A restored Mitsubishi Zero fighter took the skies over Japan yesterday for the first time since the end of the Second World War. The iconic fighter, restored to flying condition, flew from a naval air base in southern Japan.

The Zero was originally discovered in the 1970s in Rabaul, New Guinea, the site of an important wartime Japanese military base. The fighter first fell into the hands of an American collector who restored it to flying condition. The plane was purchased by a Japanese citizen for $3.5 million and arrived in Japan in 2014. Bureaucratic red tape delayed first flight until 2016.

The Zero fighter was one of the greatest fighters of World War II. Developed by Mitsubishi, the Zero was a mainstay of the Imperial Japanese Army and Navy, flying from both land bases and aircraft carriers. Fast and maneuverable, the Zero was an excellent dogfighter and was instrumental in Japan's early victories against Allied forces in World War II. The name "Zero" comes from the last digit of year 1940, or 2600 under the Japanese imperial calendar.

The test pilot for the flight was retired Lieutenant Colonel Skip Holm , a three time recipient of the Distinguished Flying Cross and fighter pilot with more than 300 combat missions during the Vietnam War flying F-105D Thunderchief and F-4E fighters. Holm was also a test pilot for Lockheed's Skunk Works on the F-22 Raptor, F-117 stealth fighter, and U-2R and TR-1 spy planes.

The plane's first flight in Japan took place at Kanoya Air Base, a major Japanese naval aviation base during World War II. Kanoya was also a staging area for kamikaze suicide pilots attacking ships of the U.S. Pacific Fleet.

Of the nearly 11,000 Zeroes built during the war, less than 10 are still in flying condition.

Here's video taken from the cockpit during the historic flight:

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Via Japantoday and U.S. News & World Report

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