Flying Heritage Museum: Two World War II Japanese airplanes (photo diary)

by Ojibwa for Kossack Air Force

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Friday, Nov. 29, 2024 Friday, Nov. 29, 2024 at 7:15:02am PST

The Flying Heritage and Combat Armor Museum in Everett, Washington has two World War II Japanese planes.

Mitsubishi A6M3-22 Reisen (Zero)

The A6M is a long-range carrier-based fighter plane. It first flew in 1939 and went into production in 1940. Japanese pilots called the A6Mthe Reisen (零戦, zero fighter), with the “0” being the last digit of the imperial year 2600 when it entered into service with the Imperial Japanese Navy.

According to the Museum:

“Called the ‘Zero’ by the Allies, the A6M could out climb, out turn, and out run almost anything in the air.”

In other words, at the beginning of World War II, the Mitsubishi A6M outclassed every American fighter. It was considered the most capable carrier-based fighter of World War II.

It carried a crew of two and was powered by a Nakajima Sakae 12 14-cylinder radial engine.

The A6M has a top speed of 336 mph, a range of up to 1,477 miles, and a ceiling of 37,250 feet. It was armed with two 7.7mm Type 97 machine guns and two 20mm Type 99 cannons. It could carry two 132 pound bombs.

The Model 22 has a redesigned wing with folding wingtips, increase internal fuel capacity, and an ability to hold drop tanks under each wing.

Nakajima Ki-43-1B Hyabusa (Oscar)

The single-seat Japanese interceptor/fighter Nakajima Ki-43 first flew in 1939 was named Hayabusa (隼) for the Peregrine Falcon, a bird of prey known as a graceful, speedy hunter. Once the Americans entered the war, it was given the Allied code name Oscar. The Nakajima Ki-43 was easy to fly and could outmaneuver its opponents. According to the Museum:

“The plane’s drawbacks were its light construction and small caliber guns. None-the-less, the plane served in combat throughout the Pacific. Later in the war, the planes became the mainstay of the Japanese army’s Kamikaze program.”

The Ki-43 was designed by Hideo Itokawa (1912-1999) who would later become the father of Japan’s space development.

The Hayabusa has a top speed of 308 mph, a range of 745 miles, and a ceiling of 38,500 feet. The IB variant was armed with one 7.7mm Type 89 machine gun and one 12.7mm Ho-103 machine gun. It could carry two 33 kg bombs.

Production of the Hayabusa continued until 1945 and a total of 5,919 were built.

According to the Museum:

“This Ki-43 is the last type-1b Oscar left in the world. While it has been restored to flyable condition and has flown in the past, it may never take to the skies again due to its extreme rarity.”