- Yes
- No
Japanese Hawker Hurricane IIB trop.
The Japanese army certainly captured three Hawker Hurricane IIB fighters in the tropical version, but there is a likelihood that the Japanese captured more Hurricanes. Two of them are aircraft in British service (designations BE 208 and BM 900) and one in Dutch service (designation Z5611). Two of them were used for testing (BE 208,Z5611) and the last one became the mascot/liaison aircraft of 1 Chutai from 64 Sentai (BM 900).
History
BE 208
I’ll start with the fighter with the best story. The Hawker Hurricane Mk.IIb BE 208 was part of No. 232 Squadron, whose aim was to defend the British Malaya in the event of a Japanese attack. The pilot of this machine was “Rickey” brooker. No. 232 Squadron arrived in Singapore too late to repel the Japanese air raids, during one of the sorties on 7 February 1942 S/Ldr. Lawrence N. LANDELS was killed in action and succeeded by S/Ldr. Richard (“Rickey”) E.P. brooker. Despite the warning (death of the previous commander), BROOKER continued to try to continue the resistance against the Japanese. He ordered the banner of the squadron commander to be painted on his plane . The next day, No. 232 Squadron encountered Japanese escorted bombers and engaged in combat with them. Brooker reported two Japanese planes shot down, but his hurricane was damaged. During landing at the airport, due to damage, the plane did not brake and fell into a ditch near the airport. There was damage to the landing gear, propellers and engine, but nothing happened to the pilot.
E.P. Brooker at his plane 8 February 1942^
The next day, the airport was evacuated due to the approach of the Japanese army, and the plane was abandoned. No. 232 Squadron was evacuated first to Sumatra and then to Java. Due to losses in Malaya, Sumatra and Java, it was merged with No. 242 Squadron in Ceylon at the end of February 1942 and thus ended its operational history in the Pacific.
On February 10, the BE208 aircraft was found by the Japanese and after a quick inspection, a decision was made to repair it.
Japanese photo of the BE 208 aircraft^
After repairs, the aircraft was tested in mid-1942 by the Tachikawa GiKen branch office in Singapore. Then, after a short test, it was sent to Japan for more thorough testing. The last photo that shows this aircraft was taken in 1943, when flight tests are carried out on it. The further fate is unknown.
BM 900
The hurricane with the designation BM 900 also belonged to 232 Squadron, but it is not known who its pilot was. It was captured by 1 Chutai of 64 Sentai, but it is not known whether in Malaya or Sumatra. The Hurricane that went to the 64th Sentai received their tail designation and was used for tests and as a liaison aircraft, until spare parts jumped into it.
Hurricane BM 900 under repair by 64 Sentai^
Hurricane BM 900 with 1 Chutai of 64 Sentai^
BM 900 hurricane model in 64 Sentai livery
Z5611
Hurricane Z5611 served in the Dutch East Indies while awake. It was captured by the Japanese after the invasion of Java, where it was repaired and sent to Japan for testing. Unfortunately, this is all we know about this plane.
Hurricane Z5611 during tests in Japan^
Other hurricanes
Certainly, the Japanese captured more Hurricane fighters, which is confirmed by the photos, but their history is unknown.
Photos of other captured hurricanes by the Japanese.
Possible camouflages for the Japanese Hurricane
Construction description
Japanese Hawker Hurricane IIB trop. It will hardly differ from the British version. The only difference is the lack of underslung armament, except for additional fuel tanks.
General characteristics
- Crew: One
- Length: 9.83 m (32 ft 3 in)
- Wingspan: 12.19 m (40 ft 0 in)
- Height: 4.00 m (13 ft 1.5 in)
- Wing area: 23.92 m2 (257.5 sq ft)
- Empty weight: 2,606 kg (5,745 lb)
- Gross weight: 3,479 kg (7,670 lb)
- Max takeoff weight:3,951 kg (8,710 lb)
- Powerplant: 1 × Rolls-Royce Merlin XX V-12 liquid-cooled piston engine, 1,185 hp (884 kW)
- Propellers: 3-bladed
Performance
- Maximum speed: 550 km/h (340 mph, 300 kn)
- Range: 748,3 km
- Maximum Range: 1738.1 km
- Service ceiling: 11,000 m (36,000 ft)
- Rate of climb: 14.1 m/s (2,780 ft/min)
- Wing loading: 145 kg/m2 (29.8 lb/sq ft)
Armament
- Guns: 12 x 7.7mm Browning Mk.II machine gun in the wings (4,200 rounds supply)
- Additional fuel tanks: 2 x 200l or 1 x 409 l
Summary
Hawker Hurricane IIB trop. would be a very interesting premum fighter for Japan in War Thunder. This fighter is very pleasant to play thanks to its powerful firepower, of course it has its drawbacks, but this is not a problem. It would be a very interesting fighter with an interesting story, which adds to its interesting background to play. I encourage you to discuss in the comments and to share your own knowledge on this subject.
Finally, I apologize for the linguistic and logical errors because unfortunately English is not my main language and I had to use google translator.
Internet sources
Captured Hurricane (j-aircraft.com)
ホーカー ハリケーン - Wikipedia
List of Hawker Hurricane operators - Wikipedia
Hawker Hurricane in Japanese Service - Destination’s Journey (destinationsjourney.com)
Hawker Hurricane Mk.IIB : Hawker / Hawker Siddeley (valka.cz)
During WW2, did the Japanese use captured Allied aircraft in battle? - Quora
When Hurricanes took on Japanese in fight for Singapore (key.aero)
Facebook
25 Hawker Hurricane Facts | Classic Warbirds
NIPPONESE WAR PRIZES (key.aero)
64 Sentai Hurricane | Captured Wings Wiki | Fandom
Hawker Hurricane Mk.IIb/trop (yu-nagi.com)
Book sources
- “日本軍鹵獲機秘録[新装版” (Secret record of captured aircraft in Japan) July 21, 2017
