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Japan's Mitsubishi Ki-21 bomber¹; Army Type 97
Allied Name: originally "Jane", later "Sally"¹

Mitsubishi Ki-21 bomber:

Mitsubishi Ki-21 bomber:

Mitsubishi Ki-21 bomber:

Mitsubishi Ki-21 bomber:

Design

A requirement was put forth in 1936 that the Mitsubishi Ki-21 was designed for.¹
Designed to meet a Imperial Japanese Army Air Force requirement that was given in 1938.² It was to be a heavy bomber.²

In 1939 Mitsubishi was instructed to improve the Ki-21 and they replaced the Ha-6 engine with a Ha-101 engine to give the Ki-21 more performance.¹

Prototype

The first Ki-21 prototype first flew in November 1936² / on December 18, 1936.^1,2

Production

Produced by Mitsubishi and Nakajima.¹ Production concluded in September 1944.²

• Ki-21: 8:²
• Ki-21-I: 777¹
• Ki-21-Ia, Ki-21-Ib, Ki-21-Ic: 774²
• Ki-21-II: 4², 1,278¹
  • First flew in December 1940.²
• Ki-21-IIa: 590²
• Ki-21-IIb: 688²
• Total: 2,064²
  • Produced by: Mitsubishi², Nakajima²

Variants

• Ki-21: Prototype.²
• Ki-21-I: Had Mitsubishi Ha-6 radial engines (850 HP).¹ In mid 1938 deliveries started.²
• Ki-21-Ia: Enlarged bomb bay.²
• Ki-21-Ib:
• Ki-21-Ic: Larger wheels.² Increased fuel.²
• Ki-21-II: Had Mitsubishi Ha-101 radial engines (1,500 HP).¹ Horizontal tail surfaces were larger.²
• Ki-21-IIa: Had a hand held 7.7 mm MG in rear dorsal position.¹ Dorsal glasshouse replaced turret.²
• Ki-21-IIb: Had 12.7 mm MG in a turret in the dorsal position.¹ Dorsal glasshouse replaced turret.²
• MC-21: Transport.² Converted from Ki-21-Ia in China.²

Usage

Arrival in China

The 60th and 61st Sentai went to China with their Ki-21s in 1938.^1,2

Pacific War

The Ki-21 was the main bomber in December 1941.² It was used in the Malayan, Thai, Burmese, and Netherlands East Indies campaigns.²

Secondary Roles

By 1943 the Ki-21 was obsolete and was moved into secondary rolls.² These included being a bomber trainer, communication aircraft, and a suicide plane.²

	Mitsubishi Ki-212	Mitsubishi Ki-21-I2	Mitsubishi Ki-21-Ia2	Mitsubishi Ki-21-II2	Mitsubishi Ki-21-IIb1,2
Type	Medium bomber2				Bomber1
Crew	5 - 72				51
Engine (Type)		2: Nakajima Ha-5 Kai2		2: Mitsubishi Ha-1012	2: Mitsubishi Ha-101 piston1
Cylinders		Radial 142		Radial 142
Cooling
Net HP		1,080 each2		1,500 each2	1,500 each1
Propeller blades		3 each2		3 each2
Dimensions
Span	73' 9.75"2 22.5 m2				73' 9.75"1 22.5 m1
Length	52' 6"2 16 m2				52' 5 7/8"1 16 m1
Height	15' 11"2 4.85 m2				15' 10 7/8"1 4.85 m1
Wing area					749.2 ft2 1 69.6 m2 1
Weight
Empty			10,342 lb2 4,691 kg2		13,382 lb1,2 6,070 kg1,2
Loaded			17,452 lb2 7,916 kg2		23,391 lb1,2 10,610 kg1,2
Performance
Speed @ 13,125' / 4,000 m		268 mph2 431 kph2			302 mph1 486 kph1
Speed @ 14,485' / 4,720 m				302 mph2 486 kph2
Climb		1,150'/minute2 350 m/minute2		1,640'/minute2 500 m/minute2
Climb to 19,685' / 6,000 m					13.2 minutes1
Service ceiling		28,215'2 8,600 m2		32,810'2 10,000 m2	32,810'1 10,000 m1
Range		932 - 1,678 miles2 1,500 - 2,700 km2		1,680 miles2 2,700 km2	1,680 miles1 2,700 km1
Armament	6: 7.7 mm MG2
Normal bomb load	1,653 lb2 750 kg2
Maximum bomb load	2,205 lb2 1,000 kg2

Sources:

1. Fighting Aircraft of World War II, Editor: Karen Leverington, 1995
2. Aircraft of WWII, Stewart Wilson, 1998

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