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148-737: The Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service ( 大日本帝國海軍航空隊 , Dai-Nippon Teikoku Kaigun Kōkū-tai ) ( 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 their first aircraft in 1910 and followed the development of air combat during World War I with great interest. They initially procured European aircraft but quickly built their own and launched themselves onto an ambitious aircraft carrier building program. They launched

296-688: A Prussian expeditionary fleet arrived in Asia and explored the region around Jiaozhou Bay. The following year, the Prussian-Chinese Treaty of Peking was signed. After journeys to China between 1868 and 1871, the geographer Baron Ferdinand von Richthofen recommended the Bay of Jiaozhou as a possible naval base. In 1896, Rear Admiral Alfred von Tirpitz , at that time commander of the East Asian Cruiser Division , examined

444-499: A flight deck on the fore-deck; in 1917 it was reconstructed with separate flight decks fore and aft of the superstructure; then finally, after the war, it was heavily reconstructed with a three-quarter length main flight deck, and a lower-level take-off only flight deck on the fore-deck. On 2 August 1917, Squadron Commander E.H. Dunning , Royal Navy, landed his Sopwith Pup aircraft on Furious in Scapa Flow , Orkney , becoming

592-404: A Navy transport ship, Wakamiya Maru was converted into a seaplane carrier capable of carrying two assembled and two disassembled seaplanes. Wakamiya also participated in the naval maneuvers off Sasebo that year. On 23 August 1914, as a result of its treaty with Great Britain , Japan declared war on Germany . The Japanese, together with a token British force, blockaded then laid siege to

740-775: A base unit and 12 to 36 aircraft, plus four to 12 aircraft in reserve. Each naval air group consisted of several Squadrons ( 飛行隊 , Hikōtai ) of nine, 12 or 16 aircraft; this was the main IJN Air Service combat unit and was equivalent to a squadron ( 中隊 , Chutai ) in the Imperial Japanese Army Air Service . Each hikotai was commanded by a Lieutenant (j.g.), Warrant Officer, or experienced Chief Petty Officer, while most pilots were non-commissioned officers . There were usually four sections in each hikotai , each section ( 小隊 , shōtai ) with three or four aircraft; by mid-1944 it

888-485: A cadre of naval aviators and technicians, the navy also dispatched three officers to Hammondsport and two to France for training and instruction. After their return to Japan at the end of 1912, two of the newly trained naval aviators made the first flights at Oppama on Yokosuka Bay, one in a Curtiss seaplane, the other in a Maurice Farman. In 1912, the Royal Navy had also informally established its own flying branch,

1036-576: A cease-fire had been declared on 3 March. Aircrews of Kaga received a special commendation from the commander of the Third Fleet, Vice Admiral Kichisaburō Nomura , for their actions. The actions of the Japanese aviators over Shanghai represented the first significant air operations over East Asia and for the IJN it also marked the first combat operations from its aircraft carriers. The attack on Zhabei

1184-535: A completely second place. The main object seems to be to inspire terror by the indiscriminate slaughter of civilians...» At the beginning of the Pacific war the Imperial Japanese Navy possessed the most powerful carrier force in the world, through combination of excellent ships, well-designed aircraft, and unsurpassed aviators. The Navy Air Service consisted of five naval air fleets. The Japanese had

1332-403: A country's seagoing forces with air cover over areas that may not be reachable by land-based aircraft, giving them a considerable advantage over navies composed primarily of surface combatants. Naval aviation also provides countries with the opportunity to deploy military aircraft over land and sea, without the need for air bases on land. Aircraft may be used to conduct naval mine clearance ,

1480-415: A fleet action and had no clear vision as to the role of air power in naval warfare. But with the continued increase in the range and power of aircraft, carriers became acknowledged for their ability to strike at targets beyond the range of surface guns and torpedoes. Including gunnery staffs as well as naval aviators, the IJN became convinced that carrier aircraft should be used for a preemptive strike against

1628-407: A high-quality and long-serving pilot corps, who were very successful in the air during the early part of World War II in the Pacific. However, the long duration of the training program, combined with a shortage of gasoline for training, did not allow the IJN to rapidly provide qualified replacements in sufficient numbers. Moreover, Japan, unlike the U.S. or Britain, never altered its program to speed up

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1776-670: A lease, and because of its importance to the German navy, it was not placed under the supervision of the Imperial Colonial Office ( Reichskolonialamt ) but instead under that of the Imperial Naval Office (the Reichsmarineamt or RMA). At the top of the territory stood the governor (all five office holders were senior navy officers), who was directly subordinated to the secretary of state of

1924-643: A manned reconnaissance device that would give the viewer the advantage of considerable height. In 1908 Prime Minister H. H. Asquith approved the formation of an "Aerial Sub-Committee of the Committee of Imperial Defence " to investigate the potential for naval aviation. In 1909 this body accepted the proposal of Captain Reginald Bacon made to the First Sea Lord Sir John Fisher that rigid airships should be constructed for

2072-482: A mass aerial attack also shifted the emphasis away from the protection of the main battle fleet to attacks on targets over the horizon. Essential to the implementation of such a tactic was the locating of the enemy before the enemy found the Japanese carriers. As a consequence, it was important to the Japanese that naval aircraft be able to "outrange the enemy" in the air, just as Japanese surface forces could do by naval gunnery and torpedo attacks. Subsequently, throughout

2220-403: A more mobile strike capacity led to the development of the aircraft carrier - the backbone of modern naval aviation. HMS  Ark Royal was the first purpose-built seaplane carrier and was also arguably the first modern aircraft carrier. She was originally laid down as a merchant ship, but was converted on the building stocks to be a hybrid airplane/seaplane carrier with a launch platform and

2368-762: A naval zeppelin detachment in Berlin-Johannisthal and an airplane squadron in Putzig (Puck, Poland). The Japanese established the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service , modelled on the RNAS , in 1913. On 24 January 1913 came the first wartime naval aviation interservice cooperation mission. Greek pilots on a seaplane observed and drew a diagram of the positions of the Turkish fleet against which they dropped four bombs. This event

2516-480: A naval air training unit at Kasumigaura, the air station became the principal flight training center for the navy. The Japanese navy had closely monitored the progress of aviation of the three Allied naval powers during World War I and concluded that Britain had made the greatest advances in naval aviation. They had also learned a good deal about naval aviation through their contacts within the Royal Navy. In 1920,

2664-533: A network of global naval bases was a key requirement for this intention. Again, intending to directly copy Britain, the acquisition of a harbor in China was, from the start, intended to be a model colony: all installations, the administration, the surrounding infrastructure, and the utilization thereof were to show the Chinese, the German nation itself, and other colonial powers, an effective colonial policy. In 1860,

2812-632: A platform extending from the side of the flight deck. In the United States, Admiral William Benson attempted to entirely dissolve the USN's Naval Aeronautics program in 1919. Assistant Secretary of the Navy Franklin Roosevelt and others succeeded in maintaining it, but the service continued to support battleship-based doctrines. To counter Billy Mitchell 's campaign to establish a separate Department of Aeronautics, Secretary of

2960-535: A representative had also been sent to Britain to observe air operations off the decks of Furious . In 1921, the Japanese government formally requested that the British dispatch a naval air mission, in order to develop and to provide a professional edge to Japanese naval aviation. There were reservations on the part of the Admiralty , about granting the Japanese unrestricted access to British technology. Despite this

