General Shunji “Bert” Izutsu (井筒 俊司) is a former military officer of the Japan Air Self-Defense Force who most notably served as the branch’s 35th Chief of Staff From 2020 until his retirement in 2023.

Born on 26 March 1964 in Chiba Prefecture Izutsu graduated from the National Defense Academy of Japan in March 1986 and joined the Japan Air Self-Defense Force with the rank of Second Lieutenant.

His early career was spent as a pilot flying the Mcdonnell Douglas F-4EJ Phantom II and the Mitsubishi F-15J with over 2,700 hours of successful mission flight time.

[1] By 2000 he was a Lieutenant Colonel and in 2002 Izutsu was appointed to the Air Staff Office.

In 2020 he was promoted to General and made Chief of Staff of the Air Self-Defense Force, a position he held until his retirement on 30 March 2023.