Equipment, armament and combat strength of the Japanese Air Force: history and modernity

2024 Author: Henry Conors | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-12 02:42

The twentieth century was a period of intensive development of military aviation in many European countries. The reason for the appearance of the air force was the need of states for air and missile defense of economic and political centers. The development of combat aviation was observed not only in Europe. The twentieth century is the time of building up the power of the Japanese Air Force, whose government also sought to secure itself, strategic and state-important facilities.

How did it all start? Japan in 1891-1910

In 1891, the first flying machines were launched in Japan. These were models using rubber motors. Over time, a larger aircraft was created, in the design of which there was a drive and a pusher propeller. But this product of the Japanese Air Force was not interested. The birth of aviation took place in 1910, after the acquisition of Farman aircraft and“Grande”.

1914. First dogfight

The first attempts to use Japanese combat aircraft were made in September 1914. At this time, the army of the Land of the Rising Sun, together with England and France, opposed the Germans stationed in China. A year before these events, the Japanese Air Force acquired two two-seat Nieuport NG aircraft and one three-seat Nieuport NM aircraft of 1910 for training purposes. Soon these air units began to be used for battles. The Japanese Air Force in 1913 had at its disposal four Farman aircraft, which were designed for reconnaissance. Over time, they began to be used to deliver air strikes against the enemy.

In 1914, German aircraft attacked the fleet in Tsingatao. Germany at that time used one of its best aircraft - the Taub. During this military campaign, Japanese Air Force aircraft made 86 sorties and dropped 44 bombs.

1916-1930. Activities of manufacturing companies

At this time, the Japanese companies "Kawasaki", "Nakajima" and "Mitsubishi" are developing a unique flying boat "Yokoso". Since 1916, Japanese manufacturers have been creating designs for the best aircraft models in Germany, France and England. This state of affairs continued for fifteen years. Since 1930, companies have been producing aircraft for the Japanese Air Force. Today, the armed forces of this state are among the ten most powerful armies in the world.

Domestic developments

By 1936, the Japanese manufacturers of Kawasaki,"Nakajima" and "Mitsubishi" were designed the first aircraft. The Japanese Air Force already possessed domestically produced G3M1 and Ki-21 twin-engine bombers, Ki-15 reconnaissance aircraft and A5M1 fighters. In 1937, the conflict between Japan and China flared up again. This entailed the privatization by Japan of large industrial enterprises and the restoration of state control over them.

Japan Air Force. Command organization

The head of the Japanese Air Force is the main headquarters. Command is subordinate to him:

• combat support;
• aviation;
• connections;
• training;
• security team;
• trial;
• hospital;
• Japanese Air Force counterintelligence department.

The combat strength of the Air Force is represented by combat, training, transport and special aircraft and helicopters.

Air command structure before World War I

For a long time, the armed forces of the Empire of Japan were two independent military infrastructures - the ground forces and the navy. The leadership of the first sought to have their own aviation units under command to transport their cargo. To create such aircraft carriers in the city of Takinawa, at the Arsenal No. 1 military plant, which belonged to the ground forces, the existing passenger and merchant ships were improved and altered. They were auxiliary vehicles and were widely used to transport personnel and armored vehicles of the ground forces. An airfield was located on the territory of this plant, the infrastructure of which made it possible to test captured aircraft.

Before the First World War, Japan's army aviation had its main military unit - the air brigade of the ground forces. It consisted of squadrons (AE). Each contained eleven airplanes. Of these, three cars belonged to the reserve. The same number made up one link of the aviation line (LA) and were subordinate to the headquarters. Each squadron was assigned to a separate task: carrying out reconnaissance, fighter and light bomber missions assigned to the Japanese Air Force. The equipment and armament of reconnaissance aviation regiments consisted of 30 units, fighter regiments - 45. Specialized air groups formed divisions that had their own airfields and garrisons. They were consolidated into army aviation corps. They were led by officers with the rank not lower than captain.

Reorganization

In 1942, the army aviation corps were liquidated. Only divisions remained, which, together with individual parts of the air regiments, were the highest command operational-tactical structure. Before the Second World War, the entire aviation of Japan was not a separate type of troops, but was subordinate to the emperor's fleet and army. Soon, the army aviation units were reorganized, as a result of which associations, or air regiments (AA) were formed, having an operational-strategic level:

• First Air Force (VA) with a base in the Kanto region and headquarters in the city of Tokyo. This army controlled the Japanese and Kurilislands, Korea, Taiwan.
• The second VA was stationed in the city of Xinjing. The area of responsibility was Manchukuo.
• The third VA of the ground forces was responsible for the SEA region. The headquarters was stationed in Singapore.
• The Fourth VA controlled New Guinea and the Solomon Islands. The headquarters was located in the city of Rabaul.
• The Fifth VA had a zone of responsibility within the occupied southern and eastern territories of China. The headquarters is in the city of Nanjing.
• The sixth VA had its headquarters on the island of Kyushu. Controlled territory - the islands of Okinawa, Taiwan and western Japan.

