Introduction. Origins of Imperial Japanese Army parachute units -- Origins of Imperial Japanese Navy parachute units -- Organization. IJA Raiding units : regiment, brigade, group, glider infantry, tank unit -- IJN 1st & 3rd special Naval landing forces -- Weapons & Equipment. Small arms & crew-served weapons -- Aircraft -- Vehicles -- Parachutes -- Cargo containers -- Individual equipment & uniforms -- Airborne Operations, 1942. Yokosuka 1st SNLF at Manado, January 1942 -- Yokosuka 3rd SNLF at Koepang, February 1942 -- Later service of IJN parachute units -- 2nd Raiding Regiment at Palembang, February 1942 -- Later service of IJA parachute units -- Airborne Operations, 1944-45. Operations on Leyte : Kaoru Airborne Raiding detachment, November 1944 -- 2nd Raiding Brigade, December 1944-September 1945 -- 1st Raiding Group on Luzon, January-September 1945 -- Giretsu Airborne Unit on Okinawa, May 1945.
Summary:
This book offers a concise but fact-packed account of the organization, equipment, and all operations of Japan's small but elite wartime parachute forces. Correcting and amplifying previous accounts based on wartime intelligence, it traces the Imperial Army's Raiding Regiments and the Imperial Navy's parachute-trained Yokosuka 1st & 3rd Special Naval Landing Forces from the first trials units, through their successful assaults in early 1942, to the last desperate battles and raids of 1944-45. The text is illustrated with rare photographs, and meticulously reconstructed color artwork of the men and their gear.
This resource is supported by the Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act as administered by State Library of Iowa.