@ Tokorozawa, Japan
April 2025
On a recent trip to Japan, I was able to make time to visit my first Japanese aviation museum. The Tokorozawa Aviation Museum happens to be located near Iruma Air Base, so I was quite delighted to see military traffic overhead as we approached the museum. This is the Kawasaki C-1 military transport, the Japan Air Self-Defense Force (JASDF) currently operates 14 in their fleet. Development of the C-1 began in 1966 when the JASDF which sought an indigenous jet-powered replacement for its vintage WWII–era Curtiss C-46 Commando transport fleet. Designed by Nihon Aircraft Manufacturing Corporation (NAMC), a consortium of several major Japanese corporations, the production contract was awarded to Kawasaki. First flown in 1970, the C-1 entered service in 1974 with only 31 produced. Currently six are still in use, all slated to be replaced by the modern C-2.