Japanese Air Force Kamikaze

The history of this word goes back to 1944. At this time, aviation was being reorganized in Japan. On the basis of the existing aviation regiments, the command of Japan formed shock special units. They were suicide squadrons and were designated in official documents as the Kamikaze air squadron. Their mission was to physically destroy US Air Force B-17 and B-29 bomber units. Since the Japanese shock special units carried out their work with the help of a ram, there were no weapons on the sides of their aircraft.

The design of such aircraft units is characterized by reinforced fuselage reinforcement. Over the entire history of the Japanese Air Force, more than 160 strike aviation special units have been created. Of these, 57 were formed on the basis of training air divisions.

In 1945, Operation Ketsu-go was carried out to protect the islands of Japan from the air forces of the UnitedStates of America. As a result of the reorganization, all armies were united in a single structure under the leadership of General of Aviation M. Kawabe.

Multipurpose model

Among the various combat aircraft, the Mitsubishi F-2 occupies a special place. The Japanese Air Force, for which it was designed, used this model as a trainer, as well as a fighter-bomber. The aircraft is considered to be a follower of the previous unsuccessful version of the F-1, which was also created by the Japanese manufacturer Mitsubishi. The disadvantages that the F-1 had were that this model was released with insufficient range and a low combat load. When designing the new F-2 model, Japanese designers and developers were influenced by the American project Agine Falcon. Despite the fact that the created F-2 visually resembles its prototype - the American model F-16, it is considered new in Japanese production, as it has some differences:

• Application of various structural materials. In the manufacture of the Japanese model, the widespread use of advanced composite materials is typical, which significantly affected the weight reduction of the airframe.
• The design of the F-2 aircraft is different from the F-16.
• Various on-board systems.
• Difference in armament.
• F-2 and its prototype use different electronics.

The design of the Japanese F-2 aircraft compares favorably with the prototype in its simplicity, lightness and manufacturability.

Model B6N1

Japanese Air Force in World War II used one of their best carrier-based torpedo bombers B6N1 (“Tenzan”). The start of serial deliveries of this aircraft began in 1943. By the end of autumn, 133 aircraft had been designed. The first samples were received by squadrons, which included aircraft carriers: 601st, 652nd and 653rd. Since there was a real threat from the US Air Force to the island of Bougainville, the Japanese aviation leadership decided to transfer forty B6N1 units to Rabaul. In November, with the participation of this model, the first air battle took place, which was lost. It was attended by 16 combat "Tenzanov". Of these, the Japanese Air Force lost four. The next two sorties were also ineffective.

Design B6N1

• The Tenzan is equipped with an air-cooled cylinder engine.
• The Mamoru engine is designed for 1800 l / s.
• The combat equipment of the aircraft is represented by the upper and lower installation of two machine guns of caliber 27.7 mm.
• The B6N1 has a 800 kg bomb load. This includes a torpedo (1pc) and bombs.
• Passenger capacity - three people.

The Marianas War

In June 1944, the Japanese Air Force used a carrier-based Tenzan in the battle near the Mariana Islands. A total of 68 units took part. The B6N1 model in this battle served as torpedo bombers and radar leaders - they were gunners for the strike special groups of Japanese aviation. This battle was lost by Japan and its aircraft. From 68 boards back to baseonly eight returned.

After the Battle of the Mariana Islands, the Japanese aviation leadership decided to use this aircraft model only from a coastal base.

Confrontation of the USSR

Tenzan aircraft in the battles for Okinawa were used as bombers and kamikaze vehicles. The B6N1 aircraft was equipped with special radars. Therefore, the Japanese Air Command assigned this model to the 93rd kokutai (air group), which performed anti-submarine patrols. Also, Tenzan entered the 553rd kokutai. The Japanese Air Force Air Group consisted of 13 aircraft that took part in battles with the aircraft of the Soviet Union.

Despite their positive technical parameters, the Japanese "Tenzan" had a drawback, which was an unsuccessful choice of engine. This slowed down the process of introducing the B6N1 into mass production. As a result, the released models were significantly behind the enemy aircraft.

Japanese Aviation Fleet

In 1975, the personnel of the Japanese Air Force consisted of 45 thousand people. The combat aircraft fleet had 500 units. Of these, 60 F-4EJs, 170 F10-4Js and 250 F-86Fs belonged to the fighters. For reconnaissance, the RF-4E and RF-86F models (20 units) were used. In the Japanese Air Force, 35 aircraft and 20 helicopters of 150 Hajk-J missile launchers were provided for transporting goods and the wounded. There were 350 aircraft in flight schools. For deployment, the Japanese aviation command had 15 air bases and airfields.

In 2012, the number of personnel decreased from 45,000 to 43,700. The aircraft fleet increased significantly (by 200 units).

Japanese air force today contains 700 units, among which:

• 260 - tactical and multirole fighters;
• 200 - attack aircraft and training models;
• 17 - AWACS aircraft;
• 7 - models that carry out electronic intelligence;
• 4 - strategic tankers;
• 44 - military transport vehicles.

Defense plan

The decrease in the number of personnel with the expansion of the aircraft combat fleet indicates the orientation of the Japanese Air Force not on mass, but on point impact. According to the new defense plan, the Air Force will not increase the self-defense forces, but will redeploy its squadrons, concentrating them on strategically convenient positions. Ryuko Island is one such place. The second stage in the activities of the aviation command will be the acquisition of fifth-generation fighter aircraft.