WW2 Imperial Japanese Army – BRASS DOG TAG – 14th AIRFIELD CONSTRUCTION – RARE!

You are bidding on a VERY NICE example of a WW2 Imperial Japanese Army Air Force Ninshikihyo Identification Dog Tag, as issued to personnel during the Second World War! This was the standard oval-pattern Japanese military identification tag that featured stamped unit and individual identification information.

Imperial Japanese Army identification tags, known as “Ninshikihyo”, were issued as a means of identifying military personnel and differed considerably from the name-marked identification tags used by many Western armies. Rather than normally carrying the soldier’s personal name, Japanese Army tags generally utilized a combination of unit, organizational, and individual roster numbers. Wartime examples commonly employed numerical unit designations and military cover numbers intended to conceal the actual identity of formations. The standard Army pattern was approximately 45 mm long by 33 mm wide and was normally worn suspended by cord around the neck, forming an important part of the individual soldier’s field equipment.

The 14th Field Airfield Construction Unit was an Imperial Japanese Army Air Service engineering/construction formation, organized in 1943 as part of the Army’s expansion of mechanized field-airfield construction units. These units were equipped, at least on paper, for rapid construction and repair of combat airstrips using bulldozers, rollers, trucks and other heavy equipment. Japanese records specifically show the 14th operating in the Southwest Pacific. In October 1943 it was transported through the Philippines to Kau, Halmahera, together with other airfield-construction units. Records also place its 1st Company at Manokwari, western New Guinea, carrying out airfield work in late 1943 and early 1944.

Made of brass this ID Tag is in EXCELLENT used condition! Some normal patina and surface oxidation throughout…however there are NO bends, cracks, repairs, or structural damage!. The face is clearly stamped with the Japanese military Kanji identification markings, clearly indicating:

15308
(14th Field Airfield Construction Unit)

No. 159
(The individual soldier’s roster or identification number)

The stamped characters and numbers remain clearly visible despite the naturally aged surface. Everything is 100% ORIGINAL, wartime manufacture, making this a SUPERB identified Imperial Japanese Army personal equipment item for any advanced WW2 Japanese militaria collection or display!