Japanese Aircraft Online Model Contest 014 - ALEX MELIKIAN

Name: Alex Melikian
Country: UAE
Model Scale: 1:72
Kit Manufacturer: Hasegawa

 

IJAAF & IJNAF wrecked aircraft #9 - Kawanishi N1K "Shiden" (George)

The last clip in this series features a Kawanishi N1K "Shiden" (George) found in pretty bad condition on Tokunoshima. As before US troops were no very comfortable with the aircraft sitting around with its cannons intact and I think they used thermite grenades to destroy them.

The full tail marking is not clearly visible to identify with absolute certainty the unit the fighter belonged to.

As in the previous post, in Martin Ferkl's Japanese WWII Aircraft In Colour (REVI publications) there is a color photo of the same aircraft. Unfortunately the location has been identified as "probably the Phlippines" and I believe that Martin deduced that the unit is the 762Ku. 

A part of the tail marking on the starboard side is visible; "XX2-56". The "56" part can be confirmed as it is repeated on the port wheel cover and note that there is a hyphen after the "2".

The tail marking on the more heavily damaged port side is more confusing. The numbers "54" are visible, but no "2" or any other number. AFAIK there is no 542Ku so the marking numbers present a problem. 

There is another explanation as to why we see the "54" on the port side of the tail. Perhaps it was the serial number which became visible when the paint and the unit marking were burned or destroyed in some other way. Kimura-san in his brilliant pamphlet that accompanied the old "Wingart" decal series, explains that "Shiden" manufactured at the Naruo factory, Hyogo Prefecture, (serial numbers 5251~5550) were delivered with the tail pattern below.

As a result, we concluded that we can only be sure about the yellow number "2-" as part of the tail number. The only unit we could find equipped with "Shiden" and a tail marking ending with a "2" is the 132Ku which was organized on February 5, 1945 in Tainan, Taiwan as a reconnaissance unit. On April 17 the unit relocated to Hsinchu, Taiwan to fly reconnaissance missions and to confirm the results of attacks against the U.S. Fleet during the Okinawa campaign. Akimoto mentions that the unit was equipped with Nakajima C6N "Saiun" (Myrt), Yokosuka D4Y "Suisei" (Judy) and..."Shiden".  

There is also the possibility that the particular aircraft belonged to some unknown hikotai or kogekitai but highly unlikely an unknown kokutai.

And last but not least, HERE is the link to the whole video of the series, courtesy of the US National Archives, where you can also see "Shinyo" suicide motor boats and their base.

We hope you liked this series. More videos to follow. Stay tuned.

IJAAF & IJNAF wrecked aircraft #8 - Nakajima Ki-43 "Hayabusa" (Oscar)

The clip today was shot at Tokunoshima airfield and features a Nakajima Ki-43 "Hayabusa" (Oscar) Model 2 Otsu. 

Unfortunately the full tail marking is not visible and the unit, AFAIK, has not been identified.

 

In Martin Ferkl's Japanese WWII Aircraft In Colour (REVI publications), a book that should not be missing from the bookshelf of Japanese aviation enthusiasts, there is a beautiful photo of the same aircraft in color.

IJAAF & IJNAF wrecked aircraft #7 - Nakajima Ki-84 "Hayate" (Frank)

The first video today starts with a flight over the badly pockmarked Kikaijima airfield. On the far side, we can see the three aircraft (Ida, Nate, Judy) of a previous video and the remains of the 60 Sentai "Hiryu".

Hidden inside an earthen entaigo (revetment), though is a pretty derelict Nakajima Ki-84 "Hayate" (Frank) which I believe belongs to the 102 Sentai. For more about the unit take a look at our past post HERE. It seems the U.S. forces were not very comfortable leaving the aircraft at peace and they set it on fire.  

IJAAF & IJNAF wrecked aircraft #6 - Various

The aircraft in the video clip today are a bit difficult.

First of all the fighter in the foreground is a "Hayabusa" (Oscar). The 3-blade propeller and the multi exhausts indicate that it's a Model 2 Kai. Unfortunately, no tail marking is visible. Note the unusually thick IFF lines.

