Help translating Japanese

[Conde]

http://img156.imageshack.us/img156/1884/japaneseflag9ww.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

i bought this flag on NY a few years ago, the guy told me it was not a kamikaze flag but instead signed by all the pilots of a navy/army japanese squadron. Could you guys help me translate the flag?

[USMC29]

im guessing most if not all of it is their names? just a guess.

[[AFSOC]]

its in kanji...

[Conde]

could be all names, but could be written "Squadron 63" for example :)
whats kanji?

[Ghostwolf]

Probably not all the pilots but the squandron commander's name

[DieselPower]

Kanji are the symbolic ideographs that are originally from China.
I can't translate it for ya mate

[Conde]

Kanji are the symbolic ideographs that are originally from China.
I can translate it for ya mate
wow
if you could do that please

why is written in chinese if it is a WWII japanese flag?

[teutateswolf-n]

Yes, it's mainly a list of names. Even the big black characters on the top right corner are a name with the rank of "rikugun shukei chuui" (army paymaster lieutenant)

[DieselPower]

wow
if you could do that please

why is written in chinese if it is a WWII japanese flag?

Kanji is orignally from China, although sometime a few huundred years ago, they Japanese started using it. Same goes for Buddhism

[Conde]

Kanji is orignally from China, although sometime a few huundred years ago, they Japanese started using it. Same goes for Buddhism

oh
i didnt know that, sorry!

so is there anything interesting written on it?

[Rakki]

From what I can see it doesn't seem to be anything as glamorous as a kamikaze flag. There's even what appears to be a factory supervisor's signature in the top left along with that army paymaster lieutenant's signature in the top right.

Perhaps a rear-end logistics unit?

[sgtsmu]

There's even what appears to be a factory supervisor's signature in the top left along with that army paymaster lieutenant's signature in the top right.

Rakki is right. Other than that, the top middle says "Issei," probably meaning "one goodwill."

[Ghostwolf]

Rakki is right. Other than that, the top middle says "Issei," probably meaning "one goodwill."

I thought the two kanji characters meant "loyalty for one"? NVM I could be wrong.

[sgtsmu]

I thought the two kanji characters meant "loyalty for one"? NVM I could be wrong.
In the past, they read Japanese from right to left when writing horizontally. It is the exact opposite of how we write it now. From left to right, it would mean "loyalty for one."

[Conde]

is it possible to say if it is a suply or a fighting unit?

[Rakki]

My guess is probably something along the lines of a military run factory unit. Other than actually looking up the names in the imperial army records I don't believe we can go any further.

[Conde]

Thanks for the help guys!!!!

[rssmps]

As Rakki has said above, the only thing I would add is that the rank in chinese is "middle lieutenant" or 1st Lt.
Nothing suggests kamikaze.