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中島文吉

Flight Warrant Officer Imperial Japanese Navy

War record

1936.9 graduated from the 33rd pilot trainee (the Pilot Trainee Course (Sōren)) class (at 17, the youngest fighter pilot) → Kanoya Naval Air Group (the China Incident; moved to Taiwan) → 1938.3 the 〔13th Naval Air Group〕 → July the 〔15th Naval Air Group〕 (no chance of air combat) → 1941.9 posted to the 〔3rd Naval Air Group〕 → after the war began, fought across the Philippines and the Netherlands East Indies → 1942.11 the 〔252nd Naval Air Group〕 (moved up to Rabaul) → 1943.2 moved to the Marshall Islands → the air fighting over eastern New Guinea and Guadalcanal → 1943.10.6, escorting land-based bombers during the raid on Wake Island, he was jumped by enemy fighters and went missing; officially declared killed in action.

Holds the distinction of having become the youngest fighter pilot at the age of 17

Unit: 鹿屋空→13空→3空→252空
Victories: victories claimed: 16sources differ

No fragment for this person is in the Archive yet.

What is still not known

Photograph: none yet. Unless a person was reported on during the war, almost no portrait survives that is free to use ⚪️
Afterwards: how he lived after the war is not written in this source.

This card is made only of facts copied from one book 🟡 index. It is not a biography. An empty field means the book does not say. Nothing has been filled in by guesswork.

Source: Japanese Naval Fighter Units, p.199

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