Translate

Friday, January 19, 2018

Nakajima A6M2-N Rufe

Here are some images of Trumpeter's 1/24 scale Nakajima A6M2-N Rufe.
Back in the day the very idea of a 1/24 scale Rufe would have been very unlikely.
But thanks to Trumpeter there are now not only a Rufe, but a Spitfire float plane and a Spitfire Mk VI  various Mk V's and now coming soon a Junkers 87 A. Back then these aircraft in model kit form would have either only been found in garage kit form or a limited release special edition, let alone in 1/24 scale. The Rufe itself was a straight forward build with no real issues. An impressive display on any shelf.

From Wikipedia"
The Nakajima A6M2-N (Navy Type 2 Interceptor/Fighter-Bomber) was a single-crew floatplane based on the Mitsubishi A6M Zero Model 11. The Allied reporting name for the aircraft was Rufe.
 The A6M2-N floatplane was developed from the Mitsubishi A6M Type 0, mainly to support amphibious operations and defend remote bases. It was based on the A6M-2 Model 11 fuselage, with a modified tail and added floats. A total of 327 were built, including the original prototype.

The aircraft was deployed in 1942, referred to as the "Suisen 2" ("Hydro fighter type 2"), and was only utilized in defensive actions in the Aleutians and Solomon Islands operations. Such seaplanes were effective in harassing American PT boats at night. They could also drop flares to illuminate the PTs which were vulnerable to destroyer gunfire, and depended on cover of darkness.
A6M2-Ns at Attu, Alaska
The seaplane also served as an interceptor for protecting fueling depots in Balikpapan and Avon Bases (Dutch East Indies) and reinforced the Shumushu base (North Kuriles) in the same period. Such fighters served aboard seaplane carriers Kamikawa Maru in the Solomons and Kuriles areas and aboard Japanese raiders Hokoku Maru and Aikoku Maru in Indian Ocean raids. In the Aleutian Campaign this fighter engaged with RCAF Curtiss P-40, Lockheed P-38 Lightning fighters and Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress bombers.[citation needed] The aircraft was used for interceptor, fighter-bomber, and short reconnaissance support for amphibious landings, among other uses.
Later in the conflict the Otsu Air Group utilized the A6M2-N as an interceptor alongside Kawanishi N1K1 Kyofu ("Rex") aircraft based in Biwa lake in the Honshū area.
The last A6M2-N in military service was a single example recovered by the French forces in Indochina after the end of World War II. It crashed shortly after being overhauled.
The large float and wing pontoons of the A6M2-N degraded its performance by only about 20%. However, this caused the A6M2-N to be unable to confront the first generation of Allied fighters

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Rufe didn't have folding wings. Nice build and photography.

-Warren Zoell said...

There are multiple things wrong with this kit, as I found out later on.
I suppose that's why Trumpeter doesn't make it anymore.
I don't even think there were aftermarket parts for it to fix the problems.
It was a dud from the start.