Country of origin:

Japan

Description:

Two-seat carrier-borne dive-bomber

Power Plant:

One 802 kw (1,075 hp) Mitsubishi Kinsei 44 fourteen-cylinder two-row air-cooled radial engine

Specifications:

Armament:

Two 7.7 mm (0.303 in) Type 97 machine guns in wings; one 7.7 mm (0.303 in) Type 92 machine gun in rear cockpit; bomb load 250 kg (551 lb) on centre line and two 30 kg (66 lb) bombs under each wing

History:

One of the most important dive-bombers in the Japanese arsenal in its campaign in the Pacific War, the prototype Aichi D3A, known by the Allies as the ‘Val’, was first flown in January 1938 with a 530 kw (710 hp) Nakajima Hikari I nine-cylinder radial air-cooled engine. At the time of its design the Japanese Navy was receiving advice from the German Heinkel company in the design of dive-bombers, and the first production model was known as the Navy Type 99 Model 11. The type was assigned to the 1st, 2nd and 5th Koku Sentai (Carrier Division).

The D3A1 was responsible for much of the damage caused to American forces at Pearl Harbour on 7 December 1941; and in April 1942 was involved in the attacks which sank the British aircraft carrier HMS Hermes and the heavy cruisers HMS Cornwall and HMS Dorsetshire. The type was known for its structural strength and manoeuvrability and quite often, after releasing bomb loads, pilots used the Val in combat against fighters. However, by the time of the later campaigns at Midway and The Solomons, the supply of experienced pilots had become a problem, and American fighter superiority was coming to the fore.

Some 478 examples of the D3A1 had been completed when production changed to the D3A2,. Some 815 examples of the D3A2 had been completed when production concluded in January 1944. The D3A2, or Navy Type 99 Carrier Bomber Model 22, had a 970 kw (1,300 hp) Kinsei 54 engine, embodied some minor aerodynamic refinements, and an increase in fuel capacity. However, it had no fuel protection, and no armour protection was afforded for the crew of two. A number were subsequently used as trainers, and others were used in the Kamikaze role. With the exception of 200 D3A2s built by Showa in Tokyo, all production took place at the Aichi facility at Nagoya.

The ‘Val’ was used in operations against Australia. On 19 February 1942 aircraft from the carriers Akagi, Kaga, Soryu and Hiryu launched an attack against Darwin, NT this force comprising 36 Mitsubishi A6M2 Type 0 fighters, 71 Aichi D3A ‘Val’ dive-bombers, and 81 Nakajima B5N ‘Kate‘ high level bombers under the command of Commander Mitsuo Fuchida, this being the same force which had launched the devastating attack on Pearl Harbour in the Hawaiian Islands on 7 December 1941.

The ‘Vals’ were targeted with dealing with shipping in Darwin Harbour, sinking transports loaded with fuel and ammunition, and also sank the US Navy destroyer USS Pearcy. One ‘Val’ was shot down by the town’s defences north of East Point; and it is known that two D3A ‘Vals’ were shot down over Darwin by Lt Robert G Oestreicher of the USAAC in a Curtiss P-40, one ‘Val’ (serial 354) crashing near Nightcliff.

In September 1942 during the Battle for Milne Bay three ‘Vals’ were located on the 48 km (30 mile) long Table Bay beach south of Milne Bay where they landed on the beach. Group Captain W ‘Bill’ Garing, with Flt Lt Lex Winten, flew to the area and landed on the beach in their squadron’s DH.82 Tiger Moth and found the aircraft partially burnt out by their crews.  These aircraft were from the 2^nd Air Corps and had left Rabaul on 2 September 1942 to attack shipping in Milne Bay, New Britain.  At least one of the ‘Vals’ was recovered to Port Moresby, PNG for inspection by technical units.

During the battle for the island of Guadalcanal in the Eastern Solomon Islands in August 1942 Japanese forces mounted a raid on the American invasion fleet from Rabaul on New Britain, the force comprising 27 Mitsubishi G4M ‘Bettys’, with 18 Mitsubishi A6M ‘Zeroes’ as cover, and a flight of nine D3A1 ‘Vals’, the latter being on a one way mission as they did not have enough fuel to return to base.  Six of the ‘Vals’ were shot down by US Navy Grumman Wildcat fighters, the other three being lost when they ran out of fuel.  The ‘Val’ was also used extensively throughout the Battle of Midway and during the Pacific campaign.

During the Allied landings at Leyte in the Philippines in October 1944, on the 21^st a ‘Val’ was engaged at 0600 hours by the cruiser HMAS Shropshire in the Leyte Gulf and forced to pull out of its dive.  It then flew towards HMAS Australia and at 0605 crashed into the foremast and air-defence platform causing considerable damage and loss of life.  This was the first Kamikaze Heavenly Wind sacrificial attack on an Allied warship, although previous deliberate crashes of aircraft into ships had occurred.  US reports indicated other aircraft strafed HMAS Australia at the time.

In January 1945 RAN ships including HMAS Australia, HMAS Shropshire, HMAS Warramunga and HMAS Arunta were heading for Lingayen Gulf as part of a Minesweeping Hydrographic Group, the latter group being known as JG.77 and consisting of 85 ships.  Up to 60 Kamikaze aircraft attacked a number of these ships and HMAS Arunta was damaged by what was thought to be a Mitsubishi A6M carrying a 113 kg (250 lb) bomb on 5 January.

HMAS Australia was attacked by five aircraft, some of which were ‘Vals’, and, despite an anti-aircraft barrage involving 20.3 cm (8 in) and 10.1 cm (4 in) guns, and Bofors and Pom Poms, a ‘Val’ hit HMAS Australia on the port-side of the upper deck, the aircraft’s bomb causing a number of casualties. The following day a further ‘Val’ hit HMAS Australia, this latter aircraft carrying what was a 38.1 cm (15 in) or 40.6 cm (16 in) shell taken from the old British Armament Depot at Singapore.

On 8 January a Mitsubishi Ki-46 ‘Dinah’ crashed into the sea beside HMAS Australia, skidding along the ship’s side; and a second aircraft was shot down beside the ship but its bomb blew a hole in the ship’s side.

In 1973 a Model 22 (serial 3105) was placed on display at Gasmata, New Britain but in 1974 the Australian Government donated it and the wreck of another D3A to the Chester Nimitz Centre at Fredericksburg, Texas, USA in exchange for an A6M5 ‘Zero’ which had been recovered from Gasmata.

Japanese forces operated the type in and around New Guinea and the wreck of one of these was recovered to Sydney in 2002 for eventual restoration as a museum exhibit. Another example is held by the Canadian National Aeronautical Collection at Rockcliffe. The wrecks of a number have been noted at Gasmata, and at Tigedu and Kerevat in PNG. The wrecks of two D3A2s (c/n 309C – code A1-208; and 3092) from the fleet carrier Shokaku have been located in New Britain, these being from a number of the type which made attacks on New Guinea.