Imperial Japanese Military

Administration Imperial General Headquarters Components Imperial Japanese Navy (Dai Nippon Teikoku Kaigun)         Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service     Major battles     List of ships     List of aircraft     Main admirals Imperial Japanese Army (Dai Nippon Teikoku Rikugun)         Imperial Japanese Army Air Service         Railways and Shipping Section     Uniforms Rank insignia Naval rank insignia Army rank insignia History of the Japanese Military Military History of Japan during World War II

The Imperial Japanese Army Air Service, or more traditionally called the Japanese Army Air Force (陸軍航空本部 Rikugun Kōkū Hombu), was Imperial Japan's land-based aviation force. Imperial Japan did not maintain a separate and independent air force so both the Imperial Japanese Army and the Imperial Japanese Navy maintained their own air services. Image File history File links Flag_of_Japan_-_variant. ... The Imperial General Headquarters or Daihonei, as part of the Supreme War Council was the supreme command for Japanese military forces during the World War II era. ... Image File history File links Naval_Ensign_of_Japan. ... The Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) (: 大日本帝國海軍 Shinjitai: 大日本帝国海軍   or 日本海軍 Nippon Kaigun), officially Navy of Empire of Greater Japan, also known as the Japanese Navy or Combined Fleet was the Navy of Empire of Japan from 1869 until 1947, when it was dissolved following Japans constitutional renunciation of the use of force... The Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service or Dai Nippon Teikoku Kaigun Koku Hombu was a major force in the Pacific War during World War II. The Japanese military acquired their first aircraft in 1910 and followed the development of air combat during World War I with great interest. ... Boshin War (1868-1869): Naval Battle of Hakodate (Imperial Navy victory over the remnants of the Shoguns Navy of the Republic of Ezo. ... The following is the list of ships of the Imperial Japanese Navy and the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force. ... This is the list of aircrafts of the Imperial Japanese Navy and the Japan Self-Defence Forces, including ones in the past and ones in the present time. ... Wikipedia does not yet have an article with this exact name. ... The Imperial Japanese Army (IJA) (KyÅ«jitai: 大日本帝國陸軍, Shinjitai: , Romaji: Dai-Nippon Teikoku Rikugun) was the official ground based armed force of Imperial Japan from 1867 to 1945. ... The Imperial Japanese Army Railway and Shipping Section was the logistics unit of the Imperial Japanese Army charged with shipping personnel, materiel and equipment from metropolitan Japan to the combat front overseas. ... Imperial Japanese Army Uniforms tended to reflect the uniforms of those countries who were the principal advisors to the Imperial Japanese Army at the that time. ... The following graphs present the rank insignia of the Japanese navy during World War II. These designs had been used between the years 1931 to 1945, but were discontinued after World War II, when the Imperial navy had been dissolved. ... The following graphs present the rank insignia of the Japanese military during World War II. These designs had been used between the years 1938 to 1945, but were discontinued after World War II, when the Imperial military had been dissolved. ... Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... The Imperial Japanese Army (IJA) (KyÅ«jitai: 大日本帝國陸軍, Shinjitai: , Romaji: Dai-Nippon Teikoku Rikugun) was the official ground based armed force of Imperial Japan from 1867 to 1945. ... The ensign of Imperial Japanese Navy was a prominent symbol of Imperial Japan. ... Aviation refers to flying using aircraft, machines designed by humans for atmospheric flight. ... A military unit is an organisation within an armed force. ... The ensign of Imperial Japanese Navy was a prominent symbol of Imperial Japan. ... An air force, in some countries called an air army, is a military or armed service that primarily conducts aerial warfare. ... The Imperial Japanese Army (IJA) (KyÅ«jitai: 大日本帝國陸軍, Shinjitai: , Romaji: Dai-Nippon Teikoku Rikugun) was the official ground based armed force of Imperial Japan from 1867 to 1945. ... The Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) (: 大日本帝國海軍 Shinjitai: 大日本帝国海軍   or 日本海軍 Nippon Kaigun), officially Navy of Empire of Greater Japan, also known as the Japanese Navy or Combined Fleet was the Navy of Empire of Japan from 1869 until 1947, when it was dissolved following Japans constitutional renunciation of the use of force...

