Nakajima J1N1-R Gekko by Fujimi

1/72 scale
Kit No. 72022
Cost: $29.99
Decals: Five versions – all Imperial Japanese Navy
Comments: Engraved panel lines, metal parts for 20mm cannon barrels

History

Many of the combatants of World War II adopted twin-engine “heavy fighter” designs intended to provide greater range than single-engine fighters while proving capable of carrying greater armament loads. These designs were the original multi-role fighters, intended to be used to counter enemy fighters one-on-one, escort allied bombers, or intercept incoming enemy bombers as required. While the Germans would later have success with their twin-engine Messerschmitt Bf 110 and the British with their de Havilland DH.98 Mosquito, in the late 1930’s all that was yet to be. In 1938, after nine months of bitter fighting in China, the Imperial Japanese Navy began receiving requests from senior air officers in that theatre for long range fighter aircraft.

These officers reported that the Chinese consistently kept their fighters at bases beyond the range of the Type 96 carrier fighters (the Mitsubishi A5M, later given the Allied code name “Claude”) and that this tactic resulted in heavy losses to Japanese bombers which had to operate without fighter escort deep in Chinese territory.

In response, the Japanese Naval Bureau of Aeronautics began drafting specifications for what would become a long-range, twin-engine, three-seat fighter, emphasizing good combat maneuverability so the type could take on single-engine enemy fighters. The Nakajima Aircraft Company developed a prototype fitting Sakae series radial engines to low-wing monoplane wings along a smooth fuselage. Its crew numbered three and it had a tradtiional “tail dragger” undercarriage. Armament consisted of one 20mm Type 99 cannon with two 7.7mm Type 97 machine guns. A turret fitting an additional four 7.7mm machine guns was also featured. The aircraft was designated J1N1.

The Nakajima J1N1 “Gekko” (“Moonlight”) held out promise as a fine twin-engine heavy fighter with potentially multiple uses. The prototype flew for the first time in May 1941, but the flight trials were marked by teething problems. The second prototype was fitted with trailing edge flaps and leading edge slats to improve maneuverability and both aircraft were delivered to the Navy for service trials in August 1941. These met with abysmal failure: the aircraft had a complex hydraulic system, was overweight, and had trouble with its propellers, which to minimize torque problems rotated in opposite directions. Despite recent modifications the ailerons suffered severe vibration during rolls, and pilots reported the maneuverability inadequate. Pitted against the Mitsubishi A6M2 in flight trials, the J1N1 was found to be inferior in all respects except range.

The IJN rejected it in October 1941 as a long-range fighter, but since it was almost as fast as the A6M2, Nakajima was directed to modify it for use as a long range, land-based reconnaissance aircraft. Two dorsal barbettes each housing two 7.7mm machine guns aft of the cockpit were deleted along with all other armament, and internal fuel capacity was reduced by 570 liters (125 Imperial gallons) to save weight. A different version of the Sakae 21 radial engine was used to improve reliability and ease of maintenance, and to compensate for the reduction in internal fuel capacity, provision was made for two 330-liter drop tanks to be fitted to the wing center section. The fuselage was redesigned to have two cockpits, the forward one housing the pilot and radio operator/rear gunner who operated the rearward firing 13mm machine gun. A second cockpit housing the navigator/observer was located aft of the wing’s trailing edge. In this form it passed its service trials and entered service in July 1942 as the Type 2 reconnaissance plane.

The Gekko was issued to front-line units and was first encoutered by Allied units in the Solomons Campaign, initially being identified as a fighter and given the code name “Irving.” Later it would be redesignated J1N1-R by the Navy, and a small number were fitted with a 20mm cannon (Type 99 Model 1) in a spherical turret behind the pilot’s seat. The Gekko was destined to evolve beyond reconnaissance missions: in the Spring of 1943, Commander Yasuna Kozono, commanding officer of the 251st Kokutai then based at Vunakanau Airfield at Rabaul, suggested the installation of obliquely mounted cannon in the observer’s cockpit for nightfighting operations.

Fujimi thoughtfully provides metal rods representing the 20mm cannon, should the modeler opt for the nightfighter version.

