Originally posted by Helm
not one of you has mentioned the one thing the the "Tony" does better then any other plane!
Fly under the radar, figuratively speaking.

It's better than most give it credit for. The only thing keeping it from dweeb plane status is the lack of 300-400hp. Ki-100 anyone?
On a serious note Helm, what I think it does better than just about anything else is turn at medium speeds i.e. 200-250mph, or just under speeds that would start to cause blackouts. This is why Karaya and others claim to out turn Spitfires and N1Ks etc, and it is also why testing of it's sustained turning abilities produces underwhelming results in relation to the afore mentioned planes. It just doesn't have enough engine power to compete in that sort of test. I've seen it referred to as a bobsled and this isn't a bad analogy. As long as you have a little alt to convert into speed you can give anything a hard time. Get on the deck in a lufbery against one of the good turners and, as WW said, you're toast.
I'd really like to see an EM diagram for the Ki-61. Might be educational.