Charles Gillman and others (thank you all for commenting on our FB page) correctly identified the aircraft type as Aichi Type 99 D3A1 "Kanbanku" (Val), 愛知 D3A 九九式艦上爆撃機.
He also added:
"Serial Number 3170, from the carrier Kaga, AII-251 tail code, flown by PO3c Sakaguchi Noburo and PO3c Asahi Nagaaki, shot down in Middle Loch, Pearl Harbor, December 7, 1941. Asahi survived the crash but was shot when apparently reaching for his own pistol. The aircraft was pulled out of the water and studied by the US Navy in Philadelphia. There are many photos of this wreck including another cockpit shot from the other side. The "bicycle handbrake" on the throttle is how the pilot fired the cowling mounted machine guns."
The same photo is included in Bob Mikesh's "Japanese Aircraft Interiors", p.216, but he mentions, apparently incorrectly, in the caption "This obsolete version survived the war and was photographed at the Kure Naval Base, in May 1946."
There are slightly different versions of the fate of the crew of "Val" "AII-251".
Osamu Tagaya in Osprey's "Aichi Kanbaku Units" mentions in the main text:
"Ogawa’s No 3, commanded by FPO 3/c Naga-aki Asahi (observer) and piloted by FPO 3/c Noboru Sakaguchi, crashed in Middle Loch off the port beam of destroyer-minelayer USS Montgomery (DM-17). The crew of two boats sent out to investigate became the first Americans to witness Japan’s harsh warrior code in action. For the men of the imperial armed forces, surrender was not an option. Asahi calmly removed his flight helmet, goggles and life jacket and drowned himself as a civilian boat approached, while Sakaguchi, thrashing in the water, was shot by one of the men in a boat sent out from the Montgomery."
The photo caption repeats basically the same information:
"The aeroplane’s commander, FPO 3/c Naga-aki Asahi, drowned himself in the observer’s rear cockpit when approached by civilian contractors in a boat, while the pilot, FPO 3/c Noboru Sakaguchi, was shot in the water by a sailor from a navy boat sent out by Montgomery."
No mention of Sakaguchi getting "shot when apparently reaching for his own pistol." I find quite interesting the description of Asahi "calmly removing his flight helmet, goggles and life jacket and drowning himself as a civilian boat approached". If the civilian boat was approaching, I wonder who witnessed him doing all these things and where he did them. And where did he "drown himself"? The photo caption says: "drowned himself in the observer’s rear cockpit" but I find it quite unlikely that he was able to remove his life jacket inside the tight cockpit. Did he, alternatively, climb out of the cockpit, stood on the wing, removed his gear and then jumped in the sea to "drown himself"? Also, I wonder why he removed his flight helmet.
Yet another "source" (here) mentions:
"Aircraft crashed near the Pan American Airways Landing at Pearl City.
DEATH BEFORE SURRENDER:
One of the crew committed suicide by drowning himself, the other rather than face capture went for his pistol and was shot by naval personnel."
but also:
"Both crewmen survived the crash, the pilot was in the water and could have been taken prisoner but was seen armed with a pistol before he could use it, he was shot by navy crewmen."
"Aircraft crashed near the Pan American Airways Landing at Pearl City.
DEATH BEFORE SURRENDER:
One of the crew committed suicide by drowning himself, the other rather than face capture went for his pistol and was shot by naval personnel."
but also:
"Both crewmen survived the crash, the pilot was in the water and could have been taken prisoner but was seen armed with a pistol before he could use it, he was shot by navy crewmen."
So, Sakaguchi was shot while "thrashing in the water" (which would mean he managed to climb out of the cockpit?) or he was shot while going for his gun or he was shot when the US sailor saw his gun. Or perhaps he was thrashing in the water, the US sailor saw his gun, thought he was going for it and shot him dead. Or...
The more I read the above and think about it, the more it seems to me that the more likely chain of events was that the "Val" was cut in half by anti-aircraft fire and was sinking rapidly in the sea. The two crew members were trying to escape from the wreck but were stuck or injured. Asahi in the rear cockpit was trying to remove excess gear to free himself but ultimately drowned, while Sakaguchi remained trapped, was drowning and was eventually shot by US personnel.
Take your pick or make a guess as to what exactly happened to the crew members of the "Val". Please keep any comments regarding the matter civil. Inappropriate comments will be removed.
View of the starboard side of the cockpit of "Val" "AII-251".
View of the rear part of the cockpit of "Val" "AII-251".
The three photos above are from NARA, courtesy of P. Fresnel.
Three photos below of "Val" "AII-251" being hoisted from the sea.
Source: "Naval History and Heritage Command National Museum of the U.S. Navy"
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