Warplanes of Japan: Mitsubishi Ki-51

The Mitsubishi Ki-51 (Army designation"Type 99 Assault Plane"; Allied reporting name "Sonia") wasa light bomber/dive bomber in service with the Imperial Japanese Army during the Second World War. It first flew in mid-1939. Initially deployed against Chineseforces, it proved to be too slow to hold up against the fighter aircraft of theother Allied powers. However, it performed a useful ground-attack role in the China-Burma-India theater, notably from airfields too rough for many other aircraft. As the war drew to a close, the Japanese began using them in kamikaze attacks. Total production was around 2,385 units. On the day Hiroshima was destroyed by an atomic bomb, a single Ki-51 was responsible for the last Japanese sinking of a US warship, sinking USS Bullhead (SS-332) with all hands.
Variants
Prototypes: two built.
Service trials: 11 built.
Ki-51: 2,372 built (Manufacturers: Mitsubishi (1,462), Tachikawa Army AirArsenal (913)) until March 1944.
Ki-51A: reconnaissance version.
Ki-51B: assault version with armor and bomb racks to carry 200 kg (441 lb) ofbombs. It could also be fitted with an aerial camera.
Mansyu Ki-71: three prototypes built by Mansyu with retractable landing gear,did not enter production. (Wikipedia)

 (USN Photo)

Mitsubishi Ki-51-1 Type 99 Assault Plane, code named Sonia.  On the day Hiroshima was destroyed by an atomic bomb, two Ki-51s scored the last Japanese victory against US submarines.   Two depth charges hit USS Bullhead (SS-332), in which she later exploded and sank with all hands.  This sinking was confirmed as the 52nd USN submarine lost during the war.

(IJAAF Photo)

Mitsubishi Ki-51

(Central Union of Agricultural Cooperatives Photo)

Choshi Joshi Teishintai with Mitsubishi Ki-51, 1945.

(IJAAF Photos)

Mitsubishi Ki-51-1 Type 99 Assault Plane, code named Sonia.

(Australian War Memorial Photo)

Mitsubishi Ki-51 abandoned at Dagua, New Guinea in 1945.

(USN Photo)

A Japanese Kamikaze aircraft diving on the U.S. Navy light cruiser USS Columbia (CL-56) at 1729 hrs on 6 January 1945, during the Lingayen Gulf operation. This plane hit the main deck by the after gun turret, causing extensive damage and casualties. The plane and its bomb penetrated two decks before exploding, killing 13 and wounding 44.

(Davidelit Photo)

Mitsubishi Ki-51-1 Type 99 Assault Plane, code named Sonia, on display in the Indonesian Air Force Museum, Yoygyakarta.

‍Mitsubishi Ki-51