From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

An A6M2-N Rufe.

A6M2-N pilots at the plane anchorage.

The Nakajima A6M2-N "Rufe" Interceptor/Fighter-Bomber is a single-crew seaplane based on the Mitsubishi A6M Zero Model 11.

This floatplane was developed from the Mitsubishi A6M "Zero", for the purpose of supporting amphibian operations and defending remote bases. It was based on the A6M-2 Model 11 fuselage, with a modified tail and floats. This aircraft was the brainchild of Shinobu Mitsutake, Nakajima's Chief Engineer, and Atsushi Tajima, one of the company's designers. A total of 327 were built, including the original prototype.

The plane was deployed in 1942, referred to as the "Suisen 2" ("Hydro fighter type 2"), and was only utilized in defensive actions in the Aleutians and Solomon Islands operations. Such seaplanes were effective at night in harassing American PT boats, and they were very difficult to detect, even with primitive radar. Close misses killed officers and crew of boats such as PT 105. They would also drop flares to illuminate the PTs which were vulnerable to destroyer gunfire, and depended on cover of darkness. Since the boats left a phosphorescent wake which was visible from the air, they would leave their engines in idle to minimize this wake. It was primarily for this reason that John F. Kennedy's PT 109 was caught off guard in idle and rammed in a historic incident by the destroyer Amagiri, unable to maneuver out of the way in time.

The seaplane also served as an interceptor for protecting fueling depots in Balikpapan and Avon Bases (Dutch East Indies) and reinforced the Shumushu base (North Kuriles) in the same period. Such fighters served aboard seaplane carriers Kamikawa Maru in the Solomons and Kuriles areas and aboard Japanese raiders Hokoku Maru and Aikoku Maru in Indian Ocean raids. During fighting in the Solomon Islands, the Navy "Rufe" air aces Master Sergeant Kawai and Master Sergeant Maruyama shot down four American Grumman F4F Wildcat fighters.^{[citation needed]} In the Aleutian Campaign this fighter engaged with P-38 Lightning fighters and B-17 Flying Fortress bombers. This aircraft was used for interceptor, fighter-bomber, and short reconnaissance support for amphibious landings, among other uses.

Later in the conflict the Otsu Air Group utilized the A6M2-N as an interceptor alongside Kawanishi N1K1 Kyofu ("Rex") aircraft based in Biwa lake in the Honshu area.

Unhappily for its pilots, the large float and wing pontoons of the A6M2-N degraded its performance by about 20%, enough that the Rufe was not usually a match for even the first generation of Allied fighters. However, the Rufe was not as ludicrous a concept as it might seem; after all, the Supermarine Spitfire was derived from a seaplane design that actually held the world air speed record for a time. However, the lighter construction of the Zero, which compensated for the relative inefficiency of the Nakajima Sakae engine compared to the Rolls-Royce Merlin, worked against the seaplane concept.

A6M2-N at a seaplane base in the south pacific.

• Yokohama Air Group
• Toko Air Group
• Otsu Air Group
• Yokosuka Air Group (technical evaluation unit)
• 11th Air Fleet
• 5th Air Fleet
• 36th Air Fleet
• 452nd Air Fleet
• 934th Air Fleet

• Length: 10.10 m
• Wing Span: 22.44 m
• Height: 4.30 m
• Fully loaded weight: 2,880 kg
• Empty weight: 1,912 kg
• Engine: Nakajima NK1C Sakae 12 (940 hp (690 kW) for takeoff, 950 hp (700 kW) at 4,200 meters)

A6M2-N and other Japanese planes are destroyed by an US flame thrower tank after the war.

• Cruise Speed: 295 km/h
• Max Speed at 5,000 m: 435 km/h
• Max Range: 1,780 km
• Time: 500 m, 6 min 43 s
• Service Ceiling : 10,000 m

• Type 97 7.7 mm machine gun ×2
• Type 99 20 mm cannons ×2
• 60 kg bomb ×2
• Type n3 phosphor air-to-air canister bomb ×2
• Air drop flare (to support surface ships)

• Japan (Navy)