Niihau Incident

The battle of Niihau
Part of the American Theater and the Pacific Theater of World War II
Aerial view of Niʻihau looking southwestward from the north, where the incident took place
Date	December 7–13, 1941
Location	Niihau, Hawaii Territory
Result	Civilians kill Nishikaichi. Harada commits suicide.
Parties to the civil conflict
Hawaii (civilians) Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service  Hawaii (civilians)
Lead figures
Hawila Kaleohano Ben Kanahele (WIA) Shigenori Nishikaichi † Yoshio Harada †
Number
5 civilian guards 1 airman 3 civilians
Casualties
1 wounded 2 dead 2 detained (later released)

Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service

The Niʻihau incident (or Battle of Niʻihau) occurred on December 7–13, 1941, when Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service pilot Shigenori Nishikaichi (西開地 重徳 Nishikaichi Shigenori) crash-landed his Zero on the Hawaiian island of Niʻihau after participating in the attack on Pearl Harbor. He was killed in a struggle with people on the island.

The island's Native Hawaiian residents were initially unaware of the attack, but apprehended Nishikaichi when the gravity of the situation became apparent. Nishikaichi then sought and received the assistance of the three locals of Japanese descent on the island in overcoming his captors, finding weapons, and taking several hostages. Eventually, Nishikaichi was killed by Niihauans Benehakaka "Ben" Kanahele and Kealoha "Ella" Kanahele; Ben Kanahele was wounded in the process, and one of Nishikaichi's supporters, Yoshio Harada, committed suicide.

The incident and the actions of Nishikaichi's abettors demonstrated the potential for racial or ethnic allegiance to overwhelm national allegiance. This ultimately may have influenced Franklin D. Roosevelt's decision to intern Japanese Americans during World War II. Ben Kanahele was decorated for his part in stopping the takeover, but Ella Kanahele received no official recognition.