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Nakajima B5N
Japanese attack aircraft family / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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The Nakajima B5N (Japanese: 中島 B5N, Allied reporting name "Kate") was the standard carrier-based torpedo bomber of the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) for much of World War II. It also served as a high level bomber.
B5N | |
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A Nakajima B5N2 "Kate" in flight | |
Role | Carrier-based torpedo bomber/high-level bomber |
National origin | Japan |
Manufacturer | Nakajima Aircraft Company |
First flight | January 1937 |
Retired | 1945 |
Status | Retired |
Primary user | Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service |
Number built | 1,149[1] |
Although the B5N was substantially faster and more capable than its Allied counterparts, the American Douglas TBD Devastator monoplane (the U.S. Navy's first all-metal, carrier-borne monoplane of any type with retracting gear), and the British Fairey Swordfish and Fairey Albacore torpedo biplanes, it was nearing obsolescence by 1941. Nevertheless, the B5N operated throughout the whole war, due to the delayed development of its successor, the B6N.
In the early part of the Pacific War, when flown by well-trained IJN aircrews and as part of well-coordinated attacks, the B5N achieved particular successes at the battles of Pearl Harbor, Coral Sea, Midway, and Santa Cruz Islands.[2][3]