MAQUETTE À MONTER - Kawasaki Ki61-I Hei Hien (Tony) Hasegawa | No. 09087 | 1:48 *** IN GIFT SOME eduard ACCESSORIES ***
Prix régulier 35,00 € TTC 6%
Characteristics
| Scale | 1:48 |
| Manufacturer | Hasegawa |
| Size of the box | 34 x 19 x 5 cm |
Description
The Japanese Army fighter Ki61-I Hei HIEN fighter named "Tony" by the allied forces, was the only mass produced Japanese fighter to use a liquid engine during the conflict. Great efforts were made during its design to keep it light, and this produced a well balanced fighter interceptor, with good high altitude performance and maneuverability. Its only drawback was the engine, for which Japan had little knowledge of liquid engine design, production or operations. This was countered somewhat by the skill of Japan where skilled maintenance personnel and an adequate supply of spare parts were available when needed.
The "Tony" served in all campaigns and gave a good account of itself in the air defenses of mainland Japan. Following the loss of the Philippines, and the initial raids on Japan by China based B-29's, large numbers of the Ki-61-I were assigned to the defense of mainland Japan. The most famous squadron using the Hien was the 244th Sentai, commanded by Japan's youngest squadron leader Major T. Kobayashi. This squadron accounted for 160 B29's downed during the war and flew the Ki-61-I until the end of the conflict.
More to read about the KIT here, thanks to scalemates, a Belgian Scale modeling database