History Kawanishi N1K2-J Shiden-Kai is salvaged

[NANGI]

Minasan Konnichiwa!

A Japanese Navy fighter plane "Shiden-Kai" has been salvaged from the bottom of the sea for the first time in 81 years. A more detailed English translation of this article is available on Facebook.



vintageaviationnews.com

Kawanishi N1K2-J Shiden-Kai Returns: WWII Japanese Fighter Raised After 81 Years Beneath the Sea - Vintage Aviation News

Recovered from shallow waters off Kagoshima Prefecture, a WWII-era Kawanishi N1K2-J Shiden-Kai has surfaced for the first time in 81 years. Despite decades beneath the sea, the aircraft remains remarkably intact and is now set for preservation and public display, serving as a tangible reminder...

vintageaviationnews.com

Japanese TV NEWS by Yomiuri


Japanese TV NEWS by ANN



Kawanishi N1K2-J "Shiden-Kai"

I took this photo last year. It's not the actual aircraft, but an elaborately made replica.

NANGI

 

[thomas]

One of my 1/48 Hasegawa model kits when I was a teenager.

Not my video.

​

I took this photo last year. It's not the actual aircraft, but an elaborately made replica.
NANGI

Where was that photo taken, @NANGI -san?

 

[NANGI]

Konnichiwa thomas-san!

This photo was taken in Kasai City, which is next to Himeji City. There was a Kawanishi Aircraft Company factory in Himeji, and during the war, a factory and airfield were added in the neighboring city of Kasai.

This factory produced numerous fighter planes, young men received training at the airfield to become pilots, and then went on kamikaze missions.

The former airfield site was under the management of the Japan Defense Agency after the war, but in 2016 it was sold to Kasai City and reborn as the war memorial "SORA Kasai".

At "SORA Kasai" in addition to the N1K2-J manufactured at the factory, a replica of the Nakajima B5N used in the Kamikaze mission is also on display.

Nakajima B5N

Wiki:Uzurano-airfield 鶉野飛行場(うずらのひこうじょう)

鶉野飛行場 - Wikipedia

ja.wikipedia.org

Uzurano-airfield


SORA Kasai


N1K2-J Shiden-Kai Assembly



"SORA Kasai" can be reached by bus in about an hour from Himeji Station, but it is located in the middle of rice fields surrounded by mountains, and there are no other tourist facilities nearby.

surrounding scenery

To be honest, I think it would be difficult to visit as a tourist. If you can travel by car, you can also visit the ruins of a mountain castle.

Kanatsurube castle: 金鑵城（かなつるべじょう）

金鑵城 - Wikipedia

ja.wikipedia.org

NANGI

 

[thomas]

Well worth a visit! Thank you for sharing this!