The Rare B-29 Exterminator That Shocked the US

[@Ranger830]

My Grandfather was with 6th Bomb Group flying out of Tinian. He was Flight engineer on Flak Ally Sally B-29 #53 6th Bomb Group. I remember him telling me how happy he was when the Marines took Iwo Jima. Them taking that Airfield gave the B-29 crews a bingo strip 1/2 way back from Tokyo to put down on instead of ditching in the sea and praying for the best. I Also remember him speaking of the Bravery/Audacity of the Japanese pilots. His Name was Charles (Doc) Dougherty. You can google the aircraft,there are lots of cool pics of the Bird and crew! Great vid and thanks for the memories my friend. Respect and honor them,there will never be another generation like them. Keep these brave Americans story’s alive for future generations! Best Regards from Ft. Pierce Florida everyone. Let Freedom Ring!

[@shawnmartin5738]

Don’t sell the current kids short. There are plenty of guts in this generation that’s been fighting the so-called “War on Terror “.

[@Ranger830]

@@shawnmartin5738No Disrespect intended! Hooah! Our Grandfathers were not subjected to the same ROE. As us! I Have flight logs of incendiaries being dropped on population centers for example! I feel ya Brother.

[@helmandtigers]

@@shawnmartin5738war on terror😂😂😂 thought you backed Netanyahu

[@shawnmartin5738]

@@helmandtigers ????? What are you talking about?

[@saltygrandpajoe6375]

🙏🏻🇺🇸🫡

[@dyer2cycle]

There are 2 or 3 restoreable/rebuildable Ki-61's that have been in storage since the 1970's-1980's...but nobody who has one or access to one ever seems to make getting one to flyable status any priority whatsoever...kind of puzzling and frustrating since it is such a rare and significant aircraft,and a very beautiful one at that...I have been hoping to see one restored and flying since I was a teenager...alas, I am now 59...not sure if it will ever happen in my lifetime, if ever...plenty of P-51's, Spitfires, and even rare stuff like Me-109's and FW-190's, even a couple of Zeros have been restored over the past 40-50 years, many resurrected from mere bits...but not a Ki-61. The HA 40 engine may prove to be unobtainable in airworthy condition, but seems a DB-601 or 605 could be substituted since they are what the HA 40 was based on. I know the DB engines are rare as well, but they seem to come out of the woodwork from time to time when one is needed for a Me-109 restoration...

[@pac1fic055]

The Ki-100 goshikisen was a monster in its own right. The mating of the powerful and reliable Mitsubishi Ha-112 to the sleek and well built Ki-61 airframe created a high performance fighter that came as a surprise to the Japanese themselves.

[@ChaohsiangChen]

Somebody in IJA air corps must have been beating his head thinking: why the heck didn't we thought of that in 1943?

[@pac1fic055]

@ for sure. Lol.

[@Cuccos19]

Interesting: Italian fighters became great after changing the (well underpowered) radials to the German licenced DB601/605 clones, the Russian LaGG-3 became great after the Klimov M-105 V12 were changed to the ASh-82 radial (much power also), here the Kawasaki fighter had the similar result changing V12 to radial.

[@Soap_Studio1]

I never thought I would see this plane in one of your videos but I’m glad I did

[@silverstreettalks343]

I'm glad to hear both US and Australian aircraft mentioned. Australians often get overlooked in military matters when it comes to WW II

[@BrianRichardAllen]

..... Australians often get overlooked in military matters when it comes to WW II ..... Make that, "ANZACS." for the Kiwis, (one of whom -- and as definitively as Nelson won Trafalgar) single-handedly won the Battle of Britain) are also often overlooked. Especially by "the Poms." (Limeys) The Aussies somewhat spectacularly turned the Germans 180-degrees at Tobruk and sent the barstewards packing and as decisively turned the Japanese through 180 degrees at Milne Bay.😎

[@jimleffler7976]

You all participated in Coral Sea among others, you aren't forgotten

[@icewaterslim7260]

@@BrianRichardAllen First successes against the Japanese in the Pacific on the ground and in the air were by Australia in defense of Port Moresby. That was no small feat by the green pilots of the RAAF 75th Squadron in denying air superiority to the Aces loaded combat veteran land based pilots of the Imperial Japanese Navy out of Rabaul.

[@maxpower9499]

@@BrianRichardAllen Also our Canadian brothers get overlooked. Being from the States, i don't think there's a graveyard anywhere in the US that doesn't have a marker for one of the wars. Not sure Europe appreciates the fact that kids from some of the remote places on earth traveled thousands of miles to die fighting a war that wasn't their's.

[@mikeholland1031]

They didn't design much.

