Yokohama Air Group

Yokohama Air Group
A Yokohama Kawanishi H6K5 at an unidentified location in the Solomon Islands in 1942
Active	October 1, 1936 – November 1, 1942
Country	Empire of Japan
Allegiance	Axis Powers of World War II
Branch	Imperial Japanese Navy
Type	Naval aviation unit
Role	Bomber, fighter, and reconnaissance using flying boats
Size	Varied
Garrison/HQ	Yokohama, Japan Majuro, Marshall Islands Rabaul, New Britain Buin, Papua New Guinea, Shortland Islands and Tulagi, Solomon Islands
Engagements	Battle of Wake Island New Guinea Campaign, Solomon Islands Campaign
Insignia
Identification symbol	ヨハ (Oct 1936-Nov 1940)
Identification symbol	Y (Nov 1940-Nov 1941)

The Yokohama Air Group (横浜海軍航空隊, Yokohama Kaigun Kōkūtai) was an aircraft and airbase garrison unit of the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service during the Pacific campaign of World War II.

The Yokohama Air Group was formed in Yokohama, Japan on October 1, 1936 as a patrol unit equipped with six Navy Type 91 Hiro H4H flying boats. On December 1, 1941 it was re-equipped with 24 Navy Type 97 Kawanishi H6K flying boats and assigned to support Japanese IJN 4th Fleet operations in the central Pacific as part of the 24th Air Flotilla.

Immediately following the attack on Pearl Harbor, and start of hostilities against the United States, Japanese forces attempted to seize strategically located Wake Island. The initial Japanese landing attempts were repelled by the island’s United States Marine Corps defenders before the Japanese troops were able to land, with the loss of the Japanese destroyers Kisaragi and Hayate. In response the Japanese sent two Kawanishi H6K’s on a reconnaissance flight from their forward operating base at Majuro, arriving at Wake at 0500 hours on December 12. Each plane dropped four 250-kg and twelve 60-kg bombs, but one was shot down by a USMC Grumman F4F Wildcat.