Kasumigaura Air Field

Kasumigaura Air Field (霞ヶ浦飛行場, Kasumigaura Hikōjō; ICAO: RJAK) is a military aerodrome of the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force Camp Kasumigaura (霞ヶ浦駐屯地, Kasumigaura Chūtonchi), 2.7 NM (5.0 km; 3.1 mi) south^[1] of Tsuchiura in Ibaraki Prefecture, Japan.

Kasumigaura Air Field 霞ヶ浦飛行場 Kasumigaura Hikōjō
IATA: none ICAO: RJAK
Summary
Airport type	Military
Operator	Japan Ground Self-Defense Force
Location	Kasumigaura, Japan
Elevation AMSL	85 ft / 26 m
Coordinates	36°02′05″N 140°11′34″E
Map
RJAK Location in Japan
Runways
Direction Length Surface m ft 06/24 550 1,804 Sod and roll
Source: Japanese AIP at AIS Japan[1]

History

The base was established in 1921 as the Imperial Japanese Navy Aeronautical Technology and Training Center (海軍航空技術講習所).^[2] In 1923 Japan, which had fought with the allies, received the German airship hangar from Jüterbog airbase as part of its war reparations, and the hangar was installed at Kasumigaura air base. On 19 August 1929, the airship LZ-17 Graf Zeppelin stopped at Kasumigaura for several days while on its round-the-world trip.^[3] The Zeppelin visit made Tsuchiura famous throughout Japan for its potato-based curry.^[4]

LZ 127 Graf Zeppelin arriving in Kasumi-ga-Ura

The IJN ordered an Astra-Torres airship from France in 1922 and stationed it at Kasumigaura from 1923, alongside a Japanese-built Vickers SS-3; both of these airships left service around 1924. Kasumigaura later hosted three Fujikura airships and one Nobile airship between 1927 and 1932, at which point the Navy ceased airship operations and dismantled its fleet.^[5]The airship hangar was dismantled in 1943.

The U.S. military took over the base in 1945 and handed it over to the Japanese defense ministry in 1953. Since then it has been used as a supply depot and as a training base for helicopter pilots and mechanics, with approximately 2,000 personnel stationed on base.^[2]