[@butziporsche8646]

My grandfather was bombardier on plane #11 (Staff Sergeant William Birch). His target was the Yokohama factory. He passed in 2007.

[@dl5270]

A little sidenote: if Ki-61 has a small triangular side window at the lower front part of the canopy, it is an earlier version - Ki-61-1 (you can clearly see it at 00:37). Later version, Ki-61-2 had no such window and normally it was blacked out ( 01:20 is an example). Thank you for the video!

[@bigearl3867]

In 1980, I was reading a book I checked out of my school library. It mentioned an encounter with an Me-109 in the Pacific theater of the war as America pushing towards Japan. The book if I recall was written around 1947(?). This was pre-internet of course so I couldn't find any more information about 109's in the Pacific. Seeing this now makes sense of what the pilot who saw it reported.

[@ProfRonanMC]

A beautiful aircraft - I have been fascinated by it since I built a model of one, sixty years ago!

[@alanclarke8493]

I built the Revell 1/72 Tony in 1969, and it was one of my first good builds! I still have that model today. I consider this aircraft as one of my favorites!🛩️😊😎

[@JarrettDorough]

Yup, a stunningly beautiful plane

[@timonsolus]

The Kawasaki Ki-61 (and the Macchi MC.202) are definitely better looking aircraft than the Messerschmitt Bf 109E that was the inspiration for them.

[@bachiistsho2940]

My father used to install Ha-40 engine onto Tony as a high schooler during ww2. 50 years later, I met its chief designer Mr. Takeo Doi sensei when I started working as an engineer in Kawasaki factory.

[@mepmop-m610]

Revell ki-61 about 7-8 years ago Edit box photo was it shooting down a b29?

[@karlheinzvonkroemann2217]

One of the best episodes you've done so far.

[@glowskulls100]

I don't comment on videos very often but your series is the most informative I have come across. I had never come across this model mentioned before, well done and thank you from Wales UK.

[@darrylbrown634]

Whales??

[@icewaterslim7260]

The Db601 variant that Japan bought a license for was the single stage supercharged one and would've lacked performance at the B29s optimum altitude. Ki 61s were initially ferried to Wewak and the numbers lost on just that journey resulted in a mix of Ki43s and Ki 61s. It was the crankshaft and block mains that gave trouble to the replacements to machinists that had been drafted during the 2nd Sino Japanese War in grinding journals and line boring mains in the untypically long V12 powerplant. The Ki100 was a Tony fitted with a Mitsubishi Kensai radial that was lighter and more powerful resulting in an even better aircraft as designed but it rarely reached anything approaching it's potential in operation due shortages of materials like nickel used in armor, high octane fuel and wartime workmanship by a relatively unskilled replacement workforce. There was a directive in the F6F pilot manual to avoid leaving the fight with Ki 61s in a dive. I'll add that going level might've been your best bet against Ki 61s or 100s but leading or following in an F6F vertically with a well built, maintained and piloted Ki 100, such as there were in '45, might be questionable. . . Imo. It's not a Zeke or an Oscar.

[@otpyrcralphpierre1742]

Good info. Thank you!

[@vaerenbergh]

every german inline engine in fighters had a single variable supercharger, it wasn't as powerfull on higher altitudes compared to multistaged engines from the allies but was fast enough to still get to the bombers, amerika was a bit arrogant by bombing a mid altitude wich mad it easier for japanese engines, the ki100 was a beast tough

[@mikemessing5053]

Didn't the US bomb Japan and then after a short time decided the jetstream made the high alt stuff wildly innacurate so they switched to bombing from 10000 feet or so ?

[@icewaterslim7260]

@@mikemessing5053 Incindiaries and mostly at night. Not sure of the altitude exactly but that sounds about right. Fighters based at Kyushu would have an opportunity to attack the B29s approach during daylight. When they were still bombing at high altitude I know that Ki 84s based at Okinawa would chase down stragglers on their way back to Saipan or Tinian. Overheated R3350s or engine fires were the primary source of problems that would make a B29 lose altitude returning from a mission.

[@icewaterslim7260]

@@vaerenbergh The Db601 came in two variants and the earliest was a gear driven single speed, single stage, not the one listed as hydraulic driven. That is the variant that Aichi and Kawasaki built. That particular "variable" method was new to me though. I had assumed the next supercharger was a two stage. So thanks for replying.

