Tuesday 28 May 2013

Kawasaki Type 88 Reconnaissance/Bomber KDA-2 - Aikoku #22


Aikoku #22 "TeiSei" was an Army Type 88 Reconnaissance/Bomber or Kawasaki KDA-2 that was donated by the workers of the Teikoku Seimei Hoken Kabushiki Kaisha (Imperial Life Insurance Co Ltd) on June 19, 1932 during a ceremony in Yoyogi parade grounds.
From March 1932 until May 1933 one KDA-2 model 1 Reconnaissance, five Model 2 Reconnaissance and 19 KDA-2 Light Bombers were donated as Aikoku-ki. The price of one light bomber was 30,000Yen. At that time a bottle of Johnnie Walker whiskey red label was 5.5Yen (3,580Yen or $US20 at today's prices). 

The insurance company was founded in 1888 by IJN paymaster Kakara Tameshige with Fukuhara Arinoba and members of of the IJN accounting school who had studied in the UK. In 1936 the company merged with Tokyo Seimei Hoken and in 1947 became Asahi Seimei Hoken (Asahi Mutual Life Insurance) which is now one of the biggest life insurance companies in Japan.

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