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Genzan Air Group
Genzan A6M2b fighters at Genzan (Wonsan), Korea in April 1945.
Active	15 Nov 1940 – 1 Nov 1942 15 Aug 1944 – the end of war
Country	Empire of Japan
Allegiance	Imperial Japanese Navy
Branch	Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service
Type	Naval aviation unit
Role	Bomber and fighter support (1940) Training (1944)
Garrison/HQ	Wonsan, Korea Hankou, China Saigon, French Indochina Rabaul, New Britain Kanoya, Japan
Engagements	Second Sino-Japanese War Sinking of Prince of Wales and Repulse Battle of Malaya Battle of Singapore Dutch East Indies campaign New Guinea Campaign Battle of Okinawa
Insignia
Identification symbol	ゲン (Gen, 1940, Japan homeland)
Identification symbol	G (1940, outside Japan homeland)
Identification symbol	ケ (Ke, 1944)
Identification symbol	ゲン (Gen, August 1945)

The Genzan Air Group (元山海軍航空隊, Genzan Kaigun Kōkūtai) was an aircraft and airbase garrison unit of the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service during the Second Sino-Japanese War and Pacific campaign of World War II.

History

The Genzan Air Group was founded on 15 November 1940 at Genzan, Korea, then a part of the Empire of Japan. It was initially a mixed-unit equipped with 33 Type 96 Mitsubishi G3M1 bombers and 25 Type 96 Mitsubishi A5M4 fighters under the command of the Second Air Fleet. On January 15, 1941, it was reassigned to the 22nd Kōkū Sentai and deployed to Hankou in central China.

Operations in China

While based at Hankou, the bombers of the Genzan Air Group were primarily assigned to strategic bombing missions in Sichuan Province, while the fighters were assigned to combat air patrol and ground support missions in support of Imperial Japanese Army operations. The Genzan Air Group was withdrawn from China in September, 1941, returning to its home base at Genzan for training, and at the end of October, 1941 was forward deployed to Takao in Taiwan.

Operations in Southeast Asia

With the bombing of Pearl Harbor and the outbreak of the Pacific War, the Genzan Air Group was deployed to Saigon, French Indochina. The group was a key participant in the sinking of the British capital ships HMS Prince of Wales (53) and HMS Repulse (1916) off the coast of Malaya on 10 December 1941, losing one aircraft and its crew during the battle.

On January 22, 1942, bombers from the Genzan Air Group attacked Kallang Airport in Singapore, and subsequently provided air support for Japanese offensives in Malaya including the landings at Endau. At the end of February, the unit was transferred to Bangkok and assigned to patrols over the Indian Ocean; however, facilities at Bangkok were not satisfactory and the unit was soon reassigned to Palembang in Sumatra in the Netherlands East Indies, with some aircraft dispersed to Kuching in Sarawak.

On May 1, 1942, Genzan's flying unit was redeployed to Rabaul, New Britain to support the Japanese campaign in New Guinea. The group participated in the Battle of the Coral Sea, without success, and made numerous bombing attacks against Port Moresby.

In July, after the cancellation of Operation Mo, the unit was withdrawn to Japan and was based at Misawa, Aomori for training. Its fighter unit was detached and redesignated as the 252 Kōkūtai in September. The Genzan's flying unit was disbanded by being redesignated as the 755 Kōkūtai on 1 November 1942.

Personnel Assigned

Commanding Officers

• Capt. Izawa Ishinosuke (43) - 15 November 1940 - 1 October 1941
• Cdr. / Capt. Maeda Takanari (47) – 1 October 1941 – 20 September 1942 (Promoted Captain on 15 October 1941.)
• Cdr. Yamashita Sakae (49) – 20 September 1942 – 1 November 1942

Executive Officers

• Cdr. Minematsu Iwao (48) – 15 November 1940 – 10 October 1941
• VACANT – 10 October 1941 – 1 November 1942

Maintenance Officers

• LtCdr. (Eng.) Hata Nobukuma (Eng. 31) – 15 November 1940 – 1 September 1941
• LtCdr. (Eng.) Azuma Tetsuo (Eng. 33) – 1 September 1941 – 25 September 1942
• Lt. (Eng.) Kataoka Shoichi (Eng. 42) – 25 September 1942 – 1 November 1942

Surgeons

• LtCdr. (Med.) Masuoka Satoru (1927) - 15 November 1940 – 10 April 1942
• LtCdr. (Med.) Takeyasu Sueharu (1930) – 10 April 1942 – 13 October 1942
• LtCdr. (Med.) Suzuki Keiichiro (1928) – 13 October 1942 – 1 November 1942

Paymasters

• LtCdr. (Pay.) Kishida Mizunari (Pay. 16) – 15 November 1940 – 20 September 1941
• Lt. (Pay.) Sudo Hiroshi (Pay. 24) – 20 September 1941 – 5 August 1942
• Lt. (Pay.) Nagai Hora (Pay. Aux. 2) – 5 August 1942 – 1 November 1942

Communications Officers

• LtCdr. Ikeda Iwao (55) – 15 November 1940 – 15 September 1941
• LtCdr. Minekawa Minoru (57) – 15 September 1941 – 1 November 1942

Air Officers

• Cdr. Asada Masahiko (52) – 15 November 1940 – 1 September 1941
• LtCdr. Sonokawa Kameo (52) – 1 September 1941 – 1 April 1942
• LtCdr. Tokoro Shigehachiro (51) – 1 April 1942 – 1 November 1942