[@johnglassjr.3943]

Both my older and younger uncles on my mom's side were in that 8th ARMY AIR FORCE BOMB WING and 100th GROUP!! The older one had all his uniform shirts with the EIGHT BALL SHOULDER PATCHES and his SHEEPSKIN LINED CAP AND JACKET with GLOVES inside a separate closet all cleaned and pressed ready to go!! BIG PAINTED PICTURE OF B-17S in FLIGHT FORMATION taking off at DAWN HUNG in PROMINENT SPOT on the LIVING ROOM WALL like FOREVER until he died SITTING IN HIS CHAIR FACING IT at an ADVANCED AGE as he had everyday. He was also wearing his GLOVES to keep his hands warm all the time. Looked and sounded AMAZING LIKE "LUCKY JOE" with a TALL FRAME, STRONG SKULL/JAW and DEEP BASS VOICE that had rails and rattles. More 8th AAF AIRMEN died in WW2 than all the MARINES in total (OVER 45,000) BURNING UP, CRASHING, BLOWING UP, SHOT UP, SHREDDED BY FLAK and/or FREEZING/CHOKING ON THEIR OWN VOMIT IN THEIR OXYGEN MASKS!! TRULY HELL at 30 THOUSAND FEET but UNSWERVINGLY VALIANT!! GLAD JOE GOT TO PUT HIS STORY DOWN for POSTERITY!! My younger uncle was in the fighters. Saw a picture of him sitting on the wing of a P51 EMBLAZONED with a CHECKERBOARD PATTERN on the FUSELAGE and TAIL FINS/RUDDERS. GUESS that was for the GROUP ID!! BOTH SUFFERED LONG TERM PTSD BUT NEVER WANTED TO TALK ABOUT IT!! Younger uncle would stand over the stove TURNING HIS FACE SIDE TO SIDE every time we saw him to WARM IT no matter if it was BLAZING HOT SUMMER!! We kids just thought he was WEIRD. LITTLE DID WE REALIZE!! GOD BLESS THEIR HEROIC SOULS and PRAISE THEIR SACRIFICE!! I served in the modern AIR FORCE because I REVERED their HONOR and BRAVERY!! GOD BLESS THEM ALL!!

[@Avtomat4774]

Why SO MANY capital LETTERS? IT makes it VERY DISTRACTING to read, and ADDS nothing to THE COMMENT whatsoever. I BET that there WAS something WORTH READING here; and it SEEMS interesting, BUT I simply couldn't MAKE myself READ IT BECAUSE it's MUCH too UNPLEASANT AND WEIRD on my EYES. 😂😂

[@charlesangell_bulmtl]

@@Avtomat4774 BS, in the time it took me to read it, I could not have produced your garbage HYUCK HYUCK 25 words per minute MAX in High School WHEN I still had 2 arms...

[@grahamhall2662]

Fascinating video thank you. Makes me realize it was a world war and not just fought over Europe.

[@lancerevell5979]

The Ki-61 has long been my alltime favorite WWII Japanese aircraft. Sleek and deadly. 😎👍

[@GerritVictor-pn9yv]

I'm 65 and this is the first time hearing about this plane.

[@BaldurvonderNord]

Nice work here, with an interesting and rare topic Ki-61 Tony

[@dominicrichardson5546]

The amount of original footage you find for these things always astounds me

[@dgcingo1563]

Interesting but a not small part of clips are, well known, images of Regia Aeronautica Macchi C202 and C200 clips in N. Africa and Italy... Easily recognizables by general configuration, different canopy, vertical planes, Piaggo propeller details, white recognition fuselage bands etc.

[@rogergoodman8665]

Just because it black and white and features aircraft in flight does not mean it's actual "authentic" footage of the plane he is talking about...quite the opposite actually, Mr.Dark uses whatever "stock footage" he can find. He is also well known for his clickbait titles and thumbnails and for using "footage" from old movies as well as from video games. For a person who is well versed (such as me) in the types of subject material that he likes to make "quickie" videos about, they are a joke and each episode is riddled with factual errors, footage that is not even remotely close to what he's talking about and mispronounced common words. I literally watch these for the comedic value. If you actually want to learn something, find another channel!!!

[@artnull13]

@@rogergoodman8665I’m surprised he’s not using AI to generate his footage

[@rogergoodman8665]

@@artnull13 : He probably will be in the future!!! I reached my bullcrap limit yesterday with Mr. Dark and un-subscribed from ALL of the Dark channels including Dark 5 that I thought used to be his best channel. His using the new AI voice was the final straw for me.

[@artnull13]

@@rogergoodman8665 I’ve noticed he’s used AI clickbait thumbnails recently - you’re right though there are other better channels that do this type of content accurately

[@terraflow__bryanburdo4547]

The DB601 engine was a low key powerhouse for the axis, allowing some of the best fighter designs to keep pace.

