Watanabe K3M3 E9W1 Type 96 ("Slim")
The Watanabe E9W was a submarine-borne reconnaissance seaplane, the first aircraft designed by Watanabe Ironworks. In January 1934, the Imperial Japanese Navy had a requirement for a two-seat reconnaissance seaplane to be operated from its J-3 class submarines, and placed an order with Watanabe for design and development of an aircraft to meet this requirement, the first of three prototypes flying in February 1935. The E9W was a two-seat single-engine twin-float unequal-span seaplane designed to be easily dismantled for hangar stowage on a submarine, capable of being reassembled in two minutes 30 seconds and disassembled in one minute 30 seconds. An order for 32 aircraft was placed. The aircraft entered service in 1938 with the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service as the Navy Type 96 Small Reconnaissance Seaplane with the last being delivered in 1940. Although it was in the process of being replaced by the Yokosuka E14Y monoplane, it was still in front line service at the time of the Japanese Attack on Pearl Harbor, remaining in service until July 1942, being used to direct their parent submarines onto Chinese ships attempting to pass the Japanese blockade of the China Sea. The E9W1 was given the code name “Slim” in 1942 by the Allies of World War II. (info from Wikipedia)
Watanabe E9W1 Type 96
Type: Submarine Reconnaissance
Service: Japanese Navy Air Force (JNAF)
Crew: two
Armament: one fixed forward-firing 7.7mm machine gun
one flexible rear-firing 7.7mm machine gun
two 66 lb (30 kg) bombs
Reference: Francillon: 410
Specifications:
Length: 28' 11" (8.81 m)
Height: 12' 7" (3.84 m)
Wingspan: 36' 0.25" (10.98 m)
Wing area: 285 sq. ft (26.5 sq. m)
Empty Weight: 2910 lbs (1320 kg)
Max Weight: 4189 lbs (1900 kg)
Propulsion:
No. of Engines: 1
Powerplant: Nakajima Kotobuki 2 KAI 1 9-cylinder radial
Horsepower: 580 hp
Performance:
Range: 485 nautical miles (558 st miles)
Cruise Speed: 115 mph (100 km/hr)
Max Speed: 186 mph (162 km/hr) at 9845 ft (3000 m)
Climb to/in: 9845 ft (3000 m) in 6 min 31 sec
Ceiling: 23850 ft (7270 m)
Production: approximately 755 E9Ws
Additional information on this aircraft can be found at Wikipedia HERE.
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