Aichi B7A Ryusei
Type	Torpedo bomber and Dive-bomber[1]
Manufacturer	Aichi Kokuki KK
Maiden flight	May 1942[1]
Status	Retired
Primary user	Imperial Japanese Navy
Produced	1941–1945
Number built	114 total 9 - B7A1 105 B7A2.[2]

The Aichi B7A Ryusei^[3] was a large and powerful dive bomber and torpedo bomber produced by Aichi Kokuki KK for the Imperial Japanese Navy. Image File history File links Size of this preview: 800 × 364 pixelsFull resolution (873 × 397 pixel, file size: 30 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg)Aichi B7A Ryusei Grace. www. ... A torpedo bomber is a bomber aircraft designed primarily to attack ships with torpedoes, but they could also carry out conventional bombings. ... Junkers Ju-87 Stuka dive bombers A dive bomber is a bomber aircraft that dives directly at its targets in order to provide greater accuracy and limit the exposure to and effectiveness of anti-aircraft fire. ... An aerospace manufacturer is a company or individual involved in the various aspects of designing, building, testing, selling, and maintaining aircraft, aircraft parts, missiles, rockets, and/or spacecraft. ... Aichi Kokuki KK (Aichi Aircraft Company) was a Japanese aircraft manufacturer which produced several designs for the Imperial Japanese Navy. ... The Maiden flight of an aircraft is the first occasion on which an aircraft leaves the ground of its own accord. ... This is a list of aviation-related events from 1942: Events January January 30 - Canadian Pacific Air Lines formed by the acquisition and merger of Arrow Airways and Canadian Airways, along with all the various subsidiaries of the latter. ... For Combined Fleet, please see that article. ... A dive bomber is a bomber aircraft that dives directly at its targets in order to provide greater accuracy. ... A torpedo bomber is a bomber aircraft designed primarily to attack ships with torpedoes, but they could also carry out conventional bombings. ... For Combined Fleet, please see that article. ...

Need and Usage

It was designed in response to a 1941 requirement issued by the Imperial Japanese Navy for a carrier attack bomber that would replace both the Nakajima B6N Tenzan torpedo plane and the Yokosuka D4Y Suisei dive bomber in IJN service.^[1] Given the codename Grace by the Allies, it first flew as a prototype in May 1942, but problems with the delivery of the engines meant that it was not produced in numbers until 1944^[1] when it was too late to affect the outcome of the war. There were no aircraft carriers left for it to fly from, and only 105 aircraft were produced.^[1] Nakajima B6N1 Tenzan torpedo bomber (Jill) explodes in the air after a direct hit by 5-inch shell from the USS Yorktown (CV-10) off Kwajalein on December 4, 1943 The Nakajima B6N Tenzan (Japanese: 中島 B6N 天山 - Heavenly Mountain, Allied reporting name: Jill) was the Imperial Japanese Navys standard torpedo... Lt. ... Year 1942 (MCMXLII) was a common year starting on Thursday (the link will display the full 1942 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1944 (MCMXLIV) was a leap year starting on Saturday. ... Four aircraft carriers, (bottom-to-top) Principe de Asturias, amphibious assault carrier USS Wasp, USS Forrestal and light V/STOL carrier HMS Invincible, showing size differences of late 20th century carriers An aircraft carrier is a warship designed to deploy and in most cases recover aircraft, acting as a sea...

Differences

Although the B7A had a weight carrying capacity apparently resulting in a weapons load no greater than its predecessors, in fact the presence of an internal bomb bay with two high-load-capability attachment points allowed the aircraft to carry two 250 kg bombs, something no other Japanese single engine fighter or attack aircraft could do (other aircraft had only a single heavy-load attachment point, and there was no known example of an external rack to adapt a single attachment point to multiple heavy bombs). Despite its weight and size, it displayed fighter-like handling and performance, besting the Mitsubishi Zeroes in service at the time. Fast and highly maneuverable, had it been produced earlier and in greater numbers, it would have proved a considerable adversary to the United States Navy's fighters. Mitsubishi A6M3 Zero wreck abandoned at Munda Airfield, Central Solomons, 1943. ... USN redirects here. ...

Design

The powerplant was a 2,000 horsepower (1,491 kW) Nakajima NK9C Homare 12 18-cylinder two row radial engine^[1], and the aircraft featured a "bent" wing—an inverted gull-wing somewhat reminiscent of the F4U Corsair—to give clearance for the propeller without requiring the use of long main undercarriage legs. Nakajima Homare engine The Nakajima Homare (誉, praise or, more usually, honour) was a Japanese aircraft engine manufactured during World War II. It was an air-cooled radial engine in the 2000-HP class, and was used widely by both the Imperial Japanese Army and the Imperial Japanese Navy. ... The radial engine is an internal combustion engine configuration in which the cylinders point outward from a central crankshaft like the spokes on a wheel. ... The Chance Vought F4U Corsair was an American fighter aircraft that saw service in World War II and the Korean War (and in isolated local conflicts). ... For other uses, see Propeller (disambiguation). ...