The IJA's Army Air Service was responsible for the strategic bombing of main Chinese cities such as Shanghai and Chongqing. The violent bombing of Nanjing and Guangzhou in 1937 led to a resolution of protest by the Far Eastern Committee of the League of Nations. The Air service also provided tactical air support for ground troops while maintaining a limited air-to-air capability. Strategic bombing during World War II was greater in scale than any wartime attack the world had previously witnessed. ... For other uses, see Shanghai (disambiguation). ... The Bombing of Chongqing (February 18, 1938 - August 23, 1943) was a Japanese strategic bombing campaign against the Chinese provisional capital of Chongqing that lasted 5 1/2 years. ... The aerial bombing of cities became a common tactic in World War II. // World War I The first ever aerial bombardment of civilians was on January 19, 1915, in which two German Zeppelins dropped 24 fifty-kilogram high-explosive bombs and ineffective three-kilogram incendiaries on Great Yarmouth, Sheringham, Kings... “Nanking” redirects here. ... Guangzhou is the capital and the sub-provincial city of Guangdong Province in the southern part of the Peoples Republic of China. ... The League of Nations was an international organization founded as a result of the Paris Peace Conference in 1919-1920. ...

The Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service was responsible for strategic bombing and national air defense. The Army Air Service also did not control the light aircraft deployed and operated by the IJA artillery as spotters or observers.The Army Air Service was managed by Army Aeronautical Department,such administrative unit was equal to Imperial Japanese Navy Aviation Bureau. The Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service or Dai Nippon Teikoku Kaigun Koku Hombu was a major force in the Pacific War during World War II. The Japanese military acquired their first aircraft in 1910 and followed the development of air combat during World War I with great interest. ... Strategic bombing during World War II was greater in scale than any wartime attack the world had previously witnessed. ... The Army Aeronautical Department (Kogun Koku Hombu) of the Ministry of War of Japan was responsible for the technical aeronautical development, aircraft manufacturing and training of the Imperial Japanese Army Air Service. ... The Imperial Japanese Navy Aviation Bureau of the Ministry of the Navy of Japan was responsible for the development and training of the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service. ...

The Imperial Japanese Army Air Service was equal in function to the German Luftwaffe, the American USAAF, the British Royal Air Force (RAF) and the Italian Regia Aeronautica. The Deutsche Luftwaffe or   (German: air force, literally Air Weapon, pronounced lufft-va-fa, IPA: ) is the commonly used term for the German air force. ... USAAF recruitment poster. ... The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the air force branch of the British Armed Forces. ... Insignia applied with a decal on the tail of the Règia Aeronautica aircraft (reconstruction). ...

Organization

Territorial

The Army Air Service was organized into 5 Air Armies, koku-gun, with each maintaining a clear area of operations (ie, one per theater of war). These were:

• 1st - Home or General Air Army :HQ Tokyo, General Defense Command consisting of the Japan Defence Army, Formosa Army, and Chosen Army of Japanese occupied Korea.
• 2d - Manchuria Air Army: HQ Hsinking, Kwangtung Army
• 3rd - Southern Air Army: HQ Singapore, Southern Army
• 4th - New Guinea Air Army, formed in 1943, HQ Rabaul and Wewak, 8th Area Army
• 5th - China Air Army, formed in 1944, HQ Nanking, China Expeditionary Army

Tokyo ), the common English name for the Tokyo Metropolis ), is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan and, unique among the prefectures, provides certain municipal services characteristic of a city. ... The General Defense Command or General Defense Headquarters (Japanese, Boei Soshireibu), as part of the Imperial Japanese Army, was formed to control all units of the Japan Defense Army, located in Japan, and the Korean Army and the Formosa Army. ... The Chosen Army of the Imperial Japanese Army was headquartered in Keijo (now Seoul), and was responsible for the garrison of and operations on the Korean Peninsula during the Period of Japanese Rule. ... This article is about the Korean peninsula and civilization. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Location within China Changchun (Simplified Chinese: 长春; Traditional Chinese: 長春; pinyin: ; Wade-Giles: Chang-chun) is the capital of the Jilin province in northeastern China. ... The Kantogun (Japanese: Kantōgun), more commonly known as the Kwantung Army or Guandong Army (関東軍), was a unit of the Imperial Japanese Army that originated from the Guandong Garrison established in 1906 to defend the Kwantung Leased Territory and the areas adjacent to the South Manchurian... Southern Army may refer to one of the following. ... A view from Rabaul Volcano Observatory across the relatively undamaged western half of Rabaul and towards Tavurur Rabaul, Papua New Guinea, was the headquarters of German New Guinea and then the Australian mandatory territory of New Guinea from 1910 until 1937, the base of Japanese activities in the South Pacific... Wewak is the capital of the East Sepik region of Papua New Guinea. ... Nanjing (南京, Pinyin: Nánjīng, Wade-Giles: Nan-ching; Postal System Pinyin: Nanking, formerly Jinling 金陵, Jiangning 江宁, and Tianjing 天京) is the central city of downstream Yangtze Basin and is a renowned historical and cultural city. ... The Japanese China Expeditionary Army of the Imperial Japanese Army, was formed in 1937 as an offshoot of the Kwangtung Army. ...

Functional

Each Air Army contained 2 or more Air Divisions, hiko-shidan, containing 2 or more Air Brigades, hiko-dan, each. Optimally, an Air Division was assigned to each Group Army and an Air Brigade was assigned to a Field Army.

