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Lucky13
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Which were the air bases in Kagoshima Prefecture?
IJAAF and IJNAS....
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Lucky13
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Lucky13
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Viking1066
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Kagoshima Prefecture had several air bases, both during and after World War II. The most prominent were Kanoya AIr Base and Chiran Airfield, which were used for kamikaze attacks during the war. Additionally, Ibusuki Naval Air Base was another significant location. There's also a new Self-Defense Forces air base under construction on Mageshima Island.
Here's a more detailed look at each:
Kanoya Air Base
.Located in the city of Kanoya, it was a major base for the Imperial Japanese Navy during the war, launching numerous kamikaze attacks. After the war, it became a base for the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force. The Kanoya Air Base Museum now occupies part of the site.
Chiran Airfield
.Situated on the Satsuma Peninsula, Chiran was a key departure point for kamikaze missions during the war's final months. The Chiran Peace Museum for Kamikaze Pilots now memorializes the pilots who flew from here.
Ibusuki Naval Air Base
Located in Ibusuki, this base also served as a naval air facility during the war, with a memorial now marking the site.
Mageshima Air Base:
.A new base is under construction on Mageshima island, intended for use by both the Japanese Self-Defense Forces and the U.S. military for aircraft carrier-based flight training.
Here's a more detailed look at each:
Kanoya Air Base
.Located in the city of Kanoya, it was a major base for the Imperial Japanese Navy during the war, launching numerous kamikaze attacks. After the war, it became a base for the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force. The Kanoya Air Base Museum now occupies part of the site.
Chiran Airfield
.Situated on the Satsuma Peninsula, Chiran was a key departure point for kamikaze missions during the war's final months. The Chiran Peace Museum for Kamikaze Pilots now memorializes the pilots who flew from here.
Ibusuki Naval Air Base
Located in Ibusuki, this base also served as a naval air facility during the war, with a memorial now marking the site.
Mageshima Air Base:
.A new base is under construction on Mageshima island, intended for use by both the Japanese Self-Defense Forces and the U.S. military for aircraft carrier-based flight training.
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Lucky13
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Imperial Japanese Navy Warrant Officer Takeo Tanimizu poses beside his Mitsubishi A6M5c Model 52 Reisen fighter. June 1945.
At the time this photograph was taken, Tanimizu was assigned to the 303 Hikótai, 203 Kókūtai which was based at Kagoshima, Kyushu, Japan. He is credited with between 18 to 32 kills, making him an ace.
It was rare for Japanese fighters to have kill markings -as kill scores weren't officially kept- but Tanimizu chose to put them on his aircraft as a way to boost morale among the many inexperienced pilots that predominated the ranks by 1945. The five stars with arrows through them indicate a sure victory, the remaining one indicates a probable. Obscured by the strong sun's reflection there were two head-on silhouettes of B-29s painted above the stars.
Despite, like any other pilot, following a 'kill or be killed' philosophy, Tanimizu seems to have been an honorable combatant who felt compassion for his opponents.
It is said that on January 4, 1944, while returning from combat, he saw a lone Corsair pilot parachute from his damaged aircraft into the waters off Cape St George. Tanimizu struggled out of his life preserver, came down at low altitude, opened his canopy, and threw his life preserver to the pilot, Captain Harvey F. Carter of VMF-321. Apparently, Carter collected the life preserver and waved to Tanimizu but he was never found again and is still listed as MIA.
Claiming to feel regret and sadness for the lives he took in combat, after the war Tanimizu erected a small Buddhist shrine in his residence and every night would offer prayers to those men whose lives he had cut short.
Tanimizu's Reisen fighter survived the war but was eventually collected in Nagasaki and reduced to scrap in November 1945. Tanimizu himself passed away on March 12, 2008 at the age of 88.
Original: T. Tanimizu
I just noticed the different shades of grey of the stars, here they've been colored red and blue, any idea why that is? Destroyed and damaged, confirmed and probable?
Also, 5 of the stars have an arrow through it while one doesn't....again, destroyed and damaged?
At the time this photograph was taken, Tanimizu was assigned to the 303 Hikótai, 203 Kókūtai which was based at Kagoshima, Kyushu, Japan. He is credited with between 18 to 32 kills, making him an ace.
It was rare for Japanese fighters to have kill markings -as kill scores weren't officially kept- but Tanimizu chose to put them on his aircraft as a way to boost morale among the many inexperienced pilots that predominated the ranks by 1945. The five stars with arrows through them indicate a sure victory, the remaining one indicates a probable. Obscured by the strong sun's reflection there were two head-on silhouettes of B-29s painted above the stars.
Despite, like any other pilot, following a 'kill or be killed' philosophy, Tanimizu seems to have been an honorable combatant who felt compassion for his opponents.
It is said that on January 4, 1944, while returning from combat, he saw a lone Corsair pilot parachute from his damaged aircraft into the waters off Cape St George. Tanimizu struggled out of his life preserver, came down at low altitude, opened his canopy, and threw his life preserver to the pilot, Captain Harvey F. Carter of VMF-321. Apparently, Carter collected the life preserver and waved to Tanimizu but he was never found again and is still listed as MIA.
Claiming to feel regret and sadness for the lives he took in combat, after the war Tanimizu erected a small Buddhist shrine in his residence and every night would offer prayers to those men whose lives he had cut short.
Tanimizu's Reisen fighter survived the war but was eventually collected in Nagasaki and reduced to scrap in November 1945. Tanimizu himself passed away on March 12, 2008 at the age of 88.
Original: T. Tanimizu
I just noticed the different shades of grey of the stars, here they've been colored red and blue, any idea why that is? Destroyed and damaged, confirmed and probable?
Also, 5 of the stars have an arrow through it while one doesn't....again, destroyed and damaged?
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Lucky13
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Zero pilots of the 203 AG study their day's assignment at Kagoshima Naval Air Station in May 1945.
On the left is Takeo Tanimizu with 32 air victories.
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Lucky13
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He was photographed in the elevator of the aircraft carrier JUNYO in June 1942.
He is wearing a Hinomaru hachimaki and a flight helmet over it.
He is carrying a Nambu 14-year pistol (late model).
(It has a larger trigger guard so that it can be used with thick gloves)
Kagoshima base in 1945.
A moment at the command post (left: Tanimizu, right: Ensign Kondo)....
Source: 『Introduction of ordered flight helmets (Part 1)』
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Lucky13
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Lucky13
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Viking1066
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This would be a nice build.
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Lucky13
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What's this? 
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Lucky13
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IJN pilot Kiichi Tsuda in front of an A6M3 Zero Model 32 of the Tainan (Training) Kokutai at Tainan, Taiwan, September
1944. CPO Takeo Tanimizu was flying this aircraft on the night of 31 August 1944 when he downed a B-24.
The kanji inscriptions on the rear fuselage reads:
"Combat diary. 31 August 1944, participated in combat over Takao. 3 September, the same. Downed one B-24."
Viking1066
Major
Looks like something holding down the tarp over the cockpit.R
Yep ... I agree. Perhaps it is not the trap holder only but also the handle making its manual puting over the cockpit easier and quicker.
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Lucky13
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I had to google this thing!
Viking1066
Major
One of the two Ki-48 kits I have comes with the missile. The first one they say is off by a nose. The second one came with the I-Go Missile
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Lucky13
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Lucky13
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Lucky13
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It's a bit of a pain in the tail pipe, figuring out how many Douglas R4D-6 JMSDF had, doesn't seem to be that many though!
Source: Fly Team Aviation Community
Source: Fly Team Aviation Community
