NAKAJIMA A4N1 CARRIER-BASED FIGHTER

The Nakajima A4N was a Japanese fixed-undercarriage biplane on-board fighter from the interwar period. The drive was provided by a single engine Nakajima Hikari 1 with 730 hp. The prototype flight took place in 1934. A year later, serial production began, which lasted until 1940, which resulted in the production of about 220 examples of this aircraft. The deck armament consisted of two 7.7 mm Type 87 machine guns. The Nakajima A4N was commissioned by the Japanese naval command, which needed a new in-flight fighter capable of replacing older aircraft of this type. In order to reduce research and development time, Nakajima relied on the design of the new machine on another aircraft of its own: the A2N. However, the changes compared to the original were significant: first of all, a completely new engine was used, the aerodynamics was significantly improved, the fuselage cross-section was reduced, and the wingspan was increased. The machine entered service in 1936, replacing the A1N and A2N machines. However, during the operation, many objections were raised as to its performance - especially the maximum speed and the rate of climb. The Nakajima A4N was also quickly withdrawn from service, as from 1940 it was replaced in the line by the Mitsubishi A5M. Nakajima A4N machines took part in the initial period of the conflict in China in 1937-1940 / 1941.