Originally posted by Wotan
Its a Ki-61 airframe with a Ha-112-H radial engine. There were Ki-61 airframes waiting on the Ha-140. The factory producing the Ha-140 was bombed by B-29s and production disrupted.
They decided to mate the Ki-61 airframes to the radial Ha-112.
A couple of quotes (I can't verify their accurracy...)
It possessed a definite ascendancy over the Grumman F6F Hellcat. In one encounter over Okinawa, a Ki-100-equipped unit destroyed 14 F6F Hellcat fighters without loss to themselves. When the Ki-100 encountered the P-51D Mustang at low or medium altitudes over Japan, it was able to meet the American fighter on more or less equal terms. The outcome of P- 51D vs Ki-100 battles was usually determined by piloting skill or by numerical advantage rather than by the relative merits of the two fighter types. However, at altitudes above 26,000 feet, the maneuverability of the Ki-100 began to fall off rather severely and the fighter was at a relative disadvantage in intercepting the high-flying B-29.
For starters, I cannot find a single case at Okinawa where 14 Hellcats were lost in one day, to ALL CAUSES, much less to a fighter that was only just entering service.
I've read similar stuff on the web and in badly researched books.
Emmanual Gustin's site repeats what I believe Rene J. Francillon claims in his book of 14 Hellcats killed by Ki-100s without loss. Naturally, NO ONE can produce any combat records to prove it. That's understandable, because it never happened. Several years ago, I went through Navy squadron AARs looking for any reference to combat between the F6F and the Kawasaki. I found only one. I also found no JAAF units flying the Ki-100 at Okinawa. Probably because the first Ki-100 didn't fly until February of 1945 with first deliveries not beginning until late March. By mid March, the only things flying from Okinawa were seagulls, and they had to watch their tails too.
Historian Henry Sakaida states in his Osprey book, " The Ki-100-I-Otsu was undoubtably one of the best piston-engine fighters of World War 2". Frankly, I think old Henry was being a bit delusional. Wishful thinking at best. It would have been a first-rate fighter had it appeared in early 1942. However, when it did appear in early spring of 1945 is was hopelessly out-classed.
My regards,
Widewing
