The Wakamiya operation at Tsingtao gave the Imperial Japanese Navy the first naval-air strike against a land target in September 1914. That milestone challenges claims that Japan merely copied its naval aviation from another power. British seaplane carriers Engadine, Riviera, and Empress attacked Cuxhaven later that December with limited material results but a significant effect on German morale. These operations show that offensive carrier aviation began as an international wartime experiment shared across several navies.
Chapter · 40:30-41:48
Wakamiya at Tsingtao and the Cuxhaven Raid
The Japanese seaplane carrier Wakamiya struck a land target at Tsingtao in September 1914, preceding the British Cuxhaven raid.