3108-691: A resolution by the Far Eastern Advisory Committee of the League of Nations . Lord Cranborne , the British Under-Secretary of State For Foreign Affairs, expressed his indignation in his own declaration. Words cannot express the feelings of profound horror with which the news of these raids had been received by the whole civilized world. They are often directed against places far from the actual area of hostilities. The military objective, where it exists, seems to take

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3256-629: A seaplane carrier against a land target as well as a sea target took place in September 1914 when the Imperial Japanese Navy carrier Wakamiya conducted ship-launched air raids from Kiaochow Bay during the Battle of Tsingtao in China. The four Maurice Farman seaplanes bombarded German-held land targets (communication centers and command centers) and damaged a German minelayer in the Tsingtao peninsula from September until 6 November 1914, when

3404-480: A sewer system, and a safe drinking water supply, a rarity in large parts of Asia at that time and later. The area had the highest density of schools and highest per capita student enrollment in all of China, with primary, secondary, and vocational schools funded by the Berlin treasury and Protestant and Roman Catholic missions. With the expansion of economic activity and public works, German banks opened branch offices,

3552-546: A ship which was under way occurred. Hibernia steamed at 10.5 knots (19.4 km/h; 12.1 mph) at the Royal Fleet Review in Weymouth Bay , England . Hibernia then transferred her aviation equipment to battleship London . Based on these experiments, the Royal Navy concluded that aircraft were useful aboard ship for spotting and other purposes, but that interference with the firing of guns caused by

3700-459: A small number of aircraft. The solution to the problem were large numbers of mass-produced merchant hulls converted into escort aircraft carriers (also known as "jeep carriers"). These basic vessels, unsuited to fleet action by their capacity, speed and vulnerability, nevertheless provided air cover where it was needed. The Royal Navy had observed the impact of naval aviation and, obliged to prioritise their use of resources, abandoned battleships as

3848-576: A total of ten aircraft carriers: six fleet carriers, three smaller carriers, and one training carrier. The 11th Air Fleet : contained most of the Navy's land based strike aircraft. One important advantage exercised by the Japanese at the start of the war was their ability to mass carrier air power. In April 1941 the First Air Fleet was created, concentrating the Navy's carriers into a single powerful striking unit. The Kido Butai (Mobile Unit/Force)

3996-475: A year later. With these two carriers much of Imperial Japanese Navy's doctrines and operating procedures were established. When Hōshō was completed, little thought was given to naval aircraft in an offensive role and moreover with only one carrier there was insufficient consideration given to carrier doctrine within the Japanese naval establishment. However, in 1928 the First Carrier Division

4144-560: Is a method of supplying naval vessels at sea, by helicopter . This means moving cargo and supplies from supply ships to the flight decks of other naval vessels using naval helicopters. During the Cold War , the navies of NATO faced a significant threat from Soviet submarine forces, specifically Soviet Navy SSN and SSGN assets. This resulted in the development and deployment of light aircraft carriers with major anti-submarine warfare (ASW) capabilities by European NATO navies. One of

4292-416: Is also used as part of amphibious warfare . Aircraft based on naval ships provide support to marines and other forces performing amphibious landings. Ship-based aircraft may also be used to support amphibious forces as they move inland. Naval aircraft are used for various maritime patrol missions, such as reconnaissance, search and rescue, and maritime law enforcement. Vertical replenishment (VERTREP)

4440-553: Is also valuable. Naval aircraft played an important part in providing relief in the wake of the 2010 Haiti earthquake and Typhoon Haiyan . [REDACTED] Media related to Naval aviation at Wikimedia Commons Jiaozhou Bay Leased Territory The Kiautschou Bay Leased Territory was a German leased territory in Imperial and Early Republican China from 1898 to 1914. Covering an area of 552 km (213 sq mi), it centered on Kiautschou Bay (Jiaozhou Bay) on

4588-728: The Deutsch-Asiatische Bank being the most prominent. The completion of the Tsingtau-Jinan railway in 1910 provided a connection to the Trans-Siberian Railway and thus allowed travel by train from Tsingtau to Berlin. The territory fully implemented Georgist policy. Its sole source of government revenue was the land value tax of six percent which it levied in its territory. The German colonial empire had previously had economic problems with its African colonies caused by land speculation . One of

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4736-567: The Doolittle Raid of 1942, 16 Army medium bombers were launched from the carrier Hornet on one-way missions to bomb Japan. All were lost to fuel exhaustion after bombing their targets and the experiment was not repeated. Smaller carriers were built in large numbers to escort slow cargo convoys or supplement fast carriers. Aircraft for observation or light raids were also carried by battleships and cruisers, while blimps were used to search for attack submarines. Experience showed that there

4884-552: The Kawanishi N1K-J would not enter service until late 1944–1945, which was too late to have a meaningful impact. The beginnings of Japanese naval aviation were established in 1912, with the creation of a Commission on Naval Aeronautical Research ( Kaigun Kokūjutsu Kenkyūkai ) under the authority of the Technical Department. The commission was charged with the promotion of aviation technology and training for

5032-458: The Kido Butai could wield the aircraft of its three divisions as a single entity bringing masses of aircraft crewed by highly trained aviators onto a single target. During the first six months of the war Japanese naval air power achieved spectacular success and spearheaded offensive operations against Allied forces. On 7 December 1941, the IJN's Kido Butai attacked Pearl Harbor, crippling

5180-489: The PBY Catalina helped finding submarines and surface fleets. In World War II the aircraft carrier replaced the battleship as the most powerful naval offensive weapons system as battles between fleets were increasingly fought out of gun range by aircraft. The Japanese Yamato , the heaviest battleship ever built, was first turned back by light escort carrier aircraft and later sunk lacking its own air cover. During

5328-595: The Philippines and Darwin in northern Australia . In these battles, the Japanese veterans of the Chinese war did well against inexperienced Allied pilots flying obsolete aircraft. However, their advantage did not last. In the Battle of the Coral Sea , the Battle of Midway , and again in the Guadalcanal Campaign , the Japanese lost many veteran pilots. Because the Japanese pilot training program

5476-553: The Royal Naval Air Service . The Japanese admirals, whose own Navy had been modeled on the Royal Navy and whom they admired, themselves proposed their own Naval Air Service. The Japanese Navy had also observed technical developments in other countries and saw that the airplane had potential. Within a year, the Imperial Japanese navy had begun the operational use of aircraft. In 1913, the following year,

5624-608: The Royal Navy to be used for reconnaissance. This resulted in the construction of Mayfly in 1909, the first air component of the navy to become operational, and the genesis of modern naval aviation. The first pilots for the Royal Navy were transferred from the Royal Aero Club in June 1910 along with two aircraft with which to train new pilots, and an airfield at Eastchurch became the Naval Flying School,

5772-812: The United States Navy to demonstrate that airplanes could take off from and land aboard ships at sea. One of his pilots, Eugene Ely , took off from the cruiser USS  Birmingham anchored off the Virginia coast in November 1910. Two months later Ely landed aboard another cruiser, USS  Pennsylvania , in San Francisco Bay , proving the concept of shipboard operations. However, the platforms erected on those vessels were temporary measures. The U.S. Navy and Glenn Curtiss experienced two firsts during January 1911. On 27 January, Curtiss flew