Each Air Brigade contained a Headquarters, chutai hombu, responsible for tactical planning and 3 or 4 Air Regiments, hiko rentai, plus some reconnaissance and transport aircraft units.

Air Regiments usually contained only one type and brand of aircraft, such as fighters or light or medium bombers. Air Regiments consisted of 3 or 4 Air Companies, chutai, of, usually, 9-12 aircraft or two Air Battalions (hiko daitai) of 2 Air Companies.. These Air Companies contain 3 sections, shotai, of 3 later 4 aircraft each. However, fighter Air Regiments contained 45 to 48 aircraft and the Bomber and/or Recon Air Regiments contained 27 to 36 aircraft. The Air Regiments themselves were later replaced with Air Groups called Hiko Sentai which consisted of only one category of aircraft but could operate several different types as needed or available.

The IJAAS also organized Independent Air Companies or dokurista Chutai and Independent Air Wings called dokuristu hikotai whick performed missions such as reconnaissance, VIP transport, etc. A Very Important Person, or VIP (pronouced vee-eye-pee) is a person who is accorded special privileges due to his or her status or importance. ...

Special Air Units

The Shaking Heaven Air Superiority Units or Shinten Seiku-tai were specially designated and trained sections of fighter units with the mission of air-to-air ramming of allied bomber aircraft. They usually had their armaments removed and their airframes may have been reinforced.

Lastly it raised the Special Attack Units called the Shimbu-tai which were dedicated suicide units for Kamikaze missions. Around 170 of these units were formed, 57 by the Instructor Air Division alone. Notionally equipped with 12 aircraft each, it eventually comprised around 2000 aircraft. USS Bunker Hill was hit by Ogawa (see picture left) and another kamikaze near Kyūshū on May 11, 1945. ...

Training Organization

• Hikoshidan Hikotai - The Instructor Air Divisions
  • Akeno, Hakujoshi, Hamamatsu, Hitachi, Hokota, Kumagawa, Mito, Niigata, Shimoshizu, Tachiari, Tachigawa, Tokorozawa, Utsonomiai and Anshan Kyodo-Hikotai (Army Flying Schools)
• Kyoiku Hiko Rentai - Air Training Groups
  • 101st, 1-4th, 105th, 107th, and 115th
• Koku Shikan Gakko - Army Air Academy, located at Irumagawa, Japan
• Tachigawa Army Air Test Center
• Tokooya Army Air Officers School
• Tokorozawa Army Air Maintenance School
• Utsonomia Army Air Communications School

Hamamatsu (浜松市; -shi) is a city located in western Shizuoka, Japan. ... Hitachi (日立市; -shi) is a city located on the Pacific Ocean in Ibaraki Prefecture, Japan. ... Hokota (鉾田町; -machi) is a town located in Kashima District, Ibaraki, Japan. ... Mito (水戸市; -shi) is the capital of Ibaraki Prefecture, Japan and has a central location, moderately offset towards the coast in that prefecture. ... Niigata is the name of several places, times and things: Niigata City Niigata Prefecture This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... Tachiarai ) is a town located in Mii District, Fukuoka, Japan. ... Tokorozawa (Japanese: 所沢市; -shi) is a city located in Saitama, Japan. ... Anshan (Chinese: ; pinyin: Ä€nshān; lit. ... Irumagawa, or Irumakawa, is a river in Japan Irumagawa is also the name that the city of Sayama, in the Saitama prefecture, was once known as. ...

Army Air Arsenal

Japanese Air Army Service possessed one special air technical section, the First Tachikawa Air Army Arsenal. These section of the special workshop and air technical institution in charge of all aerial developments of Air Army service units. Between the technical branches was the Testing Section for Captured allied aircraft, with installations in Tachikawa, Philippines and Singapore. Another section of Tachikawa Hikoki K.K. and Rikugun Kokukosho K.K. the Army's aircraft companies, who was responsible for continuing aircraft development and, along with Tachikawa, the manufacture of some aircraft for Japanese Army. Its assignment was very similar to that of the Yokosuka Naval Arsenal testing center for Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service. The Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service or Dai Nippon Teikoku Kaigun Koku Hombu was a major force in the Pacific War during World War II. The Japanese military acquired their first aircraft in 1910 and followed the development of air combat during World War I with great interest. ...

Army Escort-Aircraft Carriers

In order to escort and protect transport shipping convoys comprised of other type of landing carriers (for transport personnel,airplanes and tanks), the IJA ordered the designing and construction of Escort/Landing Craft Carrier Type Ko, Otsu and Hei also denomined Taiyō Class, Kaiyo Class, Akitsu Class, Yamashiro Class, Shinyo Class, Kamakura Class, Akitsu Class and Kumano Class. Such escort/transport carriers, were converted from small passenger liners or merchants and were intended for supporting duties such as training, convoy escort, troops, armor and aircraft transport between occupied land and islands.