The observer’s cockpit of a Gekko was stripped of all equipment and fitted with two fixed 20mm cannon firing forward and upward at an angle of 30 degrees, and two more firing forward and downward. Doubts about this arrangement evaporated when two B-24 Liberators were soon afterwards intercepted and destroyed. This engagement attracted the attention of the Naval Staff in Tokyo, who instructed Nakajima to begin manufacture of a new version that would be purpose-built as a nightfighter. Production of the J1Ni-S began in August 1943. 183 of these nightfighters would be built between April 1943 and August 1944, compared to only 54 aircraft in the previous 12 months.

The Gekko proved quite dangerous to the relatively slow B-24. J1N1-S aircraft soon carried basic radar and search lights for night time scanning. Their downward-firing 20mm cannons were soon found to be rarely used in action and were deleted. With the introduction of the faster, higher-flying Boeing B-29 Superfortress by the Americans, Gekko night fighters were less effective, and could usually manage only one firing pass. Several kills of the large bombers were managed by Gekko crews but on the whole the type was outmatched. Even the addition of another 20mm cannon (to produce the J1N1-Sa mark) could not generate success. Production of the J1N1 series ended in December 1944, and by war’s end most of the Gekkos would be expended in Kamikaze attacks, fitted with two 250 kg (551 lb) bombs.

The Kit

Fujimi’s Nakajima J1N1-R is injection molded in grey and consists of 66 parts, including 11 in clear plastic. Originally released by Fujimi in 1994, the kit of the Nakajima J1N1-R is a land-based reconnaissance plane fielded by the Imperial Japanese Navy and is replete with engraved panel lines and realistic stretched fabric effects on the ailerons, elevators and rudder. In the cockpit, while the tub looks rather spartan, it can be dressed up with decals for the side instrument panels, which are sorely needed. In contrast the main instrument panels feature crisp raised detail, although a decal is provided for this part as well — not strictly necessary. Seats and a control yoke are separately mounted, and the instructions provide a paint guide referencing Gunze Sangyo colors.

The fuselage features a separate dorsal section, into which two twin-mount machine guns and a pair of 20mm cannon are cemented. There is also a part for the ventrally mounted 20mm cannon. The landing gear are above average in detail with circumferential tread on the tires. As for the engines, the cowlings are separately and crisply molded as a complete piece, complete with integral dorsal and ventral intakes, and small parts for the exhaust pipes which are to be separately mounted on the dorsal side of the nacelles. The double radial engine faces are average in detail, and the propellers appear to be to scale, neither too thin nor too thick. Auxiliary fuel tanks are provided, one to be mounted under each wing.

Markings

The kit provides decals for five different IJN aircraft, all based at Rabaul, New Guinea during the October 1942-June 1943 period. The first is for a machine of the Tainan Kokutai (Naval Air Corps), assigned to reconnaissance flights over Guadalcanal during October 1942. It was piloted by Warrant Officer Satoru Ono, with Pilot Officer Kinji Kawasaski acting as observer, and Pilot Officer Nobuo Sawada as radio operator. The second version is for a J1N1 of the 151st Kokutai based at Rabaul during April/May 1943.

The third version is an J1N1 of the 251st Kokutai, piloted by Chief Petty Officer Shigetoshi Kuso and Lt. Akira Sugawara. This aircraft shot down two Boeing B-17 Fortresses on May 21, 1943. The fourth and fifth version are also for machines of the 251st Kokutai in June 1943 (no other details provided). All aircraft are painted in a scheme of Black Green upper surfaces, consisting of IJN Green (also referred to as Mitsubishi Green) mixed with Flat Black at a ratio of 80% – 20%, with IJN Grey undersides, and Flat Black engine cowlings. Spinners range in color from Silver to Black Green to Brown, depending on the aircraft.

Conclusion

Fujimi seems to excel at relatively detailed kits that nonetheless offer simple construction, an attractive combination for many a modeler. Their J1N1 Gekko is no exception. Highly recommended.

References

• Japanese Aircraft of the Pacific War, by R.J. Francillon, Ph.D.; Copyright 1970 by Putnam & Company, Limited; London.
• www.militaryfactory.com