Mitsubishi G3M

what is it?

The Mitsubishi G3M (九六式陸上攻撃機, Kyūroku-shiki rikujō kōgeki-ki; as Type 96 land-based attack aircraft "Rikko"; Allied reporting name "Nell") was a Japanese bomber and transport aircraft used by the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service (IJNAS) during World War II. The Yokosuka L3Y (Allied reporting name "Tina"), was a transport variant of the aircraft manufactured by the Yokosuka Naval Air Technical Arsenal. The G3M bomber saw extensive use in the Pacific War. Attacks by G3M and G4M bombers resulted in the sinking of the Royal Navy battleship HMS Prince of Wales and battlecruiser HMS Repulse, the first time capital ships actively defending themselves were sunk solely by air power while in the open sea.

🔎How to recognise it: 2 piston engines with propellers · 25 m wingspan

base stats

• speed 375 km/htop speed
• range 4,400 kmwithout refuelling
• size 8,000 kgmax take-off weight
• built 1,048made 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 91 years ago, in 1935.
• 🏎️Top speed is 2.9× a car on the Dutch motorway (130 km/h).
• 🚗Wingspan of 25 m: about 6 cars parked nose to tail.
• 🌍Range of 4,400 km: 24× Amsterdam to Brussels.
• 🏔️Can fly 1.0× higher than Mount Everest (8,849 m).

piston: A car-like piston engine turning a propeller: simple and cheap, the classic small plane.

spec sheet

first flight

1935-07

introduced

1935

retired

1945

status

retired

number built

1,048

role

medium bomber/torpedo bomber

makers

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries

engines

2× Mitsubishi Kinsei / Kinsei

crew

7

length

16.5 m

wingspan

25 m

height

3.7 m

max take-off weight

8,000 kg

top speed

375 km/h

cruise speed

280 km/h

range

4,400 km

ceiling

9,200 m

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