Nakajima Ki-44-II Otsu
| GENERAL DATA | |||
| Other Designation(s) | Shoki
= Demon, Army Type 2 Fighter, Tojo (Allied reporting name) |
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| Type | Fighter |
Crew | 1 |
| Manufacturer(s) | Nakajima Aircraft
Company |
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| Production | 1227 (all-models), 1940–1944
> 40 Ki-44-I, 355 Ki-44-IIa (Ko), 427 Ki-44-IIb (Otsu), 394 Ki-44-IIc
(Hei) |
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| Prototype first flight | August 1940 |
Introduction | 15 september 1941 |
| Variants | |||
| Ki-44 | First prototype with Ha-41 engine with a complex cooling system, unique for the first prototype. | ||
| Ki-44 | Nine pre-production aircraft | ||
| Ki-44-I | Powered by a 1250 hp Nakajima Ha-41 engine with annular oil cooler, with a maximum speed of 580 km/h. Armament and gunsight unchanged from the pre-production models. Provision for two droptanks under the wings. Rounded spinner caps with provision for Hucks starter. Late models had external fuel coolers. Forty produced. | ||
| Ki-44-I Ko (Ki-44-Ia) | Pre-production, Ha-41, 12.7 mm Ho-103 wing machine guns, 7.7 mm Type 89 hood machine guns telescopic sight | ||
| Ki-44-I Otsu (Ki-44-Ib) | 12.7mm Ho-103 hood machine guns | ||
| Ki-44-I Hei (Ki-44-Ic) | Improved Ki-44-Ib (visible details: under-carriage hatches) | ||
| Ki-44-II Ko (Ki-44-IIa) | Powered by a 1440 hp Nakajima Ha-109 engine with external oil cooler and a top speed of 604 km/h. Armament, gunsight and drop tank provision as for Ki-44-I. Rectangular cockpit access doors replaced the rounded version of earlier models. 355 produced. | ||
| Ki-44-II Otsu (Ki-44-IIb) | Standard armament of four 12.7 mm (.50 in) Ho-103 machine guns, two in the nose and two in the wings. Type 100 reflector gunsight mounted as standard. 427 produced. | ||
| Ki-44-II Hei (Ki-44-IIc) | Standard armament reduced to just two 12.7 mm (.50 in) Ho-103 machine guns in the nose. Optional provision for two 40 mm (1.57 in) Ho-301 cannons in the wings. These were not always installed and due to disappointing combat results once installed they were sometimes removed again and two 12.7 mm (.50 in) Ho-103 machine guns mounted in their place. This variant still had the Type 89 telescopic gunsight as standard. 394 produced | ||
| Ki-44-III | A single prototype built, powered by a Ha-145 two-row 18-cylinder engine of 2000 hp. Armament unknown. | ||
| Ki-44-III Ko (Ki-44-IIIa) | Proposed variant with an armament of four 20 mm Ho-5 cannons. | ||
| Ki-44-III Otsu (Ki-44-IIIb) | Proposed variant with armament of two 20 mm Ho-5 cannons and two 37 mm (1.46 in) Ho-203 cannons. | ||
| DIMENSIONS | |||
| Length | 8.84 m |
Empty Weight | 2106 kg |
| Wingspan | 9.45 m |
Loaded Weight | 2764 kg |
| Height | 3.25 m |
Maximum Takeoff Weight | 2993 kg |
| Wing area | 15 m² |
Wing loading | 184 kg/m² |
| ARMAMENT (Ki-44-II Ko) | ||||
| Main Gun | Wings | 2 × 12.7 mm (0.500 in) Ho-103
MG |
Ammunition Carried | 2 x 250 |
| Nose | 2 × 7.7 mm Type 89 MG * |
2 x ? or 2 x 250 * |
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| Bombs | 2 x 50 kg or 2 x 100 kg bombs |
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(*) or 2 × 12.7 mm (0.500 in) Ho-103 MG
| ARMAMENT (Ki-44-II Otsu) | ||||
| Main Gun | Wings | 2 × 12.7 mm (0.500 in) Type
1 MG |
Ammunition Carried | 2 x 250 |
| Nose | 2 × 12.7 mm (0.500 in) Type 1 MG |
2 x 250 |
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| Bombs | 2 x 50 kg or 2 x 100 kg bombs |
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| ARMAMENT (Ki-44-II Hei) | ||||
| Main Gun | Wings | 2 × 40 mm (1.575 in) Ho-301
cannon * |
Ammunition Carried | 2 x ? or
2 x 250 * |
| Secondary Guns | Nose | 2 × 12.7 mm (0.500 in) Type 1 MG |
2 x 250 |
|
| Bombs | 2 x 50 kg or 2 x 100 kg bombs |
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(*) optional, often replaced by 2 × 12.7 mm (0.500 in) Type 1 MG
| POWERPLANT | |||
| Engine | 1 ×
Nakajima Ha-109 (Army Type 2 1450hp Air Cooled Radial / unified - Nakajima Ha-34) |
Type & Displacement | 14-cylinder air-cooled
radial, 37.5 L |
| Horsepower (maximum) | 1320
(5250 m) - 1519 hp (take-off) |
Power/Weight Ratio | 549.56 hp / ton * |
| Fuel Capacity | 284 L (internal),
2× 130 L drop tanks (external)
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(*) with Loaded Weight
| PERFORMANCES | |||
| Maximum Speed | 605 km/h
at 5200 m |
Cruise Speed | 400 km/h at 4000 m |
| Stall Speed * | 150 km/h |
Service Ceiling | 11200 m |
| Rate of Climb | 20.01 m/s |
Range | 1200 km , 1600 km (ferry range) |
(*) vitesse de décrochage
| Sources | |||
| Wikipédia | aviationsmilitaires.net | ||
Drawings |