5920-586: The Wright brothers and Curtiss. A camp with a primitive landing field was established on the Severn River at Greenbury Point, near Annapolis, Maryland . The vision of the aerial fleet was for scouting. Each aircraft would have a pilot and observer. The observer would use the wireless radio technology to report on enemy ships. Some thoughts were given to deliver counterattacks on hostile aircraft using "explosives or other means". Using airplanes to bomb ships

6068-583: The ski-jump ramp as an alternative to contemporary catapult systems. As the Royal Navy retired or sold the last of its World War II-era carriers, they were replaced with smaller ships designed to operate helicopters and the V/STOVL Sea Harrier jet. The ski-jump gave the Harriers an enhanced STOVL capability, allowing them to take off with heavier payloads. In 2013, the US Navy completed

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6216-405: The 1930s, Japanese naval aviation emphasized range in its specifications for new aircraft. In addition to developing carrier-based aviation, the IJN maintained many land-based air groups. In the early 1930s, the Japanese created a new category of aircraft termed rikujo kogeki-ki (land based attack aircraft) or Rikko for short. This was in keeping with the strategy of providing a rapid defense of

6364-412: The 1937–41 air offensives failed in its political and psychological aims, it did reduce the flow of strategic materiel to China and for a time, improved the Japanese military situation in the central and southern parts of the country. The China War was of great importance and value to the Japanese naval aviation in demonstrating how aircraft could contribute to the projection of naval power ashore. Despite

6512-721: The British government sent an unofficial civil aviation mission to Japan. The Sempill Mission led by Captain William Forbes-Sempill , a former officer in the Royal Air Force experienced in the design and testing of Royal Navy aircraft during the First World War. The mission consisted of 27 members, who were largely personnel with experience in naval aviation and included pilots and engineers from several British aircraft manufacturing firms. The British technical mission left for Japan in September with

6660-464: The Chinese were planning to mount a counteroffensive, the Japanese bombers carried out attacks on Chinese airfields at Hangzhou and Suzhou between 23 and 26 February, destroying a number of aircraft on the ground. On 26 February, six A1N2 fighters from Hōshō , while escorting nine bombers from Kaga on a bombing raid on an airfield at Hangzhou, engaged five Chinese aircraft and shot down three of them. The Japanese carriers returned to home waters after

6808-572: The Circle One expansion moved up to 1937 and an all-out effort was also made to complete the aircraft production of the Circle Two program by the end of the same year. By the end of 1937, the navy possessed 563 land-based aircraft, in addition to the 332 aircraft aboard its carrier fleet. The navy air service had a total of 895 aircraft and 2,711 aircrew, including pilots and navigators, in thirty-nine air groups. Although, this total 895 aircraft

6956-504: The German colony of Jiaozhou and its administrative capital Qingdao on the Shandong peninsula . During the siege, starting from September, four Farman seaplanes (two active and two reserve) on board Wakamiya conducted reconnaissance and aerial bombardments on German positions and ships. The aircraft had crude bombsights and carried six to ten bombs that had been converted from shells, and were released through metal tubes on each side of

7104-544: The German leased territory came under German economic influence. Although the lease treaty set limits to the German expansion, it became a starting point for the following cessions of Port Arthur and Dalian to Russia to support Russia's Chinese Eastern Railway interests in Manchuria, of the transfer of Weihaiwei and Liugong Island from Japan to Great Britain , and the cession of Guangzhouwan to support France in southern China and Indochina. On 15 August 1914, at

7252-586: The Germans surrendered. One Japanese plane was credited being shot down by the German aviator Gunther Plüschow in an Etrich Taube , using his pistol. On the Western front the first naval air raid occurred on 25 December 1914 when twelve seaplanes from HMS  Engadine , Riviera and Empress ( cross-channel steamers converted into seaplane carriers) attacked the Zeppelin base at Cuxhaven . The raid

7400-454: The IJN's first aerial combat on 5 February, when three fighters escorting two bombers were engaged by nine Chinese fighters over Zhenru; one Chinese fighter was damaged. On 22 February, while escorting three B1M3 torpedo bombers, three fighters from Kaga operating from Kunda Airfield scored the IJN's first aerial victory when they shot down a Boeing 218 fighter, flown by an American volunteer pilot Robert Short . After gaining intelligence that

7548-487: The Japanese with secret information on the latest British aviation technology. His espionage work helped Japan rapidly develop its military aircraft and its technologies before the Second World War . Japanese interest in the potential of carrier operations demonstrated by the observations on board Furious led to the inclusion of an aircraft carrier in the eight-eight fleet program of 1918. The 7,470-ton Hōshō

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7696-607: The Navy Josephus Daniels ordered a rigged test against USS  Indiana in 1920 which reached the conclusion that "the entire experiment pointed to the improbability of a modern battleship being either destroyed or completely put out of action by aerial bombs." Investigation by the New-York Tribune that discovered the rigging led to Congressional resolutions compelling more honest studies . The sinking of SMS  Ostfriesland involved violating

7844-437: The Navy's rules of engagement but completely vindicated Mitchell to the public. Some men, such as Captain (soon Rear Admiral) William A. Moffett , saw the publicity stunt as a means to increase funding and support for the Navy's aircraft carrier projects. Moffett was sure that he had to move decisively in order to avoid having his fleet air arm fall into the hands of a proposed combined Land/Sea Air Force which took care of all

7992-596: The RMA, Alfred von Tirpitz . The governor was head of both the military administration (run by the chief of staff and deputy governor), and the civil administration (managed by the Zivilkommissar) . Further important functionaries of Kiautschou were the official for the construction of the harbor, and after 1900, the chief justice and the Commissioner for Chinese Affairs. The Gouvernementsrat [government council of

8140-589: The Sempill mission of 1921–22 marked the true beginning of an effective Japanese naval air force. Japanese naval aviation also, both in technology and in doctrine, continued to be dependent on the British model for most of the 1920s. The military in Japan were also aided in their quest to build up their naval forces by Sempill himself, who had become a Japanese spy. Over the next 20 years, the British Peer provided

8288-579: The U.S Pacific Fleet by destroying over 188 aircraft at the cost of 29 aircraft. On 10 December, Japanese naval land based bombers operating from bases in Indochina, were also responsible for the sinkings of HMS Prince of Wales and HMS Repulse which was the first time that capital ships were sunk by aerial attack while underway. In April 1942, the Indian Ocean raid drove the Royal Navy from South East Asia. There were also air raids carried out on

8436-610: The United States's airpower needs. (That very fate had befallen the two air services of the United Kingdom in 1918: the Royal Flying Corps had been combined with the Royal Naval Air Service to become the Royal Air Force , a condition which would remain until 1937.) Moffett supervised the development of naval air tactics throughout the '20s. The first aircraft carrier entered the U.S. fleet with

8584-453: The War. The first jet landing on a carrier was made by Lt Cdr Eric 'Winkle' Brown who landed on HMS  Ocean in the specially modified de Havilland Vampire ( registration LZ551/G) on 3 December 1945. Following the introduction of angled flight decks , jets were regularly operating from carriers by the mid-1950s. An important development of the early 1950s was the British invention of

