Mitsubishi Ki-51

Ki-51
Mitsubishi Ki-51
Role	light bomber/dive bomber
Manufacturer	Mitsubishi Jukogyo KK
First flight	mid-1939
Primary user	Imperial Japanese Army Air Force
Number built	2,385

The Mitsubishi Ki-51 (Army designation "Type 99 Assault Plane". Allied nickname "Sonia") was a light bomber/dive bomber in service with the Imperial Japanese Army during World War II. It first flew in mid-1939. Initially deployed against Chinese forces, it proved to be too slow to hold up against the fighter aircraft of the other Allied powers. However, it performed a useful ground-attack role in the China-Burma-India theater, notably from airfields too rough for many other aircraft. As the war drew to a close, they began to be used in kamikaze attacks. Total production was around 2,385 units.

On the day Hiroshima was destroyed by an atomic bomb, two Ki-51s scored the last Japanese sinking of a US warship, sinking USS Bullhead (SS-332) with all hands.

Charles Lindbergh, flying a P-38 Lightning shot down a Ki-51 after a vigorous dogfight in which the much slower Ki-51 utilized its low speed maneuverability and made a fight of it.

Data from Japanese Aircraft of the Pacific War

General characteristics

Performance

Armament

...
Wikipedia