A6M2-N Rufe - 'Floatplane Zero' in the Aleutian Campaign (Part 2)
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- Опубліковано 16 лют 2024
- After the Americans built an airfield on the island of Adak, their single engine fighters P-39 and P-40 were able to escort bombers all the way to the Japanese stronghold on Kiska Island. This was a real turning point in the Aleutians campaign but the Japanese were still determined not to allow the Americans to kick them out easily. A6M2-N 'Rufe' pilots were still able to hit hard and a number of American planes fell as their victims.
Sources:
- John Haile Cloe - The Aleutian Warriors: A History of the 11th Air Force & Fleet Air Wing 4,
amzn.to/4bjGyai
- Krzysztof Janowicz - A6M2-N Rufe
amzn.to/42qNIWl
- Brian Garfield - Thousand-Mile War: World War II in Alaska and the Aleutians
amzn.to/496NRkm
- Report from the Aleutians | 1943 Authentic Colour Film
• Report from the Aleuti...
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^#militaryaviation #militaryaviationhistory #zerofighter - Наука та технологія
The A6M2N-Rufe must be the best Japanese seaplane fighter of WW2 I would like to hear another Rufe story over Solomons and pacific Islands.
Well, there were only two of them :) I might cover the rest of Rufe's story in the future too.
The N1K1 "Rex" floatplane fighter was quite a bit better. It was later modified into a land-based fighter, the N1K1-J "George", which was considered one of the most formidable Japanese fighters.
More please!
Thank you for your feedback!
Another great episode. Thank-you for all the effort you put into this.
I’ve always thought it extremely lucky that Yamamoto decided to combine the invasion of Attu and Kiska in the Aleutians with the planned assault on Midway. If Yamamoto hadn’t split his forces, the Americans would have had to face at least 6 Japanese carriers at Midway instead of 4, plus there were another 2 fleet carriers under repair and refit from the battle of the Coral Sea just a few weeks beforehand. Yamamoto was known to be a great gambler, particularly at poker ~ but the cards weren’t right for him at Midway. Fortunately.
Yamamoto's 2 mistakes were :
1. The April 1942 Indian Ocean Raid - a failed Japanese attempt to engage and destroy the British Eastern Fleet using their fleet carrier force. This operation took 5 out of 6 Japanese fleet carriers away from the Pacific at a critical time, and used up valuable aircraft that were very difficult to immediately replace - since Japanese carrier aircraft production was still extremely low in early 1942.
2. Yamamoto sent only 2 fleet carriers to the Coral Sea operation (plus 1 light carrier to protect the invasion fleet.) This was barely sufficient force to overcome the Allied land based airpower at Port Moresby, and nowhere near enough to fight multiple US carriers as well. Japan needed at least 4 fleet carriers at Coral Sea, preferably all 6.
Thank you for your comment! When you gamble a lot, sooner or later your luck must run out.
P40 is one of those unsung heroes of WW2, it fought all over the place when things were the worst as they could get, it needs to receive more love than it does...
I agree! It's the American Hurricane basically.
Personally, I'm drawn more to the Allison early model used in Torch and recon. airfield pictures in North Africa with both Allison Apache and Hurricanes 😊
Thanks again for bringing an obscure piece of history to life. Much enjoyed,
I'm glad you liked it, thank you!
Brave airman all....Thanks very much.....
Old F-4 Phantom 2 fighter jet Shoe🇺🇸
I agree! Thank you for commenting!
Hey, I'm early. Nice work as always, I appreciate the work that goes into your videos.
Congratulations! I appreciate your positive feedback!
These under covered battles are very interesting, Thank you!
I agree, thank you for the positive feedback!
Another great video ! Looking forward to more coverage of lesser known engagements !
Thank you very much, more to come!
日本人が知らない太平洋戦争の戦いについて教えていただきありがとうございます。
日本では知られていないアリューシャンの戦いはとても興味深かったです🙇
Thank you for telling us about the battles of the Pacific War that Japanese people do not know about.
