A participant recalls hearing a story while working as an English-language translator at the Kure naval museum during a stay in Japan. In that account, the reconnaissance crew that found Force Z had discarded unnecessary weight, including clothing, to extend endurance. Their sighting reached bombers already returning from the search. This is a reported museum story, and the anecdote supplies no documentary confirmation of its details.
Notable Point · 8:25:43-8:26:28
A museum story about the aircraft that found Force Z
A participant relates an unverified museum account of weight reduction aboard the reconnaissance aircraft that found Force Z.