8732-600: The Western Front. In 1914 the first aerial torpedo was dropped in trials performed in a Short "Folder" by Lieutenant (later Air Chief Marshal Sir) Arthur Longmore , and in August 1915, a Short Type 184 piloted by Flight Commander Charles Edmonds from HMS  Ben-my-Chree sank a Turkish supply ship in the Sea of Marmara with a 14-inch-diameter (360 mm), 810-pound (370 kg) torpedo. The first strike from

8880-427: The admiral replied, "will proceed ... with greatest energy." Diederichs, at that moment, only had his division's flagship SMS Kaiser and the light cruiser SMS Prinzess Wilhelm available at anchor in Shanghai. The corvette SMS Arcona was laid up for repairs and the light cruiser SMS Irene in a dockyard at Hong Kong for an engine refit. The shallow draft small cruiser SMS Cormoran , operating independent of

9028-433: The admiralty finally cabled congratulations and the proclamation was to remain in effect; Wilhelm II promoted him to vice admiral. Admiral von Diederichs consolidated his positions at Jiaozhou Bay. The admiralty dispatched the protected cruiser SMS Kaiserin Augusta from the Mediterranean to Qingdao to further strengthen the naval presence in East Asia. On 26 January 1898, the marines of III. Seebataillon arrived on

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9176-414: The aftermath of natural disasters. Naval aircraft are vital in cases where traditional infrastructure to provide relief are destroyed or overtaxed in the wake of a disaster, such as when a region's airport is destroyed or overcrowded and the region cannot be effectively accessed by road or helicopter. The capability of ships to provide clean, fresh water which can be transported by helicopter to affected areas

9324-401: The air service. The various air operations and activities during peacetime, which were divided between the Navy Ministry and the Navy Technical Department, were now merged into a single Naval Aviation Department. In 1932, an independent Naval Air Arsenal was also established to streamline the testing and development of aircraft and weaponry. During their early years, these organizations were under

9472-422: The aircraft tows a sled through the water but is itself at a significant distance from the water, hopefully putting itself out of harm's way. Aircraft include the MH-53E and AW101 . Aircraft operated by navies are also used in the anti-surface warfare (ASUW or ASuW) role, to attack enemy ships and other, surface combatants . This is generally conducted using air-launched anti-ship missiles . Naval aviation

9620-439: The aircraft. The Gnome -engined Short Improved S.27 "S.38", pusher seaplane piloted by Lieutenant Charles Samson become the first British aircraft to take-off from a ship while at anchor in the River Medway , on 10 January 1912. Africa then transferred her flight equipment to her sister ship Hibernia . In May 1912, with Commander Samson again flying the "S.38", the first ever instance of an aircraft to take off from

9768-406: The angled flight deck by Capt D.R.F. Campbell RN in conjunction with Lewis Boddington of the Royal Aircraft Establishment at Farnborough. The runway was canted at an angle of a few degrees from the longitudinal axis of the ship. If an aircraft missed the arrestor cables (referred to as a " bolter "), the pilot only needed to increase engine power to maximum to get airborne again, and would not hit

9916-443: The area personally, as well as three additional sites in China, for the establishment of a naval base. Rear Admiral Otto von Diederichs replaced Tirpitz in East Asia and focused on Jiaozhou Bay, even though the Berlin admiralty had not formally decided on a base location. On 1 November 1897, the Big Sword Society murdered two German Roman Catholic priests of the Steyler Mission in Juye County in southern Shandong . This event

10064-577: The beginning of the Pacific War. The IJN also maintained a shore-based system of naval air fleets called Koku Kantai and area air fleets called homen kantai containing mostly twin-engine bombers and seaplanes. The senior command was the Eleventh Naval Air Fleet, commanded by Vice Admiral Nishizō Tsukahara . Land based aircraft provided the bulk of Japan's naval aviation up to the eve of World War II. Each naval air fleet contained one or more naval air flotillas (commanded by Rear Admirals) each with two or more naval air groups. Each naval air group consisted of

10212-479: The building of seaborne units, both floatplanes and carrier aircraft. The Circle Two plan continued the buildup in naval aircraft and authorized the construction of two aircraft carriers. In January 1932, clashes between Chinese and Japanese forces occurred in Shanghai . On 29 January, several aircraft from the seaplane tender Notoro , anchored in the Yangtze river , carried out low-level attacks on Chinese military positions in Zhabei , on artillery positions outside

10360-401: The capacity to hold up to four wheeled aircraft. Launched on 5 September 1914, she served in the Dardanelles campaign and throughout World War I. During World War I the Royal Navy also used HMS Furious to experiment with the use of wheeled aircraft on ships. This ship was reconstructed three times between 1915 and 1925: first, while still under construction, it was modified to receive

10508-423: The city and on an armored train at a railway station in the northern part of the city. There were heavy civilian casualties and property losses, partly as a result of crude bombing techniques and mechanisms at the time. The Third Fleet consisting of the First Carrier Division with the carriers Kaga and Hōshō was also dispatched to the city. Kaga arrived off the entrance of the Yangtze River on 1 February, and

10656-529: The cockpit. On 5 September, during the first successful operation, two Farman seaplanes dropped several bombs on the Bismarck battery, the main German fortifications in Tsingtao. The bombs landed harmlessly in the mud, but the aircraft were able to confirm that the light cruiser SMS  Emden was not at Tsingtao; this was intelligence of major importance to Allied naval command. On 30 September Wakamiya

10804-472: The command of able air enthusiasts, who played a major role in the rapid expansion of Japanese naval aviation during the following decade. The London Naval Treaty of 1930 had imposed new limitations on warship construction, which caused the Navy General Staff to view naval aviation as a way to make up for the shortcomings in the surface fleet. In 1931, the air service pushed for and established

10952-648: The conversion of the collier USS Jupiter and its recommissioning as USS  Langley in 1922. Many British naval vessels carried float planes, seaplanes or amphibians for reconnaissance and spotting: two to four on battleships or battlecruisers and one on cruisers. The aircraft, a Fairey Seafox or later a Supermarine Walrus , were catapult-launched , and landed on the sea alongside for recovery by crane. Several submarine aircraft carriers were built by Japan, each carrying one floatplane, which did not prove effective in war. The French Navy built one large submarine , Surcouf , which also carried one floatplane, and

11100-474: The course of the war, seaborne aircraft were used in fleet actions at sea ( Midway , Bismarck ), strikes against naval units in port ( Taranto , Pearl Harbor ), support of ground forces ( Okinawa , Allied invasion of Italy ) and anti-submarine warfare (the Battle of the Atlantic ). Carrier-based aircraft were specialised as dive bombers , torpedo bombers , and fighters . Surface-based aircraft such as

11248-526: The cruiser Hermes converted into a seaplane carrier . In 1914, naval aviation was split again, and became the Royal Naval Air Service . However, shipboard naval aviation had begun in the Royal Navy, and would become a major part of fleet operations by 1917. Other early operators of seaplanes were Germany , within its Marine-Fliegerabteilung naval aviation units within the Kaiserliche Marine , and Russia . In May 1913 Germany established

