A Zero fitted with a single large central float in place of its wheeled undercarriage, the A6M2-N (codenamed Rufe) let Japan project fighter cover over remote anchorages and river mouths with no airstrip at all. It retained much of the Zero's agility despite the drag penalty and saw hard use defending the seaplane base at Rekata Bay during the Solomons campaign.
Nakajima A6M2-N "Rufe" from Sasebo Air Group in flight. www.airwar.ruThe original uploader was Felix c at English Wikipedia. · Public domain · sourceJapanese fighter pilots. At the plane anchorage in the background can bee seen two Nakajima A6M2-N Type 2 Fighter Model 11 sea-planes. These float plane versions of the "Zero" fighter had the allied reporting name "Rufe"Unknown authorUnknown author · Public domain · sourceA U.S. Navy reconnaissance photo of two Japanese Nakajima A6M2-N Rufe seaplane fighters at Holtz Bay, Attu Island, Aleutian Islands (USA), on 7 November 1942, photographed by a USAAF plane. The left wing and float of theUSAAF · Public domain · source
