Imaichi Airfield

Economic. The airfield was operated by a private company, Japan Flying Service Co., Ltd. (ジャパン・フライング・サービス株式会社), which went bankrupt in February 2001, leading to the immediate cessation of all operations and the permanent closure of the facility.

The site has been completely repurposed and is no longer recognizable as an airfield from the ground. It is now the location of the Nikko City Imaichi Solar Power Plant (日光市今市太陽光発電所), a large-scale solar farm. The entire area of the former runway and grounds is covered with thousands of solar panels, although the faint outline of the runway is still visible in some satellite imagery.

The site has a two-fold history.

1. **World War II Origin:** It was originally established in 1945, during the final months of World War II, as a secret airfield for the Imperial Japanese Army. Its intended purpose was to serve as a base for special attack units (Kamikaze), but the war ended before the airfield became fully operational and it was never used for its intended military purpose.

2. **General Aviation Era (1989-2001):** After decades of being largely unused, the site was re-established in 1989 as a private, non-public airfield (known in Japan as a 場外離着陸場, or 'off-airfield landing site'). It featured an 800-meter unpaved runway and served the general aviation community in the Kanto region. Operations primarily included flight training for light and ultralight aircraft, recreational flying, and parachuting/skydiving activities.

There are no plans or prospects for reopening Imaichi Airfield. The land has been fully redeveloped for industrial-scale renewable energy generation, making a return to aviation use highly improbable.