The Mitsubishi J4M ''Senden'' (閃電 "Flashing Lightning") or Navy Experimental 17-''Shi Otsu'' B Type Interceptor Fighter ''Senden'', Allied reporting name Luke, was a Japanese

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 opposin ...

fighter aircraft proposed by

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries is a Japanese multinational engineering, electrical equipment and electronics corporation headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. MHI is one of the core companies of the Mitsubishi Group and its automobile division is the predecessor of Mitsubishi Mo ...

for use by the

Imperial Japanese Navy The Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN; Kyūjitai: Shinjitai: ' 'Navy of the Greater Japanese Empire', or ''Nippon Kaigun'', 'Japanese Navy') was the navy of the Empire of Japan from 1868 to 1945, when it was dissolved following Japan's surrender ...

. The J4M project did not proceed beyond the design stage.

Design and development

To provide the Imperial Japanese Navy with a land-based high-performance

interceptor aircraft An interceptor aircraft, or simply interceptor, is a type of fighter aircraft designed specifically for the defensive interception role against an attacking enemy aircraft, particularly bombers and reconnaissance aircraft. Aircraft that are cap ...

Mitsubishi The is a group of autonomous Japanese multinational companies in a variety of industries. Founded by Yatarō Iwasaki in 1870, the Mitsubishi Group historically descended from the Mitsubishi zaibatsu, a unified company which existed from 1870 ...

designed the J4M. It was to have been a single-seat, twin-boom, low-wing monoplane with a central

nacelle A nacelle ( ) is a "streamlined body, sized according to what it contains", such as an engine, fuel, or equipment on an aircraft. When attached by a pylon entirely outside the airframe, it is sometimes called a pod, in which case it is attached ...

housing an unstepped

cockpit A cockpit or flight deck is the area, usually near the front of an aircraft or spacecraft, from which a Pilot in command, pilot controls the aircraft. The cockpit of an aircraft contains flight instruments on an instrument panel, and the ...

and a 1,590-kilowatt (2,130-hp)

Mitsubishi Ha-43 The Mitsubishi Ha-43, known as the Ha-211 by the Imperial Japanese Army Air Force (IJAAF) and MK9 by the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service (IJNAS)), was a Japanese 18-cylinder, twin-row air-cooled radial engine developed during World War II. ...

radial engine The radial engine is a reciprocating type internal combustion engine configuration in which the cylinders "radiate" outward from a central crankcase like the spokes of a wheel. It resembles a stylized star when viewed from the front, and is ca ...

behind the pilot driving a four-bladed pusher propeller rotating between the booms.Francillon, p. 491. The booms were to extend aft from the leading edge of the wing and were mounted below the central nacelle. The aircraft was to have had tricycle

landing gear Landing gear is the undercarriage of an aircraft or spacecraft that is used for takeoff or landing. For aircraft it is generally needed for both. It was also formerly called ''alighting gear'' by some manufacturers, such as the Glenn L. Martin ...

and an armament of one 30-mm and two 20-mm cannon. Design of the initial J4M1 version ended when the Navy put its support behind the competing Kyūshū J7W fighter, and Mitsubishi did not build a prototype. The

Allies An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...

nonetheless assigned the J4M the reporting name "Luke" during World War II.Francillion, p. 568.

Specifications (J4M estimated)

References

Notes

Bibliography

* Francillon, René J. ''Japanese Aircraft of the Pacific War''. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press, 1979. . *

External links