11396-647: The cruiser division, was patrolling the Yangtze . Diederichs weighed anchor, ordered Prinzess Wilhelm to follow next day, and Cormoran to catch up at sea. The three ships arrived off Qingdao after dawn on 13 November 1897, but made no aggressive moves. With his staff and the three captains of his ships aboard, Diederichs landed with his admirals tender at Qingdao's long Zhanqiao Pier to reconnoiter. He determined that his landing force would be vastly outnumbered by Chinese troops, but he had qualitative superiority. At 06:00, Sunday, 14 November 1897, Cormoran steamed into

11544-609: The demands of carrier operations. They must be able to launch in a short distance and be sturdy and flexible enough to come to a sudden stop on a pitching flight deck; they typically have robust folding mechanisms that allow higher numbers of them to be stored in below-decks hangars and small spaces on flight decks. These aircraft are designed for many purposes, including air-to-air combat , surface attack , submarine attack , search and rescue , matériel transport, weather observation , reconnaissance and wide area command and control duties. Naval helicopters can be used for many of

11692-547: The development of the optimum design for other aircraft carriers. Argus also evaluated various types of arresting gear , general procedures needed to operate a number of aircraft in concert, and fleet tactics. The Tondern raid , a British bombing raid against the Imperial German Navy 's airship base at Tønder , Denmark was the first attack in history made by aircraft flying from a carrier flight deck, with seven Sopwith Camels launched from HMS Furious . For

11840-404: The end of 1937. They were to operate out of six new air stations at Ōminato, Saeki, Yokohama , Maizuru, Kanoya, and Kisarazu in the home islands and Chinhae on the southern coast of Korea. Under the pressure of the second Vinson plan , initiated by the United States, the Japanese increased the momentum in building up their land-based air forces. The deadline for completion date of the aviation of

11988-505: The end of World War I, when plans had been drawn up for 17 of them, however these plans were not fully implemented until 1931. They were to be located at six air stations around the Japanese home islands: Yokosuka, Sasebo, Kasumigaura, Omura, Tateyama, and Kure. These units were composed of various types of aircraft which were mostly seaplanes. In absolute numbers, land-based aircraft provided the largest growth in Japaneses naval air power in

12136-432: The enemy's carriers to achieve air superiority in the proximity of the surface battle. Around 1932–33, the IJN began to shift its aerial focus from targeting the enemy's battleships to their aircraft carriers; and by the mid-30s, with the improved performance of bombing aircraft and particularly dive-bombers, the destruction of the enemy's carrier force became the primary focus of Japan's carrier forces. The emerging concept of

12284-593: The expensive connotations of the term "aircraft carrier", the Invincible -class carriers were originally designated as "through deck cruisers" and were initially to operate as helicopter-only craft escort carriers. The arrival of the Sea Harrier VTOL / STOVL fast jet meant that the Invincible-class could carry fixed-wing aircraft, despite their short flight decks. The British also introduced

12432-686: The fierce rivalry between the military branches, in the fall of 1937 General Matsui Iwane, the Army general in command of the theater, admitted the superiority of the Naval Air Services. His combat troops relied on the Navy for air support. Naval bombers such as the Mitsubishi G3M and Mitsubishi G4M were used to bomb Chinese cities. Japanese fighter planes, notably the Mitsubishi Zero , gained tactical air superiority; control of

12580-464: The first seaplane from the water at San Diego Bay and the next day U.S. Navy Lt. Theodore G. Ellyson , a student at the nearby Curtiss School, took off in a Curtiss "grass cutter" plane to become the first naval aviator . $ 25,000 was appropriated for the Bureau of Navigation (United States Navy) to purchase three airplanes and in the spring of 1911 four additional officers were trained as pilots by

12728-536: The first catapult launching from a ship underway. The first permanent naval air station was established at Pensacola, Florida , in January 1914 with Mustin as its commanding officer. On April 24 of that year, and for a period of approximately 45 days afterward, five floatplanes and flying boats flown by ten aviators operated from Mississippi and the cruiser Birmingham off Veracruz and Tampico , Mexico, respectively, conducting reconnaissance for troops ashore in

12876-601: The first naval units solely destroyed by airplanes. During the war the German "Marineflieger" claimed the destruction of 270 enemy planes, 6 balloons, 2 airships, 1 Russian destroyer, 4 merchant ships, 3 submarines, 4 torpedo boats and 12 vehicles, for the loss of 170 German sea and land planes as well as 9 vehicles. Notable Marineflieger aces were Gotthard Sachsenberg (31 victories), Alexander Zenzes (18 victories), Friedrich Christiansen (13 victories, 1 airship and 1 submarine), Karl Meyer (8 victories), Karl Scharon (8 victories), and Hans Goerth (7 victories). The need for

13024-421: The first person to land a plane on a moving ship. He was killed five days later during another landing on Furious . HMS  Argus was converted from an ocean liner and became the first example of what is now the standard pattern of aircraft carrier, with a full-length flight deck that allowed wheeled aircraft to take off and land. After commissioning , the ship was heavily involved for several years in

13172-777: The first successful catapult launch and arrested landing of an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) aboard an aircraft carrier. After a decade of research and planning, the US Navy has been testing the integration of UAVs with carrier-based forces since 2013, using the experimental Northrop Grumman X-47B , and is working to procure a fleet of carrier-based UAVs, referred to as the Unmanned Carrier Launched Airborne Surveillance and Strike (UCLASS) system. Naval aviation forces primarily perform naval roles at sea. However, they are also used for other tasks which vary between states. Common roles for such forces include: Carrier-based naval aviation provides

13320-527: The first such facility in the world. Two hundred applications were received, and four were accepted: Lieutenant C R Samson , Lieutenant A M Longmore , Lieutenant A Gregory and Captain E L Gerrard , RMLI . The French also established a naval aviation capability in 1910 with the establishment of the Service Aeronautique and the first flight training schools. U.S. naval aviation began with pioneer aviator Glenn Curtiss who contracted with

13468-570: The formation of 17 squadrons of these aircraft, but budgetary constraints limited the units to eleven until 1931. Under the terms of the Washington Naval Treaty two incomplete capital ships were allowed to be rebuilt as carriers, for the Japanese; Akagi and Amagi . However, Amagi was damaged during the Great Kanto earthquake in 1923 and Kaga became a replacement. Akagi was completed in 1927 while Kaga completed

13616-615: The home islands against the possible westward advance of an American naval offensive across the Pacific. Land-based aircraft actually provided the bulk of Japanese naval aviation up to the eve of the Pacific War. In this regard, Japan was unique among the three major naval powers during the interwar period and the immediate prewar years with only the two air wings of the US Marine Corps being analogous to Japan's land based naval air units. The creation of these air units had begun at

13764-492: The hydraulic catapults which had been introduced in the 1940s. The first Optical Landing System , the Mirror Landing Aid was invented by Lieutenant Commander H. C. N. Goodhart RN. The first trials of a mirror landing sight were conducted on HMS Illustrious in 1952. The US Navy built the first aircraft carrier to be powered by nuclear reactors . USS  Enterprise was powered by eight nuclear reactors and

