800.79611 Pangborn-Herndon Flight/116
Memorandum by the Under Secretary of State (Castle)
The Japanese Ambassador came in to ask in general how things were going and in particular to find out from me whether it would be appropriate for the Emperor to bestow a decoration on Colonel Lindbergh.2 He spoke of the wild enthusiasm in Japan on the Colonel’s arrival. He said that he hoped that we might be able to bring out to the press the fact that this enthusiasm was a real manifestation of Japan’s friendship for this country and that the Lindbergh flight could be sharply differentiated from the Herndon-Pangborn. I told the Ambassador that so far as this latter flight was concerned, I had in no way blamed the Japanese Government for imposing fines on the two men, but that I felt a decision should promptly be reached as to whether they might continue their flight across the Pacific. I told him that the American people would understand the fines, since the aviators had manifestly broken Japanese law, but that the long detention [Page 1052] of their plane after the fines had been levied might well be considered in this country as unnecessary persecution. The Ambassador said he entirely agreed with this and that he would immediately communicate with his Government urging that the men be allowed to leave. He said that he was sure the Foreign Office must be in favor of letting them go and that probably the trouble came from other departments.
- Col. and Mrs. Charles A. Lindbergh were on a flight to Japan and China via Alaska.↩