- Yes
- No
History:
To start I’m going to clarify naming conventions. So LR-1 is the general name for JGSDF spec MU-2s. There are 2 different models of LR-1, they have the sales designation of MU-2B (renamed to MU-2C) and MU-2K which uses the internal designation of MU-2B-25.
In 1966 Mitsubishi received a request from the Defense Agency for the LR-1. The LR-1 was designed for 5 main missions being:
- VIP Transport
- Forward Air Control
- Aerial Recon
- Emergency Transport
- Emergency COIN
The first prototype was delivered to Akeno Aviation School for testing before being formalized in 1967 as the LR-1. The LR-1 successfully filled it’s role until it was retired in 2016 being replaced by the LR-2. The MU-2 also had a successful export career being used by New Zealand, Sweden, Argentina and the United States in a military role and many more customers in a civilian role. The MU-2 had excellent flight performance for a propeller driven aircraft being comparable to many jet aircraft at the time due to it’s light weight and powerful engines. This led to some controversy in the civilian market as the performance was comparable to a jet aircraft, but due to it being propeller driven meant there was no need for special certification to fly it. Combining that fact with the low price tag of the MU-2 meant that many amateur pilots with little experience were hopping into a high power aircraft leading to a high accident rate. Besides the controversy in the civilian world, the LR-1 was a popular aircraft in the JGSDF, and while the LR-1 never had the need to fill it’s role as an emergency COIN aircraft during it’s service life it still had the necessary equipment to mount and use weaponry if it was ever needed.
Specifications:
(I will convert all this to metric)
L x W x H:
10.13m x 11.95m (11.3m without tanks) x 3.94m
Crew: 2
Weight:
Empty 2685 kg
MTOW 4750 kg
Payload 2097 kg
Fuel:
Internal 186 US gal
Wingtip Tanks 180 US gal
Engine:
TPE-331-6(A)-251M/252M x 2
TO Power 665 SHP x 2
Max Cont. Power 665 SHP x 2
Performance:
Max Cruise Speed 587kmh
Rate of climb @ SL 15.8m/s
Armament:
- 2 x M3 Browning 12.7mm mounted in fuselage
- 2 x Mk.82 500lb bomb OR GCS-1 500lb IR guided bomb mounted on wingtips in place of fuel tanks
- 2 x 130/180 US gal Napalm on wingtips in place of fuel tanks
- 2 x LAU-3/A mounted on underwing pylons.
(Saab MU-2K showing underwing pylons with EW pods)
Misc. Equipment.
Saab uses the MU-2K as an EW aircraft, so there is an option for EW pods.
There is also a mounting bracket that appears to be for MAWS, but this is unconfirmed speculation based on the role of the aircraft and the size and style of mount.
Optional alt Livery
JGSDF Olive Drab
JGSDF White and Orange
RNZAF MU-2 Sumo
JASDF 50th Anni MU-2
JASDF White
JASDF Grey
Sources:
https://mu-2aircraft.com/index.php?action=mu-2_specs
https://web.archive.org/web/20100218011244/http://www.mod.go.jp/gsdf/equipment/air/3_12.html