13912-492: The increase in aircraft performance) as a means to attack battleships and other surface targets. Naval aviators however, had a different perspective. Believing that a major aerial engagement to clear the space over the opposing fleets would precede the final surface battle, they increasingly considered the enemy's carriers as the main targets of naval air power. Hence, in the early 1930s, the Imperial Japanese Navy adhered to no unified doctrine as to how carriers would be utilized in

14060-545: The inner harbor to provide inshore fire support, if necessary. Kaiser and Prinzess Wilhelm cleared boats to carry an amphibious force of 717 officers, petty officers, and sailors armed with rifles. Diederichs, on horseback, and his column marched toward the Chinese main garrison and artillery battery. A special unit swiftly disabled the Chinese telegraph line and others occupied the outer forts and powder magazines. With speed and effectiveness, Diederichs’ actions had achieved their primary objective by 08.15. Signalmen restored

14208-510: The leased territory of approximately 83,000 inhabitants (to which the city of Kiautschou was excluded), as well as in a 50 km wide neutral zone ("neutrales Gebiet"). According to international law, the leased territory ("territoire à bail") remained legally part of China but for the duration of the lease, all sovereign powers were to be exercised by Germany. Moreover, the treaty included rights for construction of railway lines and mining of local coal deposits. Many parts of Shandong outside of

14356-607: The liner Darmstadt . Jiaozhou Bay was now secure. Negotiations with the Chinese government began and on 6 March 1898, the German Empire retreated from outright cession of the area and accepted a leasehold of the bay for 99 years, or until 1997, as the British were soon to do with Hong Kong's New Territories and the French with Guangzhouwan . One month later, the Reichstag ratified the treaty on 8 April 1898. Kiautschou Bay

14504-411: The loss of one man, the British destroyed two German zeppelins , L.54 and L.60 and a captive balloon. Genuine aircraft carriers did not emerge beyond Britain until the early 1920s. The Japanese Hōshō (1921) was the world's first purpose-built aircraft carrier, although the initial plans and laying down for HMS  Hermes (1924) had begun earlier. Both Hōshō and Hermes initially boasted

14652-653: The main reasons for using the land value tax in Jiaozhou Bay was to eliminate such speculation, which the policy achieved. After the 1911 Revolution , many wealthy Chinese and politically connected ex-officials settled in the leased territory because of the safe and orderly environment it offered. Sun Yat-sen visited the Tsingtau area and stated in 1912, “... I am impressed. The city is a true model for China’s future.” The Deutsch-Asiatische Bank in Qingdao issued

14800-418: The mainstay of the fleet. HMS  Vanguard was therefore the last British battleship and her sisters were cancelled. The United States had already instigated a large construction programme (which was also cut short) but these large ships were mainly used as anti-aircraft batteries or for shore bombardment . Other actions involving naval aviation included: Jet aircraft were used on aircraft carriers after

14948-736: The mission also brought to Kasumigaura well over a hundred aircraft comprising twenty different models, five of which were then currently in service with the Royal Air Force, including the Sparrowhawk. These planes eventually provided the inspiration for the design of a number of Japanese naval aircraft. Technicians became familiar with the newest aerial weapons and equipment - torpedoes, bombs, machine guns, cameras, and communications gear. Naval aviators were trained in various techniques such as torpedo bombing, flight control and carrier landing and take-offs; skills that would later be employed in

15096-569: The most effective weapons against submarines is the ASW helicopter, several of which could be based on these light ships. These carriers are typically around 20,000 tons displacement and carry a mix of ASW helicopters and fixed wing aircraft. Land-based maritime patrol aircraft are also useful in this role, since they can operate independently of aircraft carriers. Naval aircraft are used to airlift supplies, insert specialized personnel (e.g. medical staff, relief workers), and evacuate persons in distress in

15244-554: The navy. Initially was focus was in non-rigid airships but it quickly moved on to the development of winged and powered aircraft. That year, the commission decided to purchase foreign winged aircraft and to send junior officers abroad to learn how to fly and maintain them. The navy purchased two seaplanes from the Glenn Curtiss factory in Hammondsport , New York, and two Maurice Farman seaplanes from France. To establish

15392-476: The objective of helping the Imperial Japanese Navy develop and improve the proficiency of its naval air arm. The British government also hoped it would lead to a lucrative arms deal . The mission arrived at Kasumigaura Naval Air Station the following month, in November 1921, and stayed in Japan for 18 months. The Japanese were trained on several British aircraft such as the Gloster Sparrowhawk ; as

15540-538: The outbreak of World War I in Europe, Japan delivered an ultimatum to Germany demanding that it relinquish its control of the disputed territory of Kiautschou. Upon rejection of the ultimatum, Japan declared war on 23 August and the same day, its navy bombarded the German territory. On 7 November 1914, the bay was occupied by Japanese forces . Following resolution of the Shandong Problem , the occupied territory

15688-598: The parked aircraft because the angled deck pointed out over the sea. The angled flight deck was first tested on HMS  Triumph , by painting angled deck markings onto the centerline flight deck for touch and go landings. The modern steam-powered catapult , powered by steam from a ship's boilers or reactors, was invented by Commander C.C. Mitchell of the Royal Naval Reserve . It was widely adopted following trials on HMS  Perseus between 1950 and 1952 which showed it to be more powerful and reliable than

15836-478: The pilots were the carrier-based air groups ( Kōkūtai , later called koku sentai ) whose size (from a handful to 80 or 90 aircraft) was dependent on both the mission and type of aircraft carrier that they were on. Fleet carriers had three types of aircraft: fighters, level/torpedo planes, and dive bombers. Smaller carriers tended to have only two types, fighters and level/torpedo planes. The carrier-based Kōkūtai numbered over 1,500 pilots and just as many aircraft at

15984-446: The relative precision of its bombing techniques during clear weather. From the onset of hostilities in 1937 until forces were diverted to combat for the Pacific war in 1941, naval aircraft played a key role in military operations on the Chinese mainland. The IJN had two primary responsibilities: the first was to support of amphibious operations on the Chinese coast and the second was the strategic aerial bombardment of Chinese cities. This

16132-579: The remainder of the 17 air squadrons that had been projected in the 1923 expansion plans. These were eventually combined into six air groups ( kokutai ) located at six bases around Japan. Furthermore, the Circle naval expansion programs featured an additional 12 air groups. They also included the development of specific aviation technologies and the acceleration of air crew training. The Circle One plan concentrated on developing new aircraft types, including large flying boats and land-based attack aircraft, as well as

16280-758: The rest of the war, particularly in the Battle of the Philippine Sea . In the Battle of Leyte Gulf a few months later, the First Air Fleet was used only as a decoy force to draw the main American fleet away from Leyte. The remnants of Japanese naval aviation were then limited to land-based operations, increasingly characterized by kamikaze attacks on American invasion fleets. From 16 December 1941 to 20 March 1945 IJN aviation casualties killed were 14,242 aircrew and 1,579 officers. The IJNAS had over 3,089 aircraft in 1941 and 370 trainers. The elite of

16428-660: The runway built over the foredeck and the danger and impracticality of recovering seaplanes that alighted in the water in anything but calm weather more than offset the desirability of having airplanes aboard. In 1912, the nascent naval air detachment in the United Kingdom was amalgamated to form the Royal Flying Corps and in 1913 a seaplane base on the Isle of Grain , an airship base at Kingsnorth and eight new airfields were approved for construction. The first aircraft participation in naval manoeuvres took place in 1913 with

