Kawasaki Ki-61 Hien (Japanese flying swallow) is a Japanese, single-engine, metal low wing fighter with a classic tail from the Second World War. The prototype's flight was nice in December 1941, and the first planes reached the line units in February 1943. The heart of the aircraft was the Kawasaki Ha-40 or Ha-140 engine, that is, a liquid-cooled German Daimler-Benz DB 601A built under license. The Ki-61 surprised the Allied forces during the fighting in New Guinea in June 1943, where it was taken as a copy of the German Messerschmitt Me-109, later suspected to be a copy of the Italian Macchi C202 or other Italian fighter. For this reason, he was given the nickname "Antonio" or "Tony". During the fights in 1943, Ki-61 fighters demonstrated their considerable advantage over American machines, such as the F-4 Wildcat. The Ki-61 later fought over the skies of New Britain and New Ireland, and in 1944 they were used in combat in the Philippines. Later they were used to defend the Japanese islands. Some of them have become kamikaze planes. The Ki-61 was undoubtedly a very good fighter, but its Achilles' heel was limited in series production due to problems with the engines. Technical data (version Ki-61-I): length: 8.94m, wingspan: 12m, height: 3.7m, maximum speed: 580km / h, rate of climb: 15.2m / s, maximum range: 580km, ceiling maximum 11,600m, armament: fixed - 2 12.7mm Ho-103 machine guns and 2 20mm Ho-5 cannons, suspended - up to 500 kg of bombs.
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