HOW THE EAGLE BLOCKED OUT THE SUN: AMERICAN AND JAPANESE AERONAUTICAL ENGINEERING AND AIRCRAFT PRODUCTION DURING WORLD WAR II

Adam LaPorte

doi:10.7273/000004592

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HOW THE EAGLE BLOCKED OUT THE SUN: AMERICAN AND JAPANESE AERONAUTICAL ENGINEERING AND AIRCRAFT PRODUCTION DURING WORLD WAR II

Thesis

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HOW THE EAGLE BLOCKED OUT THE SUN: AMERICAN AND JAPANESE AERONAUTICAL ENGINEERING AND AIRCRAFT PRODUCTION DURING WORLD WAR II

Adam LaPorte

Washington State University

Master of Arts (MA), Washington State University

01/2022

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.7273/000004592

Handle:

https://hdl.handle.net/2376/125291

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Abstract

Aeronautical Engineering

Aircraft

Pacific War

Production

Aerospace Engineering

Japan

United States

Before Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor, Japan demonstrated during the Second Sino-Japanese War that its military had developed the best fighter planes in the world. The Zero continued to outperform against Allied aircraft in the early months of the Pacific War. This prompts the fundamental question of this thesis: why did the A6M Zero fail to protect Japanese air superiority if it was so indomitable in the Second Sino-Japanese War and early months of the Pacific War? The answer to this question is threefold. Japan suffered from a dearth of natural resources and less effective administrative organization than its enemies, especially the United States, even before it started the Pacific War. The need for resources was of such paramount importance in Imperial Japan that it guided strategic and diplomatic decision making at the highest level. Consistent attempts were made to better organize Japan’s administrative apparatus, but factional in-fighting continually impeded these efforts. Second, Japan fell behind in aeronautical engineering while the United States and its allies kept progressing. Unreliable engines and mechanical issues plagued late-war Japanese fighter planes while American planes were both reliable and built to last. Third, Japan was unable to keep production of its aircraft and engines comparable to that of its enemies. For instance, 1944 was the most productive year for both the American and Japanese air industries, however the American production values were over triple that of their Japanese counterparts.

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Title: HOW THE EAGLE BLOCKED OUT THE SUN
Creators: Adam LaPorte
Contributors: Noriko Kawamura (Advisor)
William Brecher (Committee Member)
Andra Chastain (Committee Member)
Kenneth Faunce (Committee Member)
Awarding Institution: Washington State University
Academic Unit: History, Department of
Theses and Dissertations: Master of Arts (MA), Washington State University
Publisher: Washington State University
Number of pages: 113
Identifiers: OCLC#: 1371058772; 99900898939201842
Language: English
Resource Type: Thesis