Kawasaki Ki-61
| Ki-61 "Hien" | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Role | Fighter aircraft |
| Manufacturer | Kawasaki Kōkūki Kōgyō K.K. |
| Designer | Takeo Doi |
| First flight | December 1941 |
| Introduction | 1942 |
| Retired | 1945 |
| Primary users |
Imperial Japanese Army Air Service Chinese Nationalist Air Force People's Liberation Army Air Force |
| Number built | 3,078 |
| Developed into | Kawasaki Ki-100 |
The Kawasaki Ki-61 Hien (飛燕, "flying swallow") is a Japanese World War II fighter aircraft used by the Imperial Japanese Army Air Service. The Japanese Army designation was "Army Type 3 Fighter" (三式戦闘機). Allied pilots initially believed Ki-61s were Messerschmitt Bf 109s and later an Italian aircraft, which led to the Allied reporting name of "Tony", assigned by the United States War Department. It was the only mass-produced Japanese fighter of the war to use a liquid-cooled inline V engine. Over 3,000 Ki-61s were produced. Initial prototypes saw action over Yokohama during the Doolittle Raid on 18 April 1942, and continued to fly combat missions throughout the war.
The Ki-61 was designed by Takeo Doi and his deputy Shin Owada in response to a late 1939 tender by the Koku Hombu for two fighters, each to be built around the Daimler-Benz DB 601Aa. Production aircraft would use a Kawasaki licensed DB 601, known as the Ha-40, which was to be manufactured at its Akashi plant. The Ki-60 was to be a heavily armed specialised interceptor, with a high wing loading; the Ki-61 was to be a more lightly loaded and armed general-purpose fighter, intended to be used mainly in an offensive, air superiority role at low to medium altitudes.
Both single-seat, single-engine fighters used the same basic construction, being of all-metal alloys with semi-monocoque fuselages and three-spar wings, with alloy-framed, fabric-covered ailerons, elevators and rudders. Priority was given to the Ki-60, which first flew in April 1941, while design work on the Ki-61 did not begin until December 1940. Although the Ki-61 was broadly similar to the Ki-60, it featured several refinements exploiting lessons learned from the disappointing flight characteristics of the earlier design.
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