Japan WWII Zero fighter takes to the skies again

Once feared: Japanese pilot Kazuaki Yanagida waving to well-wishers as he prepares to depart in the restored Zero fighter at an airfield in Ryugasaki, Ibaraki prefecture. — AFP

Ryugasaki (Japan): Salvaged from the Papua New Guinean jungle, a restored World War II Japanese Zero fighter has taken to the skies over the land that gave birth to the once-feared warplane.

The aircraft – emblazoned with tell-tale rising sun symbols – is one of just a few airworthy Zero fighters left in the world, nearly eight decades after they struck fear into the hearts of Allied pilots.