The Mitsubishi A5M, formal Japanese Navy designation Mitsubishi Navy Type 96 Carrier-based Fighter (九六式艦上戦闘機), experimental Navy designation Mitsubishi Navy Experimental 9-Shi Carrier Fighter, company designation Mitsubishi Ka-14, was a WWII-era Japanese carrier-based fighter aircraft. The Type number is from the last two digits of the Japanese imperial year 2596 (1936) when it entered service with the Imperial Navy.
The Mitsubishi G4M is a twin-engine, land-based medium bomber formerly manufactured by the Mitsubishi Aircraft Company, a part of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, and operated by the Imperial Japanese Navy from 1940 to 1945. Its official designation is Mitsubishi Navy Type 1 attack bomber and was commonly referred to by Japanese Navy pilots as Hamaki due to the cylindrical shape of its fuselage and its tendency to ignite after a hit. The Allied reporting name was "Betty".
The Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service (IJNAS) was the air arm of the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN). The organization was responsible for the operation of naval aircraft and the conduct of aerial warfare in the Pacific War.
The Mitsubishi G3M was a Japanese bomber and transport aircraft used by the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service (IJNAS) during World War II.
The 1st Air Fleet, also known as the Kidō Butai, was a combined carrier battle group comprising most of the aircraft carriers and carrier air groups of the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) during the first eight months of the Pacific War.
The bombing of Singapore was an attack on 8 December 1941 by seventeen G3M Nell bombers of Mihoro Air Group, Imperial Japanese Navy, flying from Thu Dau Mot in southern Indochina. The attack began at around 0430, shortly after Japanese forces landed on Kota Bharu, Kelantan in northern Malaya. It was the first knowledge the Singapore population had that war had broken out in the Far East.
The Tainan Air Group was a fighter aircraft and airbase garrison unit of the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) during the Pacific campaign of World War II. The flying portion of the unit was heavily involved in many of the major campaigns and battles of the first year of the war. The exploits of the unit were widely publicized in the Japanese media at the time, at least in part because the unit spawned more aces than any other fighter unit in the IJN. Several of the unit's aces were among the IJN's top scorers, and included Hiroyoshi Nishizawa, Saburō Sakai, Junichi Sasai, Watari Handa, Masaaki Shimakawa, and Toshio Ōta.
The 4th Air Group was a land-based bomber aircraft unit of the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service (IJNAS) during the Pacific campaign of World War II. The air group was redesignated as the 702nd Air Group on 1 November 1942.
The 252nd Naval Air Group was a fighter aircraft unit of the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) during the Pacific campaign of World War II. The unit was formed on 1 November 1942 by separating the fighter squadron from the Genzan Air Group.
The Kisarazu Naval Air Group was an aircraft and airbase garrison unit of the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service during the Second Sino-Japanese War and the Pacific campaign of World War II.
The Misawa Air Group was an aircraft and airbase garrison unit of the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) during the Pacific campaign of World War II. This article covers first generation, second generation, renamed unit the 705th Air Group, and re-organised unit the 706th Attack Squadron also.
The 343rd Naval Air Group was an aircraft and airbase garrison unit of the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) during the Pacific campaign of World War II. Created in late 1944 due to the desperate situation of Japan in the closing stages of the war, the 343rd was composed of the best surviving ace fighter pilots the Imperial Navy had at the time, with Captain Minoru Genda in command. This unit was equipped with the best airplane Japan had left by then, the Kawanishi N1K2-J Shiden-Kai, known as George by the Allies; this aircraft could compete with the best wartime Allied fighters, namely, the F6F Hellcat, the P-51 Mustang and the F4U Corsair.
A kōkūtai (航空隊) was a military aviation unit in the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service (IJNAS), similar to the air groups in other air arms and services of the time. Some comparable units included wing in the British Royal Air Force, gruppe in the German Luftwaffe, and groupe in the French Armée de l'Air.
The Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service was under the control of the Navy Aviation Bureau.
The 12th Air Group was a unit of the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service (IJNAS) during the Second Sino-Japanese War that operated mainly in the campaigns in the Central China.
The Kanoya Air Group was an aircraft and airbase garrison unit of the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service (IJNAS) during the Second Sino-Japanese War and Pacific campaign of World War II. The air group was redesignated as the 751st Air Group on 1 October 1942. On 1 November, the group's fighter unit was redesignated to the 253rd Air Group, while the bomber unit remained the 751st Air Group.
Terufumi Kofukuda, born as Mitsugi Kofukuda, was an officer and a fighter pilot in the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) during World War II. He participated in various battles and campaigns throughout the Pacific War. After the war, he served in the new Japanese Self Defence Force (JSDF) as the commander of the Central Air Defense Force.
The Takao Air Group was a unit of the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service (IJNAS) during the Pacific War that was involved in the Philippines campaign, Dutch East Indies campaign, air raids on Australia, and the Guadalcanal Campaign. The air group was redesignated as the 753rd Air Group on 1 October 1942.
