Flown By Reno Air Racing Pilot Skip Holm

For the first time since WWII, a restored Mitsubishi A6M Zero owned by a Japanese citizen has flown over Japan, marking what may be a major shift in that country's aviation policy.

Warbird News reports that the airplane is owned by Japanese businessman, Masahide Ishizuka. It was restored from the remains of a wreck that was found on Babo Island in Indonesia by Bruce Fenstermmaker back in 1991, along with the remains of several other Japanese war planes. The restoration was largely completed in Russia, and then moved to Mojave, CA for the final fitting of the engine.

About the only thing original to the airplane is the landing gear, according to the report. And the engine is a Pratt & Whitney R-1830 engine instead of the original Sakae. Only one airworthy Zero is said to have the original engine.

The airplane has been in Japan since September, 2014. And on January 27th, it took to the skies over that country flown by Reno Air Racing Pilot Skip Holm.

Germany has seen a resurgence in vintage aviation over the past few years, and Warbird News muses that this flight could be the beginning of a similar movement in Japan.

(Images from YouTube video)

FMI: Video of Flight