Flight Craft 22: Mitsubishi A6M Zero

Flight Craft 22: Mitsubishi A6M Zero

Author: Robert Jackson

Highlights

First flown on 1 April 1939, the Zero was the world’s first long-range strategic fighter

In late 1941 and early 1942 Zero fighters, flying from aircraft carriers or land bases,

wrought havoc over Pearl Harbor, the Philippines, Singapore, New Guinea and other

targets in the Indian and Pacific oceans

Armed with two 20mm cannon and two 7.7mm machine-guns, it was highly

manoeuvrable and structurally very strong

The type was the first carrier-borne fighter to outclass land-based fighters

The Zero was instrumental in helping Japan achieve air superiority in the Pacific in

1942

Japan produced more Zeros than any other model of combat aircraft during the war

This book will be invaluable to both the aviation enthusiast and modellers, combining a

wealth of technical information, photographs and colour profiles

Description

The quality of Japanese aircraft came as an unpleasant surprise to the Allies at the

outbreak of the Pacific War, and it was personified in one type, the Mitsubishi A6M Zero.

One of the finest aircraft of all time, the Mitsubishi A6M Reisen (Zero fighter) first flew on

1 April 1939. It soon showed itself to be clearly superior to any fighter the Allies could put

into the air in the early stages of the Pacific campaign. Armed with two 20mm cannon and

two 7.7mm machine-guns, it was highly manoeuvrable and structurally very strong, despite

being lightweight.

Instead of being built in several separate units, the Zero was revolutionary in that it was

constructed in two pieces. The engine, cockpit and forward fuselage combined with the

wings to form one rigid unit; the second part comprised the rear fuselage and the tail. The

two units were joined by a ring of 80 bolts. Although the Mitsubishi Zero had some serious

drawbacks in combat, the greatest of which was its inability to absorb punishment

because of its lack of self-sealing fuel tanks and armour plating, its greatest assets were

its manoeuvrability and its long range.

In 1942 the Americans allocated the code-name Zeke to the A6M, but as time went by the

name Zero came into general use. During the first months of the Pacific War, the Zeros

carved out an impressive combat record. For example, in the battle for Java alone, which

ended on 8 March 1942, they destroyed 550 Allied aircraft. As the war progressed,

however, the Zero gradually came to be outclassed by American fighters such as the

Grumman F6F Wildcat and Vought Corsair. In the latter months, many were fitted with

bombs and expended in Kamikaze suicide attacks.

This book provides a perfect introduction to the design and combat career of a fighter that

made history. Why was the Zero conceived? What was it like to fly in combat? How did it

compare with Allied types? Who were the engineers and designers who brought it to

fruition and the pilots who became aces while flying it? Here is a feast for the modeller,

with a wealth of technical information, photographs and colour profiles.

Author Details

ROBERT JACKSON is the author of over eighty books on military, aviation, naval and

scientific subjects. He was defence and science correspondent for a major British

newspaper publishing group. Among the other books he has compiled for Pen & Sword are

on the Bf-109 in the FlightCraft series, whilst he has written extensively on the T-34, the

Panzer I and II, the Centurion, and Chieftain main battle tanks, as well as the Russian