is a military aerodrome of the

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

located in Higashimatsushima, west of

Ishinomaki is a city located in Miyagi Prefecture, Japan. , the city has an estimated population of 138,538, and a population density of 250 persons per km2 in 61,919 households. The total area of the city is . Geography Ishinomaki is in northeastern Miya ...

in the

Miyagi Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Tōhoku region of Honshu. Miyagi Prefecture has a population of 2,265,724 (1 August 2023) and has a geographic area of . Miyagi Prefecture borders Iwate Prefecture to the north, Akit ...

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

. Headquarters for the 4th Air Wing (JASDF), the base is primarily used for training, and is the home of the JASDF 21st Fighter Training Squadron, currently equipped with Mitsubishi F-2B fighters. It is also the home base for 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 Mits ...

" JASDF acrobatic display team.

History

The base was established on 7 June 1937 as a base for the

Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service The (IJNAS) was the air arm of the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN). The organization was responsible for the operation of naval aircraft and the conduct of aerial warfare in the Pacific War. The Japanese military acquired its first aircraft in ...

during the

Second Sino-Japanese War The Second Sino-Japanese War was fought between the Republic of China (1912–1949), Republic of China and the Empire of Japan between 1937 and 1945, following a period of war localized to Manchuria that started in 1931. It is considered part ...

. The Matsushima Naval Air Group was a shore-based unit equipped with

Mitsubishi G3M The was a Japanese bomber and transport aircraft used by the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service (IJNAS) during World War II. The Yokosuka L3Y (Allied reporting name "Tina"), was a transport variant of the aircraft manufactured by the Yokosu ...

and

Mitsubishi G4M The Mitsubishi G4M is a twin-engine, land-based medium bomber formerly manufactured by the Mitsubishi Aircraft Company, a part of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, and operated by the Air Service (IJNAS) of the Imperial Japanese Navy from 1940 to ...

bombers and participated in the

Battle of Okinawa The , codenamed Operation Iceberg, was a major battle of the Pacific War fought on the island of Okinawa Island, Okinawa by United States Army and United States Marine Corps forces against the Imperial Japanese Army during the Pacific War, Impe ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. The base was bombed five times during the ending stages of the war, on 14 July, 15 July, 17 July, 9 August and 10 August 1945. In the early post-war era, the American occupation forces started to revive the Japanese military with the creation of the National Safety Forces. In 1954, "Camp Matsushima" was renamed "Matsushima Air Field" and training operations for the fledgling Japan Air Self-Defense Force began using

North American T-6 Texan The North American Aviation T-6 Texan is an American single-engined advanced trainer aircraft, which was used to train pilots of the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF), United States Air Force (USAF), United States Navy, Royal Air Force, Ro ...

trainers. In 1971 an F-86F Sabre on a training mission from this base collided with All Nippon Airways Flight 58, causing 162 deaths. During the

2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami On 11 March 2011, at 14:46:24 Japan Standard Time, JST (05:46:24 UTC), a 9.0–9.1 Submarine earthquake, undersea megathrust earthquake occurred in the Pacific Ocean, east of the Oshika Peninsula of the Tōhoku region. It lasted approx ...

, the base was flooded with seawater, and eighteen Mitsubishi F-2Bs belonging to 21st Squadron, as well as other aircraft, were damaged or destroyed.

Units

* Air Training Command ** 4th Air Wing *** 21st Fighter Training Squadron ( F-2B) *** 11th Squadron,

(

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 ...

) *

Air Rescue Wing Matsushima Detachment (JASDF) The Air Rescue Wing Matsushima Detachment () is a unit of the Air Rescue Wing of the Japan Air Self-Defense Force. It is also known as the Matsushima Air Rescue Squadron. Responsible for airborne search and rescue, it is based at Matsushima Air ...

(

UH-60J The Mitsubishi H-60 series is a twin-turboshaft engine helicopter based on the Sikorsky UH-60 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-Defe ...

), ( U-125A)

References

External links

Matsushima Air Base
Japan Air Self-Defense Force bases Japan Self-Defense Forces Transport buildings and structures in Miyagi Prefecture Higashimatsushima, Miyagi 1937 establishments in Japan Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service {{Miyagi-geo-stub