General Shunji “Bert” Izutsu (井筒 俊司) is a former military officer of the Japan Air Self-Defense Force who most notably served as the branch’s 35th Chief of Staff From 2020 until his retirement in 2023.
Shunji Izutsu | |
|---|---|
井筒 俊司 | |
 Official Portrait | |
| Chief of Staff, Air Self-Defense Force | |
| In office 25 August 2020 – 03 March 2023 | |
| Preceded by | Marumo Yoshinari |
| Succeeded by | Hiroaki Uchikura |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 26 March 1964 Chiba Prefecture, Japan |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  Japan |
| Branch/service |  Japan Air Self-Defense Force |
| Years of service | 1986–2023 |
| Rank | General (JASDF) |
| Commands | 6th Air Wing Western Air Defense Force Air Defense Command |
Biography
editCareer
editBorn on 26 March 1964 in Chiba Prefecture Izutsu graduated from the National Defense Academy of Japan in March 1986 and joined the Japan Air Self-Defense Force with the rank of Second Lieutenant.
His early career was spent as a pilot flying the Mcdonnell Douglas F-4EJ Phantom II and the Mitsubishi F-15J with over 2,700 hours of successful mission flight time.[1] By 2000 he was a Lieutenant Colonel and in 2002 Izutsu was appointed to the Air Staff Office.
In 2005 he was promoted to Colonel and attended the Air Staff College, the next year he returned to the Air Staff Office before being assigned to the command staff of the 7th Air Wing.
In 2011 he was promoted to Major General and put in command of the 6th Air Wing before being made Deputy Commander of the Southwestern Air Defense Force the following year.
In 2017 he was promoted to Lieutenant General and put in charge of the Western Air Defense Force followed by his appointment as commander of the Air Defense Command in 2019.
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In 2020 he was promoted to General and made Chief of Staff of the Air Self-Defense Force, a position he held until his retirement on 30 March 2023.[2][3]
Later Life
editAfter his retirement Izutsu become the Vice President of Astroscale Japan a subsidiary of Astroscale, a private multinational space debris removal company headquartered in Tokyo.[4][5]
Awards
edit
- Officer, Legion of Honour[6]
3rd Defensive Memorial Cordon
5th Defensive Memorial Cordon
6th Defensive Memorial Cordon
7th Defensive Memorial Cordon
9th Defensive Memorial Cordon
10th Defensive Memorial Cordon
11th Defensive Memorial Cordon
13th Defensive Memorial Cordon
14th Defensive Memorial Cordon
16th Defensive Memorial Cordon with one Silver Cherry Blossom
18th Defensive Memorial Cordon with one Gold Cherry Blossom
19th Defensive Memorial Cordon
20th Defensive Memorial Cordon
21st Defensive Memorial Cordon
26th Defensive Memorial Cordon with two Gold Cherry Blossoms
31st Defensive Memorial Cordon
32nd Defensive Memorial Cordon
33rd Defensive Memorial Cordon
36th Defensive Memorial Cordon
39th Defensive Memorial Cordon
References
edit- ^ "#空幕広報室 ✈ ︎On Friday, March 24th #井筒空幕長 , we had our final flight training as ( #航空自衛官 #入間基地 ✈️ For about 36 years since January 1987, mainly as a #F4 and #F15 pilot. Successfully completed 2,763 hours of mission 🎉". Twitter. Retrieved 22 January 2024.
- ^ "Mr. Izutsu to the sky curtain chief". Nikkei. 7 August 2020. Retrieved 22 January 2024.
- ^ "Order issued by the Ministry of Defense (General Personnel) - March 31 2023" (PDF). Japan Ministry of Defense. Retrieved 22 January 2024.
- ^ "Shunji Izutsu appointed as vice president with the president's office of Astroscale Co., Ltd". PR Times. 13 April 2023. Retrieved 22 January 2024.
- ^ "Astroscale Japan Appoints Bert Izutsu as Vice President". Astroscale. 13 April 2023. Retrieved 3 February 2024.
- ^ "Regarding the award of the Légion d'Honneur to Chief of the Air Staff, Shunji Izutsu". Japan Ministry of Defense. Retrieved 23 January 2024.