Ki-46 discussion

[tomo pauk]

In order not do de-rail another thread, a question or two here. Like - how any of them were intercepted/downed by Allied aircraft? Was there any AA kill? Actually confirmed kills?

Hopefully some kind soul will delete the part I've bolded from Wikipedia:
To solve the performance problems, Mitsubishi fitted Ha-102 engines, which were Ha-26s fitted with a two-stage supercharger, while increasing fuel capacity and reducing empty weight to give the Ki-46-II, flying in March 1941.

 

[Shortround6]

Some were shot down but even a P-38 needs advanced warning and a fair amount of luck to catch it.

 

[Denniss]

2-stage was nonsense, 2-speed is correct

 

[Schweik]

There was one or two shot down by a P-40, a few by P-38, I think some by Corsairs and a couple shot down by Spitfire Mk VIII but it seems to have been considered a major accomplishment when they got one regardless.

 

[Ivon]

In Oct. 25, 1942, a Ki-46 was shot down by ROCAF P-43. This was also the first battle of P-43 in China.

 

[pinsog]

Some were shot down but even a P-38 needs advanced warning and a fair amount of luck to catch it.

Really? That is actually a big surprise to me. I had no idea that the Ki-46 was that fast.

How did it compare head to head with a Mosquito?

 

[MiTasol]

Think of a Beech 18 size aircraft with a narrower much more streamlined fuselage and engines that put out some 950hp at about 20,000 ft. Now add a super clean finish with all panel lines filled and sanded and all glass fitted so there are no steps in the airflow. Aerodynamically the finish is something like modern fibreglass aircraft.

 

[Schweik]

Really? That is actually a big surprise to me. I had no idea that the Ki-46 was that fast.

How did it compare head to head with a Mosquito?

Depended on the models, Ki-46-III was close but not quite as swift as the fastest mossies, at around 390 mph. Mosquito also had a higher cruise speed which was what really mattered on those long flights.

It's not just the speed though the issue is with a recon plane flying by at high altitude, you have to get up to altitude, complete an intercept vector, and then run it down before it gets too far away. So if you have a Ki-46 spotted as it's flying over a base, and it's at 35,000 ft and opens up the taps to 370- 380 mph, that is a difficult combination of speed and altitude, plus vector, to get to before it's out of sight or flies into a cloud etc.

 

[Schweik]

in other words while climbing you are going maybe 100 mph slower (and that is assuming a shallow, high-speed climb). Once you get up to altitude, during which time of 10 or 15 minutes it may have gotten 40 or 50 miles further away from you (or more), so even with a 10 or 20 mph speed advantage, you have a long chase on your hands (and pushing your engine pretty hard, during which time it may fail). The window often closed before they could pull it off. However I do think by late 1943 the successful interceptions seemed more common, even with slower planes like P-40s. They would often lighten a fighter for the purpose, do what they could the prep the engine, reduce guns and fuel, and plan out the whole interception carefully.

Once you have Mustangs and later model Corsairs that can really pour on the coal and have more like a 30 or 40 mph speed advantage interception is much more likely.

 

[nuuumannn]

Think of a Beech 18 size aircraft with a narrower much more streamlined fuselage and engines that put out some 950hp at about 20,000 ft. Now add a super clean finish with all panel lines filled and sanded and all glass fitted so there are no steps in the airflow. Aerodynamically the finish is something like modern fibreglass aircraft.

Not quite as beautifully smooth as a glass fibre aircraft, but sleek it definitely is.

Ki-46 1

Ki-46 2

Ki-46 4

Ki-46 6

A little snippet of information of interest, the first Japanese aircraft shot down over Singapore was a Ki-46, claimed on 10 January 1942 by two New Zealand pilots, Sgts Bert Wipiti and Charlie Kronk, both flying Brewster Buffaloes with 243 Sqn, RAF. The Ki-46 was from the 81st Independent Chutai.

 

[Schweik]

Beautiful! Where is that Ki-46 located? I didn't know there were any survivors...

 

[buffnut453]

Beautiful! Where is that Ki-46 located? I didn't know there were any survivors...

RAF Museum Cosford.

 

[fubar57]

A great book for details, they must have photographed it by the square inch...

 

[Kevin J]

A great book for details, they must have photographed it by the square inch...

View attachment 561111​

I must go there again one day.

 

[MiTasol]

The K-46-II wreck I saw had a much better surface finish than that even after laying in the bush for some thirty years

 

[Schweik]

RAF Museum Cosford.

Have to put that one on the bucket list, do they have a lot of other cool stuff?

 

[nuuumannn]

do they have a lot of other cool stuff?

Lots of other cool stuff. Bf 109, Fw 190, Me 262, Ju 88, Boulton Paul Defiant, Mosquito, Ki-100, Ohka, Me 163, Me 410, and that's all in the same hangar.

Me 410

A great book for details, they must have photographed it by the square inch...

I did an exterior walkaround of the Ki-46, but unfortunately was not allowed to access the interior.

 

[buffnut453]

Lots of other cool stuff. Bf 109, Fw 190, Me 262, Ju 88, Boulton Paul Defiant, Mosquito, Ki-100, Ohka, Me 163, Me 410, and that's all in the same hangar.

View attachment 561132Me 410



I did an exterior walkaround of the Ki-46, but unfortunately was not allowed to access the interior.

And then there's the postwar stuff, including the incredible prototype/trials airframes: TSR2, SR53, Bristol 188, P1A (and B), Fairey Delta 2, Kestrel, Prone Meteor and many more.

Also, there's a Pucara captured during the Falklands War (and test flown in the UK)

Also, you can't miss the infamous Whistling Wheelbarrow...the Argosy.

 

[nuuumannn]

Also, you can't miss the infamous Whistling Wheelbarrow...the Argosy.

If only you could! I posted a few images from Cosford in my UK tour thread last year: Nuuumannn's UK Tour of 2018

For fear of turning this into a RAFM Cosford thread, on the night of 21 November 1944, Capt John Jay Wilfong and his R/O Lt Glenn Ashley, flying P-61A-10 42-5615 "I'll get By" shot down a Ki-46 acquired on radar through GCI first then their own set.

 

[Schweik]

The K-46-II wreck I saw had a much better surface finish than that even after laying in the bush for some thirty years

I don't know the history of this specific aircraft, but I think a lot of these planes in museums (and some flying warbirds) have been rebuilt with parts from various planes and some fabricated, and maybe not as tight as an actual wartime plane. Some planes in the war would have been rough too but you also read about specific efforts especially where speed is extra important to tighten up all the panels, putty the seams, sand the pant and grind down protrusions. This kind of things could give you 10-20mph.

Very impressive that a pair of Buffalos got one of these. Anyone know the details of that interception?