[@paktahn]

totally agree gemany produced it and both japan and italy used it it some formidable fighters i would say it should be considered on par with the impact the merlin engine had on the war

[@aleksazunjic9672]

Well, in early 1943 it was becoming kinda obsolete. Also, Japanese tended to put more and more armament on their planes, making them heavier. Soviets, who also struggled with inline engines, tended to go other way around, thus maximally clean and small Yak-3.

[@paktahn]

@@aleksazunjic9672 soviets struggled with everything due to mostly forced labor poor working conditions and little food resulting in poor quality control

[@aleksazunjic9672]

@@paktahn Nope. They simply did not have technological know-how for certain things. USSR was industrializing rapidly, but in some areas they were behind others.

[@paktahn]

@@aleksazunjic9672 it is fairly well documented that quality control was a big issue for soviets during ww2 the t34 tanks had issues with the armor being improperly hardened along with bad welds and numerous engine issues right off of the assembly line their brand new aircraft had issues with engines being constructed so poorly that they lacked enough power to get airborne all of these are quality control issues and nothing to do with lacking in technology

[@Wideoval73]

I knew the Ki-61 was a tough opponent, but wasn't aware of the rest of the story. Thanks

[@jackvoss5841]

On Okinawa, there were several, small, concrete hangars for the Tony fighter. They were well camouflaged by being covered with dirt growing weeds etc. Courtesy of Half Vast Flying

[@icewaterslim7260]

@@jackvoss5841 A lot of them out of Wewak in New Guinea show up in my dad's old copies of 3rd Attack Group parafrag mission photos. Unfortunately he gave them to a little museum but some of them are in the "Grim Reapers" mission history book. These were either poorly camouflaged or sitting in the open as part out supply planes. Maintenence must've been a b***h in New Guinea when you don't control the seas . . . At least not in the daytime.

[@LarryKnight-rx1kp]

The hangers were for Baka bombs not fighters.

[@icewaterslim7260]

@@LarryKnight-rx1kp Don't know about Okinawa but on Kyushu there were underground storages for about everything, including aircraft, low octane aviation fuel, arms and ammunition, suicide boats and even maintenance and assembly plants. We had underestimated their numbers of about everything but defense troops at the exact locations of our planned landings . . . About a one to one ratio. D.L. Giangreco researched the planning on both sides in: "Hell to Pay : Operation Downfall and The Invasion of Japan 1945 - 1947".

[@aurosan750AU]

To answer the question if Ki 61 was developped from He 100 or Bf 109. Fact is some of the young Kawasaki engineers have worked with "Bloom & Voss" for a while. Several basic design features for modern stressed skin aircaft B&V has developped before the war can be find with the hien fighter.

[@icewaterslim7260]

@@aurosan750AU Evan early in this century one of the P38 pilots in the 475th out of New Guinea interviewed still thinks they were Bf 109s. They didn't even look like 109s.

[@Kevin-mx1vi]

This aircraft suffered from extremely variable engine quality and most couldn’t get near the B-29's ceiling.

[@gumpyoldbugger6944]

The B-29 was its own worst enemy, of the 414 lost against Japan, only 147 were brought down by enemy action, the rest either caught fire or crashed. Almost a 2 to 1 loss ratio due to self owning itself. Weirdly, it was the Soviets that solved the overheating and engine fire issues suffered by the B-29 when they reversed engineer the ones that were forced divert into Soviet territory to make an emergency landing due to battle damage or whatever. The Soviets discovered that the air cooling system for the Wright Duplex-Cyclone need a redesigned cowing with additional cooling flaps which the incorporated in their Tupolev Tu-4 copy of the B-29. It apparently solved the problem.

[@tropicthndr]

The aircraft also suffered from genetically faulty pilots that could never measure up.

[@gumpyoldbugger6944]

@@tropicthndr Exactly what are you trying to say here?

[@leonehlers4574]

​@@gumpyoldbugger69446:03

[@raymondtonns2521]

@@gumpyoldbugger6944 that sesign flaw cause untolled suffering and death amongst our air crews

[@MrKentaroMotoPI]

Exterminated the B-29, eh? Not quite.

[@icewaterslim7260]

@@MrKentaroMotoPI Takeo Doi is my favorite Japanese aero designer but to be real Curtis Wright's management exterminated more B29s.

[@tropicthndr]

When your genetically born messed up and can’t fly, fall back to ramming.

[@jonbowden5207]

Some unrestrained hyperbole & enthusiasm in this vid...

[@charlesharper2357]

@@jonbowden5207 Their usual clickbait nonsense.

[@Locke52]

Im sure alot of those were splashed by 51’s and 29 gunners. No mention of that.

