The drawing was obtained after a long time.

The drawing was found after a long time on the net. It is possible to use it for modeling though the author and the origin are uncertain.

Development secret stories # 3 Extra chapter

This is a jet plane development history of Japan at The Pacific War end by History Channel. “Shinden” development is talked about in this. The truth is not certain in the existence materials though the plan of making to the jet of “Shinden” is talked either. The predicable one is not found from the records, testimonies of the people involved in development. The truth can be somewhere in the history.

Development secret stories # 3 ”Test flight of MXY6″

Captain Tsuruno developed the motor glider of the “ente” type to prove his own theory.
This motor glider named MXY6 looked like Shinden so much. The engine called SEMI was only 22 horsepower.  Three bodies were made by Chigasaki Industry Ltd. that had much experiences of manufacturing wooden yachts.  They were carried to Yokosuka Air Squadron for experiment. First of all, the tow test by the car was started.  However, the nose lowering moment worked because of bad position of the tow metal fittings. MXY6 was not able to take off.  ”Not an airplane but a walker!” it was hooted. This problem was solved at once by changing the position of the hook.   Afterwards, the airframe was moved to Kisarazu that was much wider than Yokosuka.

In the intervals of the training of Air Squadron, Shinden glider was towed to Nakajima B5N and went up in the air.  Separated the hook by 500 meters of the flying height, and flew using an own engine.  Of course,Tsuruno controlled this glider, and the pilot of Nakajima B5N was Masaatsu Kanehiro Technological Captain who is his junior,an engineer pilot.  He confirmed uneasiness was not in manoeuverability and stability of this canard airplane.  In addition, this canard airplane was not easy to stall and also the stalling behavior was good. He had confidence in his insistence more and more. The remaining problems were only next two solutions.

One is an influence of the counter torque to the balance of horizontal direction of the airframe when 6 piece propeller of large diameter and the powerful engine are applied to a small wingspread and airframe.  Another problem is how to make the crew’s urgent escape method so as not to be stricken by a rear propeller.

Afterwards, similar test flights were also carried out at Oppama airport.  Because a good grade in this test flight had been obtained again, The Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service came to support the “Ente” type fighter.

Afterwards, some conferences to decide a concrete plan were opened gathering Military headquarters, Navy Air Service, Yokosuka Naval Flying Corps, and Yokosuka Air Squadron.  However, the conference became complicated because of tactics side committee’ interference. They persisted in the grapple performance as they demanded for all fighters. The equipment of the flap of fighting was demanded. Even a local-defense interceptor “Mitsubishi J2M Raiden” was demanded it.

During this conference, a passionate argument seems to have been between the tactics side and the engineer side.  However, this heated discussion was settled in the decision of “Never decrease the speed!” by General MINORU GENDA.  In any ages, a simple judgment is the best and decides things. The tactics side consented to the high-speed fighter of avoiding the grapple strategy. This fighter was named “Shinden” sign J7 at this conference. And also called the ente model “Front wing type” at the same time. A formal experimental instruction was issued to the Kyushu airplane after this decision.   Well, the design of “Shinden” started rapidly.  The secret story of the design of heterodoxy continues to next time.

Photograph © : J7W1 Shinden House All rights reserved.

Japanese posts after #4 can be seen on the following site.

Japanese is here.

Development secret stories # 2 from “Fighter of phantom”

