12 May 1935 was the Silver Jubilee of King George V. On that Sunday morning, Katsutaro Ano, a Japanese aviator left London in his British Klemm Eagle 2 monoplane in an attempt to establish a record solo flight to Tokyo via Brussels, Vienna, Belgrade, Istanbul, Baghdad, Karachi, Calcutta, Rangoon, Bangkok, Hong Kong and Shanghai. He was due to arrive in Hong Kong on 19 May.
Dogged by bad luck, numerous mishaps, forced landings and weather delays, his journey was severely interrupted. Ano arrived in Hong Kong on 19 July. He completed his solo flight after finally arriving at Haneda Aerodrome on 18 August 1935.
The above photo shows Ano's Klemm Eagle outside the RAF hangar on the eastern side of the airfield. When the photo was taken, the hangar was used by both the military and civilian authorities.
Source:
- Photo of Katsutaro Ano: https://aviadejavu.ru/Site/Crafts/Craft26737.htm#gallery-19
- Klemm Eagle registration G-ADFB -> J-BOOB: https://www.britishaviation-ptp.com/Companies/B/bamco_eagle.html