[@MarchHare59]

Several hundred hybrid versions of the Tony, fitted with radial engines called the Ki-100, were built by Kawasaki in 1945. In spite of the mismatch of air frame and powerplant, it proved to be a successful fighter design but it was so new and unknown that it never gained an allied nickname, frequently being mistaken for a Frank or a George in combat. It wasn't until after the war when examples were found abandoned at bombed out Japanese airfields that the "Radial Tony" was finally identified as a unique type.

[@lindycorgey2743]

Yes, the Japanese couldn't build the HA40 anymore and had plenty of the radial engines.

[@otpyrcralphpierre1742]

Your research is Amazing!

[@AlbionAirsoft]

Oh my goodness, your videos are so much better at .75% speed, I typically really dislike how you narrate but this brings so much more gravitas

[@trevormillar1576]

An inverted V-12 liquid-cooled engine? Sounds a lot like the ME109.

[@user-lo6cf3df1x]

Once we had air cover, And newer aircraft. The party was over.

[@thewatcher5271]

Not Too Bad, Reminds Me Of The Heinkel He-112. Thank You.

[@johndyson4109]

I've always been a Kawasaki fan. I love their dirt bikes and their engines are just as good as a Hondas motorcycle engine if not better...

[@lancerevell5979]

I rode a KLR650 for many years, took a few multistate roadtrips. Great bike. Sadly discontinued, as it was a carb bike.

[@Tal-q3r]

ive rode all the brands. honda CB series is boss.

[@daffyduck7336]

This engine was plagued by poor design,the main bearings were constantly burning out, and when the US submarines cut the supplies from Germany the 20mm Mauser cannons which this aircraft was armed with were useless, because the shells were electricity primed and the Japanese ammunition industry did not have capacity to manufacturer

[@andrewgryczewski7688]

I miss my kx125 😢

[@outinthesticks1035]

Kawasaki made some very good engines, but also some lemons . Honda has not missed a step

[@Tal-q3r]

beautiful warplane 🤩

[@user-dr1qo5fv9f]

Great video, really enjoyed all of it

[@suburbangorilla5515]

Well-researched. Thanks for an informative episode.

[@willy_wombat]

Well researched ! Congratulations.

[@JeffreyWilliams-dr7qe]

Gorgeous Aircraft!

[@Gorilla_Jones]

This is a pretty aircraft.

[@wolfganggugelweith8760]

It looks almost like the Heinkel 100.

[@DuelingBongos]

I had just recently watched a documentary about the Germans developing a special airwing for using 109s to ram B-17s and B-24. But they concluded that ramming the bombers was not very effective bc they were losing experienced pilots and a fighter for each bomber they destroyed. I suppose taking out one B-29 for each KI-61 seemed more worthwhile bc the KI-61 gave their pilots a better chance of surviving the ramming.

[@hodaka1000]

I could be wrong but I'm pretty certain they were using Focke-Wulf FW 190s for that

[@jayvitali7909]

As fate would have it, the radial was more powerful and more durable. The fastest aircraft of World War II was in fact, a P 47N. This aircraft was powered by an 18 cylinder radial that was turbosupercharged. 502 mph in level flight. The F4U used the same engine but was different.

[@László-q8w]

502 mph=807,7 km/h! I do not belive it! This speed is not possible by propeller aircraft. It is possible only by jet, or raket aircraft.

[@cynthiabauer5763]

@@László-q8w I think he meant kmh, it's possible in kmh

[@László-q8w]

@@cynthiabauer5763 502 km/h is ok. It is possible.

[@redtale6527]

The Me 262, ME 163 and the Gloster Meteor were all faster than the P 47N.

[@László-q8w]

@@redtale6527 Yes, but Me 262, and Gloster Meteor were jet aircraft, Me 163 was raket aircraft, and all of them were not piston engine aircraft! This is very big difference!

[@bruceleithead475]

Toni was a German Henkel KR-100 design and used the same DB-601 Engine as the ME-109

[@michaelgautreaux3168]

Both the Ki 61 & 100 were awesome.

[@listerix62]

Your videos and texts have a so good quality, that they deserve a good 🎙️ with professional quality. Change the speed of your locution from 1.5 to 1.0 would make your broadcasts really professional. Think about it

[@msgtpauldfreed]

Never heard of it until now. Well done!

[@shannonterry4863]

You might want to look around for more information on the Ki-61. I've known about it since I was a school boy and I'm in my early sixties. It isn't that obscure.

[@aleksazunjic9672]

Plane was based on Ha-40, which is license built German DB-601 engine. This engine was fine for 1941 or 1942, but in early 1943 it was becoming a bit obsolete . Japanese did experiment with DB-605 (Ha-140) but could not get in serial production. This is reminiscent to Soviet struggles with their effort to replace Klimov M-105 with M-107. However, Soviets as war progressed tended to lighten their planes (culmination of effort was Yak-3). Japanese had to add more and more powerful guns, thus making Ki-61 even less nimble.

