abstract
| - The Imperial Japanese Navy fielded marine paratroopers during World War II. The troops were officially part of the Special Naval Landing Forces (SNLF or Rikusentai), the navy's marine corps. They came from the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Yokosuka SNLFs. They were under the operational control of the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service (IJNAS or Dai-Nippon Teikoku Kaigun Koku Hombu). Rikusentai paratroopers should not be confused with the Imperial Japanese Army paratroopers, known as Teishin. Rikusentai units were grouped in battalion-level formations, named after the three naval districts, including Yokosuka. Paratroop units were only organized on the very eve of the war, beginning in September 1941. The lightly armed parachute units were an intended to assault coastal areas, supporting amphibious landings or disembarkations, or enemy airfields and other strategic objectives. They were not meant to become entangled in heavy, pitched land battles. However, their operational use would prove to be contrary to this doctrine. SNLF airborne troops wore a badge with an emblem of two crossed, open parachutes and an anchor, topped with a small cherry flower.
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