| B2M | |
|---|---|
 | |
| General information | |
| Type | Torpedo bomber |
| Manufacturer | Mitsubishi |
| Primary user | Imperial Japanese Navy |
| Number built | 206 |
| History | |
| Introduction date | 1932 |
| First flight | 28 December 1929 |
| Developed from | Blackburn Ripon |
TheMitsubishi B2M was a Japanesecarrier-basedtorpedo bomber of the 1920s and 1930s. It was built byMitsubishi to a design byBlackburn Aircraft ofBritain and was operated by theImperial Japanese Navy.
In 1927, the Japanese companyMitsubishi commissioned theBritish aircraft manufacturerBlackburn Aircraft to design an aircraft, which would be built under licence by Mitsubishi if successful, to enter a competition held by theImperial Japanese Navy for a carrier-basedreconnaissance and torpedo bomber to replace itsB1M. Blackburn developed a design, theBlackburn T.7B, which was an enlarged development of theirRipon and was under development for Britain'sFleet Air Arm.[1] The T.7B was a three-seatbiplane of steel tube construction and with highaspect ratio wings fitted withHandley Pageslats, powered by a 466 kW (625 hp)Hispano-Suiza 12Lbr engine.
The design was declared the winner of the competition with aprototype (referred to as the3MR4) being ordered from Blackburn. This first flew on 28 December 1929 at Blackburn's factory atBrough,Yorkshire[1] and was shipped to Japan in February 1930.[2]
Three development prototypes were built by Mitsubishi in Japan before the aircraft was adopted as theNavy Type 89-1 Model 1 Carrier Attack Plane orMitsubishi B2M1.[3]
The B2M1 entered service with the Imperial Japanese Navy in March1932,[3] serving aboard the carriersAkagi,Kaga, andHōshō. Modifications to improve maintainability resulted in theB2M2 orNavy Type 89-2 Carrier Attack Plane, which otherwise showed little improvement in performance over the B2M1. Production of both versions totaled 204 aircraft.[3]
B2Ms were extensively used for high- and low-level bombing attacks against China at the start of theSecond Sino-Japanese War in 1937.[3][4]
Data from World Encyclopedia of Military Aircraft[2]
General characteristics
Performance
Armament
Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era
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