Ki-43-III otsu

Ki-43-III otsu

Ki-61-I otsu

Ki-61-I tei

Ki-43-III otsu

Ki-61-I otsu

Ki-61-I tei

Japan

III Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
4.3	4.0	4.7

Class:

Fighter

Research:18 000

Purchase:47 000

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This page is about the Japanese fighter Ki-43-III otsu. For other versions, see Ki-43 (Family).

Description

The Ki-43-III otsu Hayabusa is a rank III Japanese fighter with a battle rating of 4.3 (AB), 4.0 (RB), and 4.7 (SB). It was introduced in Update 1.45 "Steel Generals".

The Ki-43-III otsu starts off as a rank three aircraft in the Japanese Army Air Force line. Like its tier two brethren, it is an extremely manoeuvrable and lightweight aircraft. It has exceptional climb and roll rate making it a fairly hard target to hit in the hands of a skilled player. The trade-off, however, is its extremely fragile nature - a good hit even from a plane equipped with rifle-calibre guns could do some serious damage if one doesn't push the plane to its limits in any of the game modes. On the other hand, the rather modest pair of fuselage-mounted 12.7 mm Ho-103s of the Ki-43-II have been replaced with a pair of the hard-hitting Ho-5 20 mm cannons, which for its battle-rating gives the Hayabusa the power it needs to take down anything it opposes. Like many of the Japanese fighters, dog-fighting is the key to staying alive. By using the combat flaps and throttle in a optimal manner, this aircraft can get behind nearly every opponent it meets in a low to mid altitude dog-fight. With a modest ammo load of 300 rounds, trigger discipline is important here. It is best to get up close (200-500 m is optimal) and then let off several short bursts, firing until the enemy is critically damaged or the plane is destroyed.

General info

Flight performance

Characteristics
Stock
Max Speed (km/h at 5,900 m)		Max altitude (meters)	Turn time (seconds)		Rate of climb (meters/second)		Take-off run (meters)
AB	RB		AB	RB	AB	RB
564	546	11000	15.2	16.2	13.9	13.9	200
Upgraded
Max Speed (km/h at 5,900 m)		Max altitude (meters)	Turn time (seconds)		Rate of climb (meters/second)		Take-off run (meters)
AB	RB		AB	RB	AB	RB
626	590	11000	14.8	15.0	26.7	19.2	200

Details

Features
Combat flaps	Take-off flaps	Landing flaps	Air brakes	Arrestor gear
✓	✓	✓	X	X

Limits
Wing-break speed (km/h)	Gear limit (km/h)	Combat flaps (km/h)	Max Static G
			+	-
0	330	400	~10	~7

Optimal velocities
Ailerons (km/h)	Rudder (km/h)	Elevators (km/h)	Radiator (km/h)
< 370	< 350	< 450	> 296

Compressor (RB/SB)
Setting 1
Optimal altitude	100% Engine power	WEP Engine power
1,800 m	1,280 hp	1,520 hp
Setting 2
Optimal altitude	100% Engine power	WEP Engine power
5,300 m	1,185 hp	1,407 hp

Survivability and armour

• 12 mm Steel plate behind pilot

Armaments

Offensive armament

The Ki-43-III otsu is armed with:

• 2 x 20 mm Ho-5 army cannons, nose-mounted (150 rpg = 300 total)

Suspended armament

The Ki-43-III otsu can be outfitted with the following ordnance:

• Without load
• 2 x 50 kg Army Type 94 GPHE bombs (100 kg total)
• 2 x 100 kg Army Type 94 GPHE bombs (200 kg total)
• 2 x 250 kg Army Type 92 GPHE bombs (500 kg total)

Usage in battles

Like the Zeros, the Ki-43 is exceptionally light and manoeuvrable. Unlike the Zeros, the Ki-43 has a ridiculous roll rate making it the closest one can get to playing an arcade-esque plane in RB.

Unfortunately, this comes at a cost. At 4.0 BR the Ki-43 sees primarily American planes which are far faster in both level flight and dive while having significantly better armament. Evading fire becomes difficult when facing planes such as the P-47N-15 which has 8 x M2 Browning .50 cals which are extremely deadly and have a ridiculous volume of fire.

As such, the Ki-43 is almost entirely dependent on siphoning kills from unwary pilots, pilot errors, maneuver kills, and pilot frustration which makes it quite a difficult plane to play. However, if played right, and abusing it's insane roll rate and turn time, you can take down multiple enemies with your cannon and force others to crash out of frustration and over-eagerness. While having sufficient flight characteristics, the Ki-43 is extremely fragile and can get critically damaged by almost all guns. From the hard-hitting M2 Browning to the fast-firing MG 15, any gun can badly hurt the Ki-43 especially on the engine, fuel tanks, and pilot which can always lead to a later crash. Before attacking try to get an altitude advantage and perform deflection shots. To maximise the damage aim for their wings and engines, as the fuselage usually soaks up lots of bullets. Only fire when the target passes in front of your guns. This short window might seem inadequate to do anything, but an accurate burst can blow off some control surfaces / damage the engine. And sometimes it only takes one bullet to set the target aflame, if you are lucky.

