bomber Archives - Page 11 of 20 - Destination's Journey

Junkers Ju 86 in Australia

Junkers B3A (Ju 86K) Lawrence Hargreaves

Junkers Ju 86 in Australia

Junkers Ju 86 Z Werknummer 086 0952 was built in1937 in Dessau, Germany and registered as D-AGEY. During March 1937, over a three-week period, it was piloted by Hans Kommoll on a ferry flight from Germany to Australia. Just before landing, an engine failed resulting in it swinging off the runway. It took about five weeks before a replacement engine arrived from Germany by sea.

On May 14, 1937 it was registered in Australia as VH-UYA and named “Lawrence Hargrave” for the British-born Australian engineer, explorer, astronomer, inventor and aeronautical pioneer. This aircraft was acquired by Sydney wool broker, H. Beinssen in exchange for £23,000 worth of Australian wool being shipped to Germany.

Placed on charter to Airlines of Australia Ltd. it was hoped that the diesel engines would prove more economical to operate than other aircraft. However, engine reliability problems resulted in the operator cancelling the lease. The aircraft was shipped back Germany in August where it became D-AREY.

Kawanishi N1K2-J Shiden-Kai

Developed from the Kawanishi N1K1-J Shiden, the N1K2-J addressed the major defects present in its predecessor, primarily the mid-mounted wing and long landing gear. The wing was lowered, thereby shortening the landing gear, while the fuselage was lengthened and the tail unit redesigned. The design changes resulted in a lightening of the fighter by 250 kg.

Despite its continued reliability issues, the Homare engine was retained as there was no alternative available. Armament was maintained at four 20mm cannon all located in the wings. First flying on 1 January 1944, it was named Shiden-Kai (kai meaning modified), while the Allies maintained the code-name George.

A total of 406 Kawanishi K1N2-J Shiden-Kai fighters were built.

Kawanishi N1K2-J Shiden-Kai in US Markings

Kawanishi N1K1-J Shiden

The Kawanishi N1K1-J Shiden (Allied code name George; Japanese translation: Violet Lightning) was a land based version of the Kawanishi N1K1 Kyofu (Rex). Not only were the bulky floats removed, but a more powerful engine was fitted producing a fast and maneuverable fighter, the equal of the latest Allied aircraft. The Nakajima NK9A Homare 11 18-cylinder radial engine, produced 1650hp compared to the1,460hp of the MK4C Kasei 13 of the N1K1 Kyofu.

The mid-fuselage wing was retained, which required a long undercarriage. This proved to be structurally weak with many failures occurring. Gun armament was increased to two 20mm cannon in each wing (two of which were mounted in underwing gondolas), while retaining the two nose mounted 7.7-mm machineguns. Three other production versions were produced:

N1K1-Ja with nose guns deleted and all cannon mounted inside the wings
N1K1-Jb with underwing racks for two 250-kg bombs
N1K1-Jc with racks for four 250-kg bombs

A total of 1,007 Kawanishi N1K1-J Shiden were built. The N1K1 was further developed into the Kawanishi N1K2 with a redesigned fuselage and the wing moved to the lower fuselage.