On 25 April 1942, Aoki was made the captain of the aircraft carrier . He was in command of the ship at the time of her sinking at the Battle of Midway on 5 June 1942, and attempted to go down with his ship, but he was forcefully removed by his crew. After the battle, he applied to enter the reserves, but was instead sent to the garrison of Japanese-occupied Hainan, and made commander of the naval air group based at Haikou. He was subsequently recalled to Japan to command the Sasebo Air Group. Aoki was in command of the Genzan Air Group in Korea at the time of the surrender of Japan. On hearing of the surrender announcement, Aoki flew back to the Japanese home islands; however, the men left behind in Wonsan were captured by the Soviet Union and were sent to labor camps in Siberia, where many perished. Aoki died in 1962.