The Battle of Alishan, which is unknown in Japan, was very interesting. 😚
Thank you for the comment. Yes, this is a pretty obscure WW2 campaign which deserves some attention.
Extraordinary videos based on Real history. You bring the A6M 2 - N RUFE in an other Light to me ! I don't know,how successfully the Japanese Pilot's are operated with this Floatplane.And I don't know,that the Canadians were involved in the Aleutian Campaign ! And aweful,how the 37 mm cannon of the P - 39 AIRACOBRA work's !
BEST OF ALL AIR WAR HISTORY CHANNEL'S ON UA-cam !!! Thank YOU for YOUR Great Videos.....
Thank you for the awesome comment! I myself constantly learn things while researching for the videos.
Outstanding story. It shows the complexity of World War II and how the isolated placed became battlefronts
Thanks! Yes, sometimes sides would give great importance to a piece of land which doesn't seem too important at first sight.
It always surprises people in the U.S when tell them the Japanese occupied part of Alaska during the Second World War.
Another amazing video. A forgotten fromt and aircraft brought to life!
Thank you, I'm glad you appreciate the content!
Thanks!
Thank you for your support!
Brilliantly done as always. I really like hoe you focus on unknown battles but where people died just same. Kudos on that “one shot kill” with that P-39! Wonder how many takes that took! 😊
Thank you for the positive feedback! The fight with cannon only took about an hour I think. In the final take, there were four kills and I selected the best ones.
Can you do a video on the ugandan tanzanian air war of 1978-79
Or
The Egyptian mig 21mf vs libyian mig 23?
Perhaps, I need to research this conflict more deeply to see what assets were used in it. As for the Egypt vs Libya conflict, I did try to find information about it but not many details are known. If I dig something up, that is certainly an interesting topic.
I like the addition of the gun camera film along with the animation. Cheers!
I'm glad you liked that element, thank you!
Thanks for posting both parts of this video,I love obscure campaign stories that don't get the coverage elsewhere...and this was fascinating
Thank you, I'm glad you liked the video!
Between inadequate to non-existent early warning, degraded performance due to floats and being outnumbered the Rufe's definitely were on the short end of the stick. And then there is the weather....
Another good video.
It was a tough campaign, that's for sure. Thank you for the comment!
Awesome video. One of your best yet.
I'm glad you think so, thank you!
Excellent part II, I believe that the american had found a japonese zero in the Aleutian virtually intact. They rebuild it and studied it for understanding the points of weakness of this aircraft And one of their general said about it : " it is a passenger plane with a big engine !!!". But this plane had no protection, virtually no shelding and burned easily.
Thank you! Yes, during the initial invasion of the islands, Americans captured a Zero. It was easy to destroy once hit but I guess there was no other way to achieve enormous combat range required by IJN.
Salut Jeanne. Le pilote a voulu poser son Zéro sur le ventre sur un marécage ou de tourbe mais l'avion a capoté et s'est retourné. L'impact à brise la nuque du pilot
L'histoire s'appelle : le Zéro d Akutan.
Doit yavoir info sur....kiki
The Americans recovered an intact Japanese Zero on the Aleutian island Akan (sic). It had been launched from one of the two IJN light carriers Junyo or Ryujo, during operation AL which was the invasion of the Aleutians on June 4 1942 in concert with the Battle of Midway. The plane was hit by anti-aircraft fire which severed the planes oil line. The pilot spotted the remote island and thought he could land there. But upon touching the ground, it turned out that clear area was a swamp, and thus the plane flipped breaking the neck and killing the pilot. It was this plane that the Americans recovered and shipped back to the USA for evaluation.
@@dominiqueroudier9401
Bonjour,
l'avion était en bon état et a pu être rapatrié et remis en vol aux USA.
C'est là qu'ils ont étudié la bête et ses points de faiblesse notamment le manque de blindage et le fait qu'il s'enflammait à la vitesse grand V.
@@showtime112
It's due to his light weight, a little 2 900 kg, so no protection for flying very far.
An amazing part two....
brought to you....
By Showtime one one two !!!
Thank you very much, happy to hear you liked it!
