Tachikawa Ki-106 (Ki-84 Hayate)

History

The Japanese war situation was deteriorating due to the relentless Allied bombing of the Japanese mainland, so a variety of high-performance aircraft were sought to cope with the arrival of a new generation of Allied fighter jets and the American Boeing B-29 "Superfortress" heavy high-altitude bomber. The Nakajima Ki-84 "Hayate" represented one of the best mid-to-late fighters available to the nation, with 3,514 produced, while being considered the best number of Japanese fighters available throughout the conflict.

It was decided to develop an inexpensive all-wood version of this fighter to reduce reliance on precious alloys and other valuable war materials needed elsewhere. This move became the forgotten Tachikawa "Ki-106".

The request appeared in September 1943 and was assigned to Tachikawa Hikki's engineer. Their mission was to redesign the classic Ki-84 into an all-wood form, with support from the Army Aviation Technology Institute.

In addition to the all-wood construction, the plane has been simplified to allow the use of low-skilled labor in the construction process, essentially making the Ki-106 a cheap fighter jet that can be built almost anywhere that resembles a runway - ordinary carpentry shop. Final assembly will require slightly more skilled manpower, but the end result will be an easier-to-manufacture combat platform that is sorely needed by the Japanese Air Force.

The Ki-106 mimics much of the form and function of the previous all-metal Ki-84. Ohjo Koku was in charge of building the prototypes, and the first (of three) flew in July 1945. The product's long development meant it didn't break out until late in the war, when Japan's losses were irreparable.

Power comes from a Nakajima Ha-45-21 series radial piston engine driving a three-bladed propeller rated at 2,000 hp. Like the Ki-84, the main-wing aircraft is mounted forward of the center of the hull, and the cockpit is located above the center of the hull.

To reduce weight, the armament was reduced from the Ki-84's 4 x 20mm gun array to a 2 x 20mm battery (the Ki-106's all-wood construction made it heavier than the all-metal version).

All three prototypes were built for the Japanese surrender of the Ki-106 production line to develop this Japanese "Wooden Miracle" that ended in 1945. A second prototype, able to lift off before the end of hostilities and equipped with the proposed weapons program, showed some progress.

Specification

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Performance

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Changes