Kugisho/Yokosuka K-1 Ohka

Kugisho/Yokosuka K-1 Ohka
Country	Japan
Type	Rocket powered human-guided
First flight	October 1944
Built	852

Photo gallery of a Kugisho/Yokosuka K-1 Ohka, The Yokosuka MXY-7 Ohka was a purpose-built, rocket powered human-guided anti-shipping kamikaze attack plane employed by Japan towards the end of World War II. Ohka K-1: an unpowered trainer version with water ballast instead of warhead and engines, to provide pilots with handling experience. 45 were built by Dai-Ichi Kaigun Koku Gijitsusho

Source: Kugisho/Yokosuka K-1 Ohka on Wiki

Kugisho/Yokosuka K-1 Ohka
Photographer	Vladimir Yakubov
Localisation	National Museum of the United States Navy
Photos	26

KugishoYokosuka K-1 Ohka 01

KugishoYokosuka K-1 Ohka 02

KugishoYokosuka K-1 Ohka 03

KugishoYokosuka K-1 Ohka 04

KugishoYokosuka K-1 Ohka 05

KugishoYokosuka K-1 Ohka 06

KugishoYokosuka K-1 Ohka 07

KugishoYokosuka K-1 Ohka 08

KugishoYokosuka K-1 Ohka 09

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Infos
Role	Kamikaze aircraft
Manufacturer	Yokosuka Naval Air Technical Arsenal
First flight	October 1944
Introduction	1945
Retired	1945
Produced	1944–1945
Number built	852

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The Guided Bomb

The Yokosuka MXY-7 Ohka (officially the Navy Suicide Attacker Ohka) was a weapon of absolute desperation. Developed by the Kugisho (1st Naval Air Technical Arsenal), it was essentially a 2,646-lb (1,200 kg) bomb with wooden wings and a cockpit. Carried within range of the Allied fleet by a “Mother ship” (usually a G4M “Betty” bomber), the Ohka would be released to glide toward its target. In the final stage, the pilot would ignite three solid-fuel rockets, accelerating the craft to speeds that made it nearly impossible for anti-aircraft guns to track.

Attribute	Technical Specification (Model 11)
Role	Manned Rocket-Powered Anti-Ship Missile
Crew	1 (Pilot)
Powerplant	3 × Type 4 Mark 1 Model 20 solid-fuel rockets
Total Thrust	1,764 lbf (800 kgf) for 8–10 seconds
Maximum Speed	403 mph (648 km/h) level / 575+ mph in dive
Range	23 miles (37 km) after release
Warhead	1,200 kg (2,646 lbs) of Tri-Nitro-Anisole
Primary Carrier	Mitsubishi G4M2e Model 24J “Betty”

Design Engineering: Simple, Fast, and Lethal

The Trainer (K-1): To prepare pilots for the high speeds of the Ohka, the K-1 trainer was developed. It lacked engines and a warhead, instead carrying water ballast that the pilot would dump before landing on a retractable skid. It had a terrifyingly high landing speed of 130 mph.
Wooden Construction: To conserve critical metals, the wings and tail were made of wood. The fuselage was an aluminum semi-monocoque structure. It was designed to be built by unskilled labor in small, decentralized workshops.
The “Baka” Nickname: American sailors, horrified by the suicide nature of the weapon, gave it the nickname “Baka”—the Japanese word for “fool” or “idiot.”
Model 22 Motor-Jet: Later versions attempted to solve the Ohka’s short range by using a “motor-jet” engine (the Tsu-11), where a 4-cylinder piston engine drove a compressor. This increased the range to 80 miles but reduced the warhead size by half.

Combat History: The Vulnerable Mother Ship

The Achilles Heel: The biggest failure of the Ohka system was not the rocket itself, but the aircraft carrying it. The G4M “Betty” was slow and highly flammable; Allied fighters often intercepted the bombers long before they could get within the Ohka’s 23-mile launch range.
Sinking of the USS Mannert L. Abele: On April 12, 1945, an Ohka scored its most significant victory, striking the destroyer Mannert L. Abele. The impact and subsequent explosion of the massive warhead literally broke the ship in half, sinking it in minutes.
Psychological Impact: While numerically ineffective (sinking only 3 ships total), the Ohka caused immense psychological stress for Allied sailors, who had to defend against a “missile” that was far faster than any conventional aircraft of the time.
Final Totals: Of the 852 Ohkas built, only a small fraction ever saw combat. Hundreds were found in caves and underground hangars across Japan after the surrender, waiting for an invasion that never came.