Take the Engines, Leave the Engineers: Japanese Military Innovation and Innovators under American Occupation, 1945–53

In the aftermath of Japan’s defeat in World War Two, American leading military advisors wondered ‘how had Japan organised its scientific effort in the war? What technical ideas or developments of the Japanese could we advantageously incorporate in our own future national security program?’ To answer this question, groups dubbed ‘technical missions’ (TMs) moved swiftly ahead of troops to secure key research sites . The activities of the TMs were part of a broader effort in the United States to garner a fuller understanding of the former enemy and to alter them. The TMs' activities had two major consequences. They not only contributed to the demystification of Japan’s wartime state, but also provided an opportunity for its surviving Japanese innovators to continue their research and establish foundations for Japan’s postwar economy resurgence.

The first contribution of the TMs was the uncovering of a great deal of cutting-edge research that had previously been kept under tight wraps by the Japanese government. In identifying and analysing them, the Supreme Commander Allied Powers (SCAP) made clear both the successes and failures of Japan’s wartime military-technical complex.

Second, the activities of US agents also reveal the roots of the country’s postwar resurgence. Assisting in the TMs’ inquiries were the very same men and women who’d been responsible for their development in the first place. Cast adrift by the failure of Japan’s imperial project, these figures now established themselves as advisors and assistants to the occupiers, even securing funding to continue projects that had been terminated upon surrender. These Japanese established the networks and acquired new skills that turned them into key players in strategic Japanese industries.