Part of the Imperial Japanese Army Air Service (IJAAS), the unit was notably involved in the Battle of the Philippines in 1945, during which it was almost completely destroyed.

Intended to serve as elite troops, the Japanese paratrooper force was trained to conduct paradrops behind enemy lines and onto small islands.

[1] Initially limited in number, the Imperial Japanese army chose to scale up its paratroop forces after witnessing the successful use of German Fallschirmjäger in 1940 and 1941.

Under the command of Colonel Kenji Tokunaga, the brigade was ordered to Luzon on 25 October, with the unit arriving on the island on 30 November with no losses.

[1] The paratroopers held one airstrip (which had accidentally been targeted by several transports) overnight, but were gradually forced back by American units in the area.

The attacks - taking place from 8 to 14 December - dropped around 500 paratroopers around Ormoc, where they met with some success against American units in the area.

A small force of the troopers evacuated from Luzon linked up with the headquarters staff of the Twenty-Fifth Army, eventually setting up positions on Cebu.