A Zero, a Kate, and a Val walk into a museum

Big news from the aviation museum at Pearl Harbor. (h/t Jim Bates)

The Pearl Harbor Kates (Pt.1)

Because I want to have a Pearl Harbor collection, I recently started a (mostly) out of the box build of the Airfix B5N2 Kate.  Little did I know that the markings of the Kate (particularly the torpedo carrying Kates) was such a confused area.

I figured that, given the many Pearl Harbor photos from the Japanese perspective, that there would be no questions as to the markings of these aircraft.  I was wrong.  Boy, was I wrong.

Let me give you just one example.  The photo below is a frame from a film showing the strikes of the Kido Butai in the Indian Ocean in 1942.  It is a fairly famous series of photos.  

Note that this reference book mis-identifies the aircraft as returning from the Pearl Harbor Strike.  As such there are some decals or marking references that suggest that Fuchida’s aircraft should look like this for Pearl Harbor.  This is not correct.  I believe that is should appear as an unweathered version of this aircraft.  Something like this.

 

Here is another Pearl Harbor strike aircraft. EII-307.  This is a famous one from a series of photos or film still grabs.

This aircraft has been depicted in multiple ways in the Kate references.    Here is one way.

I don’t think this is right.  The Red on the tail does not match the photo.  In addition , I don’t see the two tone green and brown anywhere on the photo.

Here is another reference that depicts the aircraft in the same way.  Frankly, I think it is just copied from the previous reference.

Again, I don’t see evidence of the solid red tail, nor the two tone Brown and green camo.

 

Again, another photo from the same series or stills from the same film of the same aircraft.  Do you see evidence for what is depicted above in the side-views?  I don’t.

I don’t think the tail is red.  I think the center section where the code is painted is solid green.  I think the rest of the tail used to be ame-iro (the taupe color similar to RLM 02 that quickly faded to a gray) and was overpainted in a not totally opaque green.

EII-307 isn’t a torpedo bomber, but I use it to illustrate my position that much of the info on the Pearl Harbor Kates is wrong.

Part 2 follows at some point.

Modeling the Airfix B5N2 Kate

I am in the middle of building the Airfix B5N2 Kate.  While this is an almost an OOB build, I have looked at available reference.  By far, the best is the  Kagero book on the Kate (#79), with the FAOW #32 on the Kate as the second, though if you have the Kagero book, you will have almost all of the photos from the FAOW #32.  If you are going to detail the cockpit, the Mikesh book on Japanese Aircraft Interiors is a must.  I am waiting for some decals from Hannants,, and will update you further.

Another WWII story

I knew this one, but it is still interesting.

H8K2

Scroll down in this thread.

I am happy to see this

The Japanese are flight testing F-35Bs off their two “Helicopter Destroyers”.  Who’d have thought in 1944-45 that come 2021 US Marine aircraft would be operating off JMSDF ships?

I will never learn enough about WWII

I had never heard this story.

Ki-115

Hale Wallace has another great video.

I never thought I’d see….

An injection Ki-54. Now, if it isn’t too much trouble, can I get a Ki-57?

Its not just SpaceX

Rocket Lab just launched a Japanese earth imaging satellite from New Zealand. This is their seventh successful launch this year. Story here. (post in memory of Mike Nofsinger)