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Japanese Ki-61-I Type 3 Army Fighter - This is a model of a fighter that flew against American bombers over Japan in 1945. The Ki-61 was a product of Japan's alliance with Hitler, as its power plant was a licensed version of the Daimler-Benz DB 601A, the same engine used in the German Messerschmitt Bf 109E. The Japanese name for the plane was the "Hien," meaning flying swallow, while its Allied codename was "Tony." The Ki-61 was the only Japanese fighter in WWII with a liquid cooled engine. It had good performance in combat, but chronic maintenance problems limited its effectiveness. These problems led to development of the Ki-100, essentially a Ki-61 outfitted with a Mitsubishi radial engine. Introduced in early 1945, the Ki-100 proved to be reliable, and an excellent fighter, but relatively few were produced before the war ended in August. |
More Photos: Left, Right, Top, Front Angle Right, Front Angle Left, Rear Angle Right, Rear Angle Left |
| Kawasaki Ki-61 Reference Books | Ki-61 Links |
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Aces of the Rising Sun, 1937-1945, Henry Sakaida Air War for Burma: The Concluding Volume of the Bloody Shambles Series; The Allied Air Forces Fight Back in South-East Asia, 1942-1945, Christopher Shores Concise Guide to Axis Aircraft of World War II, David Mondey Emblems of the Rising Sun: Imperial Japanese Army Air Force Unit Markings 1935-1945, Peter Scott Fire in the Sky: The Air War in the South Pacific, Eric Bergerud Japanese Aircraft of the Pacific War, Rene Francillon Japanese Aircraft of the Pacific War, Rene Francillon Japanese Army Air Force Aces, 1937-1945, Henry Sakaida Japanese Army Air Force Fighter Units and Their Aces, 1931-1945, Ikuhiko Hata Kawasaki Ki-61 Hien in Japanese Army Air Force Service, Richard Bueschel The Kawasaki Ki-61 Hien, Rene Francillon |
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Kawasaki Ki-61 Tony 1/72 Scale Model Kit Box Art
