Recent content by Jeffrey Ethell Collection

Yep, those step handles come in handy if you are not particularly tall. Why did US and British designs not have step handles for air crew to clamber into cockpits and observer positions? Moky

That is quite a historic set of photos of the crew of I-29 on their arrival at Lorient, France and stay there from 11 March-15 April 1944. The Commander and his crew were fetetd by Kriegsmarine officers including Admiral Karl Dönitz and Cdr Kinashi was presented with the Iron Cross 2nd class by...

Thanks Cammerjeff, The photos refreshed my memory. I would love to dive the Fujikawa Maru wreck just to see the remains of the claude in situ. Here are the full set from Pacificwrecks.com https://pacificwrecks.com/aircraft/a5m4/fujikawa/index.html Moky

Thanks GrauGeist, I vaguely remember something about this crated A5M Claude still in the hold of a sunken Maru in Chuuk lagoon. Can't find the document I would have created if it were true. That is not to say it isn't true just I can't verify at the moment. Do have info about a couple of...

The Mitusbishi A5M Kansen (Claude) has to be the most beautiful aircraft ever designed. Sorry I have to relegate the Supermarine Spitfire to 2nd place when it comes to beautiful aircraft designs. Designed by a barely out of his youth Mitsubishi Chief Engineer HORIKOSHI Jiro, it is such a...

Here is the CinCPOA Recognition data and silohuette for the Yokosuka D4Y3 M33 Judy dive bomber. Note the mid mount wing root which doesn't seem evident in the photo of the wreck. The reason I previously said it was either a Nakajima C6N Saiun reconnaissance plane or a Nakajima B6N Tenzan...

GUYS! No not any of the above. I need to give you a fairly elementary lesson in J-Aircraft recognition. Long nose means Nakajima Homare engine. So eithei a C6N Saiun or B6N Tenzan. I would go for it being a TENZAN. Moky for JEC

Before you get too far into describing and analysing the various aerospace projects the IJAAF & IJNAF were working on late war you have to understand the mindset of the Koku Hombu, who would issue specifications for new aircraft types for manufacturers to design and build prototypes for...

Thanks Shinpachi, If that is the only record of air to ground combat involving 104 Hiko Sentai Hayates then any mention of air to air encounters can only be speculative at best. Moky for JEC

If you are talking about Ki-84 Hayates in Japanese Army Air Force Service then POSSIBLY subject to confirmation in the JAAF unit's (104 Hiko sentai) Sento KodoShoho (daily combat reports). These records are often missing fom the late war period (post June 1945) as the war situation precluded...

Can you imagine Tiger tanks making their way through the jungles of the South Pacific and the sand and coconut tree lined coral atolls & islands? No, the small light tanks used by the Japanese were perfect for that role. Look at Vietnam, they literally had to lay waste to the jungle with B-52...

Thanks Shinpachi, First Imperial HQ instructions to air units I've seen. Japanese pilots would rather die than disobey orders. So these instructions would have been followed to the letter I assume. Puncturing/flattening the tyres was a popular method. This pair of Navy Type 0 fighters (A6M5...

Thanks Cammerjeff & MiTasol, I guess the airlines and air forces would want to make it pretty hard for anyone either with intent or accidentally, to retract the landing gear of an aircraft on the ground given they cost many tens of millions of dollars. Methinks WWII aircarft may have been a...

Note the chopped props. Gen. Douglas MacArthur's surrender terms prescribed that all Japanese aircraft including unarmed types like transports had to be disabled to prevent retaliatory revenge attacks by rogue pilots. , Needless to say I don't think I heard a single unit or individual pilot...

Sorry have to disagree on that one. In terms of total casualties at the time you are correct. But the number of casualties over the next 20 years due to radiation exposure was far greater (unfortunately).