References

• Bullard, Steven (translator). Army Operations in the South Pacific Area, New Britain and Papua campaigns, 1942–43 Senshi Sōshō (translated excerpts). Canberra: Australian War Memorial, 2007. ISBN 978-0-9751904-8-7.
• Cea, Edwardo (2008). Aircraft of the Imperial Japanese Navy. Valaldolid, Spain: AF Editions. ISBN 978-84-96935-12-9.
• Hata, Ikuhiko with Yasuho Izawa and Don Cyril Gorham (translator). Japanese Naval Aces and Fighter Units in World War II. Annapolis, MD: Naval Institute Press, 1975 (Japanese original) 1989 (translation). ISBN 0-87021-315-6.
• Peattie, Mark R. Sunburst: The Rise of Japanese Naval Air Power, 1909-1941. Annapolis, MD: Naval Institute Press, 1999. ISBN 1-59114-664-X.
• Tagaya, Osamu. Mitsubishi Type 1 "Rikko" 'Betty' Units of World War 2. Botley, Oxfordshire, UK: Osprey Publishing, 2001. ISBN 1-84176-082-X.
• Monthly Kōkū-Fan, Illustrated No. 42, Japanese Imperial Army & Navy Aircraft Color, Marking, Tōkyō, Japan, Bunrindō Co. Ltd., 1988.
• Monthly Air World, Photo album of Imperial Japanese Navy Aircraft, Tōkyō, Japan, Air World Inc., 1987.
• Model Art No. 458, Special issue Imperial Japanese Navy Air Force Suicide Attack Unit "Kamikaze", Tōkyō, Japan, Model Art Co. Ltd., 1995.

v t e Imperial Japanese Navy air units
Air Fleet	1 2 3 5 10 11 12 13 14
Air Flotilla	11 12 13 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 32 51 53 61 62 71 72 101
Combined Air Group	1 2 3 4 11 12 13 14 15 18 19 20 21 22 23 24
Air Group	1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 21 22 23 31 32 33 35 36 40
Naval Air Group (Numbered name)	121 131 132 133 141 151 153 171 201 202 203 204 205 210 221 251 252 253 254 256 261 263 265 281 301 302 312 321 322 331 332 341 343 345 352 361 381 452 453 501 502 503 521 522 523 524 531 541 551 552 553 582 601 631 634 652 653 701 702 703 705 706 707 721 722 723 724 725 732 751 752 753 755 761 762 763 765 801 802 851 901 902 903 931 932 933 934 936 938 951 952 953 954 955 956 958 1001 1021 1022 1023 1081
Naval Air Group (Place name)	Expeditionary unit Chitose Genzan (I) Kanoya (I) Kisarazu Mihoro Misawa (I) Takao (I) Tainan (I) Tōkō Yokohama Patrol / Defensive unit Chichijima Chinkai Kure Kushimoto Maizuru Okinawa Ōminato Saeki Sasebo Tateyama Toyohashi (I) Yokosuka Practice unit Atsugi Genzan (II) Hakata Kaikō Kanoya (II) Komatsushima Kōnoike Matsushima Miyazaki Nagoya Ōi Ōita Ōmura San'a Seitō Shanhai Shinchiku Sukumo Suzuka Tainan (II) Takao (II) Tokushima Toyohashi (II) Tsuiki (I) Tsukuba Usa Yatabe Basic training unit Amakusa Fukuyama Himeji Hyakurihara Isahaya Iwakuni (I) Izumi 1st Izumi Jinmachi Kan'onji Kashima Kitaura Kobi Kōchi Kokubu 2nd Kōriyama Kōshū 2nd Kōwa 2nd Miho Mineyama 3rd Okazaki Ōryū Ōtsu Pusan Saijō 2nd Takao Takuma Tōkyō Tsuiki (II) Yamato Mechanic training unit Fujisawa Hitoyoshi 2nd Izumi 2nd Kanoya Katori Kōriyama 1st Kōriyama Kōwa 1st Kōwa Kushira Oihama Okazaki 1st Okazaki 2nd Okazaki Sagamino 1st Sagamino 2nd Sagamino Sunosaki 2nd Tainan Tarumi Taura Preparatory flight training unit Fukuoka Iwakuni (II) Kagoshima Kasumigaura Kofuji Komatsu Kōyasan Kurashiki Matsuyama Mie Miho 1st Miho Misawa (II) Nara Nishinomiya Seto Shiga Shimizu Takarazuka Tsuchiura Urado Uwajima
Naval Air Group (Regional name)	Chōsen Chūhi Chūshi Gōhoku Higashikarorin Hitō Hokuhi Hokutai Hokutō Inshi Kantō Kinki Kyūshū Marai Mariana Naikai Nanpi Nanpōshotō Nanseishotō Nantai Nishikarorin Ōu Saikai San'in Taiwan Tōin Tōkai
Flying squadron	Fighter Squadron 161 162 163 164 165 166 167 301 302 303 304 305 306 307 308 309 310 311 312 313 315 316 317 318 351 401 402 403 407 601 602 603 701 804 812 851 901 902 Attack Squadron 1 3 5 102 103 105 107 161 251 252 253 254 256 262 263 401 405 406 501 701 702 703 704 705 706 707 708 709 711 Reconnaissance Squadron 3 4 11 12 61 101 102 301 302
Special unit	R-Area Air Force
Organization of the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service (I) First generation (II) Second generation

• Groups of the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service
• Wonsan
• Military units and formations established in 1940
• Military units and formations disestablished in 1942
• Military units and formations established in 1944