GENDA MINORU

born Aug. 16, 1904, Hiroshima, Japan died Aug. 15, 1989, Tokyo Japanese naval officer and politician who was chosen by Admiral Yamamoto Isoroku to draft the plan for the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor (in Oahu Island, Hawaii, U.S.), which crippled the American Pacific Fleet and precipitated the entry of the United States into World War II. Genda, a graduate of the Japanese Naval Academy (1924), was a fighter pilot who was regarded as one of Japan's finest naval officers. He was a commander in the navy when he formulated the details of the air assault on Pearl Harbor, and he was promoted to captain by the end of the war. From 1959 to 1962 he served as chief of staff of the Air SelfDefense Force, and, from 1962 until his retirement in 1986, he served in the House of Councillors (parliament). For many years he was also chairman of the National Defense Committee of the Liberal-Democratic Party.