The 2MR8/Mitsubishi Army Type 92 Reconnaissance Aircraft was a Japanese short-range reconnaissance aircraft of the 1930s designed for the Imperial Japanese Army Air Force.
A parasol monoplane, the Type 92 was the first military aircraft powered by an engine both designed and manufactured in Japan to enter service.
In 1930, Mitsubishi developed two designs to meet a Japanese Army requirement for a short-range reconnaissance aircraft to supplement the larger, long-range Kawasaki Type 88, the 2MR7, a biplane based on its earlier 2MR reconnaissance aircraft and B2M torpedo bomber developed for the Imperial Japanese Navy, and the 2MR8, a high-wing parasol monoplane.
The first of four prototypes flew on 28 March 1931, powered by a 239 kW (320 hp) Mitsubishi A2 radial engine.
Successive prototypes were modified with more powerful engines, reduced wing area and a shorter fuselage until the fourth prototype was accepted by the Japanese Army and ordered into service as the Type 92 Reconnaissance Aircraft.
The production Type 92 had fixed wide-track divided landing gear and was powered by a 354 kW (450 hp) Mitsubishi Type 92 radial engine.
It carried a crew of two in open cockpits, with an armament of two synchronised, forward-firing 7.7 mm (.303 in) machine guns and one or two flexibly mounted guns on the observer’s cockpit.
Production completed in 1934 after a total of 230 aircraft were built.
Specifications
Crew
2
Length
8.52 m (27 ft 11 in)
Wingspan
12.75 m (41 ft 10 in)
Height
3.48 m (11 ft 5 in)
Wing area
26 m2 (280 sq ft)
Empty weight
1,060 kg (2,337 lb)
Gross weight
1,770 kg (3,902 lb)
Powerplant
1 × Mitsubishi Army Type 92 400hp Air Cooled Radial,
