Kamikaze Survivors in a Friendly Hug after 70-Years

A Zero pilot on a Kamikaze mission flight to Okinawa found a British aircraft-carrier, Formidable, off Okinawa; he dove right into it, killing numbers of sailors, among whom was a resident of Northwick, George Hingins by name. He was survived by his family, of whom David, his son, one day decided to write to the Japanese government to find him a way to meet the pilot who had dove into his father's ship and killed him. A series of goodwill gestures and helping now pay off to send David to Japan to meet the Zero fighter's younger brother after seventy years.

It all started this way: 

David never met his father. He was 5 months old when his father died. He grew up harboring grudge against Kamikaze, and one day, having become father himself to his kids, began wishing to reconcile with the pilot who had bombed his father to death. 

Then, a leading Japanese daily, "Sankei Shimbun", carried a feature relaying David's wish to get in touch with the Kamikaze pilot's family. The paper reported David wished to reconcile with the pilot's family out of respect for his bravery. Sankei's affiliate, Fuji News Network (FNN), was quick to confirm the Kamikaze attack on the British aircraft-carrier by a 22-year-old Zero pilot, Junsai Kurose. FNN further tracked down his 79-year-old brother, Muneyoshi Kurosae, resident in Saitama and conveyed David's wish to meet him. Kurose was overjoyed at the proposal and offered to apologize to David for his own loss and to build friendship beyond hatred.

The BBC covered the story and stirred waves of sympathy. A well-wisher spared funds for David's trip to Japan and dates are set. David and his wife arrive in Tokyo on August 22 and stay till 26 August to meet Muneyoshi Kurose.

"I never expected my letter to the Japanese government would bring me this far. Kurose-san and I have both lost loved ones. It's amazing that we meet after all these years. I feel God's hands working to make all this happen", spoke David feelingly.