The Kawanishi was a pulsejet-powered kamikaze aircraft under development towards the end of World War II. Designed by the Kawanishi Aircraft Company for the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN), the conflict ended before any were built.
The impetus for developing the Baika emerged in 1943 as the strategic bombers of the Allies were proving to be increasingly effective to the extent that existing piston-engined fighter aircraft were viewed as inadequate for defence of the Japanese home islands. Following negotiations between Imperial Japan and Nazi Germany in late 1943, the former secured access to the latter's advanced aeronautical technologies, including the rocket motor, turbojet, and pulsejet propulsion, as well as technical data for platforms such as the Fieseler Fi 103R Reichenberg (the piloted version of the V1 flying bomb). In July 1944, Kawanishi was directed to work on an affordable successor to the rocket-powered Yokosuka MXY-7 Ohka and the turbojet-powered Nakajima Kikka that would be disposable enough for the kamikaze mission.
In early August, the company received a contract for a single prototype and ten trainer aircraft to be delivered only one month later. While intended to consume as few critical materials as possible and be suitable for unskilled labour to produce, the production documentation was never completed prior to the Surrender of Japan, at which point the project was put on immediate hold.
History
By late 1943, Japanese officials had witnessed of the strategic bombing of Germany, and there was a growing suspicion that the Allies would soon attempt to bomb the Japanese home islands with their increasingly capable bombers, such as the Boeing B-29 Superfortress. Recognising that existing piston-engined fighter aircraft, such as the Mitsubishi A6M Zero and Mitsubishi J2M Raiden, would not be sufficiently capable against the looming bomber threat, there was an identified need for a better counter to this upcoming threat and motivated Japan to look towards the latest innovations of the Axis powers. Japanese military attachés had become aware of Germany's wartime aeronautical advances, such as the Messerschmitt Me 163 Komet rocket-powered interceptor aircraft, which motivated Japan to enter negotiations with Germany to secure their technical assistance. In late 1943, these talks led the granting of a licence to produce both the Me 163, its Walter HWK 509A rocket engine, and various other advances.
Accordingly, Nazi Germany would supply the Japanese with a great deal of technical data, including details of the Argus As 014 pulse jet engine and the Fieseler Fi 103R Reichenberg (the piloted version of the V1 flying bomb. Wartime U.S. intelligence reports stated that the Japanese were aware of the V-1 by October 1943; furthermore, one report stated that Japan received one example in November 1944. These reports also suggested that the Japanese were very interested in V-1 air-launching techniques. One U.S. Army Air Force document from 1946 shows the Baika as being a copy of the Reichenberg. The cargo manifest of the Japanese submarine I-29 lists a single V-1 fuselage as being included in a shipment of equipment.
On 2 July 1944, the Imperial Japanese Navy Aviation Bureau of the Ministry of the Navy directed the Kawanishi Aircraft Company to commence work on what would become the Kawanishi Baika. On 5 August 1945, at a conference held at the university attended by Kawanishi's senior designers and ranking officials of the IJN, the Baika was selected over a competing proposal, the Model 43B Okha, which had been dismissed as being too complex for mass production, especially due to its use of the Ishikawajima Ne-20 turbojet engine, which had been prioritised for the Kikka fighter. Consequently, Kawanishi received an order for a single prototype and ten twin-seat trainer aircraft, which were to be delivered during the following month.
The Baika visually resembled the Fi 103R Reichenberg.
;Type II
:Similar to Type I, but with pulsejet moved forwards, no landing gear. Intended for submarine launch.<!-- reference -->
|prime units?= met
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General characteristics
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|crew= 1
|length m= 6.97
|span m= 6.58
|height m= 3.99
|wing area sqm= 7.58
|empty weight kg= 750
|gross weight kg= 1,430
|fuel capacity=
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Powerplant
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|eng1 number= 1
|eng1 name= Maru Ka10
|eng1 type= pulse-jet engine
|eng1 lbf= 794
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Performance
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|max speed kmh= 648
|cruise speed kmh= 485
|range km= 278
|ceiling m= 2,000
|time to altitude= three minutes and 55 seconds to
|wing loading kg/m2= 188
|thrust/weight= 0.2
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Armament
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|armament=
- 1 × 250 kg (550 lb) warhead