The Mitsubishi J4M Senden (閃電 "Flashing Lightning") or Navy Experimental 17-Shi Otsu B Type Interceptor Fighter Senden, Allied reporting name Luke, was a Japanese World War II fighter aircraft proposed by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries for use by the Imperial Japanese Navy. The J4M project did not proceed beyond the design stage.
| J4M Senden | |
|---|---|
| Role | Fighter aircraft Type of aircraft |
| Manufacturer | Mitsubishi Heavy Industries |
| Primary user | Imperial Japanese Navy (intended) |
| Number built | None |
To provide the Imperial Japanese Navy with a land-based high-performance interceptor aircraft, Mitsubishi designed the J4M. It was to have been a single-seat, twin-boom, low-wing monoplane with a central nacelle housing an unstepped cockpit and a 1,590-kilowatt (2,130-hp) Mitsubishi Ha-43[1] radial engine behind the pilot driving a four-bladed pusher propeller rotating between the booms.[2] The booms were to extend aft from the leading edge of the wing and were mounted below the central nacelle.[2] The aircraft was to have had tricycle landing gear and an armament of one 30-mm and two 20-mm cannon.[2]
Design of the initial J4M1 version ended when the Navy put its support behind the competing Kyūshū J7W fighter, and Mitsubishi did not build a prototype.[2] The Allies nonetheless assigned the J4M the reporting name "Luke" during World War II.[3]
Data from Japanese Secret Projects:Experimental aircraft of the IJA and IJN 1939-1945[4]
General characteristics
Performance
Armament
Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era
Related lists
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| Fighters (A) | |
| Torpedo bombers (B) | |
| Shipboard reconnaissance (C) | |
| Dive bombers (D) | |
| Reconnaissance seaplanes (E) | |
| Observation seaplanes (F) | |
| Land-based bombers (G) | |
| Flying Boats (H) | |
| Land-based Fighters (J) | |
| Trainers (K) | |
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| Floatplane fighters (N) | |
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| Patrol (Q) | |
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| Night fighters (S) |
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1 X as second letter is for experimental aircraft or imported technology demonstrators not intended for service 2 Hyphenated trailing letter (-J, -K, -L, -N or -S) denotes design modified for secondary role | |
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With some exceptions for rockets, jets and repurposed aircraft, names chosen were for: 1. Winds, 2. Lightning, 3. Nighttime lights, 4. Mountains, 5. Stars/constellations, 6. Seas, 7. Clouds, 8. Plants, 9. Skies, 10. Landscapes, and 11. Flowers Published translations disagree, and many are simplified, especially for plants, where the Japanese referred to a specific variety and the common translations only to the broader type. | |||||||||
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