Great video as always. Thank you.
Thank you for watching and commenting!
Great Video! It's good to see the war in the Aleutians, sort of an unknown corner(but very dangerous) of the world.
Thank you! Yes, this is an overlooked theater (and indeed, more dangerous that most others)
Wow ! More cinematic and historical gold ! Thank you.
Thanks a lot for the comment!
Excellent! Cheers
Thank you!
Very good, I enjoyed watching that!!! Thank you.
I'm glad to hear it, thank you very much!
Great video! 👍
Thanks Chups!
Excellent work once more
Thanks so much, I was hoping you would like this one as well!
John Chennault, who's father was of Flying Tigers fame. Both flying P-40s. Thanks for the history videos!
Like father, like son :) It's not the only case in history that the father and the son flew the same aircraft type but it's usually twenty or so years apart.
Excelente, gracias
Thank you very much!
Muchas gracias. Me ha encantado esta segunda parte.
Gracias de nuevo!
I'm happy to hear it, thank you!
Yes !!! The second part 👍🏻
I'm glad you liked it!
Historical bit of fact. My Grandfather, was aboard the U.S.S. Tangiers, in the Aleutians. A seaplane tender, that tended the very type of American Seaplane, shown. In his words, "It was all we had to fight them with."
Thank you for sharing!
The Rufe's were thin skin Zero's laden down with float pontoons, those pontoons took away the one main advantage the Zero had over US fighters at that time, it's maneuverability. Once a Canadian, or Yank fighter got behind one, it didn't take much for six 50 cal's to light them up.
Well, several sources say that Rufe was still pretty maneuverable. It was speed which suffered the most. But yes, it was still extremely vulnerable when hit by pretty much any kind of a weapon.
You got that right.One short burst and they basically vaporized!
Great video on a unique and rarely discussed aircraft...
Great graphics... but the P-40's in the Aleutians did not have the shark's mouth did they?...
Nice seeing some of my favorites in action including the P-39, P-40, and the Rufe.
Keep up the great work!...
Would you consider doing episodes on the Finnish use of the Brewster Buffalo against the Russians?
Cheers!
the Aleutian tiger. Rather than a sharks mouth. The unit leader was the son of the founder of the Flying Tigers.
Thank you for the feedback! Skins are not 100 percent authentic as acquiring perfectly authentic ones would sometimes require either more time then for entire video production, or they would cost more than most videos earn.
I intend to do some Brewster Buffalo stories in Finnish service. Not yet sure when.
I love your videos. Its a shame that you dont have way more subs and views
Glad you like them! It's a very specialized content so you can't really expect millions of subs but I'm moving forward.
@@showtime112 do that, i loved your ta 152 videos too. Keep it up champ!
great video! thank you
I'm glad you like it, thank you!
Excellently made historical video about the Rufe!
Excellently researched narration and graphics!
Great work!
Your work is of extremely high caliber!
More please, when available.
Thank you very much for this praise!
looks like somebody found the warthunder mission editor. and is actually pretty damn good at it.
just a heads up you can make them mutiplayer and have a friend do the more intense flight manuvers done in dogfights.
I've been using it for a while (even though I only know a small percentage of its possibilities). I occasionally use human pilots to help, especially when some particular maneuvers are required. A challenge seems to be finding several people who own specific airplanes. Plus custom skins and so on. Do yo have much experience with CDK editor?
Excellent
Thank you for the comment!
I knew about Chennault's son commanding the P-40s, but I did not know Canadian aircraft were involved in the Aleutian Campaign. It makes sense because Canadian soldiers were part of the forces we landed on Kiska and Canadian corvettes participated in the Attu operation.
You can imagine the nightmare the American and Canadian militaries had trying to communicate, coordinate even tolerate eachother liberating Aleutians.
Nice video 👍!
Thanks a lot!
Cool subject. Ay as in hay , Dak as in pack … two distinct syllables.
Thank you for the feedback!
