Aviation Naval Warfare Land Systems Small Arms By Flag By Year By Tag

Mitsubishi J8M (Shusui)

1945 SECRET WEAPONS OF THE IJA/IJN WORLD WAR 2

History

Imperial Japan has maintained relations with the German nation since the establishment of diplomatic ties by the Prussian authorities on the Japanese mainland in the 1860s. However, World War I (1914-1918) delayed the formation of an alliance, as Japan found itself against the German Empire and claimed several German territories in the Asia-Pacific region. During the two world wars that followed, the two countries adopted similar militaristic governments that took control of political and military policy, a direction that once again aligned the two countries.

Japan allied itself with the Axis powers in World War II (1939-1945) and joined Germany and Italy as fighting principles, although the distance between the powers eventually divided the battle into two clear fronts - the Pacific and European campaigns.

During World War II, they made certain military agreements, one of which was the availability of the technology to power the new Messerschmitt Me 163 "Komet" rocket-powered interceptor. The Japanese government did not turn a blind eye to the catastrophic consequences of the Allied bombing of Italy and Germany day and night, realizing that the arrival of the high-flying Boeing B-29 Superfortress would bring a similar sinking over the Japanese mainland in time. Since the B-29 The advanced nature of the four-engine heavy bomber was able to fly over Japan's available defenses, including its interceptor arms.

The Me 163 offered some hope - an extremely fast, small aircraft with a cannon armament designed to fight large bomber formations. Its rocket-powered characteristics provided a quick reaction time to reach the desired altitude before the bomber formation arrived.

Imperial Japan thus surrendered on August 15, 1945, officially ending World War II. The surrender document was to be signed on the deck of the USS Missouri on September 2, 1945, destroying Japan's defense industry for the foreseeable future. With the disintegration of the Japanese Empire, so did the Mitsubishi J8M project.

All existing examples were confiscated by Allied forces for evaluation and eventual destruction. By the end of the war, about 60 training aircraft had been completed, while seven combat-ready versions were available.

There are a total of five defined variants in the J8M family pedigree. J8M1 was the original aircraft designation with 2 x 30mm guns, followed by J8M2 for IJN with 1 x 30mm guns.

The J8M3 will have an elongated fuselage and larger wingspan, while being powered by a 4,400-pound thrust Tokuro 3-series engine. Training versions of Yokosuka include the MXY-8 "Akigusa" based on the original J8M production model and the MXY-9 "Shuka" powered by a Tsu-11 thermal jet engine - based on a 4-cylinder Tsu-11 inverted in-line engine with single stage fuel Jet superchargers are connected, and together they (when fired) generate thrust in a fairly primitive way.

The Japanese end product was very similar to the original German Messerschmitt series, with a short, strong fuselage with a single-seat cockpit, swept wing assembly, and a single vertical tail. Armament is 1 or 2 x 30mm guns. The rocket motor was inserted into the fuselage and ejected through a circular opening under the rear vertical stabilizer. The short-lived combination of T-Stoff and C-Stoff was preserved and was dubbed "Ko" and "Otsu", respectively, by Japanese engineers. The pilot sits under a glass canopy hinged to the right, while his rear view is obscured by the raised fuselage spine.

The Mitsubishi design will take off and land in the same manner as the Me 163 - via a throwaway two-wheeled cart on a slide in the belly of the fuselage.

Overall, from a tactical point of view, rocket-powered interceptors proved to be a technical dead end - rocket-powered vehicles were later used to build weapons, test flight envelopes, break the sound barrier and eventually reach space. The "turbojet" engine has officially arrived, which means a new way of doing things, quickly replacing rocket engines as the next-generation propulsion system.

The Me 163 itself was a marginal success for the Germans, and its voyage over Japan may have met a similar fate. By mid-1945, despite the J8M's entry into service, the Allies would still win the Pacific War - although the smaller aircraft still provided the Japanese Empire with a fighting chance.