Variants

• B7A1 : Prototypes. Nine built.
• B7A2 : Two-seat torpedoe, dive-bomber aircraft for the Imperial Japanese Navy.
• B7A2 Experimental : One aircraft fitted with a 2,000-hp (1491-kW) Nakajima Homare 23 radial piston engine.
• B7A3 : Proposed version. Not built.

For Combined Fleet, please see that article. ...

Specifications

Aichi B7A Ryusei.

Aichi B7A carrying torpedo.

Captured Aichi B7A "Grace".

Data from ^[1][2] Image File history File links Size of this preview: 800 × 315 pixelsFull resolution (1005 × 396 pixel, file size: 30 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg)Aichi B7A Ryusei Grace. www. ... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 800 × 315 pixelsFull resolution (1005 × 396 pixel, file size: 30 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg)Aichi B7A Ryusei Grace. www. ... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 800 × 279 pixelsFull resolution (1005 × 350 pixel, file size: 14 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg)Aichi B7A Ryusei Grace carrying torpedo. ... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 800 × 279 pixelsFull resolution (1005 × 350 pixel, file size: 14 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg)Aichi B7A Ryusei Grace carrying torpedo. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ... Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ...

General characteristics

• Crew: 2
• Length: 11.49 m (37 ft 8.33 in)
• Wingspan: 14.40 m (47 ft 3 in)
• Height: 4.07 m (13 ft 4.5 in)
• Wing area: 35.40 m² (381 ft²)
• Empty weight: 3,810 kg (8,400 lb)
• Loaded weight: 5,625 kg (12,401 lb)
• Max takeoff weight: 6,500 kg (14,330 lb)
• Powerplant: 1× Nakajima NK9C Homare 18-cylinder radial engine, 1,491 kW (2,000 hp)

Performance

• Maximum speed: 566.5 km/h (306 knots, 352 mph)
• Range: 3,038 km (1,888 mi)
• Service ceiling: 11,250 m (36,910 ft)
• Rate of climb: 9.6 m/s (1889.8 ft/min)

Armament

• Guns:
  
  • 2 × 20 mm (0.787 in) Type 99 Model 2 cannon in wings
  • 1 × 7.92 mm (0.312 in) Type 1 or 13 mm (0.512 in) Type 2 machine gun in the rear cockpit
• Bombs:
  
  • 800 kg (1,800 lb) of general ordnance or
  • 1 × 800 kg (1,800 lb) torpedo

The distance AB is the wing span of this Aer Lingus Airbus A320. ... In aviation, the Maximum Take-Off Weight (or MTOW) is the maximum weight with which an aircraft is allowed to try to achieve flight. ... Nakajima Homare engine The Nakajima Homare (誉, praise or, more usually, honour) was a Japanese aircraft engine manufactured during World War II. It was an air-cooled radial engine in the 2000-HP class, and was used widely by both the Imperial Japanese Army and the Imperial Japanese Navy. ... The radial engine is an internal combustion engine configuration in which the cylinders point outward from a central crankshaft like the spokes on a wheel. ... VNO of an aircraft is the V speed which refers to the velocity of normal operation. ... The maximal total range is the distance an aircraft can fly between takeoff and landing, as limited by fuel capacity in powered aircraft, or cross-country speed and environmental conditions in unpowered aircraft. ... In aeronautics, the service ceiling is the maximum density altitude where the best rate of climb airspeed will produce a 100 feet per minute climb(twin engine) and 50 feet(single engine) at maximum weight while in a clean configuration with maximum continuous power. ... This page is a candidate to be moved to Wiktionary. ... The 20mm caliber is a specific size of cannon or autocannon ammunition, commonly the smallest caliber which is unambiguously a cannon (or more commonly today, autocannon) and not a heavy machine gun. ... The Type 99 was an autocannon developed for aerial use for the Imperial Japanese Navy and became the standard aircraft cannon of that service during World War II. It was an adaptation of the Oerlikon F. Aichi B7A Kawanishi H6K Kawanishi H8K Nakajima G8N Nakajima J1N Yokosuka P1Y Kyūsh... M242 Bushmaster autocannon on an M2 Bradley. ... The Type 1 machine gun was developed for aerial use for the Imperial Japanese Army and Navyduring World War II. It was an adaptation of the German MG 15 machine gun. ... The Type 2 machine gun was developed for aerial use for the Imperial Japanese Navy during World War II. It was an adaptation of the German MG 131 machine gun. ... A machine gun is a fully-automatic firearm that is capable of firing bullets in rapid succession. ...

Notes

Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era. ... is the 101st day of the year (102nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

References

External links

• IJN Pics
• AirToAirCombat.Com: Aichi B7A Ryusei

Related content

Designation sequence

• B5N - B5M - B6N - B7A

Related lists

• List of bomber aircraft
• List of military aircraft of Japan