USA, Oita Prefecture--Recently released dramatic wartime footage here shows a kamikaze pilot parachuting out of his exploding aircraft and into the sea.

The young Japanese aviator miraculously survived after being shot down by the U.S. military over Okinawa in 1945 during World War II.

And in another near-miracle, the pilot has been identified as Isamu Sonobe, whose family uncovered details about his military career that he never talked about before his death in 1995.  

SHOT DOWN DURING BATTLE OF OKINAWA

The special unit member received training at the Imperial Japanese Navy’s flying corps that was formerly in Usa, among other locations, to be sent on a suicide mission aboard a carrier-based bomber.

The footage of Sonobe’s aerial descent allowed his bereaved family to be reconnected with the former pilot in late August, as the video recorded by the U.S. forces had been recently analyzed and unveiled by a civic group in Usa.

The group, Toyonokuni Usashijuku, obtained the 48-second colored reel from the U.S. National Archives and Records Administration.

According to the accounts of Yusuke Orita, 39, a member of Toyonokuni Usashijuku, who examined the footage, it was taken at around 9:30 a.m. on April 17, 1945, from a U.S. aircraft carrier in the waters east of the main island of Okinawa.

The footage vividly depicts the kamikaze plane under intense anti-aircraft fire before exploding, forcing the crew member to eject. The film also shows the pilot parachuting into the sea.

The operator’s face cannot be observed in detail in the footage, so Orita compared the U.S. military combat reports with Japanese records. He thereby concluded that the parachuter was Sonobe.

Hailing from Kyoto, Sonobe flew a suicide mission aboard the carrier-based bomber Suisei as a senior flight petty officer.

Sonobe was rescued by a U.S. warship at the time and taken to North America as a prisoner of war. He returned to Japan after the war.

The bereaved family of Sonobe became aware of the wartime footage by chance.

His eldest daughter, Akiko Yamamoto, 73, a resident of Kanazawa, heard the islet name “Takarajima” mentioned in connection with news on a series of earthquakes in the Tokara island chain off Kagoshima Prefecture in July.

Yamamoto was particularly astonished because she wrongly believed that her father “was shot down above Takarajima.”

This misunderstanding led her to contact her daughter, Kana Okudaira, 47, who lives in Tsukuba, Ibaraki Prefecture.

Okudaira searched the internet for information and came across a report about the reel made publicly available by Toyonokuni Usashijuku, revealing what had been confirmed as “Isamu Sonobe.”

Okudaira was desperate to retrace Sonobe’s footsteps in more detail and reached out to Orita. In this manner, a total of eight relatives spanning three generations showed up in Usa for the first time.

BECAME A KAMIKAZE PILOT AT 21

Born the third son of a family running a long-established ryokan inn in Kyoto Prefecture, Sonobe trained for four months with the Imperial Japanese Navy’s flying corps in Usa. He later served as an instructor at the Nagoya naval air corps in Aichi Prefecture and elsewhere.

Sonobe was afterward assigned to a combat unit. Leaving a final note behind, Sonobe took off on his suicidal mission at the age of 21.

His failure to return from his mission led to his being presumed killed in action, and he was “posthumously” promoted two ranks to ensign. This promotion was eventually revoked when Sonobe came back to his homeland following the end of the war.

The latest development in Usa provided the bereaved family with a golden opportunity to learn about Sonobe’s history through records and images illustrating these personal events of the former service member.

“I heard that my father was taken by train to a prisoner-of-war camp in Boston,” Yamamoto recalled. “I remember, probably from my mother, that he had tried to commit suicide twice.”

Yamamoto said Sonobe had apparently refrained from attending the gatherings of a war veterans' association.

“He likely remained silent because he was ashamed of having survived,” said Yamamoto, looking back.

Sonobe passed away in 1995 after turning 71.

‘GUIDED BY FATE’

Okudaira shared what her days with Sonobe were like.

“My grandfather was very dexterous and an excellent cook,” Okudaira said. “Had he not been taken as a prisoner of war and returned alive, I would not be here now. Though it may have been a painful memory for my grandfather, I feel that I am guided by fate.”

Third-year junior high schooler Asahi, 14, Okudaira’s second son and Sonobe’s great-grandson, described the turn of events as simply stunning.

“It is like a miracle that I exist today,” Asahi said. “I currently feel closer to the war, which previously seemed to be something that appears only in textbooks.”

It was reportedly the first time likewise for Toyonokuni Usashijuku to roll out the red carpet for a bereaved family of a surviving kamikaze crew member, as it has been scouring air raid footage since 2011 and confirming dates and locations.

“What is important is passing on the memories of the warfare,” Orita said. “We will be continuing our activity in a quest to offer a meaningful chance to achieve this goal.”