World War II Database

Contributor: C. Peter Chen

ww2dbaseIn the late 1930s, Kawasaki Aircraft Company Limited gained the right to build Lockheed's Model 14 Super Electra under license. In Sep 1939, the Japanese Navy approached Kawasaki to improve upon it for military duty, and the Ki-56 design was the result. They entered service in 1940 under the official designation of Navy Type 1 Freight Transport aircraft. They were used for transporting cargo as well as for the deployment of paratroopers to the front lines; in the latter role, they participated in the airborne assault on Sumatra, Dutch East Indies in 1942. Between 1940 and 1943, Kawasaki and Tachikawa built a total of 121 Ki-56 aircraft.

ww2dbaseThe Allied reporting name for the Ki-56 design was "Thalia".

SPECIFICATIONS

Ki-56

Machinery	Two Nakajima Ha-25 14-cyl air-cooled radial engines rated at 990hp each
Armament	None; capacity for 2,400kg of cargo or 14 passengers
Crew	4
Span	19.96 m
Length	14.90 m
Height	3.60 m
Wing Area	51.20 m²
Weight, Empty	4,672 kg
Weight, Maximum	8,024 kg
Speed, Maximum	400 km/h
Service Ceiling	8,000 m
Range, Normal	3,300 km

Photographs