Nakajima Ki-68

The Nakajima Ki-68 was a design for a four-engined heavy bomber based on the Douglas DC-4E. In 1939 the Japanese Navy purchased the only prototype of the DC-4E, which had been rejected by the American airlines for being too complex and uneconomical. The DC-4E was then handed over to Nakajima, where it was dismantled and used as the basis of the G5N1 Shinzan (Mountain Recess). This used the same engine installation, wings and undercarriage as the DC-4, but with a new twin-rudder tail and fuselage. The G5N1 made its maiden flight in December 1939, and its performance was worse than that of the DC-4.

The Japanese Army also showed interest in the long range heavy bomber. Nakajima were commissioned to produce an Army version of the G5N1 as the Nakajima Ki-68. This would have been powered by either four Mitsubishi Ha-101 engines or four Nakajima Ha-103 engines. The failure of the G5N meant that the Ki-68 was cancelled early in its development, before any prototypes had been constructed. Kawanishi had also been asked to produce a version of the aircraft, the Kawanishi Ki-85, but this was also cancelled.

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How to cite this article: Rickard, J (19 August 2013), Nakajima Ki-68 , http://www.historyofwar.org/articles/weapons_nakajima_ki-68.html

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