Captured and Annotated Japanese Type 92 Parachute Bag

A brown canvas Japanese equipment bag that was used to gather up a deployed parachute, but a bag which was also used by Japanese pilots as a bag for flight gear and personal items (Included in this listing is a photograph from a reference book which shows a WWII Japanese pilot fully equipped for take off. Note that he carries his parachute recovery bag as an equipment bag). This example was captured and used by Malcolm D. Kunes of the United States Army. The bag measures approximately 14 inches tall by 17 inches wide by 9 inches deep. There is a Japanese cloth label on the bag which carries the designation of “Crew Use Parachute Type-92, Fujikura Airlines Industry Co., Ltd.”. The bag was extensively annotated by the soldier who captured it, Malcolm Kunes of Blanchard, Pennsylvania. The bottom of the bag bears Kunes’ name and service number of 07021129 (although he left off the beginning zero when he wrote the number on the bag). According to available enlistment records, Kunes enlisted in the Army on March 5, 1940 (on-line enlistment records give his birth date as “1901” but this seems to be an error, since other on line sources give his birth date as 1920, which makes much more sense). The bag annotations record the locations of Kunes’ service during the war. The notations include “Pearl Harbor Dec. 7th 1941 Oahu Hawaii”, indicating that Kunes’, having enlisted almost two years before the attack, was present at Pearl Harbor on the day of the attack. This is supported by a notation on the bag of “Honolulu Hawaii 1940”, indicating that Kunes’ apparently arrived in Hawaii before war broke out. The length of Kunes’ service explains another notation on the bag: “Pennsylvania Bound 4 1/2 years overseas! 1940-1944”. Kunes was Regular Army, and it seems likely that, having enlisted in 1940, he was discharged due to the expiration of his enlistment before the war ended. It is also possible that he was wounded and discharged. There are a few tears in the bag at the lower edges on the sides and on the bottom edge, but the bag is complete, with all closure snaps still in place.