Yoshinao Kodaira (小平 好直, Kodaira Yoshinao, 1918–2008) was an officer and ace fighter pilot in the Imperial Japanese Navy during World War II. Participating in many of the Pacific War battles and campaigns as a member of several units, including the fighter units of the aircraft carriers Shōkaku and Chiyoda, Kodaira was officially credited with destroying 13 enemy aircraft. After the war, he served with the Japan Air Self-Defense Force. In 2008, Tsubasa-kai ("Wings Association"), the veterans' organization of the JASDF, reported his death on its website.

Yoshinao Kodaira
Born1918
Nagano Prefecture, Japan
DiedJuly 14, 2008(2008-07-14) (aged 89–90)
AllegianceJapan
Service / branch Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service (IJN)
Years of service1935-1945
Battles / wars
Other workJapan Air Self-Defense Force

References

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  • Hata, Ikuhiko; Yasuho Izawa; Don Cyril Gorham (translator) (1989) [1975]. Japanese Naval Aces and Fighter Units in World War II. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 0-87021-315-6. {{cite book}}: |author3= has generic name (help)
  • Sakaida, Henry (2002). Aces of the Rising Sun, 1937–1945. Great Britain: Osprey Publishing. ISBN 1-84176-618-6.