Japanese Zero flies over Japan for the first time since WW2

[Commander Wallace]

Former U.S Air Force pilot Skip Holm flew the restored aircraft over Japan for the first time since World War 2. The Mitsubishi A6M " Zero " was considered the most capable carrier borne aircraft of the war.

https://www.yahoo.com/news/zero-figh...064646682.html

The Zero had long range which was decisive in the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor Dec, 7, 1941.The Zero had an incredible cruising range of 6-8 hours at economy power settings. Armament was 2x20mm cannons and also two 7.7 mm (.303 in) machine guns. The zero could also carry two 30 kg (66 lb) or 60 kg (130 lb) Bombs or torpedoes

The Zero also had maneuverability that rivaled the best of WW2 including the famed British Supermarine Spitfire. The zero had an incredible kill ratio of 12-1 early on in the war. By 1942, more advanced allied aircraft and tactics reduced the effectiveness of Axis aircraft like the Zero.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mitsubishi_A6M_Zero

[Sailor Steve]

A beautiful airplane. Always good to see one flying again.

[Schroeder]

Originally Posted by Commander Wallace

The Mitsubishi A6M " Zero " was considered the most capable carrier borne aircraft of the war.

Ouch. That's why they had horrific loss rates against the F6 Hellcat and the F4U Corsair....
It might have been the most capable Japanese carrier based fighter but it was definitely outclassed by later American aircraft.
Here is what Wikipedia says for the Kill / Loss ratio of the Hellcat against the Zero:

The aircraft performed well against the best Japanese opponents with a claimed 13:1 kill ratio against the A6M Zero, 9.5:1 against the Nakajima Ki-84, and 3.7:1 against the Mitsubishi J2M during the last year of the war.[43]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grumman_F6F_Hellcat

[Sailor Steve]

That's what happens when someone misreads the articles. The first link says "One of the most capable..." and the second says "When it was introduced..." Both are correct within their context.

[Commander Wallace]

Originally Posted by Sailor Steve

That's what happens when someone misreads the articles. The first link says "One of the most capable..." and the second says "When it was introduced..." Both are correct within their context.

I didn't misread the article. I was multi tasking, writing as I was working and simply left off " One of " from most capable.

It was a mistake or oversight, not a misread.

[Oberon]

Hope he didn't put it near any naked flames.

Always good to see an old warbird take to the air again, and nice to see her over her homeland too. I'm sure that more than a couple of IJN veterans had a wistful smile to see her go.

The Zero was a capable aircraft, but crippled with some questionable design decisions, that fuel tank for one, but she was designed for speed and agility rather than ruggedness like her later American counterparts.
Then there was the training process for the Japanese pilots which was probably the toughest training process for any airforce that has existed, and created very strong pilots but not a great deal of them, so once that elite pool was used up...
When you couple that with adapting American tactics and superior aircraft and the Zeros dominance soon fell off. There were perhaps other Japanese aircraft that could have replaced the Zero if they had managed to reach full production but as with most things in the Pacific War, the industry couldn't keep up with demand and there was not enough to make any particular difference.

[Commander Wallace]

Originally Posted by Schroeder

Ouch. That's why they had horrific loss rates against the F6 Hellcat and the F4U Corsair....
It might have been the most capable Japanese carrier based fighter but it was definitely outclassed by later American aircraft.
Here is what Wikipedia says for the Kill / Loss ratio of the Hellcat against the Zero:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grumman_F6F_Hellcat

I already stated by 1942, the allies were producing better aircraft. The allies also were using better tactics like the Thatch Weave tactics developed by John S. Thatch of the U.S Navy .

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thach_Weave

The Gruman F4F wildcat was bested by the Zero early on. The Zero had better climb rates as well. Although the Zero was more maneuverable because of lack of weight, The penalty for that ability was lack of armor protection for the pilot and fuel tanks.

An outgrowth of the Gruman F4f Wildcat Aircraft was the Gruman F6F Hellcat which first flew June 26, 1942. As you said, the Hellcat was able to meet the zero on even terms.

Quote : The F6F was best known for its role as a rugged, well-designed carrier fighter which was able, after its combat debut in early 1943, to counter the Mitsubishi A6M Zero and help secure air superiority over the Pacific Theater. Such was the quality of the basic simple, straightforward design, that the Hellcat was the least modified fighter of the war, with a total of 12,200 being built in just over two years

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grumman_F6F_Hellcat

The U.S as you mentioned, produced the excellent F4U Corsair not to mention the outstanding P-51 mustang after it had been re-engined with the Rolls-Royce’s Merlin 61. The “60 series” denoted two-stage, two-speedsupercharged versions of the engine.


As most know, Germany also produced excellent aircraft like the Messerschmidt BF 109 which remained competitive with the allies latest aircraft designs till the end of the war. There was also the ****e-Wulf Fw 190 to say nothing of the Jet powered Me-262 or the innovative Horton Ho 229 flying wing.


If the Zero was so incapable, how did it achieve a 12-1 kill ratio early on ? I agree the Zero was outclassed later on but it's abilities came as a shock to the allies early on.

[Schroeder]

Originally Posted by Commander Wallace

If the Zero was so incapable, how did it achieve a 12-1 kill ratio early on ? I agree the Zero was outclassed later on but it's abilities came as a shock to the allies early on.

You stated in your first post that it was the most capable carrier aircraft of the war. That was all that I criticized.

[AVGWarhawk]

Sheesh....

So this guy fixed up and painted an old Japanese airplane. It was flown over Japan.

Have a nice day.

[Commander Wallace]

Originally Posted by Schroeder

You stated in your first post that it was the most capable carrier aircraft of the war. That was all that I criticized.

It's all good Schroeder. I was doing too many things at one time and made a mistake.

Thanks for pointing it out and clarifying that the Zero was one of the most capable carrier aircraft of WW2 .

[Oberon]

Mistakes lead to accidents
Accidents lead to delays
Delays lead to inefficiencies
Inefficiency is verboten!

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