16576-497: The same missions as fixed-wing aircraft while operating from aircraft carriers, helicopter carriers , destroyers and frigates . Early experiments on the use of kites for naval reconnaissance took place in 1903 at Woolwich Common for the Admiralty . Samuel Franklin Cody demonstrated the capabilities of his 8-foot-long black kite and it was proposed for use as either a mechanism to hold up wires for wireless communications or as

16724-460: The shallow waters of Pearl Harbor in December 1941. The mission also brought the plans of the most recent British aircraft carriers, such as HMS Argus and HMS Hermes , which influenced the final stages of the development of the carrier Hōshō . By the time the last members of the mission had returned to Britain, the Japanese had acquired a reasonable grasp of the latest aviation technology and

16872-527: The skies over China belonged to the Japanese. Unlike other naval airforces, the IJNAS was responsible for strategic bombing and operated long ranged bombers. The Japanese strategic bombing was mostly done against Chinese big cities, such as Shanghai , Wuhan and Chongqing , with around 5,000 raids from February 1938 to August 1943. The bombing of Nanjing and Guangzhou , which began on 22 and 23 September 1937, called forth widespread protests culminating in

17020-535: The southern coast of the Shandong Peninsula . The administrative center was at Tsingtau (Qingdao). It was operated by the East Asia Squadron of the Imperial German Navy . The Russian Empire resented the German move as an infringement on Russian ambitions in the region. Germany was a relative latecomer to the imperialistic scramble for colonies across the globe. A German colony in China

17168-549: The telegraph line, and the first messages were received and deciphered. Diederichs was stunned to learn that his orders had been canceled, and that he was to suspend operations at Jiaozhou pending negotiations with the Chinese government. If he had already occupied the village of Qingdao, he was to consider his presence temporary. He responded, thinking the politicians in Berlin had lost their nerve to political or diplomatic complications: "Proclamation already published. ... Revocation not possible." After considerable time and uncertainty,

17316-568: The territory] and, after 1902, the Chinese Committee advised the governor. The departments of finance, construction, education, and medical services were directly subordinated to the governor, because these were crucial with regard to the idea of a model colony. Germany invested upwards of $ 100 million in modernizing the territory of Kiautschou. The impoverished fishing village of Tsingtau was laid out with wide streets, solid housing areas, government buildings, electrification throughout,

17464-533: The training process of its recruits. The resultant decrease in quantity and quality, among other factors, resulted in increasing casualties toward the end of the war. Japanese navy aviators, like their army counterparts , preferred maneuverable aircraft, leading to lightly built but extraordinarily agile types, most famously the A6M Zero , which achieved its feats by sacrificing armor and self-sealing fuel tanks. Aircraft with armor and self-sealing fuel tanks, such as

17612-425: The two most distinctive features of a modern aircraft carrier: a full-length flight deck and a starboard-side control tower island . Both continued to be adjusted in the light of further experimentation and experience, however: Hōshō even opted to remove its island entirely in favor of a less obstructed flight deck and improved pilot visibility. Instead, Japanese carriers opted to control their flight operations from

17760-462: The wake of the Tampico Affair . In January 1912, the British battleship HMS  Africa took part in aircraft experiments at Sheerness . She was fitted for flying off aircraft with a 100-foot (30 m) downward-sloping runway which was installed on her foredeck, running over her forward 12-inch (305 mm) gun turret from her forebridge to her bow and equipped with rails to guide

17908-418: The world's first purpose-built aircraft carrier, Hōshō , in 1922. Afterwards they embarked on a conversion program of several excess battlecruisers and battleships into aircraft carriers. The IJN Air Service had the mission of national air defence, deep strike, naval warfare, and so forth. It retained this mission to the end. The Japanese pilot training program was very selective and rigorous, producing

18056-458: The years before the Pacific War. The Circle One naval expansion program which had been formulated in 1927 and put into effect in 1931 called for the creation of 28 new air groups. Although only 14 groups were actually established by 1934, which was a response to American naval expansion under the first Vinson plan, the Circle Two program called for eight additional air groups to be created by

18204-476: Was a need for widespread use of aircraft which could not be met quickly enough by building new fleet aircraft carriers. This was particularly true in the North Atlantic , where convoys were highly vulnerable to U-boat attack. The British authorities used unorthodox, temporary, but effective means of giving air protection such as CAM ships and merchant aircraft carriers , merchant ships modified to carry

18352-562: Was also not effective in war. World War II saw the emergence of naval aviation as the decisive element in the war at sea. The principal users were Japan, United States (both with Pacific interests to protect) and Britain. Germany, the Soviet Union, France and Italy had a lesser involvement. Soviet Naval Aviation was mostly organised as land-based coastal defense force (apart from some scout floatplanes it consisted almost exclusively of land-based types also used by its air arms). During

18500-566: Was also the most destructive aerial attack on an urban area until the Condor Legion 's attack on Guernica , five years later. Although perceived as insignificant skirmishes, the resulting aerial campaign led to several conclusions: though the A1N2 fighter proved to be inferior in performance to the Boeing 218, the campaign had demonstrated the above average flying skills of the IJN's pilots and

18648-500: Was common for a shotai to have four aircraft. There were over 90 naval air groups at the start of the Pacific War, each assigned either a name or a number. The named naval air groups were usually linked to a particular navy air command or a navy base. They were usually numbered when they left Japan. Naval aviation Naval aviation units are typically projected to a position nearer the target by way of an aircraft carrier . Carrier-based aircraft must be sturdy enough to withstand

18796-406: Was considerably less than total American naval air strength for the same period, Japan's land based aviation force was substantially larger. The substantial land-based air power worked to Japan's advantage when the nation went to war in 1937 with China. By 1927 Japanese naval aviation had grown sufficiently in size and complexity that it was necessary to consolidate the administrative organization of

18944-485: Was damaged by a mine and later sent back to Japan for repairs. But the seaplanes, by transferring on to the shore, continued to be used against the German defenders until their surrender on 7 November 1914. Wakamiya conducted the world's first naval-launched aerial raids in history and was in effect the first aircraft carrier of the Imperial Japanese Navy. By the end of the siege the aircraft had conducted 50 sorties and dropped 200 bombs, although damage to German defenses

19092-408: Was envisioned as a two-fold enterprise: as a coaling station to support a global naval presence, and because it was felt that a German colonial empire would support the economy in the mother country. Densely populated China was viewed as a potential market to be exploited, with thinkers such as Max Weber demanding an active colonial policy from the government. In particular, the opening of China

19240-477: Was formed with three carriers and the study of the role of aircraft carriers in a naval engagement was initiated. Because of the short range of carrier aircraft at the time, many in the naval hierarchy were still very much surface oriented . They viewed carrier aircraft to be employed as support for the main battle fleet and not as offensive weapons. Aircraft were to act as scouts and spotters, layers of smoke screens for naval gunfire, fleet air defense, and later (with

19388-503: Was joined by Hōshō two days later. On board Hōshō were ten fighters and nine torpedo bombers, while Kaga had 16 fighters and 32 torpedo bombers. Altogether, the Japanese had eighty aircraft that could be deployed over Shanghai, mostly Nakajima A1N2 fighters and Mitsubishi B1M3 torpedo bombers. On 3 February, a number of the aircraft from the two carriers were deployed to Kunda Airfield, where they flew missions in support of Japanese ground forces. Aircraft from Hōshō participated in

