虎熊正

War record

Born 1911 in Ōita Prefecture → 1929 entered the navy, moving from the maintenance branch to flying → 1933.7 graduated from the 20th pilot trainee (the Pilot Trainee Course (Sōren)) class and was posted to 〔Omura Naval Air Group〕 → after Ryūjō and 〔Omura Naval Air Group〕 he was attached to the 〔13th Naval Air Group〕 with the outbreak of the China Incident and moved up to the 公大 base at Shanghai on 9.17 → two days later, on the 19th, PO1c 虎熊 led a section in the first attack on Nanjing and shot down two in his first combat → on the 22nd, returning alone from the sixth attack on Nanjing, he was jumped near Changzhou by an enemy Curtiss Hawk fighter; he took 21 hits of 13mm and 7.7mm fire from astern, but every round ricocheted without penetrating and he shot the attacker down in return (a lesson that proved the quality of the Type 96 fighter's all-metal monocoque fuselage and made clear the need to develop larger-calibre guns) → on 10.12, on the way to attack Nanjing, part of a force of 11 carrier fighters under LCdr 中野 was surrounded and split up by Breda aircraft and three were lost; 虎熊's section lost Aviation Seaman 1st Class 猪野 but shot down five, and 虎熊's own aircraft, hit, force-landed and he was rescued (the Type 96 fighter's first combat loss) → November, with a score of seven, he returned to the homeland; in December of the following year he went again to the 〔12th Naval Air Group〕 and moved up to Hankou, but had no chance of air combat, and in 1939.10 he was gravely wounded by enemy bombing and sent home; promoted to Flight Warrant Officer (Flight Warrant Officer), he was placed on the retired list in 1941.4 but recalled the same day and taught at Ōita Naval Air Group → in June of the following year he transferred to Kanoya Naval Air Group and moved up to Kavieng in the Southwest Area → in December he returned to 〔Omura Naval Air Group〕 and was killed in a training accident on 1943.4.16.