Mitsubishi Ki-21

what is it?

The Mitsubishi Ki-21, formal designation "Type 97 Heavy Bomber" (九七式重爆撃機, Kyūnana-shiki jūbakugekiki) was a Japanese heavy bomber during World War II. It began operations during the Second Sino-Japanese War participating in the Nomonhan Incident, and in the first stages of the Pacific War, including the Malayan, Burmese, Dutch East Indies and New Guinea Campaigns. It was also used to attack targets as far-flung as western China, India and northern Australia. The Allies designated it under the reporting names "Sally"/"Gwen".

🔎How to recognise it: 2 piston engines with propellers · 22.5 m wingspan

base stats

• speed 485 km/htop speed
• range 2,700 kmwithout refuelling
• size 10.6 tmax take-off weight
• built 2,064made 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 90 years ago, in 1936.
• 🏎️Top speed is 3.7× a car on the Dutch motorway (130 km/h).
• 🚗Wingspan of 22.5 m: about 5 cars parked nose to tail.
• 🌍Range of 2,700 km: 15× Amsterdam to Brussels.
• 🏔️Can fly 1.1× 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

1936-12-18

introduced

1938

retired

1945

status

retired

number built

2,064

role

heavy bomber

makers

Mitsubishi

engines

2× Mitsubishi Ha101

crew

5

length

16 m

wingspan

22.5 m

height

4.9 m

max take-off weight

10.6 t

top speed

485 km/h

cruise speed

380 km/h

range

2,700 km

ceiling

10,000 m

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