[@tauncfester3022]

The engine's main weakness was that they copied the DB601 including it's oil gallery drillings in the crankshaft, but for some reason decided to run the engine in the reverse direction which caused the oil pumped to the crank galleries to become starved of sufficient oil. One of the Australian aircraft restorers noted that the oil pressure feeds on the German 601's crank were aimed into the rotation The Ha-40's crank was a clone of the DB601 but the gear reduction on the front was different and the engine spun opposite of the prop. the feed drillings were now aimed away from the rotation it was always the big connecting rod ends that failed in regular service on these.

[@aleksazunjic9672]

@@tauncfester3022 I supposed they did that to counter nasty departure behavior. Bf-109 was notorious of having to apply rudder hard during takeoff. Ki-61 was comparatively docile.

[@edwardmorriale9358]

The first 100 produced, carried 20mm mg 151 Mauser cannons. Then, when stocks ran out, the HO5 cannon. The Tony was subject to engine failures to numerous to go into. The "accidental" B29 killer was the Ki100.

[@tvdinner325]

Kawasaki make the fastest motorcycles on the planet, today. Their H2R holds the world's record @ 249 MPH. They also pioneered bullet trains in the 1960s.

[@whalesong999]

Kawasaki Heavy Industries was into a wide variety of products including ship building.

[@a.b.2849]

Historical Kawaski makes fast as hell motorcycles that turned to shit, just like the Ki-61. I guess somethings do not change.

[@deadcarz4926]

@@a.b.2849 My ZH2 has 40K miles on it, and makes 218 RWHP...reliably. My '07 ZX14R has 63K on it and I still track day it.

[@deadcarz4926]

@@whalesong999 350 BHP jet skis, helicopters, commercial planes, transport planes, fighter jets, subway trains(made in Nebraska), bullet trains, cargo ships, containers, geo-thermal plants, satellite parts, generators, small engines, etc. etc., even components on the ISS.

[@ToddBrooks-o5m]

So what's your point ??

[@larryjohnson7591]

It was a good plane. It is just very hard to find anything written about the plane. I have read a few things here and there, but I did not know it was developed sooner than 1944. Thank You for the History lesson.

[@TheUmdexMan]

For once the title and thumbnail aren’t complete clickbait. Nice.

[@deadcarz4926]

This is a great channel.

[@hars5410]

For the thumbnail… That is until you realize its a Caudron Renault CR.714 and not a Ki-61…

[@emaheiwa8174]

Dont F with Tony bro

[@kennyxkazuki713]

​@@hars5410 You mean the thumbnail that obviously shows a ki 61, they look nothing alike Edit: a new KZbin feature allows a channel to use multiple thumbnails to gauge how effective they are, it shows different thumbnails to different people. The thumbnail of a ki-61 with a yellow rising sun flying through the air was apparently less effective than the thumbnail of a Renault CR.714 disassembled on the ground with multiple German officers standing on it, probably due to the big red circle Edit2: God fucking damnit, now it's some radial engine plane from the front, wtf is it with this channel and changing thumbnails.

[@hars5410]

@kennyxkazuki713 I honestly cannot for the sake of me tell if you’re being sarcastic or genuine… If you’re being genuine, look at the air intake below the spinner, or the gun pods below the wings (the humps with 2 holes each)

[@Bellthorian]

You would think you would instruct your pilots to try and shoot down as many B-29's as they could BEFORE executing a ramming attack.

[@jamesgoodman8868]

How valid was the Japanese simulation of the P-40E without the high-octane American fuel?

[@dangheathen]

He received a second bukosho. Dangimas gozaimasu

[@oberschlesier5718]

+++ The Ki 61 was developed from Heinkel He 100 and He 112! + The Heinkel He 100 was the best Interceptor in WWII +++

[@user-Terracer]

The logo on the large hangar door (3:34) has resurfaced as the new Kawasaki powersports logo...what is old is new again...

[@situationalawarenes]

Seems there were problems with the ball bearings quality.

[@wilsonpickett3881]

How the heck would the Doolittle raid learn all this info?

[@markkramer5412]

He studys the simplicity of sience and Fisichella like gravity and understands the desire better to add to it

[@shawnmartin5738]

@@markkramer5412 huh???

[@JohnMoses1897]

Dark AI darkens his mind with AI clickbait & fantasy fiction

[@mclarenscca]

Are there any of them left?

