BY GIUSEPPE PICARELLA
At the beginning of the 20th century,
the novelty of powered flight was enough to ensure that
individual aircraft often become as iconic as the events
that they participated in, but as aircraft numbers increased
during the First World War and the era of mass production
took hold, individual airframe identities quickly become
elusive. Despite the turmoil of the Second World War and
the manufacturing might of the warring nations, some of
the countless “clones” would go on to become iconic in
their own rights, due in most part to the world-altering
events they were engaged in, most notably Enola Gay.
;is is the story of one such clone, Kawasaki Ki-61-Ia Hien
(Flying Swallow), construction number (c/n) 263. Born
into the obscurity of wartime mass production, this aircraft
would, by some quirk of fate, become an icon not only of
its type, but possibly the most photographed fighter in the
entire Imperial Japanese Army Air Force (IJAAF).
Below: On January 2, 1944, field teams of the TAIU inspected Japanese aircraft abandoned
at Tuluvu, Cape Gloucester. Seen here just hours after the airfield was liberated, Kawasaki
Ki-61-Ia (c/n 263) was found to be in “excellent” condition and a possible candidate for flight-testing. ;is Tony was now working for the Allies! (All photos courtesy of author)