Unfortunately number..2. Direct to TV. Comments Will follow later😅
That is still pretty great :)
@@showtime112 vidéo was fantastic on TV. I Hope you do similar at home👍
@@dominiqueroudier9401 Sometimes, when I relax I do watch my own videos on TV 😁 I've recently checked the statistics and it seems that almost a third of my viewers watched the videos on TVs. UA-cam is apparently pushing out traditional TV channels in every way.
@@showtime112 thanks you...me😇
as always a very interesting video, yes please make the video on the Rufe and the N1K1😃
Thanks! I might cover the Rufe in Salomons. As for N1K1, it doesn't seem like it saw much combat at all but I need to research that a bit more.
@@showtime112 I thank you
Great video 🎬🏅
I'm happy to hear you liked it!
@@showtime112 your a great content creator for sure.
Didn't realize the Rufe was that maneuverable.
The fact does seem strange but multiple sources suggest that the floats didn't affect it too much.
Nice to see P40 jn action
I agree!
Showtime 112 fighting in air battle in Alaska airspace is happen to be low altitude what I recall the P 39 Cobra was great for fighting in the Eastern Russian Front because the combat was low and some medium altitude against the German Luftwaffe, Italian Regio Aeronotica and other Axis nations planes, which was the regular combat altitude in the Eastern front, in the Pacific War against Japanese fighters High and Medium, the Japanese fighters run circles in New Guinea and Solomon areas over the P 39 fighters, but the single 37 mm cannon and four 50 cals machine guns was like by the American pilots for destroying Japanese weak unarmour bombers and fighters with a single cannon shot and single Machine guns burst. The Russians love the P 39 Cobra 37 mm cannon, they had this American designed Cannon on fitted on there MIG 15 and MIG 17 jet fighters irony to fight USAF, USN and Marines Aircrafts.
Was the 37 mm cannon in MiG-15 based on the American one from Airacobra? Didn't know that.
@@showtime112 hello showtime, only for info the 37mm gun called T9 was built by Oldsmobile.
This gun fitted also thé first batch of XP38 but replaced by 20mm because more ammunition in boxes .
I dont know if Russia copied this T9. I think that during WW2 Red Army have AAA 37mm.
@@showtime112 the Nudelman N-37mm aircraft auto cannon come out in 1946 take many of it reliable features from the US M4 cannon 37 mm, there early Shpitalny Sh 37 1941-1942 end of products was total unreliable and Nudelman Surranov NS 37 produce in 1942-1945 was inaccurate because of the heavy rounds which heavy recoil making hits difficult, just like the story StG 44 assault rifle was the influence for the AK 47 and Hugo Schmeisser contribute to it development the Russian will never acknowledge. Interesting fact the Soviet pilots love the P 39 Aerocobra fighter their 5 top aces score there majority victory's in that fighter plane Grigory Rechkalov score 44 of 56 in that fighter plane and Alexander Pokryshkin achieve 47 of is 59 air victory in P 39 Cobra fighter.
Mig 17 have only 3x23 mm guns
@@dominiqueroudier9401 Mikoyan Gurevich MIG 17 version carried internal two 23 mm cannon 160 rounds for the twins guns, 80 rounds each gun and one single 37 mm automatic cannon 40 rounds, some variety of the MiG 17 carried three (triple) 23mm automatic cannons total 240 rounds.
Looking forward to that possible part 3
I can't promise anything but it is a possibility :)
Just a quick question. Was Kenneth Boomer promoted upon completion of this sortie, or was he already a Wing Commander rather than a Squadron Leader? I ask out of genuine curiosity as I’ve not researched it like you have. I really enjoy these vids and will look forward to more.
Thank you for for the comment! I'm not sure about Kenneth Boomer, the sources I have don't really describe when he was promoted but in one book he is mentioned as Squadron Leader while the newspaper article calls him Wing Commander.
👍🏻😀👍🏻 Thank you.
I'm glad you liked the content!
👍
Hvala!