[@lindycorgey2743]

There are 4 in existence. Two in New Zealand. One is being restored to static display and one being restored to flight. One in storage in the U.S. One restored by Kawasaki Industries and displayed in Japan.

[@pac1fic055]

@@lindycorgey2743 Fantasy of Flight in Florida has one in storage with intent to make it airworthy. Fingers crossed.

[@SodaAnt7]

Where’s the third blade on the propeller on the plane in the thumbnail?

[@michaelcanty4940]

The Macchi C202 Folgore ( Lightening) fighter was also powered by a Daimler Benz 601 engine and resembles the Ki61.

[@adventure002006]

Amazing heroics on both sides😮

[@G31mR]

What a beautiful design for a fighter. I don't know how it could be called "rare" since 3000 were produced. Maybe they are "rare" now, but so are Spitfires, A6M's, and P-38's. Rather than call it "rare", I'd just say it is unfamiliar.

[@RocketTCoyote]

The Ki-61 bears a closer resemblance to the Heinkel He-100 IMHO.

[@ezrabrooks12]

Good Video, Info.

[@dude126]

I dont know how the 'Doolittle' bomber crews could have been impressed with the KI's armament, armour protection and self sealing fuel tanks. Thats pretty detailed analysis as a fighter screams past on an attack run.

[@EdBert]

Seeing B-29 Eliminator made me think this video would be about the J2M3. The Ki-61 came out years before the B-29s.

[@ClydeAdams-vq1tq]

Just 1 minutes there, ConRab ; I think it could be Special Order somewhere; a very simple 3 cyl Radial engine type ZipBombs....the old Intermittent Firing Schnoozle pipe ?!

[@tomthounaojam1987]

Ki-45 was the USAAF B-29 truly feared.

[@akarshsp6512]

Dear Team, please share a documentary on Kawasaki Ki 45 Toryu

[@bumpedhishead636]

What were the advantages of an inverted-V engine? Is it the lower CG? I would imagine it made the oiling of the main bearings problematic.

[@tonyduncan9852]

Dry sump with high pressure lubrication. It gave room for guns and lowered the exhaust flame visible at night. (Same as Bf 109.)

[@gavinpruden3306]

@@tonyduncan9852 also easier to maintain the engine

[@PaulGrobler-z6t]

both wrong, gets the engine output on the prop centerline ie skip a geabox - as you can see they also mounted the engine lower than typical european fighters because they wanted guns over the engine

[@Comm0ut]

Mains are not splash oiled, they're pressurized. Aircraft/motorcycles/race cars using dry sump oil systems do so because there is thus no need for a bulky sump as on ground vehicle engines.

[@jmevb60]

I have a repetitive complaint that many crews were lost to B29 defects. Curtis wright got the contract using a magnesium crankase so that the power to weight ration of JUST the engine was some number For a few less bombs, there could have had an engine that did not burn through the main spar in 30 seconds. Never resolved cowl flaps and heating meant that the 29s often could not hold formation and flew in trail. Compare that to the Dauntless, meant to be pilot friendy, and to win a war, not just the contract

[@RampAgentX]

good narration...

[@mrains100]

Thank you.

[@paulcarey1708]

That crazy v1710 was over 2 litres per cylinder.... just seems crazy, but I'm working from the perspective of someone 80 years later used to car engines, so ... yeah... but still seems nuts.

[@sinclairmarcus]

Great content

[@pasoneao]

...en el video no se menciona que la modificación con motor radial Ki-100, se convirtió en uno de los mejores cazas japoneses al final de la guerra, sino el mejor, se fabricaron solo 374 aviones... ...in the video it does not mention that the Ki-100 radial engine modification became one of the best Japanese fighters at the end of the war, if not the best, only 374 aircraft were manufactured...

[@user-lo6cf3df1x]

By that time we started getting air cover , the jig was up

[@michaelcagle5938]

Had a model of one of these in the early 70s as a kid. It came in a two airplanes in a single box series. As I recall the Kawasaki Hien came with a P-47 Thunderbolt. I'm doubtful that those two planes saw each other in combat.

[@JohnMoses1897]

LMAO yes, & the Betty came with s Stuka, the Kate with a Swordfish, (how ironic) the A6M zero with a FW-190, (might have been a good dogfight)

[@markr.1984]

I had a model of one of these as a kid, built the model, broke it the next day. Typical boy of the 60s and 70s.

[@reflective5001]

I bet it broke against a skulking wall in a dogfight battle!😎

[@JohnMoses1897]

Cheapass Japanese plastic then had superior quality to Chinese cheapass plastic now. "Tofu" plastic car parts

[@fload46d]

Hope there are some samples existing in museums.