Tactics

When using the Ki-43-III otsu, do remember this plane can easily out manoeuvre anything it may face. Do not try to go head on with enemy planes as even a single round can damage your plane. Instead, position for a head on, but pull off about 1.2 km out, go under the enemy aircraft, and loop around for a shot. You may need to repeat this maneuver several times to secure a firing position.

• In simulator, the Ki-43 is overall a decent plane. It has very forgiving characteristics such as good over-the-nose visibility, a clear bubble canopy without much framing and good backwards visibility. This increases your chance of spotting, tracking and / or dodging since you can see targets from almost every direction with ease (except the underside, of course). It is recommended to set keybind for moving your head vertically to make full use of the great forward vision in a dogfight. However, its wings are located directly below the cockpit meaning that you cannot see what is below your sides which can lead to you losing track of the enemy. You should get used to searching towards your 2, 4, 5, 7, 8, 10 o'clock, avoiding the wings.
• Note that when taking off the Ki-43 will shift severely to the left due to the propeller torque, so it is recommended to set keybind for left & right brakes to effectively control your direction on the runway. Using rudder alone will not work at low speed and you will either circle around or lose control and crash into nearby structures like tents / hangars.
• Landing is very beginner-friendly too. It is able to decelerate quickly while also having low stall speed, allowing you to quickly slow down and descent onto the runway. Takeoff & landing flaps do not lift up the nose a lot so you can easily remain overall parallel to the ground. It also performs great when braking as its nose will not usually dip into the ground, so you can keep braking until it fully stops (given that you deflect elevators fully upwards) which is vital for preparing the next fight quickly.

Specific enemies worth noting

Most Allied opponents at 4.0 BR can outrun the Ki-43 with ease. Most concerning are planes such as the P-47D/N or F4U Corsair, as both planes are over 80 km/h (50 mph) faster on the deck and also possess exceptional .50 cal armament. Use the Ki-43's manoeuvrability to dodge shots and try to slowly drain the energy of your opponent and force mistakes.

When facing the Ki-43-III otsu do remember that it is very manoeuvrable and that it can easily out turn what it faces therefore try to apply Boom & Zoom tactics against a Ki-43-III otsu.

Manual Engine Control

MEC elements
Mixer	Pitch	Radiator			Supercharger	Turbocharger
		Oil	Water	Type
Not controllable	Controllable Auto control available	Controllable Not auto controlled	Controllable Not auto controlled	Separate	Controllable 2 gears	Not controllable

Modules

Tier	Flight performance		Survivability	Weaponry
I	Fuselage repair	Radiator			7 in (mod20)
II		Compressor	Airframe	Offensive 20 mm	10 in (mod24)
III	Wings repair	Engine			12 in (mod30)
IV		Engine injection	Cover	New 20 mm cannons

• The stock 20 mm cannon belts are a pain. Research the "Offensive 20 mm belts" fast. Otherwise there is not a lot necessary to upgrade, mainly performance modules. The engine and compressor modules do wonders. Payload unlocks should be considered last. The Ki-43 is a fighter and not a ground attacker like the B7A2.

Pros and cons

Pros:

• Excellent rate of climb
• Extremely manoeuvrable
• Quick roll rate
• Good armament
• Decent ammo capacity
• Easy to fly
• Low stall speed

Cons:

• Lightly armoured
• Can catch fire easily due to the lack of armoured fuel tanks
• Can feel a bit like a paper airplane handling-wise
• Extremely slow, at 507 km/h on the deck
• Poor high-alt performance
• Energy retention and dive speed is abysmal
• Wing rips can happen very easily if one performs high speed manoeuvres (~11 G)

History

The Ki-43 was fairing poorly against allied aircraft by 1944. A new version was constructed at an attempt for better performance. The Ki-43-III is very similar to the Ki-43-II except for its engine, which was replaced with the far more powerful Mitsubishi Ha-112-32/42 engine. The aircraft was also fitted with a pair of 20 mm cannons. The last variant of the Ki-43, (the Ki-43-IIIc) was intended to protect mainland japan from B-29s. The war ended before the aircraft could ever be produced.

Media

The Shooting Range #7 - Metal Beasts section at 00:40 discusses the Ki-43-III otsu.

See also

Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:

• reference to the series of the aircraft;
• links to approximate analogues of other nations and research trees.

External links

Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:

• topic on the official game forum;
• encyclopedia page on the aircraft;
• other literature.