World War II Database

Contributor: C. Peter Chen

ww2dbaseThe Ki-55 advanced trainer aircraft, officially designated Type 99 Advanced Trainer by the Japanese Army, was developed from the successful Ki-36 liaison aircraft design. The prototype aircraft took flight in Sep 1939, and the design entered production in 1940. Between 1940 and 1943, 1,389 production examples were built in Japan (Tachikawa built 1,078; Kawasaki built 311); the Manshu Aircraft Company in the Japanese-sponsored puppet state of Manchukuo in northeastern China also built an unknown number of Ki-55 aircraft.

ww2dbaseThe Allied code name for the Ki-55 design was "Ida", which was shared with the parent Ki-36 design.

ww2dbaseAfter the war, Korea, Republic of China, and Communist China all operated captured Ki-55 aircraft; those used by Communist China were not retired until 1953.

SPECIFICATIONS

Ki-55

Machinery	One Hitachi Army Type 98 Ha-13a 9-cyl air-cooled radial engine rated at 510hp
Armament	1x7.7mm Type 89 machine gun
Crew	2
Span	11.80 m
Length	8.00 m
Height	3.64 m
Wing Area	20.00 m²
Weight, Empty	1,292 kg
Weight, Loaded	1,721 kg
Speed, Maximum	349 km/h
Speed, Cruising	235 km/h
Service Ceiling	8,150 m
Range, Normal	1,060 km

Photographs