The best army fighter in Japan was the Ki-84 Hayate (Hurricane), which was used at the final stage of the Second world war. He had a fairly high speed, powerful weapons, armor protection of the pilot and could almost fight on equal terms with American fighters R-47 and R-51.Design of Ki-84 began in April 1942 under the leadership of chief designer Toru Koyama. The terms of reference provided for the creation of a fighter superior in speed interceptor Ki-44, but at the same time having maneuverability at the level of Ki-43. In addition, it required weapons consisting of two 20-mm guns and two 12.7-mm machine guns, and in order to increase the survivability of the aircraft, it was necessary to book the cockpit and install protected fuel tanks. The latter requirements were quite unusual for Japanese designers.Draft design of the new army fighter was ready in may 1942, and in March of the following year began testing the prototype Ki-84. The aircraft had a typical Japanese all-metal construction and was equipped with an 18-cylinder star-shaped Nakajima Na-45 engine with a capacity of 1800 HP, as well as a four-blade automatic screw Sumitomo Re.32. Its armament included two synchronized 12.7-mm machine gun No-103, placed in the forward fuselage, and two wing 20-mm guns No-5. Under the wing provided for the suspension of two bombs weighing 250 kg or two dropped fuel tanks with a capacity of 200 liters each.
The Japanese had high hopes for Ki-84, but its production at the end of the war was fraught with many difficulties. Due to the lack of raw materials and skilled workers, the quality of manufactured machines left much to be desired. Complaints were caused by a capricious engine, fragile landing gear, as well as an unreliable hydraulic system.In total, until the end of the war, Japanese factories produced 3470 Ki-84 Hayate aircraft.
