This A6M3 was part of the carrier Zuikaku's Air Group. In late 1943 it was one of 24 Zeroes detached from the fleet to reinforce the Japanese base at Rabaul in the Solomons. A coat of green paint was field-applied over the original olive grey camouflage. The single fuselage stripe indicates a wing leader's aircraft.
The original aircraft was a round tipped A6M3 type 22, but this is considered an acceptable substitution for our square tipped type 32.