It was in 1943 that Japanese Navy ordered an experimental demand of a considerable drastic, high-speed fighter to not a private company but the relative’s Yokosuka Naval Air Technical Arsenal.
There also were some development plans of the fighter of 800 kilos per hour in the Japanese Army as a improvement idea of Ki-78 “Kensan” and “Ki-64”. However, they were plans in the calculation numerical value, a real machine hadn’t been produced. In view of the limit velocity of the propeller wing and of the piston velocity of the piston engine, 800 kilos per hour seemed to be a limit in the level flight to get on those days. Therefore, the research of the rocket and the jet plane had already been started in Germany, Britain, and the United States of America.
The speed record of 755.11 kilos per hour by Messerschmitt Bf109R in 1939 was not broken for five years. This tells us how “Wall” at speed from 700km per hour to 800km per hour had been “Thick”.
Also in Japan, the plans of some new airframe for the improvement were tried, Ki-64( Kawasaki) was the one of them. Besides relied on a engine output, it was thought that the propulsion system for airframes with the twin fuselage or the canard wing was new concept as the airframe form to decrease the wind drag. “Ki-94 I(Tachikawa Airplane)”, “Ki-98(Manshu Airplane)” and “Senden(Mitsubishi)”,etc. accommodated the engine on the back of the body, the tails was supported by two frames; “Ki-94 I” was bimotored type that had engine also in the front of body. However, Technological Captain Tsuruno judged that the canard configuration “Ente” was more advantageous than these twin fuselage types.
Tsuruno very interested in the design of the fighter had always thought about the method of designing an efficient single-seated fighter since the school days. This “Ente” fighter occurred to Tsuruno while experimenting at Yokosuka Naval Air Technical Arsenal in the autumn in 1993. It was the year when he graduated from the Tokyo empire university aeronautics department and was appointed to the naval forces arms manufacture lieutenant.
“Ente” is German. It means a “duck”. The main wing is on the backward of the body and The shape looked like the duck, which has long nose with a “canard wing”, so it came to be called “Ente”.
“Ente” is shape to put a usual airplane on the opposite direction. There is a small wing of corresponding to past tail plane on both sides of a long nose. The control compartment is in the fuselage mid-section, the main wing is on the back of the engine. And, the propeller attaches to the tail. The front of the body becomes an ideal shape by moving of the engine and the propeller backward, and the wind drag decreases, and less interference with the body improves the propeller efficiency, too. The twin fuselage type and the Ente type are the same in this point of the propeller efficiency, but the twin fuselage type needs two beams from the main wing to support the tail in the backward. This increases the surface area and grows the frictional drag. This is absolutely disadvantageous frame.
If the main wing is moved backward and if the tail plane is moved forward, two beams that become the obstructions of the wind drag and a structural weight decrease can be omitted. Moreover, there is an advantage of twin-engined aircraft level that the empty body forequarter can be equipped with the large caliber machine gun, too. Technological Captain Tsuruno insisted of this advantage of the canard configuration that was called “Ente” and insisted more strongly to the senior military official that there was no way excluding “Ente” to achieve 800 kilos per hour.
Though there were some precedents such as Wright brothers’ airframes as a canard configuration in the world, it was natural that there were a lot of voices that doubted the manoeuverability and stability for no experiences in Japan.

He produced the motor glider of the “Ente” type to prove his theory correct, and solves various problems after this.

(To be continued)

Development secret stories # 1 from “Fighter of phantom”

Chapter 9 Duck of 800 kilos per hour —- “Shinden”

“The aircraft designer has to have the capacity to control the airplane, too. ”

This strategic education of the aircraft development affair started after the beginning of the Pacific War. Japanese Navy considered to have to change the common concept “a designer and a pilot should be different ability”. Army and Navy competed to keep a lot of valuable engineers. They employed students of the engineering department in the university and the special school, covered the golden eggs with military uniform , and made them to a technological officer.

In addition, Navy tried to teach the control of the airplane to the technological officers, and to improve the ability as aircraft designers. Really, the aim was correct.
The aircraft designer can get various senses in the prototype aircraft in case of the double-seats or the twin-engined aircraft only by flying together. However, it cannot be done in case of the single-seated like the fighter.
Nakajima’s engineer KOYAMA has been said to have slipped into a narrow body when the Nakajima Ki-27 were developed. However, he was not gripping the control stick.
The sense that he had obtained must have been far sense. It is because this is not the one which was obtained directly through the control stick by himself.
The designer analyzes it hearing what the pilot says, and he feeds back them to his design. However, the communication of a complete will is difficult, and irritation might often have been caused.
However, if the aircraft designer is a pilot, such worry is solved.
Then in 1947, Japanese Navy executed the aircraft control education to some aircraft designers by proposal of Rear Admirals RIKIZO TADA, Technical Director of the Aircraft headquarters. Five engineer pilots were born by this system in fiscal year 1941.