19536-557: Was known as the " Juye Incident ". Admiral von Diederichs, commander of the cruiser squadron, wired on 7 November 1897, to the admiralty: "May incidents be exploited in pursuit of further goals?" Upon receipt of the Diederichs cable, chancellor Chlodwig von Hohenlohe counseled caution, preferring a diplomatic resolution. However, Kaiser Wilhelm II intervened and the admiralty sent a message for Diederichs to "proceed immediately to Kiautschou [Jiaozhou] with entire squadron ..." to which

19684-509: Was laid down in December 1919 at Yokohama. Hōshō was the second warship after the British Hermes to be designed from the keel up as an aircraft carrier and the first one to be completed as from the keel up. In the 1920s, the larger percentage of aircraft that were initially acquired and inducted into service were land based seaplanes whose main tasks were reconnaissance and anti-submarine patrols. The Japanese had drawn up plans for

19832-647: Was light. In 1916, the Commission on Naval Aeronautical Research was disbanded and the funds supporting it were reallocated for the establishment of three naval air units ( hikotai ) which would fall under the authority of the Naval Affairs Bureau of the Navy Ministry . The first unit was established at Yokosuka in April 1916, however, the lack of a specific naval air policy in these early years

19980-528: Was made a high priority, because it was thought to be the most important non-European market in the world. However, a global policy ( Weltpolitik ) without global military influence appeared impracticable, so, assessing that Britain's great strength came from its navy, the Germans began to build one, too. This fleet was supposed to serve German interests during peace through gunboat diplomacy , and in times of war, through commerce raiding , to protect German trade routes and disrupt hostile ones. Imitating Britain,

20128-610: Was made apparent by the fact that the Yokosuka Air Group operated with the fleet only once a year when it was transported briefly to whatever training area the IJN was then using for maneuvers. Japanese naval aviation, though, continued to make progress. In 1917, officers at the Yokosuka Naval Arsenal designed and built the first Japanese seaplane, the Ro-Go Ko-gata reconnaissance seaplane, which

20276-485: Was much more useful at sea and much safer than the Maurice Farman aircraft that the navy had been using up to that point. The aircraft was eventually mass-produced and became the mainstay of the navy's air arm until the mid-1920s. Japanese factories by the end of the war, in increasing numbers, were beginning to turn out engines and fuselages based on foreign designs. A major expansion in Japanese naval air strength

20424-746: Was not a complete success, owing to sub-optimal weather conditions, including fog and low cloud, but the raid was able to conclusively demonstrate the feasibility of air-to-land strikes from a naval platform. Two German airships were destroyed at the Tøndern base on July 19, 1918, by seven Sopwith Camels launched from the carrier HMS  Furious . In August 1914 Germany operated 20 planes and one Zeppelin, another 15 planes were confiscated. They operated from bases in Germany and Flanders (Belgium). On 19 August 1918 several British torpedo boats were sunk by 10 German planes near Heligoland. These are considered as

20572-477: Was officially placed under German protection by imperial decree on 27 April and Kapitän zur See [captain] Carl Rosendahl was appointed governor. These events ended Admiral von Diederichs' responsibility (but not his interest) in Kiautschou. He wrote that he had "fulfilled [his] purpose in the navy." As a result of the lease treaty, the Chinese government gave up the exercise of its sovereign rights within

20720-483: Was part of the 1918 naval expansion program which made possible a new air group and a naval air station at Sasebo. In 1918, the IJN secured land around Lake Kasumigaura in Ibaraki Prefecture , northeast of Tokyo. The following year, a naval air station for both land and sea aircraft was established, and subsequently, naval air training was transferred to Kasumigaura, from Yokosuka. After the establishment of

20868-535: Was returned to China on 10 December 1922, but the Japanese again occupied the area from 1937 to 1945, during the Second Sino-Japanese War . The local language was the Qingdao dialect of Jiaoliao Mandarin . A German pidgin , known as Kiautschou German pidgin , developed as well, as a mixture of German, Low German, English and Chinese. As the territory was not, strictly speaking, a colony but

21016-471: Was seen as largely impractical at the time. CAPT Washington Irving Chambers felt it was much easier to defend against airplanes than mines or torpedoes. The wireless radio was cumbersome (greater than 50 pounds), but the technology was improving. Experiments were underway for the first ICS (pilot to observer comms) using headsets, as well as connecting the observer to the radio. The navy tested both telephones and voice tubes for ICS. As of August 1911, Italy

21164-489: Was the First Air Fleet's operational component. At the start of the war, three carrier divisions made up the Kido Butai . Unlike in the United States Navy where carrier divisions served only in an administrative capacity, the carrier divisions of the Kido Butai were operational entities. The two carriers in a division fought together, often exchanging aircraft squadrons and commanders on strikes. The commander of

21312-549: Was the only other navy known to be adapting hydroplanes for naval use. The group expanded with the addition of six aviators in 1912 and five in 1913, from both the Navy and Marine Corps , and conducted maneuvers with the Fleet from the battleship USS  Mississippi , designated as the Navy's aviation ship. Meanwhile, Captain Henry C. Mustin successfully tested the concept of the catapult launch in August 1912, and in 1915 made

21460-495: Was the second surface warship (after USS  Long Beach ) to be powered in this way. The post-war years also saw the development of the helicopter , with a variety of useful roles and mission capability aboard aircraft carriers and other naval ships. In the late 1950s and early 1960s, the United Kingdom and the United States converted some older carriers into Commando Carriers or Landing Platform Helicopters (LPH); seagoing helicopter airfields like HMS  Bulwark . To mitigate

21608-713: Was unable to increase its production rate, those veterans could not be replaced. Meanwhile, the American pilot training program went from strength to strength. The American aircraft industry rapidly increased production rates of new designs that rendered their Japanese opponents obsolescent. Examination of crashed or captured Japanese aircraft revealed that they achieved their superior range and maneuverability by doing without cockpit armor and self-sealing fuel tanks . Flight tests showed that they lost maneuverability at high speeds. American pilots were trained to take advantage of these weaknesses. The outdated Japanese aircraft and poorly trained pilots suffered great losses in any air combat for

21756-673: Was unique in naval history, as it was the first time that any naval air service had ever carried out such an effort. The campaign initially began in 1937, taking place largely in the Yangtze River basin with attacks on military installations along the Chinese coast by Japanese carrier aircraft. Naval involvement reached its peak in 1938–39 with the ferocious bombardment of cities deep in the Chinese interior by land-based medium bombers and concluded during 1941 with an attempt by tactical aircraft, both carrier and land-based, to cut communication and transportation routes in southern China. Although,

21904-496: Was widely commented upon in the press, both Greek and international. At the outbreak of war the Royal Naval Air Service had 93 aircraft, six airships , two balloons and 727 personnel, making it larger than the Royal Flying Corps. The main roles of the RNAS were fleet reconnaissance, patrolling coasts for enemy ships and submarines, attacking enemy coastal territory and defending Britain from enemy air-raids, along with deployment along

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