Who Invented Airsoft?

Airsoft is a game and sport that has been growing in popularity around the world for many decades. The sport involves participants using air powered guns to fire soft, plastic pellets or BBs at one another in an environment typically constructed to mimic a real war like situation. But it begs the question, who invented Airsoft?

What is Airsoft?

Airsoft is a competitive, team based sport in which participants play in an arena-like space and use various types of Airsoft-specific guns to shoot pellets at each other. The pellets are made of a plastic polymer and designed to cause virtually no damage. Airsoft guns fire a 6-mm plastic BB at velocities under Venice 50 miles per hour. Protective gear is required and participants are typically segmented into teams.

History of Airsoft

The roots of Airsoft can be traced back to Japan in the late 1970s. At the time, the country had strict laws limiting access to firearms, leaving many avid shooters frustrated. To make up for this lack of access, a small group of inventors developed the first Airsoft guns.

These first Airsoft guns relied on a different form of energy to fire the BBs. Rather than being powered by gunpowder, they were powered by springs or pressurized gas. The original Airsoft guns proved popular for target shooting, but with time people started to use them for skirmish battles.

Development and Popularization of Airsoft

Airsoft really caught on a few decades ago when it started to become regulated. This helped distance Airsoft from other similar games involving guns, such as paintball.

The game's popularity took off and before long, Airsoft organizations started sprouting up all over the world. In the US and the UK, Airsoft organizations like the Airsoft Player's Union and the UKARA (UK Airsoft Retailers Association) developed and continue to help enhance and regulate the sport today.

Evolution of Airsoft

Over the decades Airsoft guns have changed significantly. In addition to the spring and gas powered guns of yesterday, Electric Guns (AEGs) are now widely used in Airsoft. These guns use an electric motor to trigger a piston which in turn shoots the BBs.

The BBs themselves have also evolved. Today, there are several types of BBs available for Airsoft, and the quality has improved drastically so that the pellets are much more accurate and consistent.

Brief Recap

Airsoft is a sport and game that has been growing in popularity all around the world for over forty years. The game was invented by a small group of Japanese inventors in the late 1970s as a way to satisfy people's desire to shoot, but comply with the country's strict firearm laws. Since then, the sport has grown and evolved, with Airsoft organizations popping up across the globe, and the quality and variety of Airsoft guns and BBs also improving. Airsoft has come a long way since its conception, and it looks like it's only going to continue to grow.