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WWII Japan Routinely Abandoned Their Pilots To Die And It Cost Them Dearly
The policy that helped the US win the war
On June 20th, 1944, the United States launched a bold counterattack to track down fleeing enemy carriers after the Battle of the Philippine Sea. The US commanders knew that sending an aerial strike out so late in the day would require the pilots to return to the fleet after sunset. Normally, this was an extremely dangerous proposition. Low on fuel and wits, the pilots struggled to find their way back to their carriers. Many had to ditch into the sea. Some pilots put their planes down intentionally rather than waiting for the empty fuel tanks to do it for them. Pilots grouped up in the black sea and bobbed on ocean swells awaiting rescue. For many pilots, this situation would be a nightmare but the Americans knew that they would be picked up.
Americans left no man behind. Extensive efforts and destroyer screens were frequently deployed to spot and pick up pilots and sailors floating in the water. In the case of the Battle of the Philippine Sea, 60 crews out of 80 planes that went down were rescued within a couple of days. Those recovery numbers were extremely healthy and those recovery rates gave the United States a serious leg up over the Japanese.
