The Kawasaki Army Type 88 Reconnaissance Aircraft was a Japanese single-engined

biplane A biplane is a fixed-wing aircraft with two main wings stacked one above the other. The first powered, controlled aeroplane to fly, the Wright Flyer, used a biplane wing arrangement, as did many aircraft in the early years of aviation. While a ...

designed for Kawasaki by Richard Vogt. Originally known by its company designation KDA-2, it was accepted by 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 Emper ...

as the Type 88

Reconnaissance In military operations, reconnaissance or scouting is the exploration of an area by military forces to obtain information about enemy forces, terrain, and other activities. Examples of reconnaissance include patrolling by troops ( skirmishe ...

Aircraft. The Type 88 number was designated for the year the aircraft was accepted, which was the year 2588 in the Japanese

imperial year The , colloquially known as the or "national calendar year" is a unique calendar system in Japan. It is based on the legendary foundation of Japan by Emperor Jimmu in 660 BC. ''Kōki'' emphasizes the long history of Japan and the Imperial dynas ...

calendar, or 1928 in the

Gregorian calendar The Gregorian calendar is the calendar used in most parts of the world. It was introduced in October 1582 by Pope Gregory XIII as a modification of, and replacement for, the Julian calendar. The principal change was to space leap years d ...

.War Department TM-E-30-480 ''Handbook on Japanese Military Forces'' September 1944 p 400 The basic design was modified into the Type 88 Light Bomber that was used in combat over China in the

Second Sino-Japanese War The Second Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945) or War of Resistance (Chinese term) was a military conflict that was primarily waged between the Republic of China and the Empire of Japan. The war made up the Chinese theater of the wider Pacific T ...

. The Type 88 was built in large numbers and remained in service until 1940.

Design and development

The Army Type 88-1 Reconnaissance Biplane was designed by Richard Vogt as the Kawasaki KDA-2 to meet a Japanese Army requirement for a reconnaissance biplane to replace the

Salmson 2 The Salmson 2 A.2, (often shortened to Salmson 2) was a French biplane reconnaissance aircraft developed and produced by Salmson to a 1916 requirement. Along with the Breguet 14, it was the main reconnaissance aircraft of the French army in 19 ...

. Three KDA-2

prototype A prototype is an early sample, model, or release of a product built to test a concept or process. It is a term used in a variety of contexts, including semantics, design, electronics, and software programming. A prototype is generally used to ...

s were built by Kawasaki Kōkūki Kōgyō K.K. in 1927. After flight testing, the aircraft was accepted and ordered into production as the Army Type 88-1 Reconnaissance Biplane. The aircraft was of all-metal construction, with a

stressed skin In mechanical engineering, stressed skin is a type of rigid construction, intermediate between monocoque and a rigid frame with a non-loaded covering. A stressed skin structure has its compression-taking elements localized and its tension-taking ...

forward

fuselage The fuselage (; from the French ''fuselé'' "spindle-shaped") is an aircraft's main body section. It holds crew, passengers, or cargo. In single-engine aircraft, it will usually contain an engine as well, although in some amphibious aircraft t ...

, unequal-span wings and a slim angular fuselage, with cross-axle main

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. Mart ...

. was powered by a 447 kW (600 hp)

BMW VI The BMW VI was a water-cooled V-12 aircraft engine built in Germany in the 1920s. It was one of the most important German aero engines in the years leading up to World War II, with thousands built. It was further developed as the BMW VII and ...

engine. the Type 88-II Was an improved version with an improved engine

cowling A cowling is the removable covering of a vehicle's engine, most often found on automobiles, motorcycles, airplanes, and on outboard boat motors. On airplanes, cowlings are used to reduce drag and to cool the engine. On boats, cowlings are a cove ...

and a revised tail assembly. By the end of 1931, 710 (including the three prototypes) had been built by both Kawasaki and Tachikawa, who had 187 of the total number.Mikesh and Abe 1990, pp.145–146. Between 1929 and 1932, a bomber version was built as the Type 88 Light Bomber, differing in having a strengthened lower wing and an additional pair of centre-section struts. Bomb racks were located under the fuselage and lower wings. A total of 407 were produced.Mikesh and Abe 1990, pp.146–147. A transport variant was developed as the KDC-2 with room for a pilot and four passengers in an enclosed

cabin Cabin may refer to: Buildings * Beach cabin, a small wooden hut on a beach * Log cabin, a house built from logs * Cottage, a small house * Chalet, a wooden mountain house with a sloping roof * Cabin, small free-standing structures that serve as i ...

. Only two KDC-2s were built; one was tested on floats.Mikesh and Abe 1990, p.147.

Operational history

Both reconnaissance and bomber versions saw action with the Imperial Japanese Army Air Force during the

Manchuria Manchuria is an exonym (derived from the endo demonym " Manchu") for a historical and geographic region in Northeast Asia encompassing the entirety of present-day Northeast China (Inner Manchuria) and parts of the Russian Far East (Outer M ...

, and while in service in 1937 during fighting at the

Battle of Shanghai The Battle of Shanghai () was the first of the twenty-two major engagements fought between the National Revolutionary Army (NRA) of the Republic of China (ROC) and the Imperial Japanese Army (IJA) of the Empire of Japan at the beginning of the ...

, losses in early 1938, including at the

Battle of Taierzhuang The Battle of Taierzhuang () was a battle of the Second Sino-Japanese War in 1938, which was fought between the armies of the Republic of China and the Empire of Japan. The battle was that war's first major Chinese victory. It humiliated the Jap ...

phased the Type 88 out of frontline service.

Variants

;KDA-2 :Three prototypes in 1927. ;Type 88-I Reconnaissance Biplane. :Production reconnaissance biplane. ;Type 88-II Reconnaissance Biplane :Improved version of the 88-I, 707 built of both the 88-I and 88-II. ;Type 88 Light Bomber. :

Light bomber A light bomber is a relatively small and fast type of military bomber aircraft that was primarily employed before the 1950s. Such aircraft would typically not carry more than one ton of ordnance. The earliest light bombers were intended to dro ...

able to carry 200 kg (440 lb) of bombs, 407 built. ; KDC-2 :Transport variant, two built.

Operators

; *

Imperial Japanese Army Air Force The Imperial Japanese Army Air Service (IJAAS) or Imperial Japanese Army Air Force (IJAAF; ja, 大日本帝國陸軍航空部隊, Dainippon Teikoku Rikugun Kōkūbutai, lit=Greater Japan Empire Army Air Corps) was the aviation force of the Im ...

; *

Manchukuo Imperial Air Force The Manchukuo Imperial Air Force (') ( was the air force of the Empire of Manchuria, a puppet state of Imperial Japan. The air force's predecessor was the Manchukuo Air Transport Company (later renamed the Manchukuo National Airways), a paramilit ...

Specifications (88-II)

Notes

References

* * * War Department TM-E-30-480 ''Handbook on Japanese Military Forces'' {{kawasaki aircraft 1920s Japanese military reconnaissance aircraft Type 88 Biplanes Single-engined tractor aircraft Aircraft first flown in 1927