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Born in June 1916 in Shimane (Hata/Izawa)
- or Hokkaido (Sakaida) Prefecture
Graduated from Masuda Agriculture & Forestry School
Tetsu did not want to be a farmer and so
Joined Imperial Japanese navy in June 1934
December 1936 - Graduated as fighter pilot
- from 34th pilot training course
February 25 1938 - His baptism of fire is with 12 AG
- claims 4 destroyed & 1 probable (I-15s & I-16s)
April 29 over Hankow - downs 4 more fighters
September 1938 - sent to Japan to join Saiki AG
At war's end he had flown 82 sorties & claimed 14 Kills
He was Japan's top Ace of the China War
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Serving aboard the carrier Zuikaku, Iwamoto flew top cover
- for the Japanese Invasion Fleet at Pearl Harbor
Returned to Japan December 24th
participated in the battles of the Indian Ocean & Coral Sea
August 1942 - became an instructor
Transferred to Air Group 281 - spring 1943
Spent summer on Paramushir Island doing air defense
November '43 - went with 15 new fighters to Rabaul
Where he joined 204 AG & later 253 AG
February 1944 - withdrew to Truk Island to
- protect against near constant B-24 bombardment
June 1944 - He returned to Japan
September '44 - attached to Fighter Hikotai 316, 252 AG
& Promoted to ensign
October - air battles over Taiwan & Philippines
by November he's back in Japan
Spring 1945 - transferred to AG 203 & sent to Kyushu
- for more air defense operations
He spent the last months of the war training
- Kamikaze pilots at Iwakuni Airfield |
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Tetsuzo Iwamoto finished the war credited with approximately
80 planes destroyed in WW2. Add them to the 14 that he had destroyed during
the China war and we have the total figure 94. This is however only an
estimate. (Athough the 14 from China, I believe, are official)
Iwamoto did not adjust well to Japan's defeat and turned to alcohol after
the war. I read somewhere (no idea where though so this could be straight
bullshit) that at times he would go into a drunken rage and make claims
to having been the highest scoring pilot in WW2. With over 350 kills!
His own writings however, which were found after his death, have
him claiming 202 planes destroyed. The Japanese were probably the worst
overclaimers of WW2 however and since Nishizawa
was considered "Top Dog" by the Japanese at the time, I consider
the estimate of 80 to be somwhat high.
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--- Japanese Aces
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