WW2 JAPANESE ARMY AVIATION PILOTS AND GROUND CREW

The Japanese Air Force of the Army Imperial Japanese Army Air Force - abbreviated IJAAF, jap. Dainippon Teikoku Rikugun Kokubutai) were formed as early as 1912, but their very intensive development took place mainly in the 1920s and 1930s. In 1940, and therefore already during the war with China, and just before the start of the Pacific War, IJAAF had approximately 30,000 staff members. By 1945, that number had risen to around 680,000 people! Of course, the vast majority of them were conscripts. Before the outbreak of World War II, the IJAAF underwent several organizational changes. Until 1927, the basic unit was the Air Battalion (Japanese Koku Daitai), but this year was replaced by the Air Regiment. Air Regiment Japanese Hino Rentai). During the war with China, especially in the period 1937-1940, there were many independent sub-units called Dokuritsu Hiko Daitai (in the strength of about 20-30 machines) and Dokuritsu Hiko Chutai (in the strength of about 15-20 machines). However, already in 1938. IJAAF has undergone further organizational changes and the main organizational unit has become the Air Combat Group (Japanese Hiko Sentai) ) consisting of 30 to 45 machines, usually divided into three divisions. Further organizational changes took place in 1942 and 1944, especially the latter leading to a very far-reaching centralization of the IJAAF command. It is worth noting that throughout the entire Pacific War, the standard uniform of the IJAAF personnel was the typical field uniform of the land forces, i.e. the 1930 5-shiki Gun-i, the 1938 98-shiki Gun-i, or the 3-shiki Gun-i with 1943.The Japanese Air Force of the Army Imperial Japanese Army Air Force - abbreviated IJAAF, jap. Dainippon Teikoku Rikugun Kokubutai) were formed as early as 1912, but their very intensive development took place mainly in the 1920s and 1930s. In 1940, and therefore already during the war with China, and just before the start of the Pacific War, IJAAF had approximately 30,000 staff members. By 1945, that number had risen to around 680,000 people! In 1940, the number of machines was around 1,600 aircraft, of which 1,400 were front-line machines. The basic types of machines used during World War II include Nakajima Ki-43 Hayabusa and Kawasaki Ki-61 Hien fighters, Kawasaki Ki-48 or Mitsubishi Ki-30 light and medium bombers, and Kawasaki Ki-56 transport machines. In 1938, the IJAAF underwent organizational changes and the Air Combat Group (Hiko Sentai) became the main organizational unit. ) consisting of 30 to 45 machines, usually divided into three divisions. It is worth noting that the IJAAF has many fighter aces, including pilots such as: Hiromichi Shinohara (58 kills - all during the war with China in 1939!), Satoru Anabuki (37 kills) or Isamu Holono (26 kills ).