![]() |
Aviation of World War II |
![]() ![]() |
Soviet Union | Lend - Lease | Facts | Forum | Germany | Japan | R A F | U S A A F | Other | Photos | ||
| ||
A6M5 "Reisen, Zero"
The new Zero, designated A6M5 model 52, got a little heavier, but its maximum speed at an altitude of 6000 m reached 565 km / h. This was the maximum speed for a fighter, since all subsequent modifications to the machine led to an increase in its weight and, accordingly, to a decrease in speed. A6M5a had even more reinforced wing skin and two "Type 99" belt-fed cannons (125 rounds each). A6M5b, in addition, for the first time received the pilot's armor in the form of a 50-mm frontal armored glass canopy. Fuselage gas tanks were protected to some extent with a carbon dioxide fire-fighting system. The power of the armament was increased by replacing one 7.7-mm fuselage machine gun with a 13.2-mm type 3 heavy machine gun. The most powerful firepower among all the Zero variants was the A6M5s, from which the second fuselage 7.7-mm machine gun was also dismantled, and two more 13.2-mm Type 3 machine guns were placed in the wing planes next to the 20-mm cannons. Thus, the aircraft had two 20 mm cannons and three 13.2 mm machine guns. Among other innovations of the A6M5s were the pilot's armored backrest and armored headrest, as well as an additional 140-liter sealed gas tank behind the cockpit. In total, the factories built about 6,000 A6M5 of various modifications. The A6M5 entered mass production in the fall of 1943, when the Americans were already using the Hellcat carrier-based fighter in the Pacific Ocean. The latter was superior to the upgraded Zero in all respects, except for maneuverability and rate of climb at low altitudes. In air battles, the A6M increasingly became a victim than a hunter. This was vividly demonstrated by the last major battle of aircraft carriers in the Philippine Sea in June 1944, where the Japanese suffered a crushing defeat, losing 92% of their aircraft (including about 200 A6M5), as well as many experienced pilots. Nevertheless, the production of clearly outdated Zeros continued, and in the last period of the war they were used mainly as fighter-bombers capable of carrying a bomb weighing up to 250 kg. In this form, these aircraft are widely used in kamikaze units. ![]() |
|