The Nakajima A6M2‑N was a single‑seat floatplane fighter developed from the Mitsubishi A6M Zero Model 11.
Known to the Allies by the reporting name “Rufe”, it provided the Imperial Japanese Navy with a mobile fighter capability in regions lacking airfields.
Design and Development
The Imperial Japanese Navy required an interim floatplane fighter while awaiting completion of the Kawanishi N1K programme.
Nakajima was selected to meet this need, as Mitsubishi was already operating at capacity.
The company proposed a rapid‑production solution by adapting the existing A6M2 Model 11 airframe.
The conversion was straightforward but substantial:
The retractable undercarriage was removed and faired over.
A large central float was installed, supported by two wing‑mounted stabilising floats.
The tail assembly was modified with a straightened fin and a two‑section ventral keel to counteract yaw induced by the main float.
The engine, cockpit layout, and armament remained essentially unchanged from the standard Zero.
The prototype flew on 7 December 1941, ten months after the Navy’s request.
An initial order for 500 aircraft followed, though Nakajima ultimately delivered only 327 examples, including prototypes.
Operational History
Designated Suisen 2, the A6M2‑N entered service in 1942 and was deployed across several remote theatres where conventional fighters could not operate.
Aleutians and Solomons
The type saw early action in both the Aleutian Islands and the Solomon Islands campaigns.
In the Solomons, most Rufes stationed in the area were destroyed on 7 August 1942 during a strike by F4F Wildcats from USS Wasp.
In contrast, the aircraft proved more effective in the Aleutians, particularly at Kiska, where its ability to operate without airfields freed land‑based fighters in the Kurils for other duties.
Wider Service
A6M2‑Ns also served:
As interceptors defending fuel depots at Balikpapan and Avon (Dutch East Indies)
Reinforcing the Shumushu base in the northern Kurils
Aboard seaplane tenders such as Kamikawa Maru in the Solomons and Kurils
Aboard auxiliary cruisers Hokoku Maru and Aikoku Maru during Indian Ocean raiding operations
Later in the war, the Otsu Air Group operated the type from Lake Biwa alongside the Kawanishi N1K1 Kyōfū (“Rex”), suffering heavy losses as the Rufe became increasingly outclassed by modern Allied fighters.
Production ended in September 1943.
Postwar
The final known A6M2‑N in military use was a single airframe recovered by French forces in Indochina after the war.