[@jberry1982]

I was pretty sure those planes in the Doo Little raid were B25 Mitchell bombers not B29s lol

[@watchmanschannelofdespair]

Correct you are.

[@JohnMoses1897]

Dark AI clickbait said they were

[@garywillis9528]

For the most part, a liquid cooled aircraft engine is easier to turbocharge, and having a lower frontal area as well. In contrast the FW 190 and it's counterparts were liquid cooled with a round radiator that made it appear to be a radial engine. In contrast, a true turbojet engine is quite efficient at altitude. Turbofans dominate these days simply because of the time spent in takeoff and climb. The bypass feature makes the less efficient fan less a factor.

[@rasputin644]

You have one of the absolute best sites on KZbin. Well done, sir. I’ve never done the whole alert for new content until your channel. Keep it up!!

[@gumpyoldbugger6944]

BAHAHAHAHAHAHA........Surely you jest sir......read some of the more critical comments here......

[@stephenwhelan2515]

Nope - Dark Skies is the youtube equivalent of a cheap tabloid newspaper like “the sun”. Clickbait thumbnails, exaggerated or inaccurate headings and a poorly researched video. It amazes me that this channel has 600k subscribers. There are real genuine quality channels like “rexs hanger”, “ed nash”, “tales of hut and hanger” to name a few. Proper channel’s with genuine thumbnails and properly researched videos. If they can do it why not this channel?

[@gumpyoldbugger6944]

@@stephenwhelan2515 Aircraft Files is another good one. His early work had all the issues that Dark Skies has and he was taken to task by his viewer. Unlike Dark, he actually listened and made major changes all the while thanking everyone for their feedback stating it helps him improve his channel and work. The only issue he still needs to work on is the use of a AI voice bot to narrated his videos. He acknowledges and actually appologized for doing that and say he is just not confident enough in his narration skills or voice to do it himself. On the plus side, the AI voice he uses is one you don't hear often and actual works with both the subject matter and script. Given a try, watch one of his earliest pieces of work then one of the later piece and see the changes he made.

[@JohnMoses1897]

Dark AI clickbait algorithm

[@tomswift9542]

There is actual footage in this video at 11:24 of Italian Folgores. The white fuselage band seen in Italian fighters is unmistakable.

[@vonclod123]

Was there an advantage to having the engine inverted? Thinking about oiling system, I guess they were dry sump.

[@davidstone2319]

What's with the unidentifiable aircraft image at the beginning?

[@colm-u8m]

excellent

[@rettirc100]

That's a highly unusual prop in the cover photo. How would that balance?

[@MrRobster1234]

Never saw that footage of the PBY Catalina's under attack.

[@loviedebiasio8864]

The Henkel HE100 really looks like this

[@mrjockt]

I wonder if perhaps some inspiration was taken from the He-100 since the Japanese purchased 3 He-100's with the intention of license building them.

[@paktahn]

not really the layout an profile of the k1-61 is closer to a bf 109 which is what the allies who first encountered it mistook it for

[@fatdad64able]

My favourite Japanese aircraft is the Kawanishi N1K1

[@wasserdagger]

Would not like to have been a crewman on one of those B-29s being shot down (or rammed down) over Japan. I suspect the Japanese treated any surviving B-29 crew members very harshly.

[@georgenish]

Bombing a civilian target is a war crime. Doolittle mentioned that also...

[@Violincase]

Since when did engines “ignite”?

[@JohnMoses1897]

When AI used, just like when fake news AI claims an SUV "kills" someone, or sn EV will save the planet. AI also causes political derangement syndromes & states of " suspended disbelief"

[@derikuk2967]

12:33 Did these pilots not realize that smoking is hazardous for one's health?

[@oracleofdelhi553]

They dont care about how badly was smoking for healtg

[@jaydenkerr912]

1:20 it's important to note that the bf109 f which had been out for several months at this time was much better than the bf109 e in pretty much every aspect.

[@jaydenkerr912]

But to be fair the bf 109 e used the same db 601 engine as the ki 61 and the bf109 f used the db 605 so i think it is impressive that the ki 61 was as good as it was seeing as the engine it used was on bf 109s as early as 1938

[@michaelbrown8619]

I don’t think I would fly that airplane in the photo at the beginning. That power plant is going to be severely out of balance.

[@Manco65]

Wow this one brought out both the weeraboos and wehraboos. Good work!

[@twillison8824]

The picture for the video has the most odd looking 2 blade prop I've ever seen.

[@alanevans-s6q]

It was the best Japanese fighter of the war also it look more like the Heinkel he100 than the mc202

[@Cesar82nd]

The kI 100 was also a great plane.

[@peterwilson5528]

It looks similar in many ways similar to the ME109. But it has that Japanese style added.