These vessels were named Taiyō Maru, Unyo Maru, Chuyo Maru, Kaiyō Maru, Shinyo Maru, Kamakura Maru, Akitsu Maru, Nigitsu Maru, Kumano Maru, Yamashiro Maru, Chigusa Maru, Shimane Maru, and Otakisan Maru. They were operated by civilian seamen and Army or IJN units manned the light and medium AA guns; the air defense was charged to IJAAF antisubmarine units aboard alongside the regular armed fighters. These escort carriers possessed ample capacity to receive 8, 20, 24, 27, 28, 33, 37 or 38 airplanes of assorted types (fighters, light or inclusive twin engined bombers), and also to transport personnel and tanks.

These transport vessels as equal at Merchant aircraft carriers (MAC) and Aircraft merchant ship (AMC) used by Allied for escort merchant convoys in the Atlantic in wartimes.

Strength

In 1940 the Army Air Service consisted of the following:

• • 33,000 personnel
  • Over 1,600 aircraft (including 1,375 first line combat aircraft).
  • The aircraft were organized into 85 Air Companies;
    • 36 fighter,
    • 28 light bomber, and
    • 22 medium bomber.

Kitai system

The Kitai system was the IJA's type number for its aircraft. It was abbreviated to Ki and subsets could be added for later modifications (Mitsubishi Ki-1-11). They were established in the sequence as different aircraft were adopted and not according to the aircraft type such as is used in the west.

Uniforms and equipment

As part of the IJA, the Army Air Service wore the standard army uniforms. Only Flying personnel and groundcrews wore theirs with sky blue trim and stripes, while officers wore their ranks on sky blue patches.

References

• Ikuhiko Hata, Yasuho Izawa, and Christopher Shores, Japanese Army Air Force Fighter Units and Their Aces, 1931-1945 (London: Grub Street, 2002) ISBN 1-902304-89-6

See also

• List of military aircraft of Japan
• Giretsu (special forces operations)
• Teishin Shudan (Army air service airborne/commando division)
• Hikotai Transport Unit
• Army Aeronautical Department
• Inspectorate General of Aviation
• List of Imperial Japanese Army Air Force Service personnel (WWII)
• List of Radars in use by Imperial Japanese Army
• List of Bombs in use by Imperial Japanese Army
• List of weapons on Japanese combat aircraft
• List of Aircraft engines in use of Japanese Army Air Force
• List of foreign aircraft captured by Japanese forces in WW2
• List of foreign aircraft tested by Japanese forces from 1930s to WW2
• List of Japanese Army Air Force Trainer aircrafts(WW2)
• List of WW2 Japanese Night Aircraft
• List of Japanese Carrier Aircraft (WW2)
• Japanese Army Air Force units during Malaya and Philippines Campaing (December 1941)
• WWII Battle of Japan (Air War)

This list of military aircraft of Japan includes prototype, pre-production and operational types regardless of era. ... The Imperial Japanese Army Giretsu special forces unit was active in 1944 and 1945. ... Teishin Shudan (Raiding Group) was a Japanese special forces/airborne unit during World War II. The word teishin may be literally translated as dash forward, and is usually translated as raiding. It may also be regarded as similar to the commando designation in the terminology of other armies. ... This article is considered orphaned, since there are very few or no other articles that link to this one. ... The Army Aeronautical Department (Kogun Koku Hombu) of the Ministry of War of Japan was responsible for the technical aeronautical development, aircraft manufacturing and training of the Imperial Japanese Army Air Service. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Imperial Japanese Army Air Service. ... This is a list of Imperial Japanese Army radar and electronic warfare systems. ... List of Bombs in use by Japanese Army They are: air-to-air bombs Type Ro-3 10Kg (Explosive charge of 0. ... This is a list of offensive/defensive weapons aboard Japanese combat aircraft (fighters, bombers, reconnaissance, etc) in use by the Japanese Army and Japanese Navy Air Services. ... This is a list of aircraft engines in use by Japan during World War II. // This list included engines acquired before the conflict, provided from Axis allies, or captured throughout the war Argus As 10C of 240 hp BMW 801D-2 of 1. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... This is a list of foreign aircraft tested and evaluated by Japanese forces, between 1930 and 1945. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Japan campaign. ...

External links

• An introduction to the Japanese Army Air Force
• Images of Axis aircraft: German, Italian and Japanese Army and Navy
• Advanced Japanese aircraft
• General resources on Japanese aircraft
• Some captured aircraft, or aircraft in evaluation
• Japanese armaments, vehicles, aircraft, electronic warfare and some Japanese special weapon technology
• 248th Hiko Sentai {For reference only}