Kawasaki Ki-45 KAIc Toryu (Nick) Night-Fighter (1944)
The Kawasaki Ki-45 Toryu served as the Imperial Japanese Armys only night-fighter of the Second World war.
The Ki-45 KAIc was a twin-engine two-crew aircraft built in much the same vein as the Messerschmitt BF110 and the de Havilland DH.98 Mosquito. Both engines of Mitsubishi type straddled the fuselage on low-mounted monoplane wings. The crew sat in a split greenhouse-type cockpit area in the center of the design with a single rudder fin in the aft tail assembly. Armament consisted of a single 37mm cannon with semi-automatic action in the nose. Twin 20mm cannons were mounted in an oblique upward-facing position between pilot and rear gunner in the cockpit. A single 7.92mm machine gun was fitted as a hand-held defensive measure in the rear cockpit.
Though one might wonder why the aircraft was fitted with just a single 37mm cannon in the nose it is because the intent was there to fit an AI-type radar into the nose assembly in conjunction with the armament. This never materialized due to production difficulties but the systems were nevertheless fielded as nightfighters with competent and overall promising results. Text ©2003-2013 www.MilitaryFactory.com • All Rights Reserved • No Reproduction Permitted
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Specifications for the
Kawasaki Ki-45 KAIc Toryu (Nick)
Night-Fighter
Country of Origin: Imperial Japan
Manufacturer: Kawasaki - Japan
Initial Year of Service: 1944
Production: 477
Focus Model: Kawasaki Ki-45 KAIc Toryu (Nick)
Crew: 2
Length: 36.09ft (11m)
Width: 49.28ft (15.02m)
Height: 12.14ft (3.70m)
Weight (Empty): 8,818lbs (4,000kg)
Weight (MTOW): 12,125lbs (5,500kg)
Powerplant: 2 x Mitsubishi Ha-102 14-cylinder air-cooled radial piston engines generating 1,080hp each.
Maximum Speed: 336mph (540kmh; 292kts)
Maximum Range: 1,243miles (2,000km)
Service Ceiling: 32,808ft (10,000m; 6.2miles)
Rate-of-Climb: 2,343 feet per minute (714m/min)
Hardpoints: 0
Armament Suite:
1 x 37mm Type 98 cannon in forward-firing nose mount
2 x 20mm Ho-5 cannon in upward-firing fuselage position
1 x 7.92mm machine gun in hand-held dorsal gun position
Variants:
Ki-45 - Prototype Model Designation
Ki-45 KAI - Prototype Model Designation and Pre-Production Model Designation.
Ki-45 KAIa - Initial Production Variant; fitted with 1 x 20mm cannon, 2 x 12.7mm machine guns and 1 x 7.92mm machine (rear cockpit).
Ki-45 KAIb - Fitted with Mitsubishi Ha-102 at 1,050 horsepower; armament consisted of 1 x 37mm forward-firing fuselage mounted cannon, 1 x 20mm cannon in nose and 1 x 7.92mm machine gun in rear cokcpit; trialed with 75mm cannon for anti-shipping duty.
Ka-45 KAIc - Dedicated Night-Fighter Variant; fitted with 1 x 37mm cannon, 2 x 20mm cannons and 1 x 7.92mm machine gun.
Ki-45 KAId - Maritime Patrol Fighter
Ki-45 II - Proposed Experimental Model
Operators: Imperial Japan
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