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Burma
Liberated Rangoon Jail
Interrogation and Treatment
Interrogation 1
The following is the complete story of the interrogation of a Mosquito crew, shot down over Meiktila, 10th November, 1944, from which will be seen the importance of aircrews being provided with cover-stories.
The crew were made to stand to attention before a Japanese in a room on Meiktila airfield. This Japanese wore no shirt, but was obviously of some rank. He was surrounded by a number of other Japanese, mostly N. C.O’s, who, it transpired, were his interpreters, although none of them spoke much English.
The interrogation started with the following questions :-
Japanese “Where did you come from?”
Pilot “Allahabad”
Japanese “What is your unit?
Pilot “308 M.U.”
Japanese “But your Squadron — what is that?”
Pilot “ We are not on a squadron”
Japanese “What was the name of the plane you came in ?
Pilot “Z”
Japanese “No. no. What was its name? Was it a Beaufighter or Mosquito?"
Pilot “It does not have a name; the R.A.F. does not use names for planes. I was told to take ‘Z’ and as far as I know that’s its only name.”
This caused considerable confusion among the Japanese, and some time was spent while they tried in vain to get the crew to give the name of the aircraft as either a Beaufighter or Mosquito.
The interrogator then gave details from his point of view of the raid in which the PoW had taken part. He drew a rough sketch showing the positions of the aircraft, and the Pilot, deciding that this was his chance to enlarge on his story, admitted being
In the aircraft which the interrogator said had been seen to be badly hit .
The Pilot said he had been blindly following the leader when they were hit in one engine and subsequently crashed. It was obvious however to the Pilot that the Japanese demanded some answer to every question, and were not satisfied with a plea of ignorance, unless some reason were given for such ignorance. Despite this, the crew mutually decided to persist for a while in their agreed policy of resistance, and only to give answers which bore out their story.
The Interrogators, apparently having become convinced that the PoWs had been flying a Mosquito, in spite of the PoW’s refusal to admit it, then approached the subject of the performance and war-load of the Mosquito. Here the aircrew politely refused to answer any questions of such a nature, adopting an attitude of regret, but saying was quite out of the question for them to provide the Japanese with the information they required.
The Japanese appeared unable to understand the meaning of the PoWs refusal, and after some time, the Interrogator attempted, through the interpreters, to emphasise the fact that the PoWs must answer whatever questions were asked them on threat of unpleasant consequence. The PoWs still resisted, although they were rather apprehensive, when told that, at any time, they might find themselves in front of a firing squad, if answers were not given promptly. They adopted a fatalistic attitude, explaining it was their duty to withhold such information to avoid endangering the lives of their comrades on subsequent operations.
The interpreter had difficulty in explaining this to the interrogator, who commented on PoW spirit and courage, and informed them they were being sent to Rangoon, warning them to tell the Japanese authorities all they wanted to know on pain of torture, and in the case of continued resistance, death.
The PoWs were given a bowl of rice, and in company with a USAAF private were taken, tied together, by, their wrist, in a truck, to Toungoo.
At Toungoo the PoWs were well-treated, fed and allowed to sleep. The same night they started off for Rangoon, but south of Pegu the truck was held up until dawn by the presence of Allied aircraft the PoWs could hear high-flying aircraft going over.
The PoWs were accompanied by their captor, a polite and rather European-like officer, and the PoWs were convinced that his presence was the reason the Japanese rank and file refrained from ill-treating them, beyond hitting them on their heads and kicking their spines when sitting down.
the PoWs reached Rangoon University at about 1000 hrs.
About one hour later, the Pilot was taken to a room behind the guard. room for interrogation.
The Interrogator wag a Japanese Officer of the old-soldier type. He always wore full green uniform and had his bullet shaped head closely shaven.
The PoWs all came to hate this type of Japanese. They appeared to be steeped in Japanese Army training and, in their treatment of PoWs, behaved like animals. They also appeared to be greatly feared by the Japanese rank and file.
The Interpreter was an American-born Japanese civilian, who explained he had been caught in Japan when the war broke out. He had been trained as an aeronautical engineer in the University of Washington, Seattle, and appeared to know a great deal about aviation.
As he was a civilian this interpreter was extremely servile, and was subjected to considerable violence by the soldiers.
The Interrogation opened with the usual question:
“Where did you come from ?”
