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The Kokusai Ki-86 was a version of the Bücker Bü 131 Jungmann produced under licence for the Japanese Army. Japanese interest in the Jungmann began in 1938, when Bücker demonstrated the Bü 131 Jungmann and Bü 133 Jungmeister in Japan. The Japanese navy bought the Jungmann, and after flight trials ordered twenty more aircraft. They then asked Watanabe (soon to become Kyushu) to design a new primary trainer, inspired by the Jungmann but not a copy of it. These efforts failed, and in 1942 the Navy decided to purchase a licence to build the original Bü 131 instead. This was produced as the Kyushu K9W1 Navy Type 2 Primary Trainer Model 11.
The K9W1 impressed the Japanese Army, and in 1943 it too began licensed construction of the Jungmann. The intense rivalry between the Japanese Army and Navy meant that the army was unwilling to use the Kyushu version, and so production was entrusted to the Nippon Kokusai Koka.
The Kokusai Ki-86 Army Type 4 was powered by the 110hp Hitachi [Ha-47] 11 Army Type 4 four-cylinder inverted inline air-cooled engine, but was otherwise similar to the standard Jungmann, sharing its method of construction with a metal framework and fabric covering. The wingspan of the Ki-86 was two inches narrower than of the Bü 131B, its top speed rose by 9mph and its service ceiling by around 3,000ft. The Ki-86 was produced in large numbers, with an impressive 1,037 being produced between 1943 and 1945 and the Ki-86 replaced the Ki-17 as the Japanese Army's standard basic trainer. The total number of aircraft produced includes one Ki-86b, an all-wooden version that was completed in February 1945 but that didn't enter production.
Engine: Hitachi [Ha-47] 11
Power: 110hp at take off
Crew: 2
Wing span: 24ft 0 31/32in
Length: 21ft 8 13/32in
Height: 8ft 7 25/32in
Empty Weight: 902lb
Loaded Weight: 1,409lb
Max Speed: 112mph
Cruising Speed: 75mph at 3,280ft
Service Ceiling: 12,730ft
Range: 373 miles
Armament: none
Bomb-load: none