Nakajima J1N1

Summary

The Nakajima J1N1 is a Fighter plan Japanese of the Second world war. Initially conceived like hunter with long operating range, it will become apparatus of recognition, then - and especially a hunter of effective night.

History

It is in the middle of year 1938 that the Japanese imperial Marine decided the realization of a twin-engine hunter, likely to escort the main thing bomber used at the time, the Mitsubishi G3M " Nell " in the allied nomenclature after the attack of Pearl Harbor. The operating range of the standard hunter of the Navy, the Standard 96 (or A5M) " Claude " , was of 1200km, which insufficient was compared with the 2800/4500 km of which the " were able; Nell ". Moreover, at the time, the potential of the future “ Zero ”, then under development, still remained to be evaluated, stressing with even more acuity on the need for a hunter of escort at long operating range. Many nations at that time planchaient on the concept of a heavy hunter able as well to escort the vulnerable bombers but especially to face unfavourable hunting on an equal footing. In France and Germany they will be Potez 603 and Messerschmitt Bf 110. In fact the requirements of the Navy were going to put the bar very high with a range operating, means of communication and navigations similar to those of the bombers of the Marine based with ground, an armament made up of several heavy weapons, an high speed of 10 knots to that of the Zero and one equal handiness.

First prototypes

In March 1939, Mitsubishi and Nakajima were approximate for the development of a project called 13-Shi: a twin-engine based with ground. The firm of Nagoya obtained the market. The 13 refer the made-to-order to count the years among Japanese, indicating the 13th year of the Showa era, Shi means prototype, J indicates a hunter based with ground, NR Nakajima, and the 1 mentions the fact that it is about the first version of the first hunter of the Marine based with ground.

The prototype left the factory in March 1941 equipped with a pair with engine Nakajima Sakae 21/22, 14 cylinders in double star and developing 1130cv each one. The crew was composed of three men, the armament included/understood a gun of 20mm and six machine-guns of 7,7 Misters Four of these machine-guns were assembled in turrets of which the use quickly proved to be a technical headache. The heaviness of the mass due to this badly thought armament reduced the performances of the apparatus considerably, making it unable to fulfill its role. However, the handiness was excellent for such a large plane, near to that of Mitsubishi Zero.

A failure leading to a new plane, the J1N1-R

After only two prototypes, the navy did not accept the plane but authorized Nakajima to develop a version of recognition of it. The new plane carefully reduced and simplified was definitely better. Its crew was always of three people. The apparatus accepted the name of J1N1-C (or J1N1-R according to the Japanese sources) and was manufactured in small series: 54 specimens including the prototypes. Based with Rabaul in New Britain, the J1N1-R carried out their first missions above Guadalcanal where the Americans had unloaded in August 1942. Thinking that the apparatus was a hunter, it accepted American code name “Irving”. Certain aircraft were equipped with a back turret provided with a gun of 20mm and called J1N1-F.

Appearance of the hunter of night, the J1N1-S Gekko

Appearance of the hunter of night " Gekko ", goes up as for it at the beginning of 1943. The strategic situation in the Southern Pacific started to turn to the disadvantage of the Japanese forces, and the increasing activity of USAAF posed large problems of day like night, with the units of the Army and Navy. Indeed, so of day hunting could intervene, the lack of pilots trained with night piloting left the free field to the B-24 and B-17 to carry out raids of harmful effect, which, even if they did not cause large damage, prevented the pilots from taking the rest necessary for the combat of day. Thus the commander of the 251e air body, Yasuna Kozono, equipped two J1N1-R abandoned with two guns of 20 mm assembled in oblique on the back of the apparatus in order to draw under an angle from 30° under the enemy apparatus by keeping the same course as this last. Two guns drew downwards according to the same principle. March 21st, 1943, first B-17 fell under the shells from the Kudo sergeant and Lt Sugawara, in their J1N1-C KAI (certain Japanese sources call it already J1N1-S). It was the first victory of night of the " Gekko ", (月光 " clearly of lune" in Japanese).

Do-it-yourself with the series

The Americans thus lost a good number of bombers before realizing that the Japanese had from now on an effective hunter of night. These successes also swept the last reserves of the high command, which had been shown more than skeptic in front of this not very orthodoxe project. The apparatus was then produced in series under the name of J1N1-S. The apparatuses of production accepted one stops back of only one holding (contrary to the J1N1-R), the two guns being located behind canopy, very close relations one of the other. Towards the oddment, a version J1N1-Its was produced. It had 3 guns on the back, a third being behind towards the drift. There were many alternatives, the guns drawing to the bottom being seldom present. The pipes of exhaust were sometimes propelling, sometimes with a flame guard on the suction face as on the J1N1-R. A radar embarked with four large antennas on the nose was assembled on certain J1N1-S and J1N1-Its. In this case, the headlight of research which was at the end of the cone of nose was moved in lower part.

Epilog

The turning of the war becoming increasingly dramatic and raids of B-29 being about to begin, the units of " Gekko" were repatriated in Japan to form the framework of a defense hitherto non-existent. Some of the apparatuses same were stationed with the Îles Kouriles, because the Japanese feared an invasion of the archipelago by the Aleutian Islands. Among the units of elite having used this plane, the 302e group based with Atsugi, also equipped with " Judy " and of " Frances " having they also an oblique gun, counted many aces in its center such Lt Yukio Endo and its team-member Osamu Nishio credited with eight B-29, and the CPO Kuramato and the ensign Shiro Kurotori, holders of five B-29 confirmed and probable. The total production was of 479 apparatuses including the 7 prototypes transformed into J1N1-R.

In the museums

Only one " Gekko " exist in the world, it one J1N1-Its is preserved with NASM of Washington after a superb restoration. To note that the third gun does not seem present on this plane.

Alternatives

13-shi : 9 prototypes, 1 gun of 20mm, 6 machine-guns of 7.7mm
J1N1: name allotted to the prototypes if the series had begun
J1N1-C/R: apparatus of recognition, 3 places, model 11
J1N1-F: experimentation, turret postpones with gun of 20mm
J1N1-C Kai: apparatuses modified with 4 guns with shooting obliques (certain sources name it J1N1-S or model 21)
J1N1-S: version of series of the J1N1-C Kai, model 11,2 or 4 guns (certain sources speak about model 23)
J1N1-Its: last version of series, 2 or 3 guns drawing to the top

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