Japanese Fighter Aircraft
Mitsubishi A5M (Claude)
Mitsubishi A6M (Zero)
Mitsubishi A7M (Sam)
Nakajima Ki-27 (Nate)
Mitsubishi A5M:
A5M "Kyuuroku sen"(Claude) "This was the first monoplane fighter of the IJN. It was a cantilever monoplane with fixed landing gear and an open cockpit (the pilots rejected a closed one). The A5M performed well in the wars against China and the USSR and was still the numerically most important Navy fighter in 1941. The prototype flew in 1935 and a total of 1094 aircraft produced.
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Mitsubishi/Nakajima A6M:
A6M Zero sen "(Zeke) "The fabeled ZERO of World War II. Known to allies as the 'Zeke' or 'Hamp'. The A6M Zero demonstrated for the first time that an aircraft could be fully capable of carrier operations ( incliding having folding wing sections ) and still have superiority over land based contemoraries.
The aircraft was formally adopted by the Japanese Navy for carrier service in Aug. 1940 and made its combat debut over China on Sept. 13, 1940, easily shooting down its Chinese ooponents, the soviet built I-15 and I-16 fighters and a variety of Western aircraft. During a year of combat over China, Zeros destroyed ninety-nine Chinese aircraft for the loss of two of thier own, both of which were shot down by ground fire.
The Zero was the principal Japanese naval fighter throughout the war, participating in all carrier actions, beginning with Pearl harbor. Produced by the Mitsubishi and, subsequently, Nakajima aircraft companies, the low-wing, single engine aircraft had excellent maneuverability, speed and range. However, the lack of armor or bulletproof windscreen for the pilot, and unprotected fuel tanks ment that a Zero that was hit was often killed. during the war the Zero was periodically upgraded with improved engines and other features. ( Improved aircraft were given the Allied code names Hap and then Hamp before they were determined to be Zero variants.)
Because of the poor quality of replacement pilots after the carrier battle of Midway and the high losses during the lengthy U.S. Solomons-New Guinea Campagin, the Zero could never again recapture airial superiority for the fleet. Beginning in Oct. 1944, land based Zeros - each generally armed with a 551 lb bomb - became the first aircraft used in the Kamikaze attacks against U.S. ships.
The prototype was first flown on April 1, 1939, and quickly obtained a speed of slightly over 300 mph. By the time of Pearl Harbor there were 521 Zeros in naval service. Production continued until the last day of the war, with 10,938 aircraft being produced. When the war ended 6,300 improved A6M8 variants were on order, but none were completed because of the damage to Japanese industry by U.S. bombong and shortages of raw materials.
The A6M2 variant, in most of the carrier squadrons in Dec. 1941, had a top speed of 331 mph and a normal range of 1,160 miles, which could e extended with a drop tank and careful fuel comsumption to an impressive 1,930 miles. The aircraft had two 7.7 mm machine guns in the engine cowling and two wing-mounted 20 mm cannons. Normal bomb load was one 551 lb bomb although the A6M7 and A6M8 models could carry a 1,102 lb bomb in the dive bomber role.
SPECIFICATIONS (A6M2)
Span: 39 feet 4 inches.
Length: 29 feet 9 inches.
Height: 10 feet 0 inches.
Weight: Empty 3,704 lb. Loaded 5,313 lb.
Armament: 2 - 7.7mm type 97 machine guns. 2 - 20mm type 99 cannons.
Engine: 1 - 950 hp Nakajima NK1C Sakae-12 14 Cyl. air cooled radial piston
engine.
Crew: 1.
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PERFORMANCE
Maximum speed: 331 mph.
Cruising speed: 206 mph.
Range: 1,000 nm.
Service Ceiling: 32,808 ft.
SPECIFICATIONS (A6M5)
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Mitsubishi A7M:
A7M Reppu "(Sam) "The Mitsubishi A7M Reppu (Hurricane) single-seat carrier-based fighter was intended by the famous aircraft designer Jiro Horikoshi to be the successor to the A6M Zero-sen fighter.
Even as early as 1940, Jiro Horikoshi was fully aware that he had better start working on the successor to his fabulous Zero fighter. He envisaged an aircraft similar in overall configuration to the Zero but utilizing the much more powerful Mitsubishi NK9A eighteen-cylinder air-cooled radial engine, which was then under development. A 17-Shi specification for the aircraft was issued by the Japanese Navy on July 6, 1942. A maximum speed of 379 mph at 19,685 feet was called for, and the maneuverability was to be at least equal to that of the A6M3 Model 32.
However, In September of 1942 the Japanese Navy insisted that the aircraft be designed around the less-powerful Nakajima NK9K Homare 22 radial. Since the Navy signed the checks, Horikoshi reluctantly agreed.
The first prototype was given the designation A7M1. Work on the A7M1 proceeded relatively slowly at Mitsubishi, since higher priority had to be given to later versions of the A6M and the J2M. The Nakajima NK9K Homare 22 radial offered 2000 hp for takeoff and 1570 hp at 22,000 feet. Armament consisted of two 13.2-mm machine guns and two 20-mm cannon, all mounted in the wings. Innovations such as self-sealing fuel tanks, cockpit armor, and a bulletproof windshield were provided. In the pursuit of better maneuverability, a set of combat flaps much like those fitted to the Kawanishi N1K1-J Shiden (Allied code name George) were fitted. The A7M1 was a considerably larger and heavier aircraft than the A6M5 Model 52, with a wingspan of 45 feet 11 3/16 inches, a wing area of 332 square feet, and a loaded weight of almost 10,000 pounds.
The A7M1 prototype flew for the first time on May 6, 1944, test pilot Eisaku Shibamaya being at the controls. Test pilots reported that the A7M1 handled extremely well, and that the use of the combat flaps made the A7M1 just as maneuverable as the Zero. However, they also reported that the aircraft was significantly underpowered for its weight. The Homare 22 delivered only 1300 hp at 19,685 against a calculated rating of 1700 hp, and at this altitude maximum speed was only about 350 mph. In retrospect, Horikoshi was right. Because of its disappointing high-altitude performance, on July 30, 1944 the Navy ordered that further work on the A7M1 be suspended after the second prototype had been built.
Soon after this, the Japanese Navy authorized Horikoshi to begin work on the A7M2 version. This was to be powered by the Mitsubishi MK9A radial, which was the engine that Horikoshi had wanted all along. The MK9A had a larger diameter than the Homare 22, which required a complete redesign of the forward fuselage. The first A7M2 prototype flew on October 13, 1944, and initial tests indicated that high altitude performance was much better, with maximum speed being 390 mph at 21,655 feet. Service ceiling was 35,760 feet and an altitude of 19,685 feet could be reached in 6 minutes 7 seconds. The armament consisted of four wing-mounted 20-mm cannon.
The Navy was quite pleased with the performance of Horikoshi's new fighter, and plans were initiated for immediate production of the A7M2 as the Navy Carrier Fighter Reppu Model 22 at Mitsubishi's plant at Nagoya and at the Nankai Works in Osaka. Production aircraft were to have been armed with either four 20-mm Type 99 Model 2 cannon or two 20-mm Type 99 Model 2 cannon and two 13.2-mm Type
SPECIFICATIONS
Span: 45 feet 11 3/16 inches.
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Weight: 10,000 pounds (loaded).
Armament: two 13.2-mm machine guns and two 20-mm cannon, all mounted in the wings.
Engine: Nakajima NK9K Homare 22 radial.
Crew:
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PERFORMANCE
Maximum speed: 379 mph.
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Service Ceiling: 19,685 feet.
