Silent Invasions: Top-Secret Submarines That Landed Spies on Japanese Shores

The Top Secret Submarines That Landed Spies on Japanese Shores

During World War II, the U.S. Navy launched some of its most secret missions using submarines to land spies and intelligence agents on the shores of Japan and occupied territories. These covert operations, run by the Office of Strategic Services (OSS) and U.S. Navy intelligence, aimed to gather information, rescue downed pilots, and track enemy troop movements deep behind enemy lines.

Modified Gato-class and Balao-class submarines carried small teams of trained operatives who risked everything to land undetected on Japan’s heavily guarded coastlines. They used rubber boats under cover of darkness, hiding among cliffs and fishing villages before vanishing back into the sea.

These missions were some of the most dangerous of the Pacific War, combining stealth, espionage, and naval warfare. Many agents never returned, but the intelligence they gathered helped shape the Allied strategy — from air raids on Japan to the eventual invasion plans.

This video tells the story of the top-secret submarines that landed spies on Japanese shores, how the missions were carried out, and why they remained classified long after World War II ended.

Timecodes:
00:00 — Night over Japan: the submarine USS Barb goes ashore
03:40 — The first Americans set foot on Japanese soil
07:20 — OSS and secret plans: the beginning of Operation Napko
11:05 — The Korean agents who were being trained for the landing
15:00 — The feat of the Barb crew: the plan to blow up the railway
19:10 — Disembarkation and installation of the charge on the rails
23:00 — Hokkaido train explosion: the first attack on Japanese soil
27:15 — Shock of Japanese residents and fear of the military
31:00 — Operation Napko: plans that did not have time to materialize
34:10 — Secrecy of missions: orders that were burned after reading
37:20 — Bottom line: the submarine missions that turned the ocean into a door

#WWII #Submarines #WWIIHistory #WWIIDocumentary #PacificWar #USNavy #OSS #Spies #WWIIStories #History