Description
In 1937,
when the military philosophy shifted from light combat combatism to high-speed hit-and-run tactics, the Army began emphasizing speed, climbing power, and sudden descent performance,
around the same time as the prototype of the light combat Ki-43 was issued. Instructions were given to Nakajima to create a prototype of the high-speed heavy fighter Ki-44.
Nakajima selected a high-output engine to satisfy the army's requirements
, and decided on the Ha-41, which had a large diameter but had the highest output at the time.As a result,
the nose was thickened
and the main wing area was increased to increase speed. Nakajima
's unique butterfly-shaped flaps were used on the trailing edges of the main wings
to improve performance during air combat and takeoff and landing.
As a result of the test, pilots accustomed to Type 97 fighter jets were confused by poor visibility during takeoff and landing and poor stability at low speeds, and the
aircraft did not receive a good reputation.
However, when comparing the performance with the Bf-109E and Kawasaki Ki-60,
the Ki-44 was superior, so it
was officially adopted as a Type 2 single-seat fighter in 1944
, and was later given the common name "Shoki".
The aircraft equipped with the Ha-41 was distinguished from the Type 2 single-seat fighter Type 1,
and the aircraft equipped with the more powerful engine Ha-109
was distinguished from the Type 2 single-seat fighter Type 2.
In addition, Type 2 is divided into Types A, Otsu, and C depending on their armament and equipment, and a
total of 1,227 of each type were produced between 1945 and 1944, and
were used for air defense missions to intercept enemy bombers. did.
[Data] Type 2 single-seat fighter Type II
Crew: 1 person
Overall width: 9.448m
Overall length: 8.843m
Overall height: 3.248m (horizontal)
Complete weight: 2,764kg
Maximum speed: 605km/h Altitude 5,200m
Cruising speed: 400km/h Altitude 4,000m
Engine: Ha-109
Takeoff power: 1,520hp
Armament: 12.7mm cannon x 2 (fuselage), 40mm cannon x 2 (main wing), bomb 30kg to 100kg x 2
