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Aircraft · Japan · 1945

Kawasaki Ki-100

fighter

The Ki-100 was an emergency conversion of the liquid-cooled Ki-61 Hien airframe onto a Mitsubishi Ha-112-II radial engine, created after a January 1945 bombing raid destroyed the plant building the Ki-61's troublesome Ha-140 engine. Lighter and more reliable than the Ki-61 it was built from, it first flew in February 1945 and entered combat that March, proving highly effective against B-29 Superfortresses and even P-51 Mustangs in the hands of experienced pilots. Roughly 396 were completed before the war's end, split between new-build and converted airframes, making it one of the best Japanese interceptors of 1945.

Wikipedia

engineMitsubishi Ha-112-II radial, 1,120 kW
speed580 km/h
armamenttwo 20mm cannon, two 12.7mm MG
produced~396

Pacific

Kawasaki Ki-100 1b at the RAF museum, Cosford. Scanned from a Kodachrome 35 mm slide.
Kawasaki Ki-100 1b at the RAF museum, Cosford. Scanned from a Kodachrome 35 mm slide.Murgatroyd49 · CC BY 4.0 · source
Kawasaki Ki-100-I-Ko Army Fighter Type 5 Mark 1a of 59th Sentai 2nd Chutai in August 1945 in Japan
Kawasaki Ki-100-I-Ko Army Fighter Type 5 Mark 1a of 59th Sentai 2nd Chutai in August 1945 in Japanunknown official photographer · Public domain · source
Kawasaki Ki-100-II Tokyo, Japan 1945
Kawasaki Ki-100-II Tokyo, Japan 1945unknown official photographer · Public domain · source
Catalog #: 01_00081962 Title: Kawasaki, Ki-100, Corporation Name: Kawasaki Official Nickname: Additional Information: Japan Designation: Ki-100 Tags: Kawasaki, Ki-100, Repository: San Diego Air and Space Museum Archive
Catalog #: 01_00081962 Title: Kawasaki, Ki-100, Corporation Name: Kawasaki Official Nickname: Additional Information: Japan Designation: Ki-100 Tags: Kawasaki, Ki-100, Repository: San Diego Air and Space Museum ArchiveSDASM · Public domain · source