Oi Airfield

Military Demobilization. The airfield was an Imperial Japanese Army Air Service base that ceased operations following Japan's surrender at the end of World War II. It was subsequently decommissioned.

The site of the former airfield has been completely redeveloped and bears little resemblance to its past military use. The land was returned to civilian use post-war and was initially converted into agricultural land, primarily for the region's famous tea plantations. In subsequent decades, the area was developed into the Hagima Industrial Park (萩間産業団地). The main runway's path is now traced by a long, straight section of Shizuoka Prefectural Road 79. The site is currently occupied by numerous factories, warehouses, and commercial buildings. A small stone monument commemorating the Ōigawa Airfield and its history has been erected nearby to preserve its memory.

Oi Airfield, more formally known as Ōigawa Airfield (大井川飛行場), was a significant military airbase for the Imperial Japanese Army Air Service during the final years of World War II. Constructed hastily between 1943 and 1944 on the Makinohara Plateau, its primary purpose was to serve as a training base for fighter pilots and as an operational airfield for the air defense of central Japan. It was home to units flying advanced aircraft like the Nakajima Ki-84 Hayate fighter. As the war situation deteriorated for Japan, Ōigawa Airfield also became a base for Special Attack Units (Kamikaze). Notably, the 19th and 20th Shinbu-tai units were formed and dispatched from here on suicide missions. The airfield was targeted and bombed by Allied forces in 1945. The ICAO code 'JP-1935' is a non-standard, modern identifier used in some databases to catalogue historical airfields; it was not its official designation during its operational period.

There are zero prospects for reopening Oi Airfield. The site is fully occupied by industrial and agricultural infrastructure. Furthermore, the modern aviation needs of the Shizuoka Prefecture are served by the Mt. Fuji Shizuoka Airport (IATA: FSZ, ICAO: RJNS), which opened in 2009 and is located just a few kilometers southwest of the former Oi Airfield site on the same Makinohara plateau.