Mitsubishi Ki-51

Ki-51
Mitsubishi Ki-51
Role light bomber/dive bomber
Manufacturer Mitsubishi Jukogyo KK
First flight mid-1939
Primary user Imperial Japanese Army Air Force
Number built 2,385[1]


The Mitsubishi Ki-51 (Army designation "Type 99 Assault Plane". Allied nickname "Sonia") was a light bomber/dive bomber in service with the Imperial Japanese Army during World War II. It first flew in mid-1939. Initially deployed against Chinese forces, it proved to be too slow to hold up against the fighter aircraft of the other Allied powers. However, it performed a useful ground-attack role in the China-Burma-India theater, notably from airfields too rough for many other aircraft. As the war drew to a close, they began to be used in kamikaze attacks. Total production was around 2,385 units.

On the day Hiroshima was destroyed by an atomic bomb, two Ki-51s scored the last Japanese sinking of a US warship, sinking USS Bullhead (SS-332) with all hands.

Charles Lindbergh, flying a P-38 Lightning shot down a Ki-51 after a vigorous dogfight in which the much slower Ki-51 utilized its low speed maneuverability and made a fight of it.

Versions

Operators

 Japan
 Indonesia
 China
 Republic of China
 Democratic People's Republic of Korea

Specifications (Ki-51)

Mitsubishi Ki-51 planes at the Seoul airport, 1945

Data from Japanese Aircraft of the Pacific War[3]

General characteristics

Performance

Armament

See also

Aircraft of comparable role, configuration and era
Related lists

References

Notes
  1. Angelucci, Enzo (1988). Combat aircraft of World War II. p. 26. ISBN 0-517-64179-8.
  2. Francillon 1979, p. 180.
  3. 1 2 Francillon 1979, p. 181.
Bibliography
  • Francillon, Ph.D., René J. Japanese Aircraft of the Pacific War. London: Putnam & Company Ltd., 1970. ISBN 0-370-00033-1 (2nd edition 1979, ISBN 0-370-30251-6).

External links

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