The Imperial Japanese Army Air Service (IJAAS) or Imperial Japanese Army Air Force was the aviation force of the Imperial Japanese Army (IJA). Just as the IJA in general was modeled mainly on the German Army, the IJAAS initially developed along similar lines to the Imperial German Army Aviation; its primary mission was to provide tactical close air support for ground forces, as well as a limited air interdiction capability. The IJAAS also provided aerial reconnaissance to other branches of the IJA. While the IJAAS engaged in strategic bombing of cities such as Shanghai, Nanjing, Canton, Chongqing, Rangoon, and Mandalay, this was not the primary mission of the IJAAS, and it lacked a heavy bomber force.

Baron Yoshitoshi Tokugawa was a lieutenant general in the Imperial Japanese Army and one of the pioneers of military aviation in Japan. The first Japanese to obtain his pilot's licence from the Aéro-Club de France, he is credited with having made the first flight in a powered aircraft in Japan in 1910.