is a

Japan Air Self-Defense Force The , , also informally referred to as the Japanese Air Force, is the air and space branch of the Japan Self-Defense Forces, responsible for the defense of Japanese airspace, other air and space operations, cyberwarfare and electronic warf ...

base located north of the city of

Hamamatsu is a city located in western Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan. the city had an estimated population of 791,707 in 340,591 households, making it the prefecture's largest city, and a population density of . The total area of the site was . Overview Ha ...

, Shizuoka Prefecture, in central Japan.

History

Hamamatsu Air Base was established in 1925 as an

Imperial Japanese Army Air Force The Imperial Japanese Army Air Service (IJAAS) or Imperial Japanese Army Air Force (IJAAF; ja, 大日本帝國陸軍航空部隊, Dainippon Teikoku Rikugun Kōkūbutai, lit=Greater Japan Empire Army Air Corps) was the aviation force of the Im ...

base to be home to the newly formed IJAAF No.7 Air Regiment. In 1933, it was designated as the primary

flight school Flight training is a course of study used when learning to pilot an aircraft. The overall purpose of primary and intermediate flight training is the acquisition and honing of basic airmanship skills. Flight training can be conducted under a str ...

for Japanese army aviation. After

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, the base facilities were used as an emergency landing strip by the

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Aerial warfare, air military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part ...

, and were returned to the Japanese government in 1952 for use as a flight training school for the nascent Japan Air Self-Defense Force. The training syllabus was transformed in 1954 into separate schools for flight training, aircraft maintenance and communications. The base was divided into northern and southern areas in 1958, with the operational area in the north housing the 1st Air Wing, and from 1960, the

Blue Impulse (currently 11 Squadron 4th Air Wing, previously 21 Squadron 4th Air Wing) is the aerobatic demonstration team of the Japan Air Self-Defense Force (JASDF). The team was founded in 1960 as a team of six F-86 Sabres. They changed mounts to the Mi ...

aerobatic squadron and the southern area housing the administrative and training facilities. The Blue Impulse squadron was transferred to

Matsushima Air Base is a military aerodrome of the Japan Air Self-Defense Force located in Higashimatsushima, west of Ishinomaki in the Miyagi Prefecture, Japan. Headquarters for the 4th Air Wing (JASDF), the base is primarily used for training, and is the home ...

in 1981; however the team suffered from a fatal mid-air collision during a farewell performance at Hamamatsu in 1982. The First Air Wing transitioned from

Lockheed T-33 The Lockheed T-33 Shooting Star (or T-Bird) is an American subsonic jet trainer. It was produced by Lockheed and made its first flight in 1948. The T-33 was developed from the Lockheed P-80/F-80 starting as TP-80C/TF-80C in development, then d ...

A trainers to

Kawasaki T-4 The Kawasaki T-4 is a Japanese subsonic intermediate jet trainer aircraft developed and manufactured by the commercial conglomerate Kawasaki Heavy Industries. Its sole operator is the Japan Air Self-Defense Force (JASDF), in part due to historic ...

trainers in 1988. In a fiscal reform in 1989, the northern and southern halves of the base were reunited into a single administrative entity. From 1998, Hamamatsu Air Base became the home base of Japan's

squadron Squadron may refer to: * Squadron (army), a military unit of cavalry, tanks, or equivalent subdivided into troops or tank companies * Squadron (aviation), a military unit that consists of three or four flights with a total of 12 to 24 aircraft, ...

Boeing E-767 The Boeing E-767 is an Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS) aircraft that was designed in response to the Japan Air Self-Defense Force's requirements. It is essentially the Boeing E-3 Sentry's surveillance radar and air control system ins ...

AWACS aircraft. In 1999, an aviation museum, the , was established. It has many aircraft from the history of the Japan Air Self-Defense Force on static display, and also a restored example of a World War II era A6M5 Zero. In 2004, in celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Japan Air Self-Defense Force, Hamamatsu Air Base hosted a display by the

U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds The USAF Air Demonstration Squadron ("Thunderbirds") is the air demonstration squadron of the United States Air Force The Thunderbirds are assigned to the 57th Wing, and are based at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada. Created in 1953, the USAF Th ...

aerobatic display team. From 2008, the MIM-104 Patriot missile has been deployed at Hamamatsu Air Base.

Organization

Hamamatsu Air Base is currently headquarters to the JASDF Air Training Command. Units currently based at Hamamatsu currently include: * 1st Air Wing ** 31st Training Squadron (

) ** 32nd Training Squadron (

) * Airborne Early Warning Group ** 602nd Squadron (

) * Air Basic Training Wing * Air Rescue Wing Hamamatsu Detachment (

U-125A The British Aerospace 125 is a twinjet mid-size business jet. Originally developed by de Havilland and initially designated as the DH.125 Jet Dragon, it entered production as the Hawker Siddeley HS.125, which was the designation used until 1 ...

UH-60J The Mitsubishi H-60 series is twin-turboshaft engine helicopter based on the Sikorsky S-70 helicopter family for use by the Japan Self-Defense Forces (JSDF). The SH-60J/K/L are anti-submarine patrol versions for the Japan Maritime Self-Defense ...

) * Hamamatsu Anti-Aircraft Missile Group * Air Officer Training School * 1st & 2nd Technical School * Air Training Aids Group * Air Traffic Control Group * Air Weather Service Group * Hamamatsu Air Police Group

References

External links

Official JASDF page
* {{authority control Japan Air Self-Defense Force bases Japanese airbases Airfields of the United States Army Air Forces in Occupied Japan Imperial Japanese Army Military and war museums in Japan Buildings and structures in Hamamatsu 1925 establishments in Japan