Kawasaki Ki-45
| Kawasaki Ki-45 "Toryu" | |
|---|---|
 Kawasaki Ki-45 KAIc |
|
| Type: | Fighter plane |
| Design country: | |
| Manufacturer: | |
| First flight: |
May 1941 |
| Commissioning: |
October 1941 |
| Production time: |
1941 to 1945 |
| Number of pieces: |
1701 |
The Kawasaki Ki-45 "Toryu" (屠龍, "Dragon Slayer") was a twin-engine, two-seat fighter aircraft of the Imperial Japanese Army in World War II . The army gave it the designation "Type 2 two-seat fighter aircraft", the Allied code name was "Nick".
background
In 1937, in response to the increased occurrence of heavy twin-engine fighters - so-called destroyers - such as the Messerschmitt Bf 110 in Europe, the Japanese army ordered the development of its own two-seat, twin-engine fighter aircraft and gave the design by Kawasaki the designation Ki-38. This designation was only retained until the first dummy . In December the construction of an airworthy model aircraft with the designation Ki-45 was ordered. This took off on its maiden flight in January 1939. However, the results of the test flights fell short of the army's expectations. The Nakajima-Ha-20 -Otsu engines were too inefficient and also prone to errors, while the fuselage tended to stall.
The Ki-45 was not used in this form, but the army continued to insist on a twin-engine fighter aircraft and asked Kawasaki for further development. Kawasaki responded by replacing the engines with the tried and tested Nakajima Ha-25 . The subsequent flight attempts were promising.
In October 1940, further improvements were ordered, including a switch to the 805 kW Mitsubishi Ha-102 engines and the use of wings from the Kawasaki Ki-48. The aircraft modified in this way with the designation Ki-45 Kai was completed in September 1941 and finally put into service by the army as a “Type 2 two-seat fighter” from February 1942.
Mission history
The Ki-45 was initially used as a long-range escort fighter. In June 1942 attacks on Guilin were flown with Ki-45s , where they encountered the superior P-40s of the Flying Tigers . In September of the same year they also met P-40 via Hanoi , with a similar result. This made it clear that the Ki-45 could not hold its own against single-engine fighters in aerial combat.
Then it was used in various places as an interceptor, attack aircraft against ground and ship targets and for naval defense. Its suitability as an interceptor against bombers turned out to be its greatest strength . In New Guinea , the Air Force of the Imperial Japanese Army used the Ki-45, heavily armed with one 37 mm and two 20 mm cannons and two 250 kg bombs under the wings, to combat ships. In total, 1701 Ki-45s of all versions were built during the war.
The first version ( Ko ), which went into production, was equipped with two 12.7 mm machine guns in the bow , a 20 mm cannon under the fuselage and a movable 7.92 mm machine gun in the rear cockpit . It was followed by the Otsu , in which the 20-mm guns were exchanged for a 37-mm anti-tank gun for combating B-17 bombers. The enormous firepower that resulted was bought at the cost of the manual reloading required for this cannon with a low rate of fire of only two rounds per minute. The next version ( Hei ) therefore received the 20 mm cannon under the fuselage as well as a 37 mm cannon in the bow that was now automatically reloading. Later, instead of the 20 mm cannon under the fuselage, a two-barrel 20 mm cannon was installed behind the cockpit.
Soon after commissioning, the Ki-45 was assigned to Home Defense, and some were assigned but not deployed for use against the Doolittle Raid . The heavy armament proved effective against the attacks with the B-29 Superfortress that began in June 1944 ; However, the Ki-45s were barely able to reach the B-29, which were flying at an altitude of around 10,000 m. Modifications, such as reducing the fuel supply or reducing armament, were of little use. Finally one went over to ramming operations. In 1945 some successes against nocturnal bombers could be achieved with the forward and upward pointing weapons, but the lack of radars made things very difficult. The career of the Ki-45 ended in the spring of 1945 with the appearance of the American carrier aircraft and the P-51 stationed on Iwo Jima , which escorted the B-29 over Japan.
The machines of the next version, the Kawasaki Ki-45 KAIc, were specially developed for night fighters , in which a radar should be installed in the bow tip. However, problems in production prevented this. Four "Sentai" were still equipped with this version in order to defend the Japanese home islands in night operations from autumn 1944 until the end of the war. They achieved good results. With a Sentai, eight B-29s were shot down on its first mission and 150 more aerial victories were achieved.
Versions
- Ki-45 prototypes
- Ki-45 Type 1 (modified machines for use)
- Ki-45 KAI prototypes
- Ki-45 KAI - pre-series
- Ki-45 KAIa Toryu - Army two-seat fighter Type 2, base model of the series
- Ki-45 KAIb - version against land or ship targets; Mitsubishi Ha 102 engines (780 kW).
- Ki-45 KAIc - modified model-b night fighter, with a Ho-203-37-mm cannon under the fuselage, two fixed Ho-5-20-mm cannons in the back of the fuselage and a Type-89-7.92- mm machine gun in the rear cockpit.
- Ki-45 KAId - version against ship targets, two forward-facing 20 mm and one 37 mm cannon, a 7.92 mm machine gun in the rear cockpit.
- Ki-45 II (project only) - like the experimental Ki-96 prototype.
Total production: 1701 pieces
Technical specifications
| Parameter | Data from the Ki-45 Kai |
|---|---|
| crew | 2 |
| length | 11.00 m |
| span | 15.02 m |
| Wing area | 32.00 m² |
| height | 3.70 m |
| Empty mass | 4000 kg |
| Takeoff mass | 5500 kg |
| Wing loading | 171.9 kg / m² |
| Top speed | 540 km / h |
| Service ceiling | 10,000 m |
| Rate of climb | 11.7 m / s |
| Range | 2000 km |
| Engines | two 14-cylinder radial engines Mitsubishi Ha-102 , 727 kW (988 PS) |
| Power / mass ratio | 0.26 kW / kg |
Armament
- Ko : 1 × 20 mm, 2 × 12.7 mm, 2 × 7.92 mm
- Hei : 1 × 37 mm, 1 × 20 mm, 1 × 7.92 mm
- Cho : 1 × 37 mm, 2 × 20 mm
Preserved copies
_Type_2_Toryu_(Dragon_Killer)_NICK.jpg)
A wingless fuselage fragment of a Ki-45 is on display in the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center of the National Air and Space Museum in Washington Dulles International Airport , Virginia .
See also
Web links
