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Crew | 2 |
Dimensions | 25'9" by 29'6" by 9'4" 7.85m by 8.99m by 2.84m |
Wing Area | 291 square feet 27.0 square meters |
Weight | 2160-3200 lbs 980-1451 kg |
Engine | One 350 hp (261 kW) Armstrong Siddely Cheetah IX radial engine |
Speed | 175 mph 282 km/h |
Ceiling | 21,300 feet 6490 meters |
Range | 590 miles at 157 mph 950 km at 253 km/h |
Armament | One flexible 0.303 machine gun in the rear cockpit. |
The Koolhoven FK-51 was a Dutch biplane trainer aircraft that was also used in the light reconnaissance role. Three squadrons (about 36 aircraft) were in the Netherlands East Indies at the outbreak of the Pacific war, where they were slaughtered by Zeros. In his autobiography, Japanese ace Sakai Saburo describes an encounter with an FK-51 which, in spite of the FK-51's maneuverability and the obvious skill of the pilot, could only end one way.
References
http://www.rotterdammers.nl/lucht/koolhovenb.htm#51 (accessed 15 July 2006)
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