Tachikawa Airfield

is an airfield in the city of Tachikawa, the western part of Tokyo, Japan. Currently under the administration of the Ministry of Defense, it has also served as the civil aviation with Japan's first scheduled air service. It became later a United States Air Force base.

History

The Tachikawa Airfield started as an Imperial Japanese Army airfield. The spacious site adjacent to Tachikawa Station has served for the transportation of both fuel and commuters. It is a unit transferred from Kakamigahara Airfield, and is the forerunner of the present-day Gifu Airfield in the city of Kakamigahara, Gifu Prefecture. The civil aviation commenced in 1929 with the inauguration of the scheduled commercial service to Osaka. Japan's first scheduled air service linked Tokyo and Osaka with a three-hour flight. The operations continued until 1933, when it transferred to Tokyo Airfield, now Tokyo International Airport at Haneda.

With the departure of the civil aviation, Tachikawa returned to being an Army airfield. Its warplanes were transferred to a base in Kashiwa in the northwestern corner of Chiba Prefecture in 1939. The Army retained a presence at Tachikawa, and aircraft manufacturers such as Tachikawa, Hitachi, and Showa built plants in the vicinity.

In 1937, two pilots departed Tachikawa with a Mitsubishi Ki-15, heading for London. Their mission was to congratulate King George VI on his coronation. The aircraft was named the "Kamikaze". [ [http://books.google.co.jp/books?id=VBijCPLvWyUC&pg=PA179&lpg=PA179&dq=kamikaze+george+vi+coronation&source=web&ots=Eh7NZ_MFmO&sig=1QqNbkJ3uS_hzUiig9tLZOmo8fk&hl=en&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=2&ct=result Keiko Itoh] , "The Japanese community in pre-war Britain", p. 179, Retrieved from Google Books on September 7, 2008] Near the end of World War II, Tachikawa was subjected to intense bombing. The Shintentai, an anti-aircraft kamikaze group, defended the base.

After the war, the United States occupied the base. The western sector became Tachikawa Air Force Base, while FEAMCOM took the eastern part. They became a single base again in 1956. Disaster struck Tachikawa on June 18, 1953 when a U.S. Air Force C-124 Globemaster II transport experienced an engine failure on takeoff, crashing shortly after. The accident claimed the lives of 129 people, and was the deadliest air disaster in history at the time. [ [http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,889723,00.html Worst Crash - TIME] "Time" Monday, Jun. 29, 1953 Retrieved September 7, 2008] (See List of accidents and incidents involving military aircraft, 1950-1974.)

With a runway only 1500 m long, Tachikawa was not adequate for the largest aircraft, and the U.S. decided to extend the runway into the neighboring town of Sunagawa (now part of the city of Tachikawa). The July 8, 1957 Sunagawa Riots resulted in cancellation of the plan. [ [http://www.jstor.org/pss/3023999 JSTOR: Far Eastern Survey, Vol. 28, No. 9 (Sep., 1959 ), pp. 129-134] "Japanese Attitudes Toward American Military Bases" Far Eastern Survey September 1959 Retrieved from JSTOR September 7, 2008] The U.S. instead developed Tama Airfield (the present-day Yokota Air Base) and moved its operations there. By 1969, the U.S. had largely left Tachikawa, and in 1977, after the end of the Vietnam War, it returned the base to Japanese control.

The Japanese government put the land to a variety of uses. The Japan Ground Self-Defense Force established a base there, as did the Japan Coast Guard, the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department and the Tokyo Fire Department. Consolidation resulted in the establishment of the Tachikawa Disaster-Preparedness Base. [ [http://www.bousai.go.jp/3oukyutaisaku/yobishisetu/index.html 立川災害対策本部予備施設‐内閣府防災情報のページ] Cabinet Office, Government of Japan. Retrieved September 7, 2008.] Part of the land has been redeveloped as Fare Tachikawa. The central part of Tachikawa Airfield is now Showa Memorial Park, a spacious facility named in memory of Hirohito, known posthumously as Emperor Shōwa. It opened in 1983. [ [http://www.showakinenpark.go.jp/english/profile/history.htm Details | Profile] page of Showa Kinen Park web site, retrieved September 7, 2008]

Today

Currently the Ground Self-Defense Force's Camp Tachikawa occupies the western portion of the airfield. The main unit there is the GSDF Eastern Army Aviation Group. It operates helicopters, and also commands the anti-tank helicopter units at Camp Kisarazu. Equipment at Tachikawa includes the UH-1H/J Iroquois.

The Tachikawa Disaster-Preparedness Base sits on 115 ha of land. In addition to the airfield, it includes emergency medical-treatment facilities and stores of emergency supplies. Agencies with a presence at Tachikawa include the Cabinet Office, Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, Japan Coast Guard, Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, Tokyo Metropolitan Government, Tokyo Metropolitan Police and Fire departments, National Hospital Organization (an Independent Administrative Institution), and Red Cross.

Also in Tachikawa are Camp Higashi-Tachikawa of the Ground Self-Defense Force and the Tachikawa Depot of the Air Self-Defense Force.

References

ource

This article incorporates material translated from 立川飛行場 ("Tachikawa Hikōjō") in the Japanese Wikipedia, retrieved on September 7, 2008.