NAKAJIMA Ki-43-III Ko "HAYABUSA" - 1943

Description

Imperial Japanese Army Air Force fighters Ki-43 fought throughout WW 2 from the attack on Malaya till the last fights over mainland Japan. Subsequent versions of Ki-43 model I, II and III in different modifications were built. The final, mass produced version of the famous fighter was the Ki-43-III Ko Hayabusa was deployed in time when Japan was slowly beginning to lose the war. Even though it was fitted with a more powerful Nakajima Ha 115-II engine and equipped with two 12.7 mm Ho-103 machine guns it was not able to outperform modern allied machines. Because of its phenomenal manoeuvrability, the Ki-43 was still a deadly weapon in hands of a skilled pilot. One of such pilots was without any question Capt. Hideo Miyabe, commander of 64th Sentai, stationed in Burma in autumn 1944. (Scale : 1/72e)