| First Carrier Division | |
|---|---|
&sq=Envato&lang=en&file=File:Japanese_aircraft_carrier_Zuikaku_and_two_destroyers_under_attack_on_20_June_1944_(80-G-238025).jpg) The First Carrier Division's Zuikaku (center) and two destroyers under attack by U.S. Navy carrier aircraft during the Battle of the Philippine Sea. | |
| Active | April 1, 1928 – April 10, 1945 |
| Country | Empire of Japan |
| Allegiance | Axis Powers of World War II |
| Branch | Imperial Japanese Navy |
| Type | Naval aviation unit |
| Role | Aircraft carrier support |
| Engagements | Attack on Pearl Harbor Battle of Rabaul Bombing of Darwin Indian Ocean raid Battle of Midway Battle of the Eastern Solomons Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands Battle of the Philippine Sea |
| Commanders | |
| Notable commanders | Chūichi Nagumo Jisaburo Ozawa |
The First Carrier Division (第一航空戦隊, Dai Ichi Kōkū sentai, often abbreviated as 一航戦 Ichikō-sen) was an aircraft carrier unit of the Imperial Japanese Navy's First Air Fleet. At the beginning of the Pacific Campaign of World War II, the First Carrier Division consisted of the fleet carriers Akagi and Kaga. The division participated in the Attack on Pearl Harbor and Indian Ocean Raid. After Akagi and Kaga were sunk at the Battle of Midway in June 1942, carriers Shōkaku, Zuikaku, and Zuihō were redesignated as the First Carrier Division.