"It was clear that 'Z' was an outstanding pilot, definitely one from (Wolfram) von Richthofen's inner circle. A hundred times I examined my mind to find out different ways of attacking him—from above, from below, from the clouds or the sun. But these ideas always were countered and turned against you by 'Z'. 'Z' wasn't someone whom you could lure into a trap, or who would lose nerve in a frontal attack. You would think that you had him dead in your sights only for 'Z' to turn the tables on you. No matter what you did he would always manage to get the upper hand in a fight."
- Russian Ace Mikhail Avdeyev.
Mikhail wrote at length about an opponent encountered during WWII and named the pilot 'Z'. The pilot known as 'Z' was Anton Hackl from Regensburg who had fought on all fronts in Europe and took part in the Yamatoverteidigung.
Gerald Johnson's P-38
The whole operation was already going off track badly. The defenders were singling out leader planes and were successful in sowing chaos. Jerry had shot down an 'Oscar', the pilot's parachute just floating out of sight, when for a few moments his Lightning and an Fw 190 flew side by side. Seeing the space on the cockpit side, he remembered that the Luftwaffe was painting their victories on the side rudder or the tail fin.
Jerry threw a quick look at the tail of the 'Butcher Bird', as many allied pilots called the Focke-Wulf fighter and was surprised. There were well over 150 markings, this was not a newbie, but a top ace! And Gerald saw that the German pilot was looking at his Lightning as well.
The two aces evaluated each other, both knowing the other to be a threat. Toni Hackl had ten times the victories of Gerald Johnson but knew that most fighter pilots never became aces, so every ace had to be good to become one.
Gerald Johnson had never met an enemy ace with such a high total in the air. Whoever he was, he had to be a great pilot, astute and experienced. Unknown to him at that time, Tetsuzo Iwamoto and Hiroyoshi Nishizawa the leading Japanese aces were in this battle as well.
Ironically, this proved to be the closest both pilots would come to engaging each other, neither Hackl nor Johnson would engage each other this day, their respective roles and orders leading them to different parts of the air battle. Toni Hackl added nine victories to his already impressive total and Johnson himself adding two kills to his, would lead the retreating US planes home.
The successful defence of Tokyo that day was seen as one of the turning points in the Pacific Theatre. The strategy of making the war unbelievably expensive in men and materiel for the Allies, to force them to the negotiation table, was bearing fruit.
For several years neither Gerald Johnson nor Hiroyoshi Nishizawa would learn that uptime Germany's arrival and actions in the war would save their lives. The Japanese ace would never be a passenger on a certain ill-fated transport plane late in the war and the American ace would not fly his bomber into a typhoon postwar.
