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A6M Zero Marine Fighter.
No doubt this is the most famous Japanese aircraft of the WWII. The ingenious creation of the talented engineer Jiro Horikoshi terrified the Allies during the whole Japanese expansion period until 1943. Unmatched range and maneuverability of the fighter, good weaponry for that time period, Nakajima Sakae’s very successful engine: these are the parts of a legend named “Zero”. Many of the famous Japanese pilots flew this aircraft, including Tetsugo Iwamato, Shoichi Sugita, Saburo Sakai.
And that’s not surprising as the number of the aircraft constructed was unprecedented for Japan: 10449 aircraft. That ruined even the plans of the Japanese: towards the end of the war they couldn’t find a worthy replacement for the veteran. Zero had a long life for an aircraft: from the first flight of the prototype on April 1, 1939 to its last A6M8 modification, passing its tests in April 1945. The aircraft parameters were constantly improved. But if at the beginning of the war Zero unquestionably surpassed all its counterparts: F4F Wildcat, F2A Buffalo, P40B Warhawk, in 1943 the US started to produce the F6F Hellcat fighter on a large scale. They were designed to fight Zeroes, which resulted in Japan losing its air superiority. At the end of the war, standard A6M5 modifications could not compete with numerous Hellcats (F6F) and Corsairs (F4U).
The maneuverability of the Zero allowed it to follow the defensive combat tactics effectively. However, attacking became impossible. The weak protection system of the fighter proved to be a significant factor in this struggle: the tanks were not protected, armor protection was missing as well, and the hull was too frail. Everything was sacrificed to maneuverability and flight range. As a result the losses among the Japanese pilots were considerable, and after 1943 the air forces of Japan consisted mostly of inexperienced pilots. Towards the end of their “career” the fighters participated in the kamikaze attacks in 1944-1945. Piloted by fearless Japanese pilots, A6M with a 250-kg bomb under the hull became a symbol of desperation and a true Samurai spirit.
A6M Zero Fighter in the "Pacific Storm"
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