Civil Aviation Day

What Is Civil Aviation Day?

October 25 is "Civil Aviation Day" in Japan. On October 25, 1951 (Showa 26), Japan Airlines (JAL) began operating Japan's first postwar domestic scheduled civil flights, linking Haneda (Tokyo), Itami (Osaka) and Itazuke (Fukuoka). After the war Japan had been banned from operating aircraft, and on this day scheduled civilian flights returned to Japanese skies.

The Road Back to the Skies

After the war, orders from GHQ (the Allied occupation headquarters) prohibited Japan from building or operating aircraft. Restrictions were eased in the early 1950s, and Japan Airlines was founded in 1951.

• The first flight by "Mokusei-go": The aircraft used on the opening day was a Martin 2-0-2 named "Mokusei-go" (Jupiter).
• Borrowed planes and crews: At the time, JAL was not allowed to own aircraft or have Japanese pilots fly them, so it operated with aircraft and crews leased from America's Northwest Airlines.

What Came Next

When the San Francisco Peace Treaty took effect in 1952, Japan regained its sovereignty over aviation and Japanese crews could operate flights. In 1954 JAL began international service between Tokyo and San Francisco.

• The Mokusei-go accident: In April 1952, the Mokusei-go crashed into Mount Mihara on Izu Oshima. The accident is still remembered in discussions of postwar aviation safety in Japan.
• The jet age: In the 1960s jet airliners entered domestic service, and air travel gradually became part of everyday life.

Aviation Trivia

• How planes fly: As the wing moves forward, a pressure difference forms above and below it, creating "lift" that raises the aircraft.
• The jet stream and flight times: Because of the strong westerly jet stream, eastbound flights from Japan tend to be faster and westbound flights slower.
• Checklist culture: The strict checklists used in aviation have been adopted in other fields, such as medicine, to prevent errors.
• SAF (sustainable aviation fuel): In recent years, airlines have been introducing jet fuel made from materials such as used cooking oil.

Ideas for Civil Aviation Day

• Visit an airport observation deck and watch planes take off and land.
• On your next flight, compare the landscape below with a map.
• Step back and look at your work plans and goals as a whole, as if from above.

Something to Remember on Civil Aviation Day

October 25 is a day to recall the origins of Japan's civil aviation, which restarted with borrowed planes and crews. The air travel we now take for granted began with that first step. Take a look at the sky today and imagine the day postwar Japan took to the air again.