Mitsubishi Ki-15
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| Ki-15 "Babs" | |
|---|---|
 Mitsubishi Ki-15-II (Army Type 97 Command Reconnaissance Plane) |
|
| Type | Military reconnaissance aircraft, light bomber |
| Manufacturer | Mitsubishi |
| Maiden flight | May 1936 |
| Introduced | May 1937 |
| Retired | 1945 (Japan) 1951 (China) |
| Primary users | IJA Air Force IJN Air Service |
| Number built | approx. 500 |
The Mitsubishi Ki-15 (九七式司令部偵察機 Kyunana-shiki reibu teisatsuki?) was a Japanese reconnaissance aircraft and a light attack bomber of the Second Sino-Japanese War and Pacific War. It began as a fast civilian mail plane. It was a single-engine, low-wing, cantilever monoplane with a fixed tailwheel undercarriage; it carried a crew of two. It served with both the Imperial Japanese Army and Navy (as the C5M). During World War II, it was assigned the code-name "Babs" by the Allies.
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[edit] Design and development
The Ki-15 was designed by the Mitsubishi corporation to meet an Imperial Japanese Army Air Force requirement of 1935 for a two-seat, high speed reconnaissance aircaft.[1] The resulting aircraft was a low winged cantilever monoplane with a fixed, spatted undercarriage, similar to other all-metal stressed-skin monoplanes developed elsewhere in 1930s, such as the Heinkel He 70 and the Northrop Alpha. Power was by a single Nakajima Ha-8 radial engine, giving 750 hp (560 kW) at 4,000 m (13,100 ft). The first prototype flew in May 1936, with testing proving successful, the aircraft meeting all performance requirements, reaching a speed of 481 km/h (299 mph) and showing good handling charcteristics.[1]
During the initial flight testing the Asahi newspaper obtained permission to purchase the second prototype. The aircraft was given the designation Karigane (Wild Goose), flying on 19 March 1937,[1] being named Kamikaze . It was the first Japanese-built airplane to fly to Europe and caused a sensation in 1937 by making the flight between Tokyo and London, for the Coronation of King George VI, between 6 April 1937 and 9 April 1937 in a fligh time of 51 hours, 17 minutes and 23 seconds, a world record at the time.[2] Following the success of the Japan-England flight, a small number of Ki-15s were sold to civil customers. One of the early production aircraft was named "Asakaze" and was also used by the "Asahi Shimbun"; others were used by various civilian operators as mail planes.
Service testing was completed without difficulty and the type was ordered into production under the official designation “Army Type 97 Command Reconnaissance Plane Model 1”. In May 1937, a year after the first flight, delivery of the first of 437 production aircraft to the army began.[1]
[edit] Operational history
The Ki-15-I was almost immediately placed into operational service at the beginning of the war with China in 1937. The aircraft proved useful in the early period of the Second Sino-Japanese War and performed missions deep into Chinese strategic rear areas, as far as reaching Lanzhou. Its high speed gave it a distinct advantage until the Chinese Air Force acquired Soviet Polikarpov I-16 fighters. This aircraft was used for level bombing, close support and photo reconnaissance before being eventually replaced by the Mitsubishi Ki-30.
Plans were already in hand to improve the Ki-15-I, and in September 1939 the Ki-15-II was put into production with the 671 kW (900 hp) Mitsubishi Ha-26-1; the smaller diameter of this both reduced drag and overcame one of the major shortcomings of the initial version: poor forward field of view past the large-diameter of the initial Nakajima Kotobuki engine. The improved version entered production in September 1939 as the Ki-15-II.
The Japanese Navy, impressed by the performance of this aircraft, ordered 20 examples of the Ki-15-II under the designation “Navy Type 98 Reconnaissance Plane Model 1”, or Mitsubishi designation C5M1, even before the Army. The navy acquired subsequently 30 C5M2 aircraft which had an even more powerful 708 kW (950 hp) Nakajima Sakae 12 engine.
In a subsequent upgrade, the army also experimented with an even more powerful engine with 783 kW (1,050 hp) Mitsubishi 102 radial in the Ki-15-III which did not enter production.
When production ended, approximately 500 examples of all versions of the Ki-15 had been built, the majority in first-line service when the Pacific War began. By 1943, the Ki-15 had been relegated to second-line roles, but numbers were expended in kamikaze attacks in the closing stages of World War II.
[edit] Variants
- Karigane I
- Prototype version for civilian use
- Ki-15-I (Army Type 97 Command Reconnaissance Plane Model 1)
- Initial production variant for the Japanese Army
- Ki-15-II (Army Type 97 Command Reconnaissance Plane Model 2)
- Improved Army production version with smaller, more powerful engine
- Ki-15-III
- Proposed upgraded version, did not enter production version
- C5M1 (Navy Type 98 Reconnaissance Plane Model I)
- Improved version of Ki-15-I for the Japanese Navy
- C5M2 (Navy Type 98 Reconnaissance Plane Model 2)
- Upgraded version of C5M2 with more powerful engine for the Japanese Navy
[edit] Operators
[edit] Pre-war
- Imperial Japanese Army Air Force
- Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service
- Various civilian entities, including the Asahi Newspaper
[edit] Post-war
- Chinese Communist Air Force operated an unknown number of captured aircraft. A number of abandoned Ki-15s were captured near Harbin in June 1946, and by 1948, they were completely repaired and entered service as trainers. The last two Ki-15 retired in 1951.
[edit] Specifications (Ki-15-I)
Data from The Concise Guide to Axis Aircraft of World War II[3]
General characteristics
- Crew: 2
- Length: 8.7 m (28 ft 6½.5 in)
- Wingspan: 12.0 m (39 ft 4½.5 in)
- Height: 3.35 m (11 ft 0 in)
- Wing area: 20.36 m² (219.16 ft²)
- Empty weight: 1,400 kg (3,086 lb)
- Loaded weight: 2,033 kg [4] (4,482 lb)
- Max takeoff weight: 2,300 kg (5,071 lb)
- Powerplant: 1× Nakajima Ha-8 9-cylinder radial piston, 477 kW (640 hp)
Performance
- Maximum speed: 480 km/h (259 knots, 298 mph) at 4,000 m (13,125 ft)
- Cruise speed: 320 km/h (173 knots, 199 mph) at 5,000 m (16,405 ft)
- Range: 2,400 km (1,297 NM, 1,491 mi)
- Service ceiling 11,400 m (37,400 ft)
- Wing loading: kg/m² (lb/ft²)
- Power/mass: W/kg (hp/lb)
- Climb to 5,000 m (16,400 ft): 8 minutes 27 sec[4]
Armament
one 7.7-mm (0.303-in) machine gun
550 lbs bombs
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- The Encyclopedia of World Aircraft. (1997). Ed. Donald, David. Prospero Books. pg 652. ISBN 1-85605-375-X.
- Gunston, Bill (1999). Illustrated Directory of Fighting Aircraft of World War II. Zenith Press. ISBN 0760307229.
- Francillion, R.J. (1970). Japanese Aircraft of the Pacific War. London: Putnam. ISBN 370 00033 1.
- Mikesh, Robert; Abe, Shorzoe (1990). Japanese Aircraft 1910-1941. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 1557505632.
- Mondey, David (1996). The Concise Guide to Axis Aircraft of World War II. London: Chancellor Press. ISBN 1 85152 966 7.
[edit] External links
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