Talk:Nakajima Ki-49

Not a "heavy bomber"

Heavy bomber implies, above all, an ability to carry a heavy payload by the standards of its era – in WW2, even the smallest true heavies could carry 2000 kg/4500 lbs. Some of the heavier bombers of the era, such as the Avro Lancaster (1941) and B-29 (1944), routinely carried >9000 kg.

This article cites a payload of up to 1000 kg (2200 lbs) for the Ki 49.

Even the contemporary Wellington, with a payload up to 2000 kg, is usually classified as a "medium bomber". Likewise the B-25 (1360 kg) and Mitsubishi G4M (1200 kg) are clearly mediums.

Likewise, if overall mass is considered, the Ki 49 had a maximum takeoff weight (MTW) of 11.4 tonnes. Whereas one of the lightest of the true heavy bombers, the He 111, could reach 14 tonnes. Consequently, even if some of the defensive weaponry and/or fuel load of the Ki 49 had, hypothetically, been sacrificed for an increased bombload, it could not have achieved the MTW of many medium bombers, like the B-25 (MTW: 15 tonnes) and Wellington (MTW: 13 tonnes).

(imho) It would appear that the IJAAF:

• used "heavy bomber" at least in this case, to mean a type designed for survivability (i.e. a day bomber in which payload was traded off against defensive capabilities), and/or;
• did not use the designation of "medium bomber" (instead splitting bombers into light or heavy).

Even if the "heavy" designation here means day bomber, there were contemporary day bombers with much larger payloads, e.g. the B-17 normally carried an internal payload of up to 3600 kg.

Consequently, I suggest, the IJA jargon is so different from conventional international usage during 1941–45, that "Medium bomber" should appear in the battlebox: referenced if necessary, and with the IJA classification following in parentheses. Unless there are objections, I will make this change in future.

Grant | Talk 06:23, 3 November 2023 (UTC)