About Masaaki Iinuma
Lived 1912 – 1941 (aged 29). Masaaki Iinuma was a Japanese aircraft pilot and aviator.
was a Japanese aviator.
Iinuma was born in Toyoshina (now part of Azumino, Nagano Prefecture), and was a graduate of the Imperial Japanese Army flying school at Tokorozawa.
At age 24 he gained fame as the pilot on the , a Mitsubishi Ki-15 Karigane aircraft, (registration J-BAAI) sponsored by the newspaper Asahi Shimbun. It became famous on April 9, 1937, as the first Japanese-built aircraft to fly from Japan to Europe, making the flight between Tokyo and London, in time for the coronation of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth. The total elapsed time from departure from the Tachikawa Airfield was 94 hours, 17 minutes and 56 seconds, with actual flight time for the whole distance of was 51 hours, 19 minutes and 23 seconds. The crew consisted of pilot Iinuma and navigator Kenji Tsukagoshi. The flight was the first Fédération Aéronautique Internationale record won by Japanese aviators.
Iinuma later served as chief test pilot for the Kayaba Ka-1 autogyro from May 1941. Iinuma was killed in December 1941 at Phnom Penh airfield in French Indochina when, in a daze from hearing the news of the attack on Pearl Harbor by Japanese forces, he accidentally walked into a spinning aircraft propeller. His death was officially reported as a military casualty.
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Important facts
People in Masaaki Iinuma's life
Named in this biography and alive at the same time
Contemporaries
People whose lives overlapped Masaaki Iinuma's
Frequently asked questions
Who was Masaaki Iinuma?
Japanese aviator (1912-1941)
When was Masaaki Iinuma born?
Masaaki Iinuma was born on 2 August 1912 in Nagano.
When did Masaaki Iinuma die?
Masaaki Iinuma died on 11 December 1941 in Phnom Penh International Airport.
What was Masaaki Iinuma's occupation?
Masaaki Iinuma was an aircraft pilot and aviator.
What nationality was Masaaki Iinuma?
Masaaki Iinuma was Japanese.
Sources & further reading
Cite this page
APA: Biography.guide. (2026). Masaaki Iinuma. https://biography.guide/masaaki-iinuma/
MLA: "Masaaki Iinuma." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/masaaki-iinuma/.
Chicago: "Masaaki Iinuma." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/masaaki-iinuma/.
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