The Japanese Imperial Paratroopers were a unit within the Japanese Air Force. In Japanese they were known as Teishin Shudan -Raiding Group-. Japanese paratroopers had been around since the 1930s, but given the success of the German Fallschirmjaeger in the early stages of WWII, the Japanese took notice and created a small division-size unit of Teishin Shudan with two regiments of troopers. they first saw action in February of 1942 at the Battle of Palembang. In 1943, they added gliders to their transport, which allowed them to fly in light tanks into battle with them. Given the expense of training these units, and their relatively high casualty rate when dropped behind enemy lines with little support, these troops were used sparingly by the Japanese, and their role was primarily that of elite infantry. In terms fo equipment, They initially wore a padded leather helmet, but later that was replaced by a steel helmet, and in fact, there are photographs of Japanese Paratroopers wearing the German Para helmet. Their headgear had a distinctive yellow star on it. As far as toy soldiers, nobody had depicted Imperial Japanese Paratroopers in 1/32 plastic until now. Luckily for us, Mars released a set recently. Let's take a look!
Mars Imperial Japanese Paratroopers
Now, here's a set that is new and unique. And you can tell that these guys truly are imperial paratroopers because of its distinctive headgear which has wide straps to secure the helmet in place during the drop. Plus a few of them are still wearing their jump suit/smock. This is one probably my favorite set from Mars. The poses show some action, they are engaged in combat, the range of weapons includes a mortar, flame thrower, a sub mg, a pistol, plus several carbines... All in all a good mix to drop behind enemy lines!
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