Kate Konfusion

[Pretty Mediocre Modeller]

Hi,

I wonder if anyone with a little more historical knowledge can help me? I recently brought the F4F-4 Wildcat / B5N2 Kate dogfight double set. The markings for the Kate encouraged mreto do a little research into the subject of early Japanese carrier markings, and this is what I found;

The 6 fleet carriers o f the japanese fleet at the start of the war were divided into 3 divisions, each with 2 carrier. Each division had their own coding system.

The 1st division consisted of Akagi (Single red fuselage band and tail code beginning AI ), and Kaga (Double red fuselage band and tail code beginning AII ).

The second division consisted of Soryu (Single blue fuselage band and tail code beginning BI ), and Hiryu (Double blue fuselage band and tail code beginning BII).

The last carrier division consisted of Shokaku (Single white fuselage band and tail code EI ), and Zuikaka (Double white fuselage band and tail code EII ).

Now, my confusion with the Airfix DD set is that the Kate has a single blue band and tail code BI-310, but the paint guide say it is from the Hiryu, when the markings say it is from the Soryu? Who is right, have I made a mistake with my research, have Airfix got their's wrong, or had the aircraft been cross decked and no one had had time to repaint it?

Any help from anyone with more knowledge than myself would be greatly welcomed!

 

Thanks

PMM

[vimal_indrasoma]

 I found this over at Wings Palette http://wp.scn.ru/en/ww2/b/1035/65/3 -

B5N2Unit: unknown Serial: BI-310 Pilot - Lt.Joichi Tomonaga. Hiryu (?) carrier. Battle of Midway, 4th June 1942.

so there seems to be some doubt.

On J-Aircraft http://www.j-aircraft.com/faq/B5N_pt3.htm there's this discussion -

Posted By: Tom Matlosz <mailto:slayer14@bellsouth.net?subject=Re: Tomonaga'a Kate> Date: Sunday, 20 January 2002, at 6:02 p.m.

    

In Response To: Tomonaga'a Kate (Artur)     As for widely accepted colors, I would use hairyokushoku (gray-green) for the under surface color and dark green for all upper surfaces. Some attest to the brown mottling, while others, myself included, believe the perceived mottling seen in photos, to be varying density in the application of the dark green over the upper surface gray-green. (See Greg Springer's work on the Pearl Harbor Hospital Kate in the research section.)As for fuselage stripes, yes, two blue stripes would be appropriate for an airframe coded BII-310. I just happened to again read John Lundstrom's First Team account of Midway yesterday. Evidence points towards Jimmy Thach (VF-3) shooting down Tomonaga. In the First Team, page 507, "Thach later noted that his victim had very colorful tail markings. As the personal aircraft of the Hiryu hikotaicho, Tomanaga's BI-310 bore on its vertical tail surfaces the three broad yellow stripes denoting his command rank."In correspondence to me, John Lundstrom indicated that Tomonaga's code, BI-310, as it appears in the book, was a publisher's error and should have been BII-310. We have hashed the 2nd Carrier Division's switching flagship and codes, just prior to Midway, many times here at j-aircraft before and I will not reopen that dabate again.I am currently also building Tomonaga's Kate. I intend to code it as BII-310 with three yellow command stripes on the vertical stabilizer.Hope this helps,Tom Matlosz

 Then http://japanese-aviation.forumeiros.com/t17-45-midway-islands-battle-june-4-1942 has

BI-310 was flown by a hikotaicho of carrier IJN Hiryu. To the raid on Midway Island the crew was Lt. Jõichi Tomonaga (pilot), Lt. Toshio Hashimoto (observer) and PO1c Sadamu Murai (radioman/gunner). This plane was recovered OOC, damaged by American fighters.INFO CREDIT: book Shattered Sword - The untold story of the battle off Midway, by Parshall and Tully.Lt. Hashimoto was a HIRYU Shotaicho (flight leader), who flew as observer on BII-310 a high-level bomber at Pearl Harbor. When Lt. Joichi Tomonaga came aboard HIRYU in April 1942, as Hikotaicho (Air Group CO), he took over Hashimoto's plane as pilot, keeping Hashimoto as observer. Tomonaga changed the blue command stripes on HIRYU to yellow

And 

The author for "Shinjuwan no 101 Ki (Pearl Harbor and 101 Aircraft)", REPLICA Jan 1990, was H. Yoshimura. This author wrote to one vet who, at MIDWAY, was on the deck crew for Hiryu KATEs 330, 331, 332. That vet recalled that 330 returned from the first wave initial launch for engine problems... and cited that the changes in markings from BII to BI and the stripe changes from two to one stripe began in late April 1942. He noted that they were still working on 330 when the Hiryu was bombed. Takeshi Maeda (Kaga KATE radioman) corresponded with another Hiryu deck hand who confirms the date of the change was 27 May 1942 as the Soryu/Hiryu left port for Midway. Despite the uncertain date, the fact of the code and stripe change is certain.

 Sounds like they were in the process of swapping Hiryu and Soryu prefixes when the ships were sunk at Midway.

[Pretty Mediocre Modeller]

Thanks vimal,

 

That goes some way to answering the confusion.

 

PMM

[Jonathan Mock]

Details of the Kate schemes in the Dogfight Double and the classic range kit were overseen by Nick Millman, who is a recognised authority on Japanese aircraft. His blog is excellent.http://www.aviationofjapan.com

 

 

[vimal_indrasoma]

 Excellent link, Jon. PMM's question made me realise just how little reference material I had at hand for Japanese, well, anything, compared to reams on Luftwaffe and US/GB.

I also suddenly relaised that the only models of Japanese planes I had built to date were a Shinden and a Raiden when I was around ten or so.

I've just been reading Saburo Sakai's autobiography Samurai on the Kindle, and now I feel like a whole new area of WW2 hstory has opened up! Time to explore this new territory, I think.

[Pretty Mediocre Modeller]

Thanks Jon, that's a really interesting link.

I agree with Vimal, there is very little reference for Japanese WWII aircraft, all I have are some Osprey Aircraft of the Aces and Combat Aircraft books. Also the models of 'Rising Sun' warbirds are a bit thin on the ground, I hope airfix continues with their releases, a decent 'Val' next would be good, followed by a 'Betty' then a 'Sally' etc etc...

[Pretty Mediocre Modeller]

Thanks Jon, that's a really interesting link.

I agree with Vimal, there is very little reference for Japanese WWII aircraft, all I have are some Osprey Aircraft of the Aces and Combat Aircraft books. Also the models of 'Rising Sun' warbirds are a bit thin on the ground, I hope airfix continues with their releases, a decent 'Val' next would be good, followed by a 'Betty' then a 'Sally' etc etc...