Known to the Allies as the Val, this fixed-undercarriage dive bomber sank more Allied warships than any other Axis aircraft, including cruisers at Pearl Harbor and carriers at the Coral Sea and Santa Cruz. Its dive brakes and rugged airframe made it accurate even as newer Allied fighters made it increasingly vulnerable after 1942. Late in the war worn-out Vals were pressed into kamikaze service.
Japanese Navy Aichi D3A1 Type 99 carrier bombers (allied codename Val) prepare to take off from an aircraft carrier during the morning of 7 December 1941. Ship in the background is the carrier Soryu.USN · Public domain · sourceAn Aichi D3A Type 99 dive bomber takes off from the Imperial Japanese Navy aircraft carrier Akagi to attack British warships during the Indian Ocean Raid on 5 April 1942. The aircraft belongs to a section leader (shōtaicnot stated · Public domain · sourceAichi D3A Type 99 Kanbaku dive bombers on their way to attack United States Navy ships on May 7, 1942 during the Battle of the Coral Sea. The bomber seen across the wing is from Imperial Japanese Navy aircraft carrier ShNot stated · Public domain · source
