Kakogawa Airfield

Military Decommissioning. The airfield was an Imperial Japanese Army Air Service (IJAAS) base. Following the surrender of Japan and the end of World War II, the airfield was decommissioned and its military functions ceased. It was never converted for civilian use.

The site of the former airfield has been completely redeveloped and is now unrecognizable as an aviation facility. The land is occupied by a mix of heavy industry, public institutions, and residential areas. Key facilities on the former airfield grounds include:
- The massive Kobe Steel (KOBELCO) Kakogawa Works.
- The Hyogo Prefectural Kakogawa Medical Center.
- Several schools, including Kakogawa Minami High School and Hamanomiya Junior High School.
- Public housing complexes and commercial buildings.

A memorial monument named 'Sōkyū no Hi' (蒼穹の碑 - Monument of the Blue Sky) has been erected near the site to commemorate the history of the airfield and the personnel who served there.

Kakogawa Airfield was a significant IJAAS base during World War II. Constructed between 1937 and 1941, its primary roles were advanced fighter pilot training and the air defense of the vital Hanshin industrial region (Osaka-Kobe). It served as a home base for several fighter units, most notably the 111th Sentai (111th Fighter Group), which was equipped with the Kawasaki Ki-61 'Hien' (Allied reporting name: 'Tony') fighter aircraft. Pilots from Kakogawa were scrambled to intercept American B-29 Superfortress bombers raiding nearby cities like Kobe and Osaka in 1945. The airfield itself was also a target of Allied bombing raids. Its strategic importance lay in its function as both a training ground for new pilots and a last line of defense for one of Japan's most critical industrial centers.

None. There are no plans or prospects for reopening Kakogawa Airfield. The land has been fully and permanently repurposed for industrial, medical, educational, and residential use, making any return to aviation activities impossible.