what is it?
The Aichi AB-4 was a Japanese flying boat of the 1930s. A single engined biplane, the AB-4 was intended to carry out night reconnaissance for the Imperial Japanese Navy. Six were built and accepted into service as the Experimental 6-Shi Night Reconnaissance Flying boat, three of which were converted to civil transports.
How to recognise it: 1 piston engine with propeller · biplane · 13.5 m wingspan
base stats
Bars compare against all aircraft: 3,500 km/h, 20,000 km, 850 seats; size and number built on a log scale up to 640 t (An-225) and 45,000 built (Cessna 172).
fun facts
- First flew 94 years ago, in 1932.
- Wingspan of 13.5 m: about 3 cars parked nose to tail.
piston: A car-like piston engine turning a propeller: simple and cheap, the classic small plane.
spec sheet
- first flight
- 1932-05
- number built
- 6
- role
- night reconnaissance flying boat
- origin
- 🇯🇵 Japan
- makers
- Aichi
- engines
- 1× Gasuden Urakaze / Napier Lion
- crew
- 3
- length
- 9.8 m
- wingspan
- 13.5 m
- height
- 3.9 m
- max take-off weight
- 2,600 kg
- top speed
- 164 km/h
- cruise speed
- 113 km/h
- range
- —
- ceiling
- 3,500 m
- wings
- biplane
- landing gear
- flying boat
Specs are for the version in the Wikipedia article's specification section. Blank means the sources don't say.
Sources: Wikidata Q4696557, Wikipedia: Aichi AB-4 (CC BY-SA 4.0).Updated 2026-10-24.