We have more information about the aircraft behind it, but it's still a bit mysterious. The tail marking is "931-21" and is a Nakajima B6N "Tenzan" (Jill) equipped with "3-Shiki Type 3 air-to-surface radar" (a.k.a. H-6 Dentan or Ku6go Dentan). The tail number would indicate that the unit the plane belonged to was the 931Ku.

The unit was organized on February 1, 1944, to train crews and maintain airplanes for escort aircraft carriers and for anti-submarine patrol missions. The unit was  mainly equipped with Nakajima B5N "Kate" and "Tenzan" but also trainers. During the Okinawa campaign, they flew night torpedo attacks against enemy ships.

The problem is, according to all Japanese sources, the 931Ku used the tail marking "KEB". So, either they changed the unit marking during Okinawa (more probable) or the aircraft belonged to an unknown attack unit (kogeki-tai) (less probable). 

The last aircraft in the video with the partial tail marking "71" is rather difficult to identify. Any ideas?

IJAAF & IJNAF wrecked aircraft #5 - Mitsubishi Ki-67 "Hiryu" (Peggy)

The short clip today features a Mitsubishi Ki-67 "Hiryu" (Peggy) found on Kikaijima Island together with the aircraft we saw in previous posts. This time the tail marking is clearly visible so we can say without any doubt that it bellonged to the 60 Sentai, 3rd Chutai as indicated by the yellow band on the tail.

The unit changed to "Hiryu" in November 1944 and from the end of March 1945 was based in Kengun airfield which was close to present-day Kumamoto Airport. From there they took part in the Okinawa campaign and in all probability the bomber in the clip had to make an emergency landing on Kikaijima island.

IJAAF & IJNAF wrecked aircraft #4 - Tachikawa Ki-36 "Ida" & Nakajima Ki-27 "Nate"

This next short film features two of my most favorite IJAAF types, a Tachikawa Ki-36 "Ida" ground attack and co-operation and a Nakajima Ki-27 "Nate" fighter (or is it a Mansyu Ki-79? What do you think?) found on Kikaijima Island, right next to the "Suisei" of the previous post. Unfortunately, their tail markings are not visible and therefore their units cannot be discerned.

Note the RED IFF stripes on the Ki-36, not unusual for an aircraft in overall hairyokushoku. Of course I can already hear the voices saying that it's "dark orange yellow" or that the film is panchromatic or that there is a small cloud right above the plane when the film was shot...yada yada. 

Anyway, here's the video.

We reserved a whole page in our Eagle Eye #1, explaining the differences between the Ki-36 direct cooperation and the Ki-55 trainer and how to tell the two types apart but it seems there are still people who don't get it.

So, in a nutshell, here they are:

1. 

The Ki-36s were ALWAYS overall hairyokushoku because that's how they left the factory.

The Ki-55s were ALWAYS trainer orange, again, because that's how they left the factory.

Yes, both types received camouflage on the upper surfaces, in most cases at the depot, so it's difficult to tell them apart if they have green top camo. Which brings us to...

2. 

The Ki-55s ALWAYS had their cowlings (and almost always the spats) painted in anti-glare, some say dark blue or brown, I strongly believe it was semi-gloss black. The same with all other IJAAF a/c with anti-glare pannels (I'm talking about the color, not the glossiness).

The Ki-36s NEVER had their cowling or legs painted in anti-glare, just like "Sonia" never had. 

So, yes, the Ki-55 trainer in the Bangkok museum should have its cowling painted black. There is actually a photo, which I will not share here, showing exactly the same a/c after the war with a black cowling.

3. 

The Ki-36s ALWAYS had windows on the fuselage sides for the machine gunner to take photos from.

The Ki-55s NEVER had fuselage side windows because the rear pilot could face only forward where the second set of controls was.

4. 

The Ki-36s almost always had radio antennas. The planes that didn't, usually had them removed.

The Ki-55s almost never had radio antennas.

5. 

The Ki-55s never had any bomb racks or rear flexible machine guns.

6. 

