Mitsubishi Ki-67 Hiryu (Peggy)

Medium Bomber

Imperial Japan | 1944

"Though classified as a medium bomber by the Japanese, by Western standards, the Ki-67 Peggy was seen as a light bomber."

Authored By: Staff Writer | Last Edited: 05/10/2016 | Content ©www.MilitaryFactory.com | The following text is exclusive to this site; No A.I. was used in the generation of this content.

The Mitsubishi-designed Ki-67 Hiryu (translated to "flying dragon" and dubbed "Peggy" by the Allies) is oft-regarded as the best bomber fielded by Japan in the Second World War. The system was of a twin-engine design, armed with a defensive array of machine guns and cannon and could carry thousands of pounds of bombs or a torpedo over 1,700 miles. Due to the consistent Allied bombing of the Japanese mainland, production of the Ki-67 would never reach the hoped-for and needed standards to which the system would have made a difference in the Pacific Theater.

Built to a 1940 specification, the Ki-67 was not fielded in any quantity until about 1944. Initially designed for an expected war with the Soviet union on in the Siberian territories, the Ki-67 was developed with several distinct features that would stray away from traditional Japanese aircraft production - chief among those was the use of self-sealing fuel tanks and armor to provide the crew with some much-needed protection. Two Mitsubishi-brand Ha-104 series radial piston engines were mounted onto the low-monoplane wing design and would generate 1,900 horsepower apiece.

Crew accommodations ranged from 6 to 8 personnel depending on the mission role. Defensive gun positions consisted of a trainable nose-mounted 12.7mm machine gun, two 12.7mm waist-gunner positions and a single 12.7mm machine gun in a tail gunner position. Additionally, a single 20mm cannon was mounted atop the fuselage in a dorsal turret. The bomb bay could hold up to 1,764lbs of drop bombs in the traditional bomber role. A single 2,359lb torpedo could be fitted as well in the anti-shipping role. In the more macabre role of kamikaze (to which the Ki-67 and her crews would be subjected to before the end of the war) the internal weapons bay could be fitted with up to 6,393lbs of bombs.

The Ki-67 aircraft proved to be a versatile platform, so much so in fact, that the Japanese Army ordered in a slew of variants for specialized roles. Unfortunately for the design, these requests made the Ki-67 suffer on the production lines. As the war progressed in the favor of the Allies, the requests were being limited and the focus was set on pure production of the existing Hiryu models already available.

In the end, the Ki-67 was done in by the Allied bombing raids, delayed production lines and the inevitable end of the war for the Empire of Japan. As good as the system reportedly was, just under 700 examples were produced during wartime, too little in the way of making an impact and perhaps changing the tide in favor of the Empire.

Content ©MilitaryFactory.com; No Reproduction Permitted.

Power & Performance
Those special qualities that separate one aircraft design from another. Performance specifications presented assume optimal operating conditions for the Mitsubishi Ki-67 Hiryu Medium Bomber.

2 x Mitsubishi Ha-104 air-cooled radial piston engines developing 1,900 horsepower each.
Propulsion

334 mph
537 kph | 290 kts
Max Speed

31,070 ft
9,470 m | 6 miles
Service Ceiling

1,740 miles
2,800 km | 1,512 nm
Operational Range

1,357 ft/min
414 m/min
Rate-of-Climb

City-to-City Ranges
Operational range when compared to distances between major cities (in KM).

NYC

LON

PAR

BER

MOS

TOK

SYD

LAX

NYC

Structure
The nose-to-tail, wingtip-to-wingtip physical qualities of the Mitsubishi Ki-67 Hiryu Medium Bomber.

6 to 8
(MANNED)
Crew

61.4 ft
18.70 m
O/A Length

73.8 ft
(22.50 m)
O/A Width

25.3 ft
(7.70 m)
O/A Height

19,068 lb
(8,649 kg)
Empty Weight

30,347 lb
(13,765 kg)
MTOW

Design Balance
The three qualities reflected below are altitude, speed, and range. The more full the box, the more balanced the design.

RANGE

ALT

SPEED

Armament
Available supported armament and special-mission equipment featured in the design of the Mitsubishi Ki-67 Hiryu (Peggy) Medium Bomber .

STANDARD:
1 x 12.7mm Type 1 machine gun in trainable nose position.
1 x 12.7mm machine gun in two waist gunner positions.
1 x 12.7mm machine gun in tail position
1 x 20mm Ho-5 cannon in dorsal turret

OPTIONAL:
Mission-specific ordnance held in an internal bomb bay can include the following:

1,764 lb of bombs, 1 x 2,359 lb torpedo, or 6,393 lb of bombs (for Kamikaze strike)

Variants
Notable series variants as part of the Mitsubishi Ki-67 Hiryu (Peggy) family line.

Ki-67 - Base Series Designation

Ki-67-I

Ki-67-Ia

Ki-67-Ib

Ki-67-I KAI

Ki-67 "To-Go"

Ki-67-II

Ki-67 "Yasukuni"

Ki-69

Ki-97

Ki-109

Ki-112

Ki-167 "Sakura-dan"

Q2M1 "Taiyo"

Operators
Global customers who have evaluated and/or operated the Mitsubishi Ki-67 Hiryu (Peggy). Nations are displayed by flag, each linked to their respective national aircraft listing.

Total Production: 767 Units
Contractor(s): Mitsubishi - Japan

[ Imperial Japan ]

Relative Max Speed

Hi: 400mph

Lo: 200mph

Aircraft Max Listed Speed (334mph).

Graph Average of 300 MPH.

Era Crossover

Showcasing Aircraft Era Crossover (if any)

Max Alt Visualization

Production Comparison

767

36183

44000

Entry compared against Ilyushin IL-2 (military) and Cessna 172 (civilian) total production.

MACH Regime (Sonic)

Sub

Trans

Super

Hyper

HiHyper

ReEntry

♦

Aviation Timeline

EarlyYrs

WWI

Interwar

WWII

ColdWar

Postwar

Modern

Future

♦

1 / 1

Image of the Mitsubishi Ki-67 Hiryu (Peggy)

Mission Roles
Some designs are single-minded in their approach while others offer a more versatile solution to airborne requirements.

GROUND ATTACK

Recognition
Some designs stand the test of time while others are doomed to never advance beyond the drawing board; let history be their judge.

Military lapel ribbon for the World War 2

Going Further...
The Mitsubishi Ki-67 Hiryu (Peggy) Medium Bomber appears in the following collections:

HOME

AVIATION INDEX

AIRCRAFT BY COUNTRY

AIRCRAFT MANUFACTURERS

Disclaimer | Privacy Policy | Cookies

2025 Military Pay Scale Military Ranks U.S. DoD Dictionary Conversion Calculators Military Alphabet Code Military Map Symbols US 5-Star Generals WW2 Weapons by Country

The "Military Factory" name and MilitaryFactory.com logo are registered ® U.S. trademarks protected by all applicable domestic and international intellectual property laws. All written content, illustrations, and photography are unique to this website (unless where indicated) and not for reuse/reproduction in any form. Material presented throughout this website is for historical and entertainment value only and should not to be construed as usable for hardware restoration, maintenance, or general operation. We do not sell any of the items showcased on this site. Please direct all other inquiries to militaryfactory AT gmail.com. No A.I. was used in the generation of this content.

Part of a network of sites that includes Global Firepower, WDMMA.org, WDMMW.org, and World War Next.

©2024 www.MilitaryFactory.com • All Rights Reserved • Content ©2003-2024 (21yrs)