If I'd been a US/Japanese pilot the Aleutians is the very LAST place I'd ever want to be sent. One of my late Uncles did get sent there, but at least he flew the P-38, which did give you one more engine and a lot more range than most other US fighters. Even so I'd shudder, literally, to think of the fate of too many pilots on both sides who went down in such a frigid and desolate area as the north Pacific. Even if you successfully bailed out, or survived a ditching, your problems were only beginning -
Thank you for sharing. Indeed, Aleutians must have been among the least desirable postings of the Pacific, in not the entire WW2.
Great story of endeavour on both sides.Sorry for criticizing,but there is not a single tree at Kishka.I know nothing of computer visuals,but a bit of real surroundings,when possible,gives an extra touch...Thanks for your hard work.Best regards from Spain.
Yes, in reality Kiska is pretty bare. Unfortunately, in War Thunder there's only a part of the Aleutians that's much closer to Alaska and apparently, it has trees :)
"Always check your six." - Chuck Yeager
Sure but if you do it too much, you might miss an enemy in front of you 😁
@@showtime112 It's always the one you don't see...most of my close calls driving are speeding motorbikes coming up in my blind spot. from my rear...they just " there" suddenly a disaster in air combat......sometimes lazy to fully crane my neck around....I'm sure fighter pilots are trained well Yeager was an Ace in 3 wars... i don't think he was ever shot down...Pappy Boyington was..target fixation
There were no Canadians landed at Attu. It was the US Army 7th ID. The Canadian Army 13 Brigade took part in the Kiska Invasion Operation COTTAGE. Showtime did a great job on both these videos for the Aleutian Campaign. On a side note there are no trees in the Aleutians and there is a very large and visible volcano over Kiska Harbor. The American bombers would use the volcano as a reference point to bomb through the over cast.
Thanks for the feedback! Yes, there are no trees on Kiska or most other islands. Unfortunately, in War Thunder there's only the map of a part of Aleutians much closer to Alaska and apparently, there are trees there. This is a bit of an approximation I'm afraid.
The Rufe! The Rufe! The Rufe is on fire!
You must be a fan of dark humor 😁
@@showtime112 Having been a USAF Munitions Systems Specialist for ten years will do that.
good work kid
Thank you very much!
Kiska must have been a punishing environment for floatplane operations. Normal conditions there are very windy and very cold. Besides storms that could easily damage or destroy floatplanes when they are docked, imagine having to take off in conditions of high waves and floating ice.
Yeah. Entire Pacific Campaign was though but this really seems especially so.
EXCELLENT video, as usaul. It is amazing how the floatation devices didn't take away the maneuverability to the Rufes (A6M2-N). This video is a great contribution to the aviation history. Thanks again.
Thank you for sticking around! Yes, you'd expect big reduction in performance in every way.
Looking forward to more on the Falklands campaign 😊
I dont think there are any more air engagements to cover in the Falklands war
Maybe not proper aerial combat between fighters but there's employment of combat aircraft which is still quite interesting.
Thank you for the feedback!
I wonder how many Rufes were used, and lost, during the Aleutian campaign? They seemed to keep coming and coming! Also wondering if any of their pilots survived the war and perhaps wrote about their experiences?
I like the P39 Air Cobra 😊
Yeah, I love those underappreciated planes
To be honest, I am little bit surprised by the outcome of this engagement. I thought, that P-40 was sturdy, well-armed, and armored, but rather sluggish and not nimble, and Zero/Rufe can easily outmaneuver it.
That is the initial setup but outcome of air combat depends on plenty of other factors such as numbers, tactics, element of surprise etc.
The pilot of P-38 could bail-out with parachute safely? i heard rumors that the tail vertical was a hazard.
Yes, but a bunch of them bailed out nevertheless. War Thunder doesn't really emulate bailing out very precisely so this video is not an evidence for anything.
I think the nose art of the Aleutian P-40s featured a large yellow tiger's head rather than shark's teeth.
Aircraft skins for this reenactment are not 100 percent historically accurate as those were not available.
I'm always surprised to see pilots fighting with seaplanes, Performances must have been terrible 😳
🙌🙌🙌
Hvala na komentaru!
Great video
How about Japanese floatplanes against China in 1937/38 .
