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Although thought to be obsolescent
when Japan entered the war, the Aichi
D3A with fixed spatted landing gear
was the first Japanese aircraft to drop
bombs on American targets when aircraft
of this type took part in the great
raid on Pearl Harbor on 7 December
1941. Designed to a 1936 carrier-based
dive-bomber requirement, the prototype
was flown in January 1938 with a
530kW Nakajima Hikari 1
Radial. Production D3A1 aircraft had
slightly smaller wings and were powered
by the 745kW Mitsubishi
Kinsei 43 radial. A dorsal fin
extension considerably improved the
aircraft's manoeuvrability, although
the armament of only two forward-firing
7.7mm machine-guns,
with another of the same calibre in the
rear cockpit, was undeniably puny. After
limited land-based operations in
China and Indo-China, D3As were
flown in all major carrier actions during
the first 10 months of the war and
sank more Allied naval vessels than
any other Axis aircraft. Among British
casualties in D3A1 attacks were HMS
Hermes (the world's first carrier to be
sunk by carrier aircraft), and the cruisers
Cornwall and Dorsetshire. Heavy
losses among D3Als during and after
the Battle of the Coral Sea, however,
forced withdrawal by most of the survivors
to land bases. In 1942 the D3A2
was introduced with increased fuel
capacity and more powerful engine,
but by 1944 the aircraft were hopelessly
outclassed by American fighters; a
small number was subsequently employed
in kamikaze attacks. Production
amounted to 476 D3Als and 1,016
D3A2. The Allied reporting name was
'Val'.
| MODEL | D3A1 |
| CREW | 2 |
| ENGINE | 1 x Mitsubishi Kensei-53, 750kW |
| WEIGHTS |
| Take-off weight | 3650 kg | 8047 lb |
| Empty weight | 2408 kg | 5309 lb |
| DIMENSIONS |
| Wingspan | 14.36 m | 47 ft 1 in |
| Length | 10.20 m | 33 ft 6 in |
| Height | 3.85 m | 12 ft 8 in |
| Wing area | 34.9 m2 | 375.66 sq ft |
| PERFORMANCE |
| Max. speed | 385 km/h | 239 mph |
| Cruise speed | 295 km/h | 183 mph |
| Ceiling | 9300 m | 30500 ft |
| Range | 1500 km | 932 miles |
| ARMAMENT | 3 x 7.7mm machine-guns, 1 x 250-kg bomb, 2 x 60-kg bombs |
 | A three-view drawing (752 x 989) |
| leo rudnicki, leo_rudnicki(@)hotmail.com, 10.04.2009 It has been said that the 250kg bomb was not effective on armored capitol ships but the Imperial Navy pilots were the most highly trained and wasted fewer bombs than anyone else. The loss of the six carrier aircrews at Coral Sea and Midway was far more important than the machinery. Later pilots were not nearly as good. Dauntless carried a bigger bomb,not as far, and undertrained pilots from Midway had no effect. Well trained pilots from American carriers off Midway changed history. | | Hiroyuki Takeuchi, cxc02366(@)nifty.com, 30.01.2009 The D3A is sometimes said to have sunk more Allied ships than did any single Axis type, though I do not know what data backs this up. But it certainly achieved a number of successes in the early part of the war. Purely in terms of performance and combat effectivenss, I think the contemporary SBD was superior. | | Tony, tonyfrench37(@)hotmail.com, 27.01.2009 Yes, one cannot say the Val was outclassed by fighters. It was a bomber. Perhaps one could say it had become vulnerable to fighters | | Mick Dunne, hotideas(@)hotmail.com, 29.12.2007 Come on! All aircraft of this type were "hopelessly outclassed" by allied fighters! Like the Nell, Betty and Kate, the Val was designed as part of a very efficient WEAPONS SYSTEM that incorporated the Zero. This was a VERY good Naval Dive Bomber and it sure made its mark in the Pacific War. |
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