Watching History Channel's Dog Fight

[W7LPNRICK]

Showing war in the pacific. Navy SBD's escorted by USM F-4F wildcats against Japanese KI-43 Oscars, P float planes, & KI-72 bombers. Were these Japanese planes common? Any plans for float planes like Japanese "P" or USN PBY? They Claimed the Oscars were very maneuverable. It did well against the F-4F.

[fudgums]

The point of this thread?

[Motherland]

Were these Japanese planes common? They Claimed the Oscars were very maneuverable. It did well against the F-4F.

The Ki 43 was the main aircraft of the Imperial Japanese Army Air Force early in the war. It was basically their counterpart the Navy's A6M. It was very light and maneuverable (more so than the A6M I think) at the cost of being very fragile and having a very light armament (two 7mm or 12.7mm machine guns depending on the variant IIRC).
I've not heard of the Ki 72. I think the most common Japanese bomber of the earlier period was the IJN's G4M Betty.

[Ack-Ack]

Oscars (Ki-43) were basically the IJAF's version of the IJNAF's Zero.  Are you sure they said Ki-72?  If they did, they were incorrect, as far as I recall, the Ki-72 was a proposed updated version of the Ki-36 Ida with a more powerful 600hp Hitachi Ha-38 and retractable landing gear but no examples were built.  The Japanese fielded numerous float planes, I think the Aichi E13A (Jake) was probably their most numerous design but not sure.


ack-ack

[Krusty]

He may be thinking Ki-27?

[W7LPNRICK]

Yes I think KI-27 not taking notes. My hearing is shot too. I thought they referred to the float plane as a "P-Float Plane...? They also said the "Oscar" had a cannon, was indeed fragile, & in a head to head with the F-4F would be blown to pieces, touting the Wildcat's armor. I wounder how they could go head to head against a cannon and survive. Oh, point of this thread...discussion, OK with you Fudgums?

[Ack-Ack]

Yes I think KI-27 not taking notes. My hearing is shot too. I thought they referred to the float plane as a "P-Float Plane...? They also said the "Oscar" had a cannon, was indeed fragile, & in a head to head with the F-4F would be blown to pieces, touting the Wildcat's armor. I wounder how they could go head to head against a cannon and survive. Oh, point of this thread...discussion, OK with you Fudgums?

Don't think the Oscar (Ki-43) had cannons, thought it only had a couple of 12.7 mm mounted in the cowl but not quite sure.

ack-ack

[TexMurphy]

The Oscar is definatly on the list of "high production planes still missing in the planeset" which imho should move it quite high on the prio list for comming planes.

[SKJohn]

Don't think the Oscar (Ki-43) had cannons, thought it only had a couple of 12.7 mm mounted in the cowl but not quite sure.

ack-ack

KI-43-I had two 7.7 mm machine guns.  KI-43-II had two 12.7 mm machine guns, an optical gunsight and a little bit of armor protection for the pilot.  In 1944, they intro'd the KI-43 III with a more powerful engine, but it appeared that the guns remained the same. (P-40 Warhawk vs KI-43 Oscar, Osprey Book)

[TheBug]

I thought they referred to the float plane as a "P-Float Plane...?

Pete possibly?  Mitsubishi F1M

[W7LPNRICK]

Could be. I remember they said the float plane was a mitsubishi

[bagrat]

anyone remeber that episode of dogfights when they said p-51 was armed wit 6 50mm guns? or was that some other documentary?

[Ack-Ack]

Could be. I remember they said the float plane was a mitsubishi

This is probabaly the plane they were referring to.


ZOOM ZOOM!


ack-ack

[W7LPNRICK]

I had this episode about Guadalcanal on Netflix Roku so I played it again & took notes.   The Float plane was a F1M Mitsubishi w/ 2x 7.7mm forward guns and a single 7.7mm in the rear seat. As someone said the Oscar had 2x 12.7mm guns. The clip about head to head with an F4F was against an A6M3 Zero. In this episode the army was using P-400 & SBD's escorted by F4F's to hit the "Tokyo Express" shipping lines coming thru the corridor to Guadalcanal.  

[Motherland]

I would think that it would be the A6M2N 'Rufe'....
Made by Nakajima, but it's the History Channel so...




Ah nvm