Or Yugoslavia BH33 and super Fury's against the Luftwaffe.
Great work 👍
Thank you! I do intend to cover some of the Sino-Japanese War stories in the future. Yugoslav Furies fighting Messerschmitts was covered in a previous video on the channel but there will probably be more about the 'April War'.
@@showtime112 BH 33 had supposed to have shot down a me109 according to sources and more superfuries survived as many a seven..
Great work
Great video of air combat. One note, the landscape art is a bit flawed, as there are no trees growing in the Aleutian Islands except for a few planted by American servicemen during the war.
More than a bit flawed, I'm afraid :) In War Thunder, we only have one part of the Aleutians which is quite close to Alaska and apparently, there are trees on it. Kiska, as I understand was completely bare but it's just an approximation that I have to do.
Negligible is the word, not neglectable.
Thanks for the feedback. I did some research and they seem to be synonyms but 'neglectable' is archaic. I wasn't aware of that.
Excellent video! I am a floatplane fan. Congratulations.
Thank you very much! It is a niche topic but certainly an interesting one.
👍👍👍
Thank you for your positive comment!
Where did the P-40 took off since Aleutians island is far far away?
Adak Island
No way a floatplane with such centre of gravity and drag should be half as good as claimed.
What sim is this. Is it IL2?
It's War Thunder
I love your historical virtual reenactments,,,but they all sound like Cessna's
Thanks! War Thunder has hundreds of airplanes and I'm afraid they don't have the actual sound for them. Would be impossible in many cases. It is what it is.
@@showtime112 cool
Bro im big fan pls make video of indo vs pak of those 2 pilots who flying su 30 mki shot by f 16 pls😢😢😢
Thank you for the comment! I might cover that topic in detail someday but I can't tell you when exactly.
Ok but can you do pls 🥺🥺
@@showtime112 you mare good creator
I hope these Japanese planes had a decent cockpit Heater?
P38 combats with water-based Zeros so hard!sucks.
1+
Thank you!
“I just shot down a Rufe”.
“OK Boomer”.
What was the reasoning behind the A6M2-N? Answer: to provide air defense of islands too small for an airstrip or otherwise unsuitable for airstrip construction. But what's the point of defending such an island, and why didn't the United States develop a floatplane fighter in WWII? Answer: Marston Mat. Look it up, it's one of the lost secrets of Allied victory in WWII. The Japanese didn't build an airstrip on Kiska. They considered that island composed of steep mountains and boggy tundra to be unsuitable for airstrip construction, hence the commitment of a sizeable proportion of the total production of Rufes to the defense of that lonely island. However, the Americans built and operated Kiska Army Airfield within days of reclaiming the island. Why defend Kiska or another tiny island? Sometimes a tiny inhospitable island can be strategically vital because of its location.
The Americans did attempt to develop a seaplane fighter, but several years after WWII, the supersonic Convair Sea Dart -- formidable in the air, but nasty on the water. The British built the first floatplane jet, the Saunders-Roe SR.A/1, which was a conventional flying boat in most respects. It handled well enough on the water, but it was underpowered and impractical as a fighter. Fine on the water, stupid in the air.
The Zero from what I can see doesn’t have the fire power of the American planes. 50. Caliber and cannons is no match with a seaplane that has lost its speed advantage.
Actually, if you are talking about the scene where Sassaki is hitting Miller's P-39, I was deliberatly using only machine guns because otherwise, it would be destroyed and that didn't agree with the next scene.
Volio bih tu pricu o Salomonovim otocima
Zahvaljujem na povratnim informacijama!
not a float plane it's a pontoon plane
Merriam-Webster's definition of a floatplane: 'a seaplane supported on the water by one or more floats'
Definition of a float: 'a watertight structure giving an airplane buoyancy on water'
So, don't be a smartass 😁
@@showtime112I worked on float planes in Alaska that is a pontoon plane lol Webster never saw an airplane
Ottimo video! 👍🤩🍀🔝😈
Grazie!
Thanks!
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Hvala Medo!
Thanks!
Thank you very much for your donation!
Thanks!
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