Nakajima Ki-115 Tsurugi
As Allied forces closed in on Japan in 1945, the Japanese found themselves in increasingly desperate straits; the kamikaze was the most visible sign of this desperation. With the American landings on Okinawa, the Imperial Japanese Army realized that the Home Islands were next. Along with the Imperial Japanese Navy, they intended to unleash a horde of kamikaze attacks that would so unnerve the Americans that some sort of ceasefire or negotiated settlement would result. Part of this plan included the Nakajima Ki-115 Tsurugi (Sabre).
By 1945, Japan was nearly out of experienced pilots, and were increasingly forced to use nearly untrained men--mostly college-age students--who were long on patriotic fervor but short on skill. The Japanese were also running out of aircraft, many of which had already been expended in kamikaze attacks in the Philippines and Okinawa. The Ki-115 was designed solely for the kamikaze mission. It was designed to be built quickly and with what little materials the Japanese had left: mostly wood and steel. The landing gear was there only for taxiing and takeoff; it would be jettisoned after leaving the ground, as there was to be no return trip. A universal engine mount was incorporated into the design so that the Tsurugi could use whatever engines were still available--American B-29 bombing raids had devastated the Japanese aviation industry by this time. No defensive armament was included: the Tsurugi was intended solely to be flown into an enemy target, and the only weapon was to be a heavy bomb carried beneath the aircraft.
The first prototype Ki-115 flew in March 1945, and Japanese test pilots were not pleased with it: even as an aircraft purposely built to be suicidal, it was poor stuff. Visibility from the cockpit was nearly nonexistent, especially over the long nose. Taking off was problematic, and in the hands of anything besides one of the few experienced pilots the Japanese had left, the Tsurugi would be more likely to kill its pilot long before the pilot had a chance to kill themselves. The service understood that most of the projected 8000 Ki-115s would never reach their targets, but even if only ten percent made it, it would cause horrific damage to an American landing force.
Production began on the Ki-115 with the promise that upgraded versions with better handling would be produced, but the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki ended the war before any Tsurugis were used in combat. About 105 were built, and all fell into the hands of the Americans after Japan's surrender. Nearly all were scrapped, as there was no interest in an aircraft intended for suicide, and only two (or possibly one) are known to survive.
Assuming that there is only one Ki-115 left, this is it. It was found by American forces at the Nakajima factory at Iwate and shipped back to the United States, but never flown, and was placed in storage at the Smithsonian's Silver Hill storage facility for eventual display in the National Air and Space Museum. The NASM decided that it was unlikely that the aircraft would ever be restored or that the Smithsonian would ever have room for it to be displayed, so it was loaned to the Pima Air and Space Museum in 2012.
Because of the Tsurugi's wood and light steel construction, Pima decided not to attempt to restore it, for fear that it would simply fall apart; it is displayed in unrestored form. Faint hints of IJAAF markings can still be seen, besides the hinomaru national insignia: the yellow wing leading edges were a hallmark of IJAAF aircraft. At some point during its journey from Japan to the US, the engine mount was damaged; as a result, the engine is not actually attached to the aircraft.
A docent I talked to after taking this picture claimed that this is the same Ki-115 that was displayed as a gate guard in front of Yokota Air Base, Japan during the 1950s. This is unlikely, as Pima's own guidebook mentions that this is the Ki-115 owned by the Smithsonian, which was brought back at the end of the war. The fate of the Yokota Ki-115 is unknown, but it is thought to be owned by a Japanese museum. Given that I thought that no Ki-115s survived to present, seeing any of them was a huge surprise.
Nakajima Ki-115 Tsurugi
As Allied forces closed in on Japan in 1945, the Japanese found themselves in increasingly desperate straits; the kamikaze was the most visible sign of this desperation. With the American landings on Okinawa, the Imperial Japanese Army realized that the Home Islands were next. Along with the Imperial Japanese Navy, they intended to unleash a horde of kamikaze attacks that would so unnerve the Americans that some sort of ceasefire or negotiated settlement would result. Part of this plan included the Nakajima Ki-115 Tsurugi (Sabre).
By 1945, Japan was nearly out of experienced pilots, and were increasingly forced to use nearly untrained men--mostly college-age students--who were long on patriotic fervor but short on skill. The Japanese were also running out of aircraft, many of which had already been expended in kamikaze attacks in the Philippines and Okinawa. The Ki-115 was designed solely for the kamikaze mission. It was designed to be built quickly and with what little materials the Japanese had left: mostly wood and steel. The landing gear was there only for taxiing and takeoff; it would be jettisoned after leaving the ground, as there was to be no return trip. A universal engine mount was incorporated into the design so that the Tsurugi could use whatever engines were still available--American B-29 bombing raids had devastated the Japanese aviation industry by this time. No defensive armament was included: the Tsurugi was intended solely to be flown into an enemy target, and the only weapon was to be a heavy bomb carried beneath the aircraft.
The first prototype Ki-115 flew in March 1945, and Japanese test pilots were not pleased with it: even as an aircraft purposely built to be suicidal, it was poor stuff. Visibility from the cockpit was nearly nonexistent, especially over the long nose. Taking off was problematic, and in the hands of anything besides one of the few experienced pilots the Japanese had left, the Tsurugi would be more likely to kill its pilot long before the pilot had a chance to kill themselves. The service understood that most of the projected 8000 Ki-115s would never reach their targets, but even if only ten percent made it, it would cause horrific damage to an American landing force.
Production began on the Ki-115 with the promise that upgraded versions with better handling would be produced, but the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki ended the war before any Tsurugis were used in combat. About 105 were built, and all fell into the hands of the Americans after Japan's surrender. Nearly all were scrapped, as there was no interest in an aircraft intended for suicide, and only two (or possibly one) are known to survive.
Assuming that there is only one Ki-115 left, this is it. It was found by American forces at the Nakajima factory at Iwate and shipped back to the United States, but never flown, and was placed in storage at the Smithsonian's Silver Hill storage facility for eventual display in the National Air and Space Museum. The NASM decided that it was unlikely that the aircraft would ever be restored or that the Smithsonian would ever have room for it to be displayed, so it was loaned to the Pima Air and Space Museum in 2012.
Because of the Tsurugi's wood and light steel construction, Pima decided not to attempt to restore it, for fear that it would simply fall apart; it is displayed in unrestored form. Faint hints of IJAAF markings can still be seen, besides the hinomaru national insignia: the yellow wing leading edges were a hallmark of IJAAF aircraft. At some point during its journey from Japan to the US, the engine mount was damaged; as a result, the engine is not actually attached to the aircraft.
A docent I talked to after taking this picture claimed that this is the same Ki-115 that was displayed as a gate guard in front of Yokota Air Base, Japan during the 1950s. This is unlikely, as Pima's own guidebook mentions that this is the Ki-115 owned by the Smithsonian, which was brought back at the end of the war. The fate of the Yokota Ki-115 is unknown, but it is thought to be owned by a Japanese museum. Given that I thought that no Ki-115s survived to present, seeing any of them was a huge surprise.