Yokosuka P1Y Ginga

Common card · No. 238707

The Yokosuka P1Y Ginga (銀河, galaxy) is a twin-engine, land-based bomber that was designed by the Yokosuka Naval Air Technical Arsenal. Primarily produced by Nakajima and Kawanishi and flown by the Japanese Imperial Navy during the latter half of the Pacific War, it received the Allied reporting name “Frances”. The P1Y was designed as a successor to the prolific Mitsubishi G4M bomber during the early 1940s. It was designed to fulfil the ambitious performance requirements stipulated in the 15-Shi specification. The resulting aircraft was relatively clean and powered by a pair of Nakajima Homare radial engines, relying on its high speed to evade combatants rather than defensive armaments. The prototypes were commonly praised for their ease of handling and high rate of speed. However, development was protracted due to excess complexity, difficulty of manufacture, and poor serviceability. The Homare engines selected to power the P1Y proved to be both unreliable and limited in quantity. These...

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