45 |
Rank | Lieutenant Junior Grade |
Unit | Tainan Naval Air Wing Yokosuka Naval Air Wing 343rd Naval Air Group |
Battles/wars | Second Sino-Japanese War |
Spouse(s) | Hatsuyo (1944-1947) Haru (1952-2000) |
Children | 3 |
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