Ki48 Lily Japanese bomber.

Skin by Gramps, 3dz is a modification of Captain Kurt's Beaufort. This is a further development of his earlier Blenheim MkIV - which in turn was developed from the Beaufighter that Woolfman made.  This model is also non-mirrored. It is for the JU88C slot in EAW.

Thanks guys!

This aircraft is not intended to be flyable, so there is no cockpit or wingview!

About the Lily:

The Japanese Army's Ki-48 (Allied code name Lily) was a twin engine light bomber, a popular  type  in many air forces in the late 1930's.   The 45th Sentai (division) was equipped with the Ki-48 in 1940 and that fall deployed to northern China for combat operations.

Against little opposition from the Chinese Air Force, the Ki-48 performed well, with its high speed being cited in crew reports.  From Dec. 8, 1941, the Ki-48 was used to attack British, Dutch, and U.S. forces in the Philippines and Southeast Asia.  When challenged by Allied fighters, the Ki-48s were vulnerable, despite their speed, having inadequate defensive guns and crew armor, and no self-sealing fuel tanks.  Shifting to night attacks increased survivability but reduced effectiveness.

An improved Ki-48-II with more speed and armor protection flew in Feb. 1942 and was placed in production; despite further improvements in armament, the Ki-48 was simply not able to keep up with the advanced U.S. fighters in the South Pacific. Production of the Ki-48 ended in Oct. 1944, but in 1945 they were still encountered in night operations over Okinawa.  Many were employed (in daylight) as Army suicide planes, some fitted with a long rod protruding from the nose to trigger a 1,764 lb bomb when it struck an Allied ship.  Others were modified for various research roles, including launching the I-Go-1 anti-ship guided missile and another as a test platform for a jet engine.  Production totaled 1,977 aircraft.

The Ki-48 was a twin-engine, mid-wing aircraft, with a glazed nose and almost all glazed crew housing.

The Ki-48-I had a maximum speed of 298 mph, increased to 314 mph in the II variant. Normal range was some 1,200 miles, with a maximum of 1,500 miles.  Maximum bomb load was 882 pounds for the Ki-48-I and 1,764 pounds for the Ki-48-II, although normal bomb loads were less.  Three flexible 7.7 mm machine guns were fitted, with a 12.7 mm machine gun in the dorsal position in some II variants. A crew of four flew the Ki-48.*

Richard "Gramps" Kaminski
25/10/02
Endeavour2000@hotmail.com