Rinosuke Ichimaru

Admiral , also known as Toshinosuke Ichimaru, was a Japanese officer and aviator in the Imperial Japanese Navy during the Second World War.

He was an early pioneer, then a fighter pilot, with the Dai-Nippon Teikoku Kaigun Kōkū Hombu, the aeronautical service of the Japanese Imperial Navy. During the Second World War, he commanded numerous air units, and participated in the Guadalcanal Campaign. In August 1944 he assumed command of the Imperial Naval forces present on the island of Iwo Jima, and died in combat against the US Marines on March 26, 1945.

Biography Rinosuke Ichimaru was born in Karatsu, Saga Prefecture, on 20 September 1891. He graduated high school on 31 March 1910 and entered the Etajima Naval Academy that same year. He finished his studies on December 19, 1913 ranking 46th out of 118 cadets, and earning the rank of Ensign. He then embarked on the armored cruiser Azuma. On 11 August 1914, he started serving on the battle cruiser Kongō. On 24 October, he was transferred to the armored cruiser Izumo.

Rinosuke Ichimaru was promoted to the rank of sub-lieutenant on 1 December 1914. On May 26, 1915, he was assigned again to the armored cruiser Azuma, remaining on board until September 1, 1916, when he was switched back to the Kongō again. On September 25, 1919, Rinosuke was transferred to the boarded air group, operating from the new aircraft carrier Hōshō. On 1 December he was promoted to lieutenant and became an instructor at the Yokosuka Air Group. Four years later, on 1 December 1923, he was placed in charge of the Omura Aircraft Group. He was later transferred to the Kasumigaura Aircraft Group on 7 January 1925. On 1 December of the same year he was appointed to the rank of lieutenant commander. On 1 December 1927 he returned to active service as an instructor at the Kasumigaura flight school. He then returned to Yokosuka in November 1929, where on 1 December 1930 he was promoted to commander and became an official instructor. Three years later, on 1 December 1933, he became an executive officer at the Sasebo Air Group and on 1 November 1934, he was assigned to the General Staff of the 1st Aircraft Division. On May 25, 1935, still as an executive officer, he boarded the aircraft carrier Kaga.

Second Sino-Japanese War and Second World War On 15 October 1935, Rinosuke Ichimaru was assigned to the Chinkai Guard District in Korea, where he later took command of the Air Group on October 1, 1936. Exactly two months later, he was elevated to the rank of captain. The Second Sino-Japanese War broke out in July 1937, and four months later on November 15, he became commander of the Yokohama Air Group. He held this position for only one month, and was then transferred on December 15 to the 1st Naval District where he took command. On 1 April 1939 he was transferred to take command of the Chichi Jima Aircraft Group. On 6 November he changed units again and was placed in command of the 13th Air Group. In the days that followed, 2,126 sailors, aviators, and marines were placed under his orders. When all the planes of his flotilla were lost in the preliminary US bombing, he decided to place his troops under the command of Kuribayashi. which included a defense in depth. The admiral would have preferred to immediately counter the landings, fighting on the beaches On March 17, towards the end of the battle, he was believed to have been killed, and was promoted to the posthumous rank of vice admiral. and still survived. Admiral Ichimaru is believed to have been killed by a barrage of machine gun fire on March 26, while trying to abandon the cave in which he had taken refuge. During the fighting at Iwo Jima, he always kept his sword with him, but when his body was identified at the end of the attack, it had been taken. There was no news about the katana