Born to a director of the
Sumitomo zaibatsu in
Tokyo in 1893, Kusaka's family registry officially listed him as a native of
Ishikawa Prefecture, and he was schooled in
Osaka. He entered the 41st class of the
Imperial Japanese Navy Academy graduating 14th out of a class of 118 in 1913 and graduating from the Naval Gunnery School in 1920. He did his
midshipman service on the
cruisers and . After he was commissioned as
ensign, he was assigned to the
battleship and cruiser . He later served on the battleship and
destroyer . After his promotion to
lieutenant on 1 December 1919, he was assigned to the battleships and , destroyer , and repair ship
Kantō. He was promoted to
lieutenant commander in 1925, and graduated from the
Naval Staff College the same year, specializing in
naval aviation. He subsequently captained a naval fighter group based at
Kasumigaura and served in numerous staff positions. On 1 September 1933, he was appointed
executive officer of the cruiser , and on 16 November 1936—after his promotion to
captain—he was given his first command: the
aircraft carrier . In 1939, he became captain of the aircraft carrier . Promoted to
rear admiral on 15 November 1940, he was commander of the 24th Air Flotilla before being appointed Chief of Staff of the
1st Air Fleet under Admiral
Chūichi Nagumo in April 1941. He was involved in strategic and tactical planning and execution, including the
attack on Pearl Harbor and
Battle of Midway. Kusaka badly sprained both ankles and was burned during the evacuation from the critically damaged
Akagi during the battle. During the aftermath of the battle, Kusaka was able to dissuade the fleet commander and senior officers from committing suicide after the Japanese defeat. Kusaka remained with the fleet until November 1942, and accepted a number of staff positions thereafter. He was promoted to
vice admiral on 1 May 1944 and transferred to the
Combined Fleet as Chief of Staff under commander-in-chief Admiral
Soemu Toyoda in November 1944. His final assignment was command of the
5th Air Fleet after the suicide of
Matome Ugaki, exactly the day
Japan surrendered to the Allies. Kusaka was interviewed by
Walter Lord and gave detailed accounts for the books
Day of Infamy (1957) and
Incredible Victory (1967). ==Portrayals==