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Saturday 1 April 2023
Quiz #4
Can you identify the aircraft and more importantly the unit in the photo?
4 comments:
Michael Furry
said...
Hello George, Could it be a NIKI-J Shiden? The trim tab control rod and rear navigation light cutout closely match NIKI-J drawings and photos. The lighter shade of color underneath the horizontal stabilizer also matches NIKI-J paint scheme as depicted in photos in FAOW #53. I can't see the tail wheel, I guess it has collapsed? At first I thought it could be NIKI Rex, but Rex does not have a navigation light cut out in rear fuselage as shown in your photo. I think NIKI-J is a better guess. As for the unit, I have no idea.
Hi George, I'm in full agreement with Mike regarding the identificatio, I also believe that it is an N1K1-J. The tail shape appears to rule out N1K2-J and the position of the tail light would rule out an N1K1, I believe. It's interesting to see the white border of the Hinomaru is absent. As for the unit, "Oh" or "Otsu" and "S" is not a combination that I recall. I can only think of the 402nd Hikotai (of the 341 Kokutai) using an "S". I have seen the "Otsu" character on the tail of an N1K1... but I'm thoroughly confused. A great photo to test us with George.
4 comments:
Hello George,
Could it be a NIKI-J Shiden? The trim tab control rod and rear navigation light cutout closely match NIKI-J drawings and photos. The lighter shade of color underneath the horizontal stabilizer also matches NIKI-J paint scheme as depicted in photos in FAOW #53. I can't see the tail wheel, I guess it has collapsed? At first I thought it could be NIKI Rex, but Rex does not have a navigation light cut out in rear fuselage as shown in your photo. I think NIKI-J is a better guess. As for the unit, I have no idea.
Mike
N1K1-J of the Omura Naval Air Group
Hi George,
I'm in full agreement with Mike regarding the identificatio, I also believe that it is an N1K1-J. The tail shape appears to rule out N1K2-J and the position of the tail light would rule out an N1K1, I believe. It's interesting to see the white border of the Hinomaru is absent.
As for the unit, "Oh" or "Otsu" and "S" is not a combination that I recall. I can only think of the 402nd Hikotai (of the 341 Kokutai) using an "S". I have seen the "Otsu" character on the tail of an N1K1... but I'm thoroughly confused. A great photo to test us with George.
N1K1-Jb from Omura Kokutai
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