The Kayaba Ka-1 and Ka-2 were
Japanese
autogyro
An autogyro (from Greek and , "self-turning"), also known as a ''gyroplane'', is a type of rotorcraft that uses an unpowered rotor in free autorotation to develop lift. Forward thrust is provided independently, by an engine-driven propeller. Whi ...
s, seeing service during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
for artillery spotting.
Design and development
The
Imperial Japanese Army
The was the official ground-based armed force of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945. It was controlled by the Imperial Japanese Army General Staff Office and the Ministry of the Army, both of which were nominally subordinate to the Emperor o ...
(IJA) developed the Ka-1 autogyro for reconnaissance, artillery-spotting, and anti-submarine uses. The Ka-1 was based on an American design, the
Kellett KD-1
The Kellett KD-1 was a 1930s American autogyro built by the Kellett Autogiro Company. It had the distinction of being the first practical rotary-wing aircraft used by the United States Army and inaugurated the first scheduled air-mail service us ...
A, which had been imported to Japan in 1939, but which was damaged beyond repair shortly after arrival.
Kayaba Industry
is a Japanese, Tokyo-based automotive company.
Among KYB's main products company are shock absorbers, air suspensions, power steering systems, hydraulic pumps, motors, cylinders, and valves. It is one of the world's largest shock absorber m ...
was tasked by the IJA to develop a similar machine, and the first prototype was flying on 26 May 1941.
The craft was initially developed for use as an observation platform and for artillery spotting duties. The IJA liked the craft's short, () take-off run, and its low maintenance requirements. Production began in 1941 and the first autogyros were assigned to artillery units for artillery spotting, crewed by pilot and spotter.
The prototype Ka-Go was a repaired
Kellett KD-1
The Kellett KD-1 was a 1930s American autogyro built by the Kellett Autogiro Company. It had the distinction of being the first practical rotary-wing aircraft used by the United States Army and inaugurated the first scheduled air-mail service us ...
A powered by a
Argus As 10
The Argus As 10 was a German-designed and built, air-cooled 90° cylinder bank-angle inverted V8 "low power" aircraft engine, used mainly in training aircraft such as the Arado Ar 66 and Focke-Wulf Fw 56 Stösser and other small short-range re ...
c. It went into production as the Ka-1 and about 20 were produced.
Production continued as the Ka-2, powered by
Jacobs L-4MA-7 engines, similar to the Kellett KD-1. During production, a shortage of critical components for rotors and engines resulted in severe delivery delays.
A total of 98 Ka-1 and Ka-2 airframes were produced by the end of war. Twelve were destroyed before delivery to the IJA, and about 30 never had engines installed. About 50 were delivered to the IJA, but only 30 were actually deployed.
Some sources have stated that 240 were built, but this cannot be verified.
Operational history
The first Ka-1 (the repaired
Kellett KD-1
The Kellett KD-1 was a 1930s American autogyro built by the Kellett Autogiro Company. It had the distinction of being the first practical rotary-wing aircraft used by the United States Army and inaugurated the first scheduled air-mail service us ...
A), first took off from Tamagawa Airfield on May 26, 1941. In the following Army trials, performance was deemed excellent. Originally, it was planned to send the Ka-1 to spot for the artillery units based in mainland China, but the change of the course of war in that theater rendered those plans meaningless. Instead, a few Ka-1 were sent to the Philippines to perform the duties of liaison aircraft as replacements for the
Kokusai Ki-76
The Kokusai Ki-76, or Liaison Aircraft Type 3 (in ja, 三式指揮連絡機), was a Japanese high-wing monoplane artillery spotter and liaison aircraft that served in World War II. The Allied reporting name was "Stella".
Design and development ...
. After some time the IJA finally decided on the best use of these unique aircraft, and the majority of Ka-1 and Ka-2 were pressed into service as anti-submarine patrol aircraft. Pilot training for this speciality started in July 1943 with the first batch of 10 pilots graduating in February 1944; followed by another batch of 40 pilots in September 1944.
Originally, the plan was to deploy the Ka-1/Ka-2 from 2D-class cargo ships to spot enemy submarines, but these ships turned out to be too cramped for operations; therefore the Ka-1/Ka-2 unit was assigned to the Army-operated escort carrier
''Akitsu Maru'' from August 1944 until her sinking in November 1944. From 17 January 1945 ASW patrols were resumed from an airstrip on
Iki Island
, or the , is an archipelago in the Tsushima Strait, which is administered as the city of Iki in Nagasaki Prefecture, Japan. The islands have a total area of with a total population of 28,008. Only four (4) of the twenty-three (23) named islands ...
with a maintenance base located at Gannosu Airfield in
Fukuoka
is the sixth-largest city in Japan, the second-largest port city after Yokohama, and the capital city of Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. The city is built along the shores of Hakata Bay, and has been a center of international commerce since ancie ...
prefecture. ASW patrols also started from May 1945 from Izuhara airfield on
Tsushima Island
is an island of the Japanese archipelago situated in-between the Tsushima Strait and Korea Strait, approximately halfway between Kyushu and the Korean Peninsula. The main island of Tsushima, once a single island, was divided into two in 1671 b ...
. These missions helped to protect one of the last operational Japanese sea lanes between the ports of Fukuoka and Pusan. Eventually U.S. carrier-based aircraft began to appear even in the Tsushima Strait, so in June 1945 the Ka-1/Ka-2 units were relocated to
Nanao base on the
Noto Peninsula
The Noto Peninsula (能登半島, ''Noto-hantō'') is a peninsula that projects north into the Sea of Japan from the coast of Ishikawa Prefecture in central Honshū, the main island of Japan. The main industries of the peninsula are agricultur ...
, in the
Sea of Japan
The Sea of Japan is the marginal sea between the Japanese archipelago, Sakhalin, the Korean Peninsula, and the mainland of the Russian Far East. The Japanese archipelago separates the sea from the Pacific Ocean. Like the Mediterranean Sea, it h ...
, operating from there until the end of the war. The Ka-1/Ka-2 did not directly sink any submarines during the war, but they were well regarded for spotting enemy submarines and reporting their positions.
Variants
* Ka-Go: Prototype built around a repaired Kellett autogyro.
* Ka-1: Imperial Japanese Army development of the Ka-Go, powered by a
Argus As 10
The Argus As 10 was a German-designed and built, air-cooled 90° cylinder bank-angle inverted V8 "low power" aircraft engine, used mainly in training aircraft such as the Arado Ar 66 and Focke-Wulf Fw 56 Stösser and other small short-range re ...
engine.
* Ka-2: Imperial Japanese Army development of the Ka-1, powered by a
Jacobs L-4MA-7 engine.
Specifications (Ka-1)
References
External links
YouTube video of Ka-1 and Ka-2 autogyro tests
{{lone designation, system=Japanese Army Autogyro Designations, designation=Ka-1 • Ka-2
1940s Japanese military reconnaissance aircraft
Single-engined tractor autogyros
World War II Japanese aircraft
Kayaba aircraft
Aircraft first flown in 1941