The presence or absence of spats is NOT indicative of the type. There are many, many Ki-55s with spats and many, many Ki-36s without. Why do I mention this? Because Francillon on p.252 says:

"All unnecessary equipment was removed to conserve weight, as were the observation windows under the fuselage and the wheel spats. Designated Ki-55, the trainer was adopted..." Note that he doesn't mention the fuselage side windows.

IJAAF & IJNAF wrecked aircraft #3 - Yokosuka D4Y3 Model 33 "Suisei" (Judy)

Another video today featuring a beautiful Yokosuka D4Y3 Model 33 "Suisei" (Judy) found wrecked on the island of Kikaijima the airfield of which was often used as an emergency landing option for both IJAAF and IJNAF pilots during operations against Okinawa.

In the still below showing the port side of the aircraft, the very first number of the unit tail marking is a "2" followed by two indiscernible numbers and the first number of the individual aircraft "6". So the tail marking must have been "2XX-6X".

The still showing the starboard side is less clear, but since the tail marking were written from rear to front a number which is probably a "2" followed by the previously mentioned "6" can be discerned.

This would make the marking as "2X2-6X".

There were three IJNAF units equipped with "Suisei" their marking started with a "2"; the 201Ku, the 210Ku and the 252Ku.

The 201Ku was organized in December 1942 as a fighter unit. During the battle of the Philippines in October 1944 the Kogeki 105 equipped with "Suisei" was only temporarily attached to the unit. According to Akimoto, the tail marking of 201Ku was a "01-". So, we can safely exclude this unit.

The 210Ku was organized in September 1944 as a trainer unit with a variety of aircraft types. and from December 1944 participated in the defence of the Kansai area, but from March 1945 they became a battle unit involved in the Okinawa operations and were based in south Kyushu. By the end of the mounth, though they returned to their original Meiji base, in Aichi prefecture. From May 5 became an exclusively fighter unit. Akimoto mentions that the unit marking was "210-". Although they briefly took part in the Okinawa ops, we can safely exclude this unit too. 

The last and most possible unit is the 252Ku which was organized in September 1942 based on the Genzan Kokutai. In March 1945 the Kogeki 3 unit equipped with "Suisei" was attached to the unit, half of which relocated to Kyushu to provide escort for tokko missions. Akimoto mentions that the unit marking was "252-".

From the 252Ku a tokko unit was organized called "Dai 3 Mitate-tai" (can be translated as "protectors of the Emperor") equipped with Zero-sen and "Suisei" based in Kokubu, Kagoshima Prefecture, south Kyushu. 

The "Suisei" of the unit flew on April 3rd (2 a/c), 6th (4 a/c), 11th (3 a/c) and 17th (4 a/c) attacking the enemy combined fleet in the Amamioshima area, except on the 6th when three "Suisei" attacked enemy forces in Okinawa's Naha.

So, from this information we can conclude that the unit that in all probability best fits the time and place is indeed the 252Ku. Perhaps the aircraft in the video had mechanical problems and made an emergency landing on Kikaijima where it was found by U.S. forces at the end of the war.

IJAAF & IJNAF wrecked aircraft #2 - Ordnance & Aichi E16A "Zuiun" (Paul)

The videos today were taken on the island of Amami Oshima and the first features an assortment of IJNAF ordnance, including cluster bombs. Then there are plenty of Navy Type 1 7.9mm flexible machine guns (licence copy of the German MG 15) that were installed on later types of IJNAF aircraft and curiously some Lewis guns normally installed on Japanese ships, not aircraft.

Finally, we can indulge ourselves on very rare footage of a wrecked Aichi E16A "Zuiun" (Paul) seaplane as well as one more seaplane of unknown type; maybe another "Zuiun" or a "Jake".

Enjoy!

IJAAF & IJNAF wrecked aircraft #1 - Showa L2D "Tabby"

The first video in this series features a quite wrecked Showa L2D "Tabby" found on Tokunoshima, at the end of the war. Unfortunately no tail marking is visible. Also, plenty of junk lying around like engines etc.

Will post the source of the video at the end of the series.

Enjoy!