The Pilot answered “Allahabad”
The interpreter said it was not possible for him to have flown direct from Allahabad to Meiktila, and asked where the Pilot had last taken off for BURMA.
The Pilot then noticed that the interpreter had in front of him all the notes taken down at the initial interrogation at Meiktila, so he decided to continue with the story he had started there, replying that he had landed at an airfield in Bengal at night, and had taken off before dawn, and therefore he had no idea where it was. The Japanese then asked how it was as a pilot of the aircraft, he did not know where he had landed. The PoW said that he had not been the pilot on that trip but a passenger in a transport aircraft, leaving Allahabad at 1700 hrs. , and had slept most of the time without bothering to keep track of the route taken.
This seemed to annoy the Interrogator, who dropped the subject. The PoW was next asked the type of aircraft he had been flying when shot down. politely declined to answer. this question. The interpreter then informed the PoW that the latter need not worry that what he told the Japanese would reach his Officers back in India, that he was free to talk, and the Japanese promised to protect him.
The Pilot still insisted that it was his duty to keep information from the enemy.
The Japanese then went to great lengths to point out that having surrendered to them, the PoW should be willing to talk freely as he was no longer a respected member of the British Officer’s Corps.
The interrogator then asked if there were any other reasons why the PoW would not answer questions, to which replied he owed it to his comrades to keep any information from the enemy which might lead to their being killed on subsequent operations.
The Japanese said he respected the spirit of the Pilot, and his desire to save his comrades, but that h regretted that he must have the information and if the Pilot continued to resist, he would have to use every means at his disposal to get it.
The Pilot also expressed his regrets, and shrugging hi shoulders, as good as told the Japanese to ‘do their worst’.
This ended the interrogation, and the PoW was taken back to the guard room where, instead of being allowed to sit with his navigator, he was made to stand to attention in the corner of the room.
Almost Immediately an air-raid alarm sounded, and the aircrew were hastily tied together, and put into a slit trench. The Pilot took full advantage of this opportunity to pass on in whispers to the navigator, all he had told the Japanese, and the form the
interrogation had taken.
The navigator was then for interrogation, and endorsed the Pilot’s story where possible, and otherwise pretended ignorance.
Immediately after the navigator returned from his interrogation another air-raid alarm was sounded. The PoWs once again were put into a slit trench together, and thus the navigator was able to tell the Pilot what he had said.
It became obvious to the PoWs that all the interrogator required were willing answers to all his questions, or if the PoWs pleaded ignorance, a reason had to be given for not knowing the answers. To the PoWs it appeared not to matter whether the truth were told, provided the overall story made sense.
The Japanese now made an effort to force the Pilot to talk. He was made to stand in a corner of the guard room for three days without food or water and rest. This gave the PoW adequate time to watch the Japanese an to establish how far he could bluff them.
The Pilot’s ordeal was the subject of great interest to the Japanese, who watched his reaction closely as the days passed.
Already considerably weakened by the crash and the overnight journey sitting on gravel in the truck, the Pilot was far from being in good condition to withstand such treatment.
At the end of the third day the PoW decided it was unnecessary to weaken himself further, and that he had given sufficient token resistance. He therefore decided the time had come to try a big bluff once and for all, the PoW considering that if it did not work, he would require all his strength to resist the inevitable torture. The PoW therefore, at the end of the third day, informed the interpreter that he was ready to talk.
The PoW then admitted he had been flying a Mosquito, and agreed to answer all questions truthfully and willingly, to the best of his ability.
When asked the reason for his change of attitude, the PoW replied that the only information he could give was of little value, he felt sure his comrades would forgive his weakening and allowing it to fall into enemy hands.
The PoW stated that this was designed to give the Japanese the impression that although the Pilot could not be expected to know much, what he know was worth getting it out of him. It was all part of his plan to impress the Japanese, so that when he did talk freely, they would believe his story.
The interpreter then expressed his regret that it was far past his mealtime, and the PoW would have to wait until next day for food. However, a drink of water was procured and PoW was allowed to sleep on the floor.
Later in the evening the PoW was awakened by the N.C.O. of the guard and taken to another room, where an enormous meal by Japanese standards, was ready for him. Apparently the N.C.O. had spared no effort to make it a worthy meal, and there was even a bowl of candy to finish to finish with, European cutlery being provided. later that night the N.C.O. provided two forms for the Pilot to sleep on in order to avoid the discomfort and dirt on the floor.
