Yilan Airfield

Yilan Airfield
宜然机场
Yilan, Taihoku Prefecture (now Taiwan) in Taiwan
Aerial photography of Giran Airfield, 1944-1945
Yilan Airfield Shown within Taiwan
Coordinates	24°46′30″N 121°45′00″E / 24.77500°N 121.75000°E / 24.77500; 121.75000
Site information
Owner	Kuomintang
Operator	Republic of China Air Force
Controlled by	Kuomintang
Open to the public	No
Site history
Built	1936 (1936)
Built by	Japanese Army
In use	1936 - 1973
Fate	Dismantled
Battles/wars	Pacific War
Airfield information
Identifiers	ICAO: RCMS
Runways Direction Length and surface 5,000 feet (1,524 m) Asphalt

Yilan Airfield (ICAO: RCMS) (also known as Giran Airfield) is an abandoned airfield located in Yilan, Taihoku Prefecture, Taiwan.

This airport is not to be mistaken with Yilan Airport (IATA: YLN), an abandoned airport in Yilan County, Mainland China.

Yilan consisted of 3 airfields, south, north and a “secret” airfield, which were connected. The southern airfield was known as Giran Airfield.

Giran Airfield was constructed in 1936 provided by demanding labour of students from the nearby agricultural college. The airfield was mostly built using hands, and little to no equipment and machines were used. From 1936 to 1938, Japan Air Transport served a route to this airfield.^[1] In 1939, the airfield was acquired by the Kuomintang Government (KMT), and the airfield was operated as a weather observation station, with a nearby meteorological observation building.^[2]

The following year, the control tower was also constructed. The north airfield was reserved for airfield parking, while Giran Airfield was heavily utilized by kamikaze pilots. There were 14 camouflaged hardened aircraft shelters to concealed aircraft, as it was a popular bombing location by the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF). During the war, students and locals were recruited to construct aircraft decoys using the nearby bamboo and install them on the wrong side of the airfield. However, this backfired, and allied pilots quickly noticed as there were no black smoke.^[2]

Towards the end of the Pacific War, the Kamikaze crew were stationed inside dormitories of the agricultural college, forcing the students to sleep in make-shift huts or inside the hall. Over 2,500 pilots had flown from the airfield to suicidal missions against the Allied forces.^[2]

After the war in 1945, Giran Airfield was abandoned by the Japanese forces, however, the KMT quickly acquired the airfield when they arrived to Taiwan. The northern and secret airfield were dismantled. Giran Airfield was used as an emergency landing ground, and also as a weather station. The airfield was renamed to Yilan, was paved by 5000 feet, and maintenance facilities installed approximately on the north-eastern side. Yilan Airfield was later handed over to the Taiwanese navy, which stationed one PC-3 Orion aircraft on the airfield as an airborne early warning aircraft. There was plans by the Navy to expand and upgrade the airfield’s capabilities, however, it faced issues from the local government and nearby residents. These attempts were abandoned, and military was withdrawn along with the airfield closing down in 1973.^[2]

The following raids held on Giran Airfield.

• On March 13, 1945, Avenger bombers supported by 1844 Naval Air Squadron’s Hellcats and 1830 Naval Air Squadron’s Corsairs bombed the airfield, and damaged approximately 13 aircraft on Giran Airfield. The targeted aircraft may have been decoys or dummy planes.^[3]
• On April 1, 1945, B-24 bombers of the 43rd Bomb Group (H) of the US 5th Army Air Force bomber Giran Airfield.
• On April 13, 1945, Avenger aircraft took off from HMS Victorious, en route back to the carrier after previously attacking Matsuyama Airfield strafed 12 aircraft on the ground at Giran Airfield.
• On April 18, 1945, bombers attacked Giran Airfield.^[4]
• On April 16, 1945, B-24s and P-51s of the Far East Air Forces attacked Giran Airfield and Matsuyama Airfield.^[5]