Japanese Plane Piece Identification

Hi All -

I recently purchased a large lot of Japanese Military items. The first thing I am trying to identify is what type of plane this piece might be from. It appears to be 秋 and the only thing I was able to find is the Mitsubishi J8M Shūsui (Japanese: 三菱 J8M 秋水) "Autumn Water" but that doesn't appear to be possible so I am at a loss. Thanks for any help!

- Charlie B. in PA

Hello Charlie,

This isn't going to be from a Shūsui plane since none were in production.
I think it would be impossible to identify the aircraft. I don't think the Japanese put model names on their planes. (But you are correct, it is indeed 秋, meaning Autumn). Hard to say what the significance is. Pilot's name? 秋 is a common character found in surnames. Is it painted on, or is it carved/engraved into the metal?

To identify the plane, I think you'd need to have a part number and then you might be able to figure it out. OR, you could research Iwo Jima and find out what were the most common planes that were used around February 1945 there, and maybe work back from there, but even that would just be guesswork. Unfortunately the word "秋" (aki) alone doesn't provide much clue.

You might also try posting to the WarRelics Forum (in the Japan sub forum), where the guys are hyper-focused on WW2 memorabilia.

That's what I thought. I wasn't sure if it was a character in surnames which is why I was asking over here first. The character is painted with white paint that looks to have been possibly burned a little bit as some of the paint is browned and the green on the other side is a little bubbled. I have no clue if pilot's names were ever painted on the outside of the aircraft but that is what I think is most likely and I will definitely ask over there. Thanks again