Throughout their stay this Japanese N.C.O. appeared to take great interest in the PoWs and regarded them with comparatively high esteem.
The next morning the Pilot was again interrogated, and he answered all the questions without divulging any secrets. The PoW found it easy to lead the Japanese into asking questions which enabled him to adhere to his story.
The Japanese openly displayed a large book in which were detailed photographs and performance figures of most Allied aircraft. It was noticed, however, that they had only one vague photograph of the Mosquito, and no details of its performance.
The interrogation lasted 4.5 hour, but a great deal of time was spent on the Pilot’s service career. The PoW made no attempt to adhere to the truth, but avoided giving the impression that he had any specialist knowledge which the Japanese might investigate.
The PoW concentrated on saying that he had very considerable flying time on many types of aircraft to bear that his story of having been giving a Mosquito for the first time and ordered to do a night take-off without any instructions about the aircraft.
This surprised the Japanese, who wanted to know if it was a common practice in the RAF. The PoW said it was not a general practice, but that he was a Pilot with some 3,000 flying hours to his credit, and therefore deemed capable of taking any aircraft off with no more than a brief glance at the flight instructions book issued with the aircraft.
At the end of the interrogation the Japanese had procured owing story:-
The PoW left England three weeks before his capture, and flew to India in a D.C.3. According to the Pilot, the aircraft flew at high altitudes, and to avoid questions about discussions with other passengers, the PoW explained that everyone wore oxygen masks throughout the trip.
PoW said one stop was made at a deserted airfield, but all curtains were drawn, and passengers warned not to ask questions in the interest of security. The Pilot explained to the Japanese that as an Officer he naturally complied with this order. The POW said that the next stop was Bombay, and he was asked questions about the city and troops in the area, etc., answers to which were avoided by PoW saying he did not leave the airfield before taking off for Allahabad. The PoW had never been to Bombay but, wanted to avoid saying Karachi as this was the air terminal for flights from the UK. About Allahabad itself the Pilot could give the interrogator no detailed information, as he did no work while there. The only aircraft seen were about 20 Vultee dive-bombers under repair, about 50 Hurricanes and 2 Dakotas which passed through each day.
The PoW said he spent the next 2-5 weeks on leave in Naini Tal and he painted a glowing picture of the state of affairs there. This deemed to be of great interest to the interrogator, and giving such irrelevant details suited the Pilot’s purpose, as he felt that once the Japanese had filled several sheets of paper, he might be satisfied and call the Interrogation off.
When questioned about the general Airforce situation the PoW explained that he knew nothing, having recently arrived from the U.K.
PoW told the Japanese that he had been kept busy answering questions put to him by Air Force personnel who had been away from home for a long time, and had had no opportunity to get on to the subject of the disposition and organisation of the R.A.F. in India. PoW said he could not name any of the senior Commanders but referred vaguely to Air-Marshal Baldwin as being the Officer whom he thought commanded the R.A.F. in India. Actually the PoW knew that this Officer was no longer in command.
The Japanese asked questions about Air Chief Marshal Leigh-Mallory coming to India, but the PoW said he was certain that he still commanded the Allied Air Forces on the Western Front.
(This is Interesting, as no information had at that time been published officially about the Air Chief Marshal’s appointment to India although the Pilot had heard rumours about it in his squadron)
The POW told the interrogator he had seen nothing of American aircraft, nor had he heard anything about Hurricane, Wellington, or Beauflghters squadrons converting to Thunderbolts, B. 24’s and Mosquitos respectively.
Questions were asked about which squadrons were equipped with Vengeances, and it was not until the Japanese suggested they might be 45 and 82 Squadrons that PoW admitted having seen these two numbers on a maintenance schedule board, and even went so far as to tell the story of a Pilot, said to be from 45 Squadron, who swung on landing and wrecked a Vengeance he was bringing in for repairs. PoW explained that this had happened the day he had left Allahabad so he was unable to get more details.
(POW considered this story justified in an attempt to indicate that 45 Squadron were still equipped Vengeances).
PoW regretted not being able to give the name of the Station Commander at ALLAHABAD, as he had been absent when PoW was there.
This interrogation concluded with the Pilot giving his story of the flight which ended in his being captured. This story is given below in detail, as told by PoW to the Japanese:-
On PoW’s second day back from leave, he received orders to catch a DC 3 at the control tower at 1700 hrs. Before setting off, he met his navigator, who told him he was going on a flight somewhere, but knew no details at that time.
