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Kawasaki Ki-48-I (九九式双発軽爆撃機一型)
The Kawasaki Ki-48-I was a Japanese light bomber commissioned in 1940. It was produced from 1939 to 1942, ending production with 557 aircraft.
History
When the Second Sino-Japanese War began in July 1937, China quickly received Tupolev SB planes from the Soviet Union, which was a very fast bomber (it flew at a similar speed as the Ki-27 fighters). Therefore, in December 1937, the Imperial Japanese Army Air Force (IJAAS) commissioned the Kawasaki plant to create a new light bomber to replace the obsolete Ki-2 aircraft. The requirements were based on the specifications of the Tupolev SB aircraft, and they were as follows:
- Top speed of 480 km/h or faster
- Cruising power of 6 hours or more
- Bomb load over 400 kg
- Equipped with a rotating machine gun (turret) on the top and bottom of the front and rear
- The engine is equipped with two Nakajima Ha-25 engines
At this point (1938) the Kawasaki plant was working on other projects, so the Ki-48 aircraft was given a lower priority. The first prototype was ready in July 1939. 4 prototypes were created and handed over for testing to the army. In September, during tests, there were problems with the fluttering of the horizontal stabilizer. Between September and November, four prototypes were modified to reinforce the fuselage tail section.Thanks to these modifications, no more problems arose, which allowed the Ki-48 aircraft to be accepted into production at the end of November 1939, the aircraft was officially accepted into service on May 11, 1940. Production of the Ki-48-I aircraft continued until 1942, when it was replaced by a better variant of the Ki-48-II.
Construction description
The Ki-48-I aircraft was a medium-wing aircraft equipped with two engines mounted in nacelles on the wings. The hull of the Ki-48-I had a streamlined bulbous shape, which housed a 4-person crew, there were retractable machine gun turrets on the front, rear and lower mounts, and there was also a bomb bay in the fuselage. To maintain balance, part of the tail was made in the form of a long thin beam.
General characteristics
- Wingspan: 17.46 m
- Length: 12.59 m
- Height: 3.8 m
- Wing area: 40m2
- Empty weight: 4,050 kg
- Takeoff weight: 5,900 kg
- Maximum weight take-off: 6,050 kg
- Powerplant: 2 x Air-cooled two-star fourteen-cylinder Nakajima Ha-25 engine with 990 hp take-off power
- Propellers: three-bladed propellers with variable pitch and a diameter of 2.9 m
Performance
- Maximum speed: 480 km/h
- Cruising speed: 350 km/h
- Range: 1980 km
- Maximum Range: 2400 km
- Service Ceiling: 9500 m
- Time to Climb: 9 min to 5000 m
Armament
- Fixed armament
- 1 x Te-4 machine guns (in the nose)( 408 reinforcements in 6 magazines of 68 rounds)
- 1 x Te-4 machine guns (under hull) (612 rounds in 9 magazines of 68 rounds)
- 1 x Type 89 “Special” Machine Gun (upper turret) (900 rounds in 10 magazines of 90 rounds)
Firing zones
- Maximum load in the bomb bay: 300-400 kg
- 6-8 x 50 kg bombs
- 3-4 x 100 kg bombs
Special thanks to the user
Summary
The Kawasaki Ki-48-I would be a very interesting aircraft for Japan in War Thunder. This aircraft would be ideally suited as a low-rank bomber that was fast but had a small bomb load and no armor. This aircraft was famous for its maneuverability, which would be very useful for escaping from enemy fighters. 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
九九式双発軽爆撃機 - Wikipedia
Kawasaki Ki-48 - Wikipedia
Kawasaki Ki 48-I : Kawasaki (valka.cz)
Kawasaki Ki-48 LILY - light bomber (aviastar.org)
Kawasaki Ki 48 Lily (freeola.com)
Уголок неба ¦ Kawasaki Ki-48 (airwar.ru)
Japanese Aircraft of WWII: Kawasaki Ki-48
Kawasaki Ki-48 Sokei (Lily) Fast-Bomber / Dive Bomber Aircraft (militaryfactory.com)
Kawasaki Ki-48 Sokei Light bomber (airpages.ru)
Kawasaki Ki-48 Sokei (Lily): Photos, History, Specification
Kawasaki Ki-48 - Japan - War Thunder - Official Forum
Book sources
- Japanese Aircraft of Wolrld War II : 1937-1945 ,Thomas Newdick, Edition 2 2017, page 19
- Manual for operating Type 99 (Models 1 and 2), twin-engined light bomber, published by Tokorozawa Army Air Maintenance school, October 1944. Report No. 15n(13), USSBS Index Section 2
Manual for operating Type 99 (Models 1 and 2), twin-engined light bomber, published by Tokorozawa Army Air Maintenance school, October 1944. Report No. 15n(13), USSBS Index Section 2 (文書名:Records of the U.S. Strategic Bombing Survey ; Entry 41, Pacific Survey Reports and Supporting Records 1928-1947 = 米国戦略爆撃調査団文書 ; 太平洋地域調査報告書及び作成用資料) (シリーズ名: The Aircraft Industry (final report and original draft): Publications and manuals in Japanese only) - 国立国会図書館デジタルコレクション (ndl.go.jp)