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Kokusai Ki-76

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Ki-76
General information
TypeLiaison/observation
ManufacturerKokusai
Primary userImperial Japanese Army Air Service
Number built937 including a single prototype
History
Introduction date1942
First flight1941
Retired1945

The Kokusai Ki-76, or Liaison Aircraft Type 3 (in Japanese: 三式指揮連絡機), was a Japanese high-wing monoplane artillery spotter and liaison aircraft that served in World War II. The Allied reporting name was "Stella".

Design and development

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In 1940, the Imperial Japanese Army Air Force ordered the Nippon Kokusai Koku Kogyo to produce an artillery spotting and liaison aircraft. The resulting Ki-76 was inspired by, and similar to, the German Fieseler Fi 156 "Storch", although not a direct copy.[1] Like the Storch, it was a high-winged monoplane with a fixed tailwheel undercarriage. However, rather than the slotted flaps used by the German aircraft, the Ki-76 used Fowler flaps, while it was powered by Hitachi Ha-42 radial engine rather than the Argus As 10 inline engine of the Storch.

First flying in May 1941, the Ki-76 proved successful when evaluated against an example of the Fi-156, and was ordered into production as the Army Type 3 Command Liaison Plane in November 1942.[2]

Operational history

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Ki-76 on the Akitsu Maru

The Ki-76 remained in service as an artillery spotter and liaison aircraft until the end of the war. Ki-76s were also used as anti-submarine aircraft, operating from the Japanese Army's escort carrier, the Akitsu Maru, being fitted with an arrestor hook and carrying two 60 kg (132 lb) depth charges.[3]

Operators

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 Japan
 Thailand

Specifications (Ki-76)

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Ki-76 Stella three-view

Data from Encyclopedia of Military Aircraft,[4] Japanese Aircraft of the Pacific War[5]

General characteristics

  • Crew: 2
  • Length: 9.65 m (31 ft 8 in)
  • Wingspan: 15 m (49 ft 3 in)
  • Height: 2.9 m (9 ft 6 in)
  • Wing area: 29.4 m2 (316 sq ft)
  • Empty weight: 1,110 kg (2,447 lb)
  • Gross weight: 1,530 kg (3,373 lb)
  • Max takeoff weight: 1,623 kg (3,578 lb)
  • Powerplant: 1 × Hitachi Ha42 9-cylinder air-cooled radial piston engine, 231 kW (310 hp)
  • Propellers: 2-bladed fixed-pitch propeller

Performance

  • Maximum speed: 178 km/h (111 mph, 96 kn) at sea level
  • Range: 750 km (470 mi, 400 nmi)
  • Service ceiling: 5,630 m (18,470 ft)

Armament

  • Guns: 1× 7.7 mm (0.303 in) machine gun in rear cockpit
  • Bombs: 2× 60 kg (132 lb) depth charges (some variants)

See also

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Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era

Related lists

References

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  1. ^ Francillon 1979, p. 147.
  2. ^ Francillon 1979, p. 148.
  3. ^ Francillon 1979, pp. 148–149.
  4. ^ Jackson 2002, p. 224
  5. ^ Francillon 1979, p. 149

Sources

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  • Francillon, René J. (1979). Japanese aircraft of the Pacific War. London: Putnam. ISBN 0-370-30251-6. OCLC 6124909. (new edition 1987 by Putnam Aeronautical Books, ISBN 0-85177-801-1.)
  • Jackson, Robert (2002). The Encyclopedia of Military Aircraft. Parragon. ISBN 0-7525-8130-9..