・Fiscal year 1941:Arms manufacture captain MASATAKA TSURUNO ［Fighter aircraft］, Arms manufacture captain TADAO YASUDA ［Seaplane］
・Fiscal year 1942:Technological captain MASAATU KANEHIRO ［Fighter aircraft］, Technological captain ROKURO OKUDAIRA ［Attack aircraft］
・Fiscal year 1943:Technological captain MASAAKI KATO ［Seaplane］

However, though the control training to Arms manufacture officer or Technological officer often had been executed before this system , the level was not real training that got on the fighter aircraft. That was training by the abc training aircraft.
In that sense, the technological captain Tsuruno’s existence was different ability in the Japanese Navy. His work which was done by the end of War also was to be unexampled in Japan as the first engineer pilot whom Japanese Navy regularly had trained.

(To be continued)

＊Quotation from “Fighter of the Phantom” written by YOSHIRO IKARI.
＊The Nakajima Ki-27 was the main fighter aircraft used by the Imperial Japanese Army Air Force.
＊References:
異端の空―太平洋戦争日本軍用機秘録 (文春文庫)
幻の戦闘機―「零戦」後の陸海軍機の開発秘話 (光人社NF文庫)

Development secret stories of Japanese Army and Navy fighter

You could get a lot of information about the development secret stories of a lot of Japanese Army and Navy fighter from “Fighter of the Phantom” which was written by YOSHIRO IKARI. It became good key for me to know how “post Mitsubishi A6M ZERO” had been developed and vanished without the actual combat. So, I would like to introduce some development secret stories hardly known in foreign countries. Of course, it’s including Shinden. The document should be shown in order of its development, but the rule is broken. Shinden has to be top document.

First of all, let’s introduce the author of this book. The author is Mr. YOSHIRO IKARI. He was born in Kagoshima in 1925, and graduated from the Tokyo Metropolitan Aircraft Technical School. He was summoned in Army Air Technical Research Institute during the war as a technological captain, and graduated from Yokohama Industrial College (present Yokohama National University) after the war. He has published a lot of documents about relations between mechanism and human such as aircraft, automobiles and railways as a theme.
Books:
“Techno-nerd group of burning Honda” “Men who offered life for Skyline GT” “Challenge at Ultra-High Speed” “Yokosuka Naval Air Technical Arsenal” “Six Kawanishi N1K [Violet Lightning]” “Eight pilots of Imperial Japanese Naval Academy” “The Last Flying Ace” Additionally, there are a lot of documents etc.
To my regret, I don’t know his present writing. He would be 85 years old this year. It would be great if the effort which our predecessors accomplished for 70 years or more ago is transmitted through this book even a little. Raising the war cause and the result to the shelf now, this effort could be as our property.
Translation of quotation part is posted next week. Chapter 9 Duck of 800 kilos per hour —- “Shinden”

Japanese is here.

Vision of J7W1 Shinden

I’d like to introduce some photographs that I’ve made up my mind to make 3D restoration of the fighter of this phantom.  They’ve given me a chance. In those photographs, they made me find an appearance to dance in the sky like swallow, at the same time, hidden brightness and darkness in last war, balance of destruction and creation.  It can be said that a certain kind of social dandyism felt by this airframe has been a meaningless inheritance that Japanese seniors (my father’s age) left now. However, wishing that it keep existing on the corner of the mind to which this inheritance longs for peace indefinitely doesn’t stop. ・・For my grandchild and all families.

J7W1 Shinden dismantled in “The Paul E. Garber Preservation, Restoration, and Storage Facility”.

J7W1 Shinden(1946-1946) restored by GHQ after end of the war

Photograph © : J7W1 Shinden House All rights reserved.

Japanese is here.

Shinden takes off to the sky: 3D Animations

3D short flight animations

It is possible to see sequentially with next post button of linked page.

