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Aircraft · Japan · 1943-1945

Kawanishi N1K

fighter

Originally a floatplane fighter designed to support island landings without airstrips, the N1K was reworked into the land-based Shiden (Violet Lightning) once Japan's advance had stalled and airfields were being lost instead of won. The George, as Allied pilots called it, was one of the few Japanese fighters that could out-turn and outgun a Hellcat, flown late in the war by elite units defending the home islands.

Wikipedia

crew1
top speed594 km/h
armament4x 20mm cannon
produced1,532

Pacific

A Kawanishi N1K2-Ja Shiden Kai ("George") prior to restoration at the National Museum of the United States Air Force.
A Kawanishi N1K2-Ja Shiden Kai ("George") prior to restoration at the National Museum of the United States Air Force.USAF · Public domain · source
川西航空機 N1K2-J 紫電二一型 ”紫電改”（実大模型） 右前面。2020年10月18日 鶉野飛行場跡地にて。
川西航空機 N1K2-J 紫電二一型 ”紫電改”（実大模型） 右前面。2020年10月18日 鶉野飛行場跡地にて。Hunini · CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
Kawanishi N1K2-J Shiden Kai, Naval Aviation Museum, Pensacola, Florida
Kawanishi N1K2-J Shiden Kai, Naval Aviation Museum, Pensacola, FloridaGreg Goebel · CC BY-SA 2.0 · source

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