Imperial Japanese Army Air Service

The Imperial Japanese Army Air Service (IJAAS) or Imperial Japanese Army Air Force (IJAAF), ) was the aviation force of the Imperial Japanese Army (IJA). Its primary mission was to provide tactical close air support for ground forces, as well as a limited air interdiction capability. The IJAAS also provided aerial reconnaissance to other branches of the IJA. While the IJAAS engaged in strategic bombing of cities such as Shanghai, Nanjing, Canton, Chongqing, Rangoon, and Mandalay, this was not the primary mission of the IJAAS, and it lacked a heavy bomber force.

The IJAAS did not usually control artillery spotter/observer aircraft; artillery battalions controlled the light aircraft and balloons that operated in these roles.

The Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service was responsible for long-range bomber and attack aircraft, as well as strategic air defense. It was not until the later stages of the Pacific War that the two air arms attempted to integrate the air defense of the home islands.

History

Origins

thumb|Typical of pre-WWI observation balloons

The Japanese military became interested in the use of captive balloons in the mid 19th century, having noted their use by Western European armies. The first experimental ascent by the Japanese was in 1874 at the cadet military school. Japan began to construct its own balloons in 1877 based on a French one they had acquired. Yamada Isaburô, an industrialist, started to develop a hydrogen balloon in 1897. In 1900 he invented a cylindrical kite balloon and sold them to the Imperial Japanese Army. The army first used them operationally during the Russo-Japanese War of 1904-1905 for artillery spotting.

In 1907, Lieutenant Commander Eisuke Yamamoto approached the Ministers of the Army and Navy, General Masatake Terauchi and Admiral Saitō Makoto. They formulated an aeronautical policy and established a dedicated military balloon unit. In 1909, together with the Imperial Japanese Navy and the Tokyo Imperial University, the Rinji Gunyo Kikyu Kenkyukai (Temporary Military Balloon Research Association) was set up. The association was chaired by Major General Masahiko Obama and continued to drive Japanese aviation policy until 1920. During March of that year Army Lieutenant Hino and Navy Engineer Sanji Narahara each designed an aircraft. Narahara flew the aircraft on 5 May 1910 making it the first Japanese built plane to do so. Subsequent designs were unsuccessful and the Army and Navy decided to utilise foreign aircraft until they could build a sufficient level of technical skill in Japan to design and build their own aircraft.

thumb|150px|right|Kiyotake Shigeno (滋野清武)

A number of Japanese pilots served with French flying corp during the war. Kiyotake Shigeno joined the corps in December 1914. He was a member of the league of French flying aces having shot down two confirmed and six unconfirmed German aircraft. He also was awarded the Ordre national de la Légion d’honneur, France's highest decoration. Kobayashi Shukunosuke became a licensed pilot in December 1916, dying in combat during the 1918 Spring Offensive. He was posthumously awarded the Croix de Guerre. Isobe Onokichi, Ishibashi Katsunami, Masaru Kaiya (IJN), Tadao Yamanaka, Masatoshi Takeishi, Isakitchy Nagao, and Moro Goroku, a Kawasaki aircraft engineer, also served in the French Flying corp.

After World War I

thumb|French Military Mission to Japan 1918-1919

thumb|Siberian intervention

However, serious interest in military aviation did not develop until after World War I. Japanese military observers in Western Europe were quick to spot the advantages of the new technology, and after the end of the war, Japan purchased large numbers of surplus military aircraft, including 20 Sopwith 1½ Strutters, 3 Nieuport 24s, and 6 Spads. To cope with this increase in the number of available aircraft the first flying school was set up at Tozorozawa (Tokorozawa Rikugun Koku Seibi Gakkō) followed by Akeno and Shimoshizu.

Special Operations Forces

Teishin Shudan ("Raiding Group") was the IJA's 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. Called a division, the unit was a brigade-sized force, and was part of the Imperial Japanese Army Air Service (IJAAS). The Teishin units were therefore distinct from the marine parachute units of the Special Naval Landing Forces.

right|thumb|250px|Captain Okuyama and Giretsu Airborne unit depart on their mission to Okinawa

was an airborne special forces unit of the Imperial Japanese Army formed from Army paratroopers, in late 1944 as a last-ditch attempt to reduce and delay Allied bombing raids on the Japanese home islands. The Giretsu Special Forces unit was commanded by Lieutenant General Kyoji Tominaga.

Strength

In 1940 the Japanese 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 Squadrons;
36 fighter
28 light bomber
22 medium bomber
Total military in August 1945 was 6,095,000 including 676,863 Army Air Service.

First Tachikawa Army Air Arsenal

The Japanese Air Army Force had one technical section, the First Tachikawa Air Army Arsenal, which was in charge of aviation research and development. The Arsenal included a testing section for captured Allied aircraft, the Air Technical Research Laboratory (Koku Gijutsu Kenkyujo).

The Army Air Arsenal was also connected with Tachikawa Hikoki K.K. and Rikugun Kokukosho K.K., the Army-owned and operated aircraft manufacturing companies. much as the IJNAS operated its own firm, the Yokosuka Naval Air Technical Arsenal.

Army escort aircraft carriers

thumb|Escort carrier

Due to the poor relations between the Imperial Japanese Army and Imperial Japanese Navy, the Army found it necessary to procure and operate their own aircraft carriers for the purposes of providing escort and protection for Army transport shipping convoys. These "auxiliary escort carriers" were converted from merchant ships and possessed the capacity to operate few aircraft as well serve in some other auxiliary roles, depending on type and size.

Three classes were planned, all conversion of "TL Type cargo ships" (TL型), the Special 2TL Type (3 ships), Special 3TL Type (3 ships), and Special 4TL Type (0 ship), the Special 1TL Type being operated by the Navy. Only the from the Special 2TL Type was completed before the war's end. Those carriers only had a modest airwing (8 for Yamashio Maru), as they kept some of their cargo and tanker capacity.

The army also developed "landing craft carriers" for amphibious assaults, with among them the Types "C" and "MC", which were fitted with flight decks for some limited aerial support. Four ships were planned, with only the and being completed before the war's end.

The only aircraft operated by those ships were the Kokusai Ki-76 (STOL liaison aircraft), and Kayaba Ka-1 (autogyros).

Uniforms and equipment

As an integral part of the IJA, the Army Air Service wore the standard Imperial Japanese Army Uniforms. Only flying personnel and ground crews wore sky blue trim and stripes, while officers wore their ranks on sky blue patches.

References

Bibliography

Skates, John Ray. The Invasion of Japan: Alternative to the Bomb. Columbia, South Carolina: University of South Carolina Press, 1994. .

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
Mark Kaiser, 1997-98, "Unit structure of IJA Air Force" (self-published)