Replica Zero Makes Appearance at Planes of Fame Air Show

This last weekend of May 6-7th 2017 saw the 60th anniversary of the Planes of Fame Air Show. It is one of the premiere vintage war bird airshows in the world. It is one of the only airshows where you can see up to two Japanese A6M Riesen Zero fighter planes that actually fly including one that is 100% original complete with its Sakae 12 engine. But this year saw the addition of a 3rd Zero that for reasons not stated did not fly.

This particular A6M3 Model 22 Zero is somewhat of a curiosity. It's tail code is A1-112. This plane was last seen flying over Kumamoto Japan to help uplift the spirits there after the recent natural disaster there.

There was no sign or any owner present that could tell us anything about this plane except for this small flyer written in Kanji taped to one of the propeller blades so we did some research. 

According to the Pacific Wrecks website, they noted that there have been some false claims including having been recovered from a wreck in Papua New Guinea in the late 1980's and another stating it had been built by Mitsubishi in 1943. But it turns out this was one of three replica Zeros that were built in Russia during the 1990's for the Santa Monica Museum of Flight. 

So as the story goes, this replica Zero which is powered by a Pratt & Whitney engine was constructed for around $300,000.00 USD. Mind you, that's 1990's money. She was last sold for $1.9 million USD. It is currently under private ownership and is said to be based in Mojave California.

While it is not a true original, it still retains the aesthetic of Jiro Hirokoshi's vision and remains a delight for Zero fans world wide despite not having it's familiar yellow stripe painted on it's forward on its wing.

We hope to see her fly in formation with her two original older cousins at a future.

 

Until then please enjoy this footage we found of this plane flying in Japan.

Lawsuit Against Chino Air Show May Ground Zeros

In what has been called an unwarranted underhanded move, Chino Airport tenants Yanks Air Museum and Flying Tigers Aviation have filed a lawsuit to stop the annual Planes of Fame Air Show. This was filed 30 days before the event. This air show has been held every year for the last 30 years at the Chino Airport. The annual event attracts military aviation enthusiasts and warbird history buffs alike from all parts of the country to see the rarest collection of WWII & Korean War fighter aircraft take to the skies and dazzle crowds. Yanks allege that they lose money each year and further claim the event obstructs their ability to do business. This of course has angered many in the warbird community who regard this as a frivolous lawsuit to ground the beloved air show which features two of the world's only flying Japanese A6M Zero fighters. Yanks has no flying aircraft in their museum nor has participated in the air show years. All parties in the suit claim they love aviation but those suing POF claims they don't like how the air show is being run. One could guess they want a bigger piece of the action for themselves. Internet reaction has been fierce and Yanks has become very unpopular as a result. While we do not expect the air show to be canceled, we call this suit  for what it is. Frivolous and Underhanded. 

POF has an on-line petition SAVE OUR AIRSHOW which at last count has over 14,650 signatures in support of the POF Air Show. We hope this case is thrown out of court and look forward to seeing over 40 vintage aircraft take to the skies and the Zeros fly once more. Please show your support and sign their Petition. Thank you!

Hasegawa Shoutai 長谷川小隊 War Reenactors

Seen here are the members of a local War Reenactor group known as the Hasegawa Shoutai. Founded in 2014, they are a Southern California based research and reenactment group that portrays the Imperial Japanese Army in air soft and blank fire survival games. We were fortunate to run into these guys at the recent Planes of Fame Air Show in Chino California and they were very pleasant to talk to. 

Seen here is Waye Hong smiling for our camera. It's interesting to note that this group led by Alex Chang who goes by Hasegawa Hajime includes members who are not Japanese. In fact they even boast one Caucasian member seen on the right in this photo of us taking their photos:

We have to really give these guys credit for their attention to detail and their love of paying tribute to the men who served the Empire of Japan. While staying clear of politics of the war, this group does serve its purpose of giving people here in America an opportunity to see, listen to, and observe what the former Imperial Japanese Army of Japan's soldiers gear and how they looked up close.To have found such a group outside of Japan is really a rare thing and for war historians a living reference to how such men operated in the field. 

We at American Mishima hope the Hasegawa Shoutai will continue their living history research and further wish them great success. Hopefully one day we can use them in one of our movies.

かんばって ください!

To learn more of the Hasegawa Shoutai Please visit their facebook page:

http://www.facebook.com/HasegawaShoutai