Kawasaki C-1

what is it?

The Kawasaki C-1 (川崎 C-1) is a twin-engined short-range military transport aircraft developed and manufactured by the Japanese conglomerate Kawasaki Heavy Industries. It was solely used by the Japan Air Self-Defense Force (JASDF). Development of the C-1 commenced in 1966 in response to a requirement from the JASDF, which sought an indigenous jet-powered replacement for its aging Second World War–era Curtiss C-46 Commando transport fleet.

🔎How to recognise it: 2 jet engines · 30.6 m wingspan

base stats

• speed 806 km/htop speed
• range 3,353 kmwithout refuelling
• seats 60passengers
• size 38.7 tmax take-off weight
• built 31made in total

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 56 years ago, in 1970.
• 🏎️Top speed is 6.2× a car on the Dutch motorway (130 km/h).
• 🚗Wingspan of 30.6 m: about 7 cars parked nose to tail.
• 🐘Fully loaded it can weigh as much as 6 African elephants (~6 t each).
• 🌍Range of 3,353 km: 19× Amsterdam to Brussels.
• 🏔️Can fly 1.3× higher than Mount Everest (8,849 m).

jet: Gas turbine pushing air out the back (turbofan or turbojet): fast and high-flying.

spec sheet

first flight

1970-11-12

introduced

1974

retired

2025

status

retired

number built

31

role

military transport aircraft

origin

🇯🇵 Japan

makers

Kawasaki Aerospace Systems Company

engines

2× Pratt & Whitney JT8D-M-9 (Mitsubishi-built) / Pratt & Whitney JT8D-9

crew

2

passengers

60

length

29 m

wingspan

30.6 m

height

10 m

max take-off weight

38.7 t

top speed

806 km/h

cruise speed

657 km/h

range

3,353 km

ceiling

11,580 m

Specs are for the version in the Wikipedia article's specification section. Blank means the sources don't say.