Engineering:Kawasaki Ki-64

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Short description: Japanese experimental fighter prototype
Ki-64
Kawasaki Ki-64 on ground.jpg
Role Fighter
Manufacturer Kawasaki Kōkūki Kōgyō K.K.
First flight December 1943
Status Cancelled 1944
Primary user Imperial Japanese Army
Number built 1

The Kawasaki Ki-64 (Allied code name: Rob) was a one-off prototype of an experimental heavy, single seat, fighter. It had two unusual design features. First; it had two Kawasaki Ha-40 engines in tandem; one in the aircraft nose, the other behind the cockpit, both being connected by a drive shaft. This combination (called the Kawasaki Ha-201) drove two, three-bladed, contra-rotating propellers.[1][2] The second feature was the use of the wing surface as a radiator for the water-cooled engines.[3] The aircraft first flew in December 1943. During the fifth flight, the rear engine caught fire; and while the aircraft made an emergency landing, it was damaged. The aircraft was subsequently abandoned in mid-1944 in favour of more promising projects. The airframe survived the war, and parts of the unique cooling system were sent to Wright Field for examination.[4]

Specifications (Ki-64)

Data from Warplanes of the Second World War, Volume Three: Fighters;[5] WW2 Aircraft Fact Files: Japanese Army Fighters, Part 1;[4] Japanese Aircraft of the Pacific War[6]

General characteristics

  • Crew: 1 (pilot)
  • Length: 11 m (36 ft 1 in)
  • Wingspan: 13.5 m (44 ft 3 in)
  • Height: 4.25 m (13 ft 11 in)
  • Wing area: 28 m2 (300 sq ft)
  • Empty weight: 4,050 kg (8,929 lb)
  • Gross weight: 5,100 kg (11,244 lb)
  • Powerplant: 1 × Kawasaki Ha-201 coupled liquid-cooled V12 engine, 1,750 kW (2,350 hp)
  • Propellers: 2 × 3-bladed contra-rotating propellers

Performance

  • Maximum speed: 690 km/h (430 mph, 370 kn) at 5,000 metres (16,000 ft)
  • Range: 1,000 km (620 mi, 540 nmi)
  • Service ceiling: 12,000 m (39,000 ft)
  • Time to altitude: 5.5 minutes to 5,000 metres (16,000 ft)
  • Wing loading: 182.1 kg/m2 (37.3 lb/sq ft)
  • Power/mass: 2.91 kg/kW (2.17 kg/hp; 4.78 lb/hp)

Armament

See also

Aircraft of comparable role, configuration and era

Related lists

References

Citations

  1. FAOW 1976, pp. 17–18; 46–47.
  2. Green & Swanborough 1976, p. 35.
  3. Green & Swanborough 1976, p. 34.
  4. 4.0 4.1 Green & Swanborough 1976, p. 36.
  5. Green 1961, p. 26.
  6. Francillon 1979, p. 122.

Bibliography

  • Francillon, René J. (1979). Japanese aircraft of the Pacific War. London: Putnam. ISBN 0-370-30251-6. OCLC 6124909.  (new edition 1987 by Putnam Aeronautical Books, ISBN:0-85177-801-1.)
  • Green, William (1961). War Planes of the Second World War, Volume Three: Fighters. Macdonald & Co. ISBN 0-356-01447-9. OCLC 655407936. 
  • Green, William; Swanborough, Gordon (1976). JWW2 Aircraft Fact Files: Japanese Army Fighters, Part 1. London: Macdonald and Jane's. ISBN 0-356-08224-5. OCLC 820486093. 
  • Famous Aircraft of the World, no.76: Japanese Army Experimental Fighters. Tokyo, Japan: Bunrin-Do Co. Ltd.. August 1976. 

External links