Animation 1
Animation 2
Animation 3
Animation 4
Animation 5
Animation 6
Animation 7
Animation 8
Animation 9
Animation 10
Animation 11
Animation 12

A little old-fashioned hangar

This is completion of framework. The iron frame is united to the outside wall and the roof. If the size has no mistake, it must be fit. This moment is strained most on an actual architecture. It is the same strained for 3D. As I thought, some mistakes were there. Then, the position of some pillars has been adjusted. The indoor lighting position is adjusted before the lighting window of the roof is put up. This is the timing for  “Electric appliances store”. Rendering the hangar where the completion of framework was completed.  A little old-fashioned hangar has been being gradually completed.
Next time, let’s approach the elaboration and the outside environment etc. of an internal rig (equipment and others) and the outside wall.

Adjustment of how to be seen

The size of the object seems to be true if an object of comparison thing is there.   Size of window pane, number of boarding steps, and car license plate, etc. were adjusted.

What kind of hangar do you have?

This time is for modeling of the outside wall and the roof. They have to be fit completely against the iron frame that was installed. The concepts for the hangar roughly are as follows. The front entrance is wide, and the front has door cases on a right and left sliding door and both sides. The height of the building is about 7m. The wall has a big window for the lighting. The lighting window is put up to the roof. The window pane is partially opened. The glass adopts the becoming cloudy glass in principle. Lighting equipment is put up internally. The maintenance machines and some equipments for repair are set up. The basic structure like the below was planned by the above-mentioned setting.

Adjustment for them will be going to step by step from next post.

Design of hangar

A small hangar is planned for Shinden. The area of the hangar is just a size that J7w1 Shinden completely enters in. First of all, the structure of the iron frame was planned.  Because a modern hangar is not suited for Shinden,legacy type is good image. They are the roughly following feeling.

The prototype of the roof and the outside wall will be made next time.

界隈-Kaiwai,the vicinity

“界隈-Kaiwai” means “the vicinity for being daily life” in Japanese. When “Vicinity of Ginza” etc. are said, it is comprehensible.  Saying in the social anthropology, “the vicinity” means “People’s fragrance”. “Vicinity” makes feel us “Person” and “Daily Life”. The supporting player is also important. The tool,furniture and “Synopsis”.

Summer is coming soon.

3D Shinden Restoration Gallery

The restoration of the concept of Shinden was tried by 3D application for about two years from July, 2007. A lot of unsettled processing still remains in a technical problem, an informational problem, and a time problem, etc. However, I want to make it to the last stage. Now, I’m groping next theme. Then, the image of about 80 that had done rendering up to now at the restoration process was put together as “3D Shinden Restoration Gallery“. The fighter of the phantom decided to assume the restoration end of it without installing arms after all. 　Lure Head

Elaboration

The environment, the material, reflectivity, and the resolution of the last post “Skyward”  were changed and re-rendering was done. The pilot was unloaded, engine was stopped this time and cockpit was opened. It is an impossible problem in current QuickTime and my old Mac to make the animation by this fine resolution. After all,let’s leave animation to special software. It will make elaborate the glide slope and reflecting at next post.

Skyward-2

Old Strata is unskilled to make animation. Strata 3D is traditional software of the still picture. It’s not easy to render scalable move. However, it is considerably interesting to make a short animation. A little dream bring to me a scalable dream. There are an elegance moves though they are so rough resolution. Their concept is quite different from recent animated cartoon software. The image below is a usual still picture. Movie below is an animation ,which was edited by Strata’s extention. It’s fun absolutely.

Skyward

Holiday of rift in the clouds

Dedication on the day of laying the ashes of the dead

My mother died in April. She lived to be 88 years old.  Dead’s soul spends for 49 days with the family in the custom of Japan. Her ashes spend this period with my family. It is an important period. The time of saying good-bye for the 49 days were finished, her ashes were laid in the family grave today. She started new life by side of my father’s ashes in the world of soul again. New name of soul was given by family temple. Her soul will come back to my home to see my family once a year from this year.