Kawasaki Ki-64

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Ki-64
Role Fighter
Manufacturer Kawasaki Kōkūki Kōgyō K.K.
First flight December 1943
Status Cancelled 1944
Primary user Imperial Japanese Army
Number built 1

The Kawasaki Ki-64 (Allied code name: Rob) was a one-off prototype of an experimental heavy, single seat, fighter. It had two unusual design features. First; it had two Kawasaki Ha-40 engines in tandem; one in the aircraft nose, the other behind the cockpit, both being connected by a drive shaft. This combination (called the Kawasaki Ha-201) drove two, three-bladed, contra-rotating propellors.[1][2] The second feature was the use of the wing surface as a radiator for the water-cooled engines.[3] The aircraft first flew in December 1943. During the fifth flight, the rear engine caught fire; and while the aircraft made an emergency landing, it was damaged. The aircraft was subsequently abandoned in mid-1944 in favour of more promising projects. The airframe survived the war, and parts of the unique cooling system were sent to Wright Field for examination.[4]

Specifications (Ki-64)

Data from Warplanes of the Second World War, Volume Three: Fighters;[5] WW2 Aircraft Fact Files: Japanese Army Fighters, Part 1;[4] Japanese Aircraft of the Pacific War[6]

General characteristics

  • Crew: 1 (pilot)
  • Length: 11 m (36 ft 1 in)
  • Wingspan: 13.5 m (44 ft 3 in)
  • Height: 4.25 m (13 ft 11 in)
  • Wing area: 28 m2 (300 sq ft)
  • Empty weight: 4,050 kg (8,929 lb)
  • Gross weight: 5,100 kg (11,244 lb)
  • Powerplant: 1 × Kawasaki Ha-201 coupled liquid-cooled V-12 engine, 1,750 kW (2,350 hp)
  • Propellers: 2 × 3-bladed contra-rotating propellers

Performance

  • Maximum speed: 690 km/h (429 mph; 373 kn) at 5,000 metres (16,000 ft)
  • Range: 1,000 km (621 mi; 540 nmi)
  • Service ceiling: 12,000 m (39,370 ft)
  • Time to altitude: 5.5 minutes to 5,000 metres (16,000 ft)
  • Wing loading: 182.1 kg/m2 (37.3 lb/sq ft)
  • Power/mass: 2.91 kg/kW (2.17 kg/hp; 4.78 lb/hp)

Armament

See also

Aircraft of comparable role, configuration and era

Arsenal VB 10

Related lists

References

Notes
  1. ↑ FAOW 76 1976, pp. 17–18; 46–47.
  2. ↑ Green and Swanborough 1976, p. 35.
  3. ↑ Green and Swanborough 1976, p. 34.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Green and Swanborough 1976, p. 36.
  5. ↑ Green 1973, p. 26.
  6. ↑ Francillon 1979, p. 122.
Bibliography
  • Francillon, Ph.D., René J. Japanese Aircraft of the Pacific War. London: Putnam & Company Ltd., 1970 (2nd edition 1979). ISBN 0-370-30251-6.
  • Green, William. Warplanes of the Second World War, Volume Three: Fighters. London: Macdonald & Co. (Publishers) Ltd., 1961 (seventh impression 1973). ISBN 0-356-01447-9.
  • Green, William and Swanborough, Gordon. WW2 Aircraft Fact Files: Japanese Army Fighters, Part 1. London: Macdonald and Jane's, 1976. ISBN 0-356-08224-5.
  • Unknown Author(s). Famous Aircraft of the World, no.76: Japanese Army Experimental Fighters (1). Tokyo, Japan: Bunrin-Do Co. Ltd., August 1976.

External links

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