The DC 3 took off and set course East. Darkness fell soon after and all the passengers, including the PoW fell asleep.
Eventually the transport landed and PoW, and his navigator disembarked. On arrival the PoW was met by a squadron Leader.
(The Japanese insisted on having this Squadron Leader’s name, and the PoW having heard him called ‘Dave’, assumed it to be short for Davidson, and gave his name as such).
The navigator was gent to arrange food and accommodation while the was taken and shown 3 Mosquitos, and was told he would be taking aircraft ‘Z’, and to be ready for take-off 2 hours before dawn.
The P. W. instructions were to keep close to the leader and to keep his eyes open. The leader would burn a small light during darkness, and with the aid of his “observer” the PoW was to ensure that he did not get lost. If he did get lost he was told that the contents of a sealed packet could be opened and this would get him back to an Allied base.
No other information about the flight was provided, and he spent half an hour checking the aircraft. He found the control g and instrument identical with the Beauflghter XI, on which he had 300 hours and so felt completely at ease about the night take-off in the strange aircraft. He also said as he was graded "Exceptional” at instrument flying, the night skies held no terrors for him at any time.
After a meal and some sleep they were wakened and all took off for Burma.
When questioned about the course they took, the PoW said “076 for about one hour, and then running into bad weather, they weaved all over the place.”
In all they had been airborne for about three hours when Anti-Aircarft fire was seen coming up and the aircraft was hit.
The leader had given no instructions about an attack, and the PoW was very surprised by the A.A.
One motor. was knocked out, and shortly afterwards the other failed and the aircraft crashed and burned. The other two aircraft deserted the damaged machine and were not seen again.
(No mention was made of the Oscar which actually shot down the already damaged Mosquito the PoW was flying).
The PoW said he had never flown in a Mosquito before and had had no instruction on the aircraft, and was therefore extremely vague about its performance.
When the Japanese queried the PoW apparent ignorance of the performance the Pilot explained how he was expected to know all about all Allied aircraft, and therefore would not consider asking either the Squadron leader or other pilots about this aircraft in case they should lose
faith in his ability.
The Interrogator asked further questions, and received answers which amounted to the following:-
The Mosquito was fitted with Merlin XX engines of 1050 h.p. each of which developed plug 6 lbs. boost for take-off and plug 9 lbs. maximum. Endurance was 6 hours at 210 m.p.h. (This considered necessary in order to cover the three hour flight given to mislead the Japanese as to the location of the airfield).
The top speed was not known for certain, as the PoW did not fly above 9,000 ft nor open the motors to full throttle. However, it was said to be about 320 m.p.h. at 18,000 ft.
Rate of climb-----------700 ft per minute.
Service or maximum ceiling not known.
Armament - 4 x .303 in Machine Guns. The Japanese queried this, protesting that the calibre was too small for modern aircraft. The PoW pointed out that the Japanese had brought one of the M.G.’s from the wreck to Rangoon so they could inspect it themselves.
Cannons: PoW was not certain as they were covered. The covers used however were identical with those on the Beaufighter XI which carried 20 m.m. cannons.
Bombs: The PoW was doubtful but said certainly not more than two 250 lbs. as there was not room with guns aboard.
Quantity of ammunition: Unknown.
The aircraft was supposed to be of wooden construction, but the PoW knew nothing of that aspect, and darkness had prevented him from making a thorough inspection before he took off.
Finally the PoW was asked what he thought had been the object of, the flight. To this he replied it could only have been an experimental recce. to try out the machine in this theatre.
When questioned about other Mosquitos in India he said he was doubtful there were any more, but could not say for certain, knowing so little of service establishments in this country.
The PoW was asked if it were possible for the pilots of the other two aircraft to belong to a squadron using Mosquitos. He replied it was unlikely, as they had made no mention of it, and if there had been other pilots with experience of this type of Aircraft, it would have been unnecessary to bring from the U.K. for the flight.
The Japanese quite satisfied with this story, and its plausibility was never questioned. They later told the Pilot that they considered his “mystery” airfield to be somewhere near Dacca.
The crew were able to stick to their story during the whole of their captivity, although they had to repeat it several times at various different Interrogations.
If the Japanese had got any authentic information concerning the Mosquito VI, the Squadron, and the base from which the crew operated, they never tried to use as a threat to obtain more information from these PoWs.
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