Mitsubishi Type 96 Carrier-based Fighter / A5M4 Claude
Technical Information

Background
The Mitsubishi Navy Type 96 Carrier-based Fighter 九六式艦上戦闘機 designated the A5M code named "Claude". The first prototype of this airplane was flown on February 4, 1935. The first A5M1s were delivered to the Japanese Navy in early 1937, with the type going into combat service over China, where it quickly obtained air superiority over Chinese forces. It was followed by the"A5M2a", with an uprated Kotobuki 2-KAI-3A engine, and then the "A5M2b" with a Kotobuki 3 radial, improved cowling design, a three-bladed fixed prop, and a sliding canopy. The sliding canopy would prove unsatisfactory and was deleted in late production. The A5M4 went into production in 1938.

At the beginning months of the war in the Pacific the A5M4 was in front line use, but it was outperformed by Allied aircraft. By the summer of 1942, all A5Ms had been transferred to second-line duties, being replaced by the superior A6M2 Zero.

Production
Approximately 800 were built by Mitsubishi and 200 more by other manufactures under contract. The last A5M4s were completed in early 1940. A little over a hundred tandem seat trainer versions with the designation A5M4-K were built into 1943, and used as advanced trainers, or used for kamikaze attacks in the closing months of the war. Almost 1,100 A5Ms of all versions were built.

Technical Details
Crew  One (pilot)
Engine  Kotobuki 41 radial with three bladed propeller
Span  11 m
Length  7.56 m
Height  3.27 m
Maximum Speed  270 mph
Range  1,284 miles
Armament  2 x 7.7mm machine guns (nose)
External